Leslie Hughes' Bachelorette Blog Week 1

 Former Bachelor contestant and Desiree's friend, Leslie Hughes, (Sean Lowe's season) blogs about The Bachelorette! You can follow Leslie on Twitter @leslieahughes


The Bachelorette WEEK 1
By Leslie Hughes

Holy Moly! Am I really writing a BLOG?! Never in a million years would I dream or ever imagine doing this. I’m not a big writer, but then again, I’ve never thought about writing things I’m passionate about. Maybe this is the beginning of a new chapter/adventure for me.  So hold on to your pants and please be patient with me as we embark on this new adventure together.

Wow wee! I can’t believe that it's time again for THE BACHELORETTE! Seems like just yesterday it was me trying to pack up what seemed like my entire house while I said goodbye to my family and friends for a few months for a new adventure, and I had no idea what was in store. It was a new JOURNEY.  We use that word so often during this franchise but truly there is no other word to describe it.  Let’s get right to it.

Desiree is the perfect girl to be the Bachelorette.  I love this girl! She truly is a very fun loving, free spirited, strong, passionate, kind woman, and didn’t she look absolutely STUNNING last night? That silver gown couldn’t have been more perfect for her, just stunning!


I love that ABC showed us the fun loving side of Des from the very beginning but also we got to see her emotional side (and you could truly see it when she was talking to Chris Harrison).  Before we get to that part, how about that GORG Bentley she got to drive around in! VA VA VOOM! Arrive in a Honda and gifted with a Bentley! Can we say HELLO! AMAZING UPGRADE!

Des is truly looking for a man that's made for her. “Love is trusting & believing,” Des said. “I will be weeding out the boys from the men.” Des has prepared herself and I think this is very important to do going through this process.  I couldn’t have said it any better.

Now let’s get on to it…Bring on the MEN! I can’t imagine 25 men to choose from and Lord Baby Jesus, did she sure have that last night! There were men with "not so many good qualities” and then of course, there were some that seemed perfect. Boy, the men truly tried WAY TOO HARD last night. What happened to the simple “nice to meet you, my name is _____ !” I know you want to leave a first impression that makes you stand out, but boy oh boy they pulled out all the stops! There was the man in armor, a magician, #hashtag man, dance move gone wrong, motorcycle guy, designed-own-wardrobe guy, the poet, and of course, the little kid Brody who melted everyone’s heart……that’s only some of them. You know it’s going to be an amazing season filled with so much drama and excitement.

The first limo arrived. As someone who has been in the limo, you have sooo many emotions going through your head and body. That was by far the most nervous, anxious, and excited I’ve ever felt in my entire life. It’s so surreal. You were kept in a hotel for the past 4 days or so just so you can get ready for the journey to begin (which I like to call the bachelor/bachelorette bubble).  You’re turned off from the outside world completely and for some people, they may go crazy. For others, they’ll be like me and enjoy the freedom and truly embrace every moment and be completely open of what could happen.  Drew, the first guy of the gate, couldn’t have done any better.  I like this guy. You could tell Drew was nervous but like I said, it’s terrifying especially if you watched the previous season and may have a crush on the person. I think he did wonderful, and it just felt natural between the two.  My other fave guy is Brooks. Des just looked intrigued by him (maybe it’s his McDreamy hair)!  I liked how Michael tried to find Des’s penny from when she made Sean make a wish. It was comical, brought light to their meeting and quickly broke the ice between the two.  It was very sweet and let’s pray that her wish comes true this time. 

Now that we have a few quality guys from the beginning, here comes what some might say the creative ones or just flat out crazy! Kasey aka #hashtag guy, wasn’t too bad in his first meeting. I'm just praying he doesn’t #hashtag his entire #journey.  Jonathan, looks ok and normal coming out of the limo and then wait for it .... an envelope with a fantasy suite key! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?  This man has serious kahunas. After that guy, we go straight to some serious Abs (Zak W.). Those abs were great and all but come on man, there is no mystery or wonder! Poor guy Larry, he wanted to impress her with a dance move that just went very wrong! Then, there was the night & shining armor guy “Diogo.”  She didn’t mean it literally dude.  What I'm curious about is did he rent the suit or does he own it?

So after more men come out of the limo, all of a sudden, you’ll notice the music changes. It's more upbeat and a little romantic; and then out steps one of the cutest bachelors I’ve ever seen “Brody” and his dad “Ben!” This duo truly melts your heart especially when Brody says, “Did I do everything? I wish I could go to the party.” So sweet and Ben is definitely on the top of my list. Finally, after meeting some great quality men and the “creative ones,” it’s time to see what's going on in the mansion and the fun begins!


Bachelor Behind-the-Scenes
It’s a long, long, long night in the mansion. Bachelor viewers have no idea that you don’t start the process until about 7pm in the evening and the whole cocktail party goes until 4 or 5am!  Then, the rose ceremony takes another couple of hours.  By this point, you're beyond tired, or for some people completely drunk. The roses are in plain sight the entire time, so if you weren’t nervous before, those roses definitely put a little pressure on you!  All you can do is not think about the roses and enjoy your time. Easier said then done! 

The Cocktail Party Continues 
Right when you think the magician is going to show everyone a trick, he pulls out one of the best moves I’ve seen in a while.  Made the first move and took Des away from all the men.  I give him props!  Ben and Des have such an easy flow conversation and they seem like they have a lot in common.  I love that Ben is so open and not afraid to share with her.  Communication is key with Des and he definitely has that down.  First rose of the night without a doubt goes to Ben.  Once she picks up the first rose though… WOA!!  You can feel the tension in the room through the TV. 

I remember how the room felt on my season when crazy eyebrow Tierra came in (with the rose).  Everyone got extra nervous and jittery.  All I can say is be patient. There are many roses left!  After Ben gets drilled from the guys on why he got the first rose, Desiree and the other guys start having some connections and she starts handing out more roses. (Des hands out roses pre-rose ceremony, like we saw on my season). The guys are truly pulling out all the stops from Abs guy "Zak W." jumping into the pool in his undies to Juan Pablo playing soccer in the front driveway. (Juan's accent is super sexy but I don’t see them long term).  Then, there is creepy Jonathan trying the damn fantasy suite card again and again.  Dude, she isn’t that type of gal. She has class and clearly you don’t know what that is. You can tell that he is making her super uncomfortable.  Thank god Des took control of the situation and sent him home.  She doesn’t have time to babysit little boys and like she said, she is looking for a man.  Sorry Jonathan, you are NOT that. After the men applaud her for sending him home, the process may be more real to some of them, and it’s time for the rose ceremony.

The First Rose Ceremony
This process takes literally forever! You are standing in one spot while waiting for your name to be called and it is really nerve racking.  If you don’t have a rose yet, you’re either wondering if your conversation and time together was used wisely or if the connection that you thought you had is reciprocated.  Gotta love the rose ceremony music though… suspenseful, what will she do? Then, of course, comes one of Chris Harrison’s favorite lines, “Final Rose Tonight.”  Overall, I think Des did amazing and really listened to her gut and weeded out some of the little boys of the night. Excited for next week as the trailer definitely shows that drama has begun! We will start to see more of who the men really are.  Two, one-on-one dates, and one group date.. Hmm, who will she choose for which?

My top six guys are: Brandon, Ben, Bryden, Drew, Brooks, and Mikey T.  We will see how I did in 10 weeks.  Thank you everyone for supporting me and checking out my first ever blog!  Hope everyone has an amazing week and remembers life is so much better and pleasurable with love in it.

Leslie A. Hughes
@leslieahughes