{ DATE #17: Mike Romney }

Ashley and Mike's date tonight is sponsored by Good Frau.  To check out the most beautiful and creative invitations around visit the shop here and for a 10% discount become a fan on Facebook here.

I have never been the one to notice eye color on guys. I can’t tell you how many times in college I would come back from a date, have my roommates all gathered around asking for the scoop and one would say “Well what does he look like? What color are his eyes?” and I would have to respond “Hmm, I don’t remember what color his eyes were actually…” But Mike Romney’s eyes were something you just can’t miss. His stormy sea foam green eyes (sorry, I told I don’t normally notice so I’m struggling with how to describe them…) just glow and instantly grabbed my attention. They’re soft and kind, but can also become narrowly focused when he’s intent on something. The other thing I noticed with more time was that Mike actually looks a bit like my younger brother…truly quite a bit like my brother! Good thing my brother and I don’t look too too much alike – that just might be weird.

Mike and I started off with brunch at Mimi’s Café where we were able to chat and get to know each other. Mike is a brilliant mechanical engineer, studying at BYU. Mike will deny his brilliance, but that’s part of his charming humility. Mechanical engineer is just perfect for him, given his love for cars. He has a project car that he’s working on, and has an Audi A4 that he takes to the race track. I was thrilled to have a date that I could talk cars with. My dad grew up around cars and working on them with his dad. My dad was always intent on his daughters knowing at least the basics of cars, and for some reason I just really got interested in them. I love any kind of vehicle with power (motorcycle, quad, car) that I can rev up and try to spin out. Dad didn’t teach me that though…I was just drawn to it! Needless to say, I find it very attractive when a man knows about cars, enjoys them, and knows how to work on them. Being mechanically minded is sometimes a lost art among men today, but I think it’s so completely manly and should be brought back!

Not only is Mike into cars, he’s into anything outdoorsy and adventurous. This was evidenced by the activity he selected for us, which was going rock climbing. I took a rock climbing class back in high school and have climbed a handful of times since. So I’m pretty familiar with the basic know how of rock climbing, but when you don’t climb consistently, you have a lot of specific muscles that are not prepped for the activity. The next day you always seem to feel muscles that you forgot even existed! And during the endeavor, you realize your shortfalls pretty quickly. But Mike was really good and encouraging and helped me pull off some 5.9’s. I really liked that he would let me do my thing, and work on figuring out my route, but once he could tell I was stuck, he would offer a suggestion. Other times I’ve gone with guys who have quickly told me where to put my foot or a hold to grab, as soon as I’ve paused for even a moment. I like to be able to try and figure it out first and Mike let me do that. He was a great supporter and a great climber himself. He was getting it done by climbing 5.10’s and 5.11’s. Impressive stuff.

Mike was super chill and very easy to be around. I enjoyed the low pressure feeling and our ability to just talk and enjoy each other’s company. As I got to know Mike, one thing I liked was how close he is with his dad. His dad had even joined him for the trip to Arizona, to have a bit of a weekend getaway together. Mike sees value in traveling and the experiences you can have, which I really value as well. We could certainly have some fun adventures together! I’m intrigued by Mike. I think he could be a good balance for me as we’re quite opposite in some personality traits, but we have a lot of similar interests. He’s a solid guy and I’d like to learn more.

{ Post Date Interview: ASHLEY & ADAM }

{ DATE #16: Adam McGrath }

I have never laughed so hard in the first 10 minutes of a date than I did on my date with Adam McGrath.  As we walked to the car he noticed a bird was perched on the driver side of his rental car, on the tiny ledge at the base of the window of the back seat.  The bird seemed to be staring right at us…I had to explain that this “creeper bird” was part of a contingency that had literally taken over my house during my 2 weeks in Europe.  My roommates were dealing with the same birds sitting on the ledge outside of their bathroom, watching them, constantly, and intently.

As we got in the car, the bird did not flinch.  As we began to drive down the road, the bird still did not flinch.  Man this bird was hard core!  I watched the bird closely as Adam gunned it, and was completely amused to see the bird literally hunker down with his wings to become more aero dynamic so he could maintain his post.  Surprisingly he held on!  Perhaps you had to be there, but we could not stop laughing.  The experience created a light and cheery mood which carried on throughout the date as Adam kept me laughing with our conversations.

We drove to a local favorite, Pita Jungle, for dinner.  The restaurant is known for being earthy and caters to vegans, vegetarians, etc.  It has a fun vibe, and some great food – especially the hummus!  Over dinner I enjoyed getting to know about Adam and his interests.  We share a love for the band 311, and can appreciate a good concert.  As we talked I had several stories come to mind that were experiences I’d nearly forgotten from my past.  I realized how great it has been to be going out with so many different guys who bring different things to the surface for me.

After the grub it was time to explore the Desert Botanical Garden with a flashlight tour.  There are hundreds of different cacti and other desert plants and flowers throughout the garden, all beautifully light up.  They have stations set up where you can learn about bats, tortoises, and Adam’s favorites: snakes and scorpions.  We were actually lucky enough to find a king snake in the trees – yes, he was IN the tree.  The garden was all out of flashlights for us to use (apparently it was a popular night), but Adam was very resourceful and found a widget on his smart phone for a flashlight – and it was one powerful flashlight!  So we were able to see the snake even behind several layers of branches.  At the actual snake station we were able to touch a different king snake which was surprisingly smooth.  I could tell how much Adam was loving this part.

How could we top the snake encounter?   Our next station was the scorpions, a delightful little critter that we’re lucky to have in abundance in Arizona (hopefully you can feel the sarcasm on that one…).  Though they are a pest, they’re actually pretty fascinating, and can give a snake a run for its money in the cool category.  Perhaps the coolest thing about a scorpion is that they glow under a black light.  They have a protein in their exoskeleton that has fluorescent properties.  Even a scorpion that is black under normal lighting, will turn a bright glowing blue/green under a blacklight.  Adam found this to be pretty impressive.

The park was closing so it was time to head on to our next adventure.  As we walked out, we passed what might be my favorite thing at the Garden, which oddly enough isn’t a plant.  There are stunning green and clear glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly right at the entrance.  Chihuly is the one that did the glass flowers on the ceiling of the Bellagio in Vegas and the tall red sculpture in Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City.

When we returned to the car I felt like I was in Abravanel Hall at a performance as Adam gave me a demonstration of his percussion skills on the steering wheel. Adam has a dream to become a member of the Blue Man Group and he is doing everything he can to obtain it.  He bought a drum kit, is taking lessons, and practices diligently.  I was really impressed with his passion for and commitment to his goal.  He really does have a sense for the beat!

It was time for a treat and Adam had a great place picked out – Subzero Ice Cream.  Given his profession as a metallurgist, it was perfectly fitting to get ice cream that is created by using liquid nitrogen to flash freeze the cream and mix ins you’ve selected. That place really is such a fun experience – not your normal trip to the ice cream parlor.  They even let us put our fingers in the liquid nitrogen (you just have to pull them out quickly!), and showed us how quickly it evaporated when you threw it on the floor. Truly a one of a kind experience! Again, I could tell that Adam was really enjoying the experience as well.

Over our ice cream I asked Adam if he had a celebrity lookalike.  With his response he busted out an impersonation that had me rolling with laughter.  Who is the celebrity look alike you ask?  You’ll have to watch to date to find out!  As I said, this guy had me laughing all night.  What a gift for laughter, and what a fun date.

{ Post Date Interview: ASHLEY & BRAD }

{ DATE #15: Brad Johnson }

Once I saw Brad, I could feel myself getting a little nervous and not being quite as eloquent on the doorstep as I would have liked to be…I found this guy attractive! Maybe it was the fact that he looks like Jason Bateman from Arrested Development who I’ve always had a crush on. Fortunately I quickly overcame this once we got in the car and we easily fell into conversation. We had a lot of things in common and so we had a lot to talk about. Brad is well traveled, well read, he’s adventurous, he’s athletic, he’s smart, and he’s funny. I was excited when he took me to Joe’s Real BBQ in downtown Gilbert. He’d never been, so I got to show him the ropes in the cafeteria style restaurant. I decided to indulge a bit and grab some chocolate milk. I felt better when he decided to follow suit. You get to pick a couple of different sides to go with your main entrée, and I was happy that Brad was willing to team up on the effort and get different sides so that we could both try more. I love sharing food! A guy that is a germaphobe and won’t share with me…that would be a tough one for me.

When I eat BBQ, I like to have a lot of sauce. So with a pulled pork sandwich and lots of sauce, you’re definitely asking for a mess, which is always fun to try and come off looking like a lady when you have BBQ sauce dripping all over. But I didn’t feel nervous anymore with Brad, so I just went with it. While we ate and talked, I noticed that Brad was really good at focusing on me. Despite the normal traffic of a restaurant, and the film crew a few tables over, Brad really zeroed into our conversation. It was really reassuring and helped me open up even more. He had lots of interesting stories to tell from his many varied experiences in life, and we just went back and forth. I was loving our communication!

By the time conversation wound down and we started to think it was time to get going, it had already gotten pretty late into the evening. The plan had been to go ice skating, but Brad’s flight had been later than originally planned, and since we talked so long, we wouldn’t be able to make it in time. So the backup plan was to head straight to the last phase of the date – ice cream at The Sugar Bowl in Old Town Scottsdale. This cute and traditional ice cream parlor has all sorts of goodies to choose from. But to be honest, Brad and I were so full that nothing looked all that appealing. But Brad suggested the Blarney Dream parfait. He does have Irish blood, and he has in fact kissed the Blarney Stone, so it seemed fitting. I was happy that in order to look over the menu (which was quite large); Brad came over on my side of the table and scooted right next to me. By this point, Brad had me rolling with laughter. He’s really quite charming and entertaining.

Once we determined we just couldn’t put any more ice cream down, it was time to get a little competitive and flirty. The Sugar Bowl has a bunch of little arcade games. I won Skee-ball, but he won Basketball. I was feeling evenly matched overall, but then he proceeded to win every other game we played. It was a humbling experience but Brad was so cute to always reassure me with a hug or a squeeze of my arm, so I didn’t mind as much.

Some of the audience feedback has been that I’m not flirty enough and they can’t tell if I like any of the guys. First, I do have to say that I think you generally are really only so flirty on a first date…think back to your first dates. But second, I really am one to follow the lead from the guy on how physically flirty I’m going to be. Brad has been the flirtiest date so far, and since I was interested, I went right with it.

It was fun to look over the prizes we could buy with our tickets. We settled on matching neon bracelets (totally 80’s style), a Chinese finger trap, and a plastic spinning top (Brad thought this would be a good test for whether we were living in reality or a dream – think Inception).

When it came time to say goodnight, I really wished we didn’t have to. I would have loved to spend a lot more time with Brad. But he ended the night perfectly with a sweet kiss on my cheek. Tell you what, this guy knew how to make a girl feel special. I think if Brad had been one of my first dates I would have been swept right off my feet. But as with normal dating , sometimes we get a little burned, and that’s happened for me with TMB (in some ways it really is more like real dating than I first thought it would be). Because of that, I’ve made myself just a little more guarded. Don’t worry, not too much. Just a healthy amount of reality to go with the girlish fantasies that can spring up after a first date. In the end, I really like Brad.

{ Post Date Interview: ASHLEY & DAVE }

{ DATE #14: Dave Mortensen }

Dave Mortensen quickly found the way to my heart when he brought me pink star gazer lilies. I, like most women, am a sucker for flowers.  How can you not feel happier when you have a bright and cheery looking flower sitting on your kitchen island?  The perfect start to the date soon found it’s bumps in the road, as we missed our exit in Scottsdale.  Cool as a cucumber, Dave assured me he didn’t need the GPS, despite being from Utah and not being very familiar with the area.  He’d already scoped out the area earlier in the day (such a sweet gesture! In fact, several of my dates have done this), so he felt sure he could get us back on track.  I was impressed by his composure.

The plan was to go to the riverwalk area of Scottsdale where they have an Art Walk that is supposed to include vendors setup on the bridge on Thursday nights.  For some reason, the bridge was empty.  Still unflinching, Dave led me to stroll down the streets of Old Town Scottsdale, walking past interesting flower shops, art shops, and even wig shops.  This is a great area of the Phoenix valley and I really haven’t spent much time in it.  It was a warm summer evening but Dave did not complain.  He stayed fully engaged in conversation with me.   Dave’s calm and easy going nature was rubbing right off on me.  I felt relaxed and unconcerned with any plans.  I just focused on Dave and getting to know him.  

Dave had made a reservation at Tapas Papa Frita, a restaurant right in the area that I had never been to.   He’d found it through careful research online.  Upon walking in I instantly knew that I was in for a dining experience!  This is where things got back on track and everything was going right.  The server, Nicholas, was personable and obviously knowledgeable.  Rather than us ordering from the menu, Dave requested that Nicholas order for us – to give us his favorites. I loved his willingness to entrust our dinner to the expert.  For the next hour we were showered with 7 different plates of amazing food – eggplant lasagna, ox tail, calamari, fancy things that I can’t even remember how to say.  It was a delightful culinary experience.

 

The owner of the restaurant, Joseph, a true Spaniard, came to check on us.  He then apologized that the Flamenco dancers who normally perform on Thursday were currently in Spain.  I looked at Dave and gave him a knowing look.  Wow, another part of his masterful plan had fallen through, but he had made no mention of it. Because Dave had just rolled with the punches I never felt concerned.  We just enjoyed our time, conversing, swapping suggestions for teaching Gospel Doctrine (we were both recently called to that position in our wards), and eating some great food. 

On our way back to the car, we paused to look out over the bridge.  Dave had some pennies so we chose to do the quintessential wish on the penny and toss it in the river.  However Dave did want to just toss them in, we needed to flip the coin.  Well, somehow I made it through 27 years without learning how to really flip a coin.  So he patiently tried to teach me.  Can’t say that I did it right, but I gave it a try.

Tonight really was great.  The date just felt so classic – like what every girl is told about when she’s little and when she’s in Young Women’s.  The guy arrives on time, brings you beautiful flowers, opens your door, has a wonderful evening planned, never makes you worry about any amount of money that is spent, because you are a queen for the night and no expense should be spared.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect that for every date, by any means.  But it is the quintessential, “perfect” date.  And Dave came through looking like a champ.

Dave is such an interesting person, someone who works full time in software and then dedicates many of his evenings to a theater production company.  He obviously knows how to prioritize and accomplish a lot – qualities that I certainly admire.  But at the same time, he knows how to enjoy the ride.  I think Dave has life pretty well figured out.   Was it a love connection between the two of us?   It’s hard to say actually.  I really enjoyed my time with Dave and can see potential.  So I guess time will tell.

{ Families Can Be Together Forever }

Hi Loyal TMB Followers.  We are checking in to bring you an update.  The first is that we are going live again next week.  Our talented crew has worked hard to recover footage and bring us the second half of Season Three.  Check in next week to continue watching Ashley on her journey to find true love.

On a sad note, we wanted to follow up with you on the post we did July 19th about little Ruby Jane Taylor.  After a long fight with liver failure, Ruby passed away early this morning and is now with her loving Heavenly Father.

When we heard the news we were deeply saddened for the loss of Ruby's life here on earth and so grateful that she touched our lives as we hope her story touched yours.  We believe that Ani and Matt Taylor will be reunited with Ruby again because they were sealed in the temple for time and all eternity several years ago.  Temple marriage is such an important part of our lives here on earth and the ultimate reason that we started this whole show.  We know that families can be together forever through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you can help the family at all financially, donations are greatly appreciated to assist in the months of medical bills that have piled up. A donation website has been started - please help at www.rubyjanetaylor.blogspot.com.

{ Behind The Scenes With Derrick }

{ Behind The Scenes With Matt }

{ CALLING ALL SPONSORS! }

Hey there loyal TMB followers! Thanks for sticking with us through this brief intermission as our Arizona crew puts their finishing touches on the second half of Season 3 with our lovable bachelorette, Miss Ashley Chapman.

We're excited to bring you even bigger, better dates, with more excitement than ever before. But before we get on with the show we're giving YOU, our loyal fans, an opportunity to be a part of the show!

Have you recently started a new business and are looking for a great way to spread the word? Or perhaps you're already well established and looking for a new crowd to come your way? We can help! Advertising with The Mormon Bachelorette is simple and easy. Just send us an email at: themormonbachelorette@gmail.com and we'll tell you everything you need to know to become a sponsor on the 2nd half of our show. It's an opportunity you won't want to miss, so send us an email today!

{ Behind The Scenes With Jace }

{ Behind The Scenes With Aaron }

{ Behind The Scenes With Pete }

Many of you have asked us to include more footage to get to know the guys better. We scraped through the outtakes and found what we could to help you get to know them behind-the-scenes. Enjoy Ashley interviewing Pete to get to know his alter-ego...

{ Reality Behind Tadd and Ashley }

Blind dates can go either one way or another - in Tadd and Ashley's case they were the "other".  Many of you saw their date as a fun evening with two great but very different people.  Tadd's awesome sense of humor and Ashley's ladylike manners and poise definitely clashed.  Even though it appeared that they had a good time despite their differences, there was something else going on behind the scenes.  Enjoy both Ashley and Tadd's thoughts about the most controversial date of this season so far.  We are pleased to say that things work out for the best and both are doing great now - getting to know people different from us builds character afterall:).