Anyway, when we got home, Dave was literally walking out of the house because he had something so important to talk to me about – it couldn’t wait until I got inside. “Do you want to go to the Laker’s game?” I look at my watch. “You mean the game that starts in 45 minutes?” He says “YUP!” and I said “OF COURSE I DO!!!” SO just like that, he snags last minute seats and we are off and running to get to the Staples Center by tip-off. The game was fantastic… so exciting, and of course, great that the Lakers started the series off against the Jazz strong. The crowd chanting MVP, the Ben loved the noise-makers they gave us sitting behind the visitor’s basket to try to distract them from making free-throws, the whole thing was a blast.

As Ben was getting a quick nap, I started throwing together his dinner. I love to cook, so it was so fun for me trying something new… I tried to make a healthy version of a Gnocchi. With the butternut squash, yams and whole wheat flower. Ben loves salad, which the gnocchi accompanied. We played soccer outside for a while, and then Dave and I had to get ready for the Duran Duran concert we went to, Sunday night. Yup, back to downtown LA… We rocked out feeling very ‘80’s. Totally rad. They opened with Hungry Like a Wolf and their encore was Rio. They were fantastic, we loved it.
The rest of the week has been a little more on the ‘manic’ side. We’re in production for Biggest Loser again. As Dena mentioned on her blog. What’s up with all my blog competition??? I must tell you, I teased Stuart at length about his blog.

I LOVE this picture. Stuart, and Fran, our other main stage manager are truly life savers. We count on them every day to help us, rescue, us make us look good. They work so hard, and don’t always get the acclaim they deserve. So – feel free to tease Stuart, but go easy. We NEED him!!! :)

Nicole has Autism and Soto-Syndrome. She is a huge Days fan, she watches with her Grandmother every day.

Bryan and I answered questions for some of the kids in the school and took lots of photos. Ed arranged to make a dvd for Nicole, several actors sending our love and thanks to Nicole, from the set. She absolutely loved it, as we played it for her in front of her whole class! She was so blown away when she walked into the library and saw Bryan and me standing there!!! It was kept as a surprise by her teachers and her grandmother. She was so sweet, and nervous and excited! Nicole is an extraordinary girl. We had an amazing experience getting to spend time with the special needs kids in attendance, as well as all the amazing adults who are taking such good care of their students. They are such incredible, giving people. It was a truly inspiring experience.

Afterwards Bry and I took some time to walk up 5th Avenue. Was so much fun, and of course, hilarious with Bryan along making wise-cracks the whole time.
A nap was needed by late afternoon, especially since we were going out to meet Farah (ex-mimi) for her birthday dinner. Her birthday is today (5/1) , technically, but we celebrated with her Tuesday night. Everyone had so much fun, and it was so great to catch up with FF, talk about her new role – Gigi, and her love interest is Rex. What are the odds? Lol.

Wednesday came way too early. Ha. My call time was 5:45am. Bry and I were on a nyc morning show, and then headed to The View for rehearsals. We don’t often get the chance to hang out with actors from other soaps these days, so this was a fun morning. Rebecca is so sweet, as always, Cameron, cute and funny. Farah was there with her co-star, Jean Paul. Marcy was so cute too. She and Van were presenting first, right before us, so we were whispering backstage last minute warnings – don’t trip on the stairs, don’t walk to fast… you know, helpful stuff! :)
Can I tell you how THRILLED I am for Rachel, Darrin, Judi and Thaao!?!!?! WOW!!! So awesome!!! And they totally deserve it, they are such great actors, and it is so exciting to see Days get some recognition. I was also so delighted to be the first to congratulate our Make-up and Hair depts. for their nominations! They didn’t know yet, so I broke the news. They were SO excited, as of course they should be. They work so hard (you have no idea what they put up!!!). lol. They really are the best.

Okay, so then we’re off to the airport again, flying back to LA. I got to tuck Ben into bed! Aww, I missed him SO much. I thought he’d be running to the door, but he wasn’t there, I called out “Ben? Where are you?” and he shouted “MOMMY!! I’m in the BATH TUB!!! I’m ALL WET!!” ah ha. So that’s why I didn’t hear his little footsteps. I got a big, sloppy, wet hug when I went into the bathroom. Yay. Best homecoming ever!

p.s. to the unhappy 'anonymous' fan -- me, Ali, the actress, happy that Bryan, the actor, is back, working, is a slap in the face to a fan base? I'm not sure I understand that. And, of course, am so sorry that you feel that way. I hope when you see the scenes, you'll understand my post better, and see that I meant no offense to either fan base, or, for that matter, to give away story one way or the other.
As a lover of good soap drama, I am extremely enthusiastic to sink my teeth into great dramatic material, which is exactly what lies in Sami's future. I hope this makes more sense. I blog here out of my excitement to share what's going on with all of the fans who want to read it. It is always upsetting to see when my words are misunderstood.

We all went out after the show to celebrate. I loved meeting everyone’s families. Mark & Jay’s sister explained to me that Jay used to watch Days when he was younger, so that’s why he couldn’t talk to me without blushing for the first several weeks! Lol. And I have my very own ‘Bern-dana’ now. I met Kelly’s incredibly supportive and funny family. They were all so fun to hang out with.

. It is shot on the same lot as Days. Ali was FANTASTIC on the show. So cute, sweet and positive. She has such a great message to share with everyone. Afterwards, she asked if she could see where I work. I took her over to the Days set and it was the quickest spreading gossip. Cast and crew came out of the woodwork to come meet Ali give her a hug and congratulate her on her success. Ali is a big hugger. :) She walked through Salem, met Peter and Kristian (Bo and Hope).

Kristian gave her one of her bracelets of her own design. Hopefaithmiracles.com the bracelet has a charm on it that says “believe” and it gave me chills to see how it affected Ali to receive such an appropriate, and meaningful gift. She is such a sweetheart. And everyone loved meeting her.

Now, that you’re done reading this blog, please proceed directly to the BL home page and VOTE!!!

XO
ali

I can’t begin to describe how fantastic Australia is. Not only is it a beautiful country, the people are SO nice, everything about it … just blew me away. I can’t wait to go back, it was the most spectacular place, there are so many things to say about our trip, I don’t even know where to begin.
The Bridge Climb was just incredible. In the gift shop, they have a wall of photos of celebrities who have climbed the bridge: Robert DiNero, John Travolta… Drake Hogestyn, Deidre Hall!! So I knew I was in good hands. I talked to Dee, Drake and Thaao about traveling to Sydney – they went to promote Days last fall – and they couldn’t stop raving about it. Thaao grew up there, so he had many recommendations for us, including suggesting that I call (flashback to 2002) Justin Melvey (he played Colin on Days). Justin spent an hour on the phone with me, recommending places, and offering all sorts of advice. He was so nice about everything and it was the perfect way to get ready for our trip.

Okay, I’ve had like 5 people email me tonight to say they were bawling during the elimination. Of course they were – seriously, it was a tear-jerker. I was totally choked up. Seeing the bond between Mark and Jay, and hearing Jay talk about his decision to ask to be voted, it’s a tribute to the man he is. Not to mention the impact he’s had on Roger, Ali and Kelly. He is a great guy, and it was really hard to say goodbye.
It’s great to see Kelly’s attitude change over the last couple weeks. She has constantly been on the chopping block – since she started the show she’s felt that if she fell below she’ would be the one to go – and finally her successes have given her the confidence she deserves. I loved hearing her say she knew she was a threat, so what? Just gonna work that much harder.
Only 4 people left. 3 finalists. Who’s it gonna be??

XO
ali

p.s. For more about my trip to Australia, please visit alisonsweeney.com, I'm going to post more photos and stories about my expereince in Sydney on the message boards there. xo

Lynn told me that he didn’t go home right away ready to change his ways. That it was a struggle for him at first. And actually, it was seeing the season 4 finale that ended up making the difference for him. That when he saw all the successes of Phil, Jerry (they’re the same age), Neil, etc, he felt that he could do it too – and now he’s on his way! He is helping Jenny and they are making great progress.

Roger had to tease me about my reaction to Curtis losing 100lbs. I don’t usually high-five people during at the weigh-ins! It’s not really on purpose, but I guess because I want to be fair, and make sure everyone knows I’m equally happy for them all, I try to keep my reactions to their #s on the scale contained. But when that number – 100 exactly – came up on the board, I was just so caught off guard that I was already high-fiving him and celebrating with everyone before I realized what was happening. So, at spin class the next day Roger and Jay had to do their impression of me cheering him on, and being so happy for him. I took their ribbing well, but reminded him I was just as happy for him – but Curtis didn’t have the advantage of being on campus when he lost all that weight – that is pretty spectacular, right?!

I heart Jillian.

That zip-line challenge was SO COOL. The first thing I said when I saw it was “I want a turn!!” lol – that is so my thing. The whole time we were up there shooting it was so windy. Seriously, we were being sand-blasted up there. But it was so worth it for the coolest challenge ever. Jay and Kelly both had to face major fears to accomplish the task. And they succeeded. Everyone was so proud of them for doing such a great job.

Saying goodbye to Bernie was so difficult for everyone, the black team and the crew. We all loved having him around on campus, making everyone laugh and being such a great competitor. He’s such a great guy, and I was so sorry to say goodbye to him. But, wow, he left campus in about the most honorable, classy way you could go. He sacrificed himself for his teammate, and didn’t regret it for a second. The whole time it was just concerned for his teammates, showing that he is the strength and the support-system for that whole team, not just through his words but his actions too. I couldn’t help but notice how they were all holding hands during the voting, and that he had nothing but encouraging things to say to his teammates as he left. Bernie is truly a great guy.

What is crazier than those tattoos? I told Dan I don’t envy him having to show his mom that ‘guardian angel’ on his arm. I guess I’ve never been much of a tattoo person. It’s not really my thing. A bunch of the actors I work with at Days have tatts. It’s such a pain for the make-up dept to have to cover them up in scenes, and you can always sort of see them anyway. So I guess I’m biased. Lol.

This week the teams were all hyper-aware that this weigh-in was going to make a huge difference in the outcome of the entire game. Four vs four, the elimination was going to put one team at a huge disadvantage. And neither team wanted to be in that situation. Mark is right – he’s lost so much weight, that his numbers aren’t going to be as high as he needs them to be to stay in this game.
The emotion, the heart and the team spirit these guys showed in the elim process was really special. Now you know why I love these guys. They are such tough, honorable men, and I really admired the way they handled such an impossible situation.

I’m sorry I haven’t blogged in a while. I’ve had a pretty hectic schedule, including some travel that made it impossible to post. But BELIVE ME, I have had some SERIOUS feelings about the last couple episodes. As I think was made clear tonight, Mark is NOT a bad guy. From almost the very beginning, I totally relate to how competitive he is, and I understand how that can overshadow other sides of his personality that we all saw being on campus, but don’t come across. Just as an example, here’s a side of Mark you didn’t see on tv.

The very skilled (and nice) caterer at the Biggest Loser prepares very delicious but not always healthy meals for the crew. The cast eats in their house, separate from the crew, of course. And normally, I eat before I come to set, but when I’m there, I can usually find a fish, or chicken dish that is reasonably health conscious. One night, however, I was left debating between pasta with cream sauce and chicken dumplings. I couldn’t even have the salad because it was a Caesar salad. So, the lightbulb went off (this would be the perfect place for a Days of our Lives style ‘flashback’ to the cooking challenge, lol) and I hiked over to the contestants kitchen to scrounge around and find something healthier for dinner.
Who was there to save the day? Mark!! He happened to be walking by and asked what I was doing. I explained my predicament, and he offered to make me dinner. I didn’t want to put him out, but he insisted he had nothing else to do and wanted to do it. So… I said “yes! I would love something healthy!” especially now knowing how delicious Mark’s cooking is (the scallops were perfect, according to Rocco)! And it was DELICIOUS. He made me a swordfish filet and vegetables. Perfectly cooked and the perfect portion. I had to ask him – what’s the deal? You clearly enjoy cooking, and you’re great at it… why didn’t you do this at home? We talked a lot about how life and family can get in the way of your health before you even realize it. I ended up hanging out with Mark, Jay, Dan, Brittany, Roger, Jillian and Jackie for a while that evening and we all had such a good time. It was so much fun to just relax and chat without the cameras rolling.

(p.s. Amanda, I shared your post with Mark. He really appreciated Trentin's support, and was so happy that you posted. He asked me to relay the message that he'd love to write him a note if you want to email me your info privately, go to my website, Alisonsweeney.com and u can send me a private message there. I'm happy to be the messenger! thanks for watching!!!)

I have to say, I was shocked by Jillian’s reaction to the news that we were going to black and blue teams. I’m not sure what I expected, but as Bob claimed Orange, Black and Grey teams as the new blue, the tears running down Jillian’s face said it all.

Bob had the unenviable position of winning the right to choose the teams. And it’s pretty clear that he stacked the deck in his favor – physically. He chose teams that have been clearly marked as the biggest ‘threats’ on campus. But knowing Bob, I know he was also considering the best fit for each contestant, as much as he was thinking about putting together a great team. And again, Jillian has a team of ‘outcasts’. Though as was proven by Jillian last season, you can never discount her band of misfits. And truly, there are no underdogs in this game. Because so many different factors come into play. I mean, who would have guessed that Orange Team would have won the Biggest Loser Team of the week, twice? Who would have thought that from one week to the next, the Yellow team could have gone from almost being eliminated to winning the weigh-in?

And lets talk about Brittney, staying strong on that escalator up against the boys in blue. She held out for more than 20 minutes. That was truly impressive. And while I think Jillian was trying to save Brittney’s legs to, with a ‘live to work-out another day’ mentality, I could see that Brittney did not want to give up. I totally relate to that competitive spirit. I told her too, I totally get why she didn’t want to give up. I’m like that too … I hate working out, and certainly stair-steppers are the devil, but make it a game? And I would’ve kept walking until I passed out rather than give up. Brittney has been working hard for weeks now, but she shined in that challenge and earned new respect from everyone out there that night. I think the blue team knows the black team isn’t giving up without a fight. Which was why it wasn’t surprising but certainly impressive that no one was ‘tempted’ by the strategy advantage at the Cola Wars temptation.

Ultimately, everyone is at the BL ranch for the same reasons. To lose weight, get healthy, to change their lives. But at the end of this experience, only one person gets to ‘win’, and only one person gets the $250,000. So it is understandable, that even though this is a truly unique bonding experience, no matter how the teams start out, it is, in the end, an individual game.

I was sad to say goodbye to Jenn. She and Maggie have been such a fun team to get to know, they both work really hard, and Jenn was starting to have all that work pay off on the scale. We spoke briefly before she went home and it was hard to see how disappointed she was to be leaving the ranch so soon, but I knew she was committed to getting healthy, and seeing how great she looks now was so inspiring.

Wow. What a turn around. Last week they were below the yellow line, and in one week the Yellow team turned it around to win the weigh-in. And on the heels of that success, they get the majority of the votes from the other teams as the team they would most like to vote out right now.

Now, a word about that. Let’s all agree that BL isn’t the kind of show that would just send another team home for no reason. So each team had to go off by themselves for a couple minutes, and speculate about what we were going to do to the team they picked. I would have done the same thing, trying to outwit the game. But sometimes you can think to much. I mean, I sort of assumed the teams would vote for the Black Team. And, actually, I don’t know why they didn’t. Everyone likes Mark and Jay, they are great guys, but they’ve been the obvious threat from day 1.

It was amazing to watch Paul bound across that balance beam in the pool. (How hilarious was the gong they kept playing?) He was cautious the first lap. Maybe even the second… but he quickly took the lead and never looked back. And never gave Kelly a chance, either?! She told me she kept trying to get a chance to do it, but Paul was on a mission – which would serve as a foreshadow to the weigh-in, he was determined to show that the Yellow team could beat the group.

And Kelly looked so torn up about giving their prize to the other teams. It was an extremely generous decision, as well as a politically wise one, but Paul seemed to be truly focused on his goal and not interested in the distraction. Kelly seemed much more upset to give up the letters, but she didn’t hesitate to agree with Paul when he made the offer. And the other teams, seemed genuinely taken aback by the offer. They were truly overwhelmed to know they’d be hearing from their loved ones, thanks to Paul and Kelly. They’ve been away from their families for a month now, and I can only imagine the toll that takes of everyone. Hopefully the letters will inspire them to stay strong and focused on their goals.

Once again, I was pretty surprised by the decision at the Elimination. Black clearly avoided the noose by winning BL Team of the Week. Without that immunity, Paul made it clear at the weigh-in and at the elimination table that the Yellow teams vote was going to be Mark and Jay.

There was obviously a lot of strategy and gameplay going on all week. And while Kelly seemed upset by some teams coming forward during elim with how they’d ‘taken it easy’ which ultimately helped the Yellow team secure a victory at the weigh-in, they have clearly formed tight alliances with certain teams.

The challenge led to some interesting discussions and certainly was revealing of all the early alliances that have crept up. I was surprised by the reaction of the other teams to the interaction between Mark and Jay. I must admit, I was standing 15 feet from them and I didn’t find their argument to be so out of line. I guess I have brothers, and I’m extremely competitive as you can clearly see Mark is. So I guess it seemed like a moment of frustration to me, and it caught me off guard the way that it was interpreted by Brittany and some of the others. I did catch the by-play between Jackie and Jay. Again, I just think that challenge brought out a lot of strategy and emotion that people weren’t quite ready to admit to? And in the end Gray won. Who would have guessed that? They seem like such an obvious ‘threat’ to me in this game. While the black team is more in the ‘limelight’ the Gray team has a tremendous amount of weight to lose, and the numbers they’ve been putting up are impressive. I was surprised that no one thought of them as a threat to take out early if possible. How long they will succeed in staying below the radar.

What can I say about Neill and Amanda. I love how Jillian reached out to him. She has an amazing way of getting through to people, and figuring out what is mentally and emotionally behind the weight is just as important as the nutrition and exercise. But I have been in the gym when she punishes everyone because he was walking or holding on to the treadmill. And it’s understandable how infuriated everyone was by his behavior. Amanda never gave up. While I was in the gym with everyone this week I never once heard Amanda complain, or saw her slow down. She committed 100% to this competition and I was not surprised at all to see how well she’s succeeded at home.

The twist for the next week? You’ll have to wait and see!!! :)

Anyway, it was impressive to see Mark and Jay, again dominate the challenge. Their communication skills kept them going as they got tired, and again Blue team was making the Black team fight for victory, but in the end the outcome was clear. Black team wins again. But most of the teams wanted to keep going, to reach the 100 mark. Bette-Sue wasn’t as excited to keep it up as Ali, but Ali kept her going. Purple team were closest to me, so I got the chance to see how well Maggie and Jenn support each other. They were great at inspiring each other, when it was needed, or giving a verbal kick in the pants, when that was what’s called for. That’s what friends are for, right?!

Neill’s struggle with the gym was such a key part of the episode. While I can only imagine how hard it was for him to watch, it shows how real and how tough this experience is. Weight loss is not just about counting calories and running on a treadmill – there is huge emotional and psychological aspect that is dealt with every day. And Jillian’s talk with Neill was just one example of the way that Jillian and Bob work with everyone they train to help them change the rest of their lives.

Everyone dealt with very low and frustrating numbers on the scale today. And the temptation the night before the weigh in didn’t help. Though Mark, Paul and Mallory all took into account their calories and spent extra time at the gym they all were thinking about that BBQ when then got on the scale. But the weigh-in was a wake-up call to everyone that weight loss at the Biggest Loser campus in some ways, is just like at home. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve experienced that same feeling myself – I spent a whole week, eating right, working out for what? No lbs gone?! And then it’s so much easier to just throw in the towel. I have so much admiration for everyone, dusting off their disappointments and renewing their efforts with Bob and Jillian to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

The elimination this week was so emotional. Each team had a different approach. Purple went with the numbers, meaning they voted for the Brown team because they had the lowest percentage of weight loss. Other teams went with the bonds they’d formed – some were clearly so close to Curtis and Mallory and some have tight friendships with Kelly and Paul. Amanda and Neill seemed very upset to be losing their roommates. They obviously had a lot in common, and the friendships that are formed on campus become very close very quickly. I have to say, on that subject, having watched reality shows for years, I never really understood why contestants would become so emotional about voting someone off after having only known that person for a few weeks.

But having lived through, only partially, what they are going through, it all makes sense now. They are living in each others pockets… 24/7. they have no outside support system, so they immediately bond with the people they click with. Bottom line, you have to trust someone, somehow. And with everyone at Biggest Loser, ultimately trying to achieve the same goal, it is easy to see how such tight friendships form so quickly. And it was heartbreaking seeing Jay hug Mallory goodbye, and Neill show such emotion at saying goodbye to the brown team. They walked away with the pride of knowing they do have the inner strength to continue – and that everyone in the room, crew, host included is supporting them on their journey and wishing them the best of luck.

Right from when we first started discussing the possibility of doing teams of two, I loved the idea. To have a teammate with you, going through this experience, would add so many interesting dynamics to the show. First of all, you have a built in support system. Some one who will love you no matter what happens on campus. But, then in some ways maybe it’s harder too. And gotta love Jillian’s comment – they may be bringing their ‘enabler’ with them…What’s harder: getting on the scale in front everyone in America, or getting on the scale in front of your husband?

Right away, I love Dan – he is hilarious, and very charming. He and his mom are so boisterous and they have a very loving relationship. Talking to all three parent-child teams really struck home for me. I have a young son, and I am trying so hard to teach him healthy eating habits and getting him outside to play all the time, so I know how tough it is. And I relate to these Bette-Sue, Jackie and Lynn, feeling like they are responsible for their child being in this situation. But I love the pro-active attitude both members of these teams have taken. The kids aren’t letting their parents take all the responsibility, and they are definitely all taking on the challenge of getting healthy.

I look forward to getting to know all the other teams as well… based on the challenges this week, the Black team is setting a pretty high standard. They are clearly going after everything on Campus no holes barred. And Bette-Sue seemed to struggle with her confidence when facing our very first challenge. But when she finished in the middle of the pack at the balloon challenge I could see her confidence go way up. It was just too bad to see the purple team, Maggie and Jenn have such trouble out there on the course. They are such great girls and great friends, I am glad they have another week here. It’s hard to say goodbye to anyone, but I was so sad to see Lynn and Jenny leave. The father/daughter bond they share is obvious, and Lynn clearly made a positive, strong impression on the house. During the elimination, Bernie, Mark and some others really tried to help motivate Lynn to go home and continue his road to health, for his family. They were all really rooting them on.

We’re starting off on another great season of Biggest Loser!