Bravo TV has had major success with showcasing the lives of prominent women in some of America’s cities. Orange County, New York City, Atlanta, and New Jersey have been taken over by the Housewives. Last Thursday, Bravo added a new city to their ‘Real Housewives’ franchise with the series premiere of The Real Housewives of Washington D.C. I was personally interested in how these women would be since I live about 45 minutes away from the capitol. The women are very interesting characters, but I wont be able to give my overall impression of them until the end of the season. I’m still processing the premiere, so I decided to just introduce you all to the lovely ladies on Capitol Hill.

Stacie- originally from Alexandria, VA and the only housewife that actually lives in DC, Stacie has a Harvard MBA, successful real estate practice, and vigorous civic and philanthropic agenda. She and her husband Jason easily move amongWashington’s unique brew of local, federal, and international players.

Michaele- a northern Virginia native and model is a big part of the inner workings of the D.C. life. She and husband Tareq founded America’s Polo Cup, for which he is the U.S. team captain. Through her involvement in the Polo Cup, which has become one of the largest and most high profile polo events in the U.S., Michaele has met numerous political leaders across the globe. Additionally, the two are involved in running the Salahi family vineyard, Oasis Winery. She and her husband also crashed the White House Gate Dinner back in 2009.

Cat- This feisty Brit certainly knows how to shake things up in D.C. Cat lived the fast-paced, glamorous life in London, but after reuniting with and marrying her high school sweetheart, she decided to move to U.S. soil with her two daughters, Jade and Ruby. She quickly began socializing with Washington’s elite crowd, and counts many high-profile political figures among her friends. Her no-nonsense attitude and tell-it-like-it-is demeanor have helped her achieve success as a mother, interior designer, and a writer – she penned a book about her “racy” escapades as a charismatic, single woman living in London called “Inbox Full.”

Lynda-This southern housewife moved to D.C and never looked back. She’s created an empire as the owner and founder of T.H.E Artist Agency, one of the top modeling agencies in D.C. This cougar couldn’t be bothered to get married again, but has found love with her much younger boyfriend, Ebong. When she’s not working or running with her kids – Aaron, Jessica, Mihran, and Sam – she’s a staple on the Washington social scene, and is very involved in numerous charitable organizations.

Mary- As a second generation Washingtonian, Mary spent summers at the Kennedy residences as a child, and is the granddaughter of legendary radio and TV personality Arthur Godfrey. Married to her husband Rich for over 20 years, Mary is matriarch of her five children – Lolly, Ryan, Alexandra, Meghan and Matt – it’s never a dull day and she calls her life “controlled chaos.”

Tune into Bravo TV Thursdays at 10pm to get to know the women yourself!

Last Monday and Thursday, The Real Housewives of New York City concluded their 3 part reunion special. As I stated in my first post about this reunion, there was really no need for 3 parts. Bravo pretty much stuck the 2 major subjects of drama from the season in two parts and then took the less significant drama and stuck it into the third part.

As stated in my last post, the 1st part of the reunion centered on the break-up of best friends Jill Zarin and Bethenny Frannkel. In the 2nd part, the show’s host, Andy Cohen, had the women discuss the 2 episodes that will be remembered as “Scary Island.” New York Housewife Ramona Singer began the third season with a goal to “renew” herself. She began a skincare line called TruRenewal, started her own jewelry line, and even cut her hair to give herself a new look and feeling. (She somehow thought cutting her hair made her look like an older version of actress Cameron Diaz. Not the case AT ALL!) Anywho, along with all this renewal, she added her marriage to the list of things to renew and decided that before she and her husband renewed their vows, she and the other housewives should have a “bachelorette vacation.”

Ramona invited all the housewives to the vacation, but only Bethenny, Alex, the newest housewife Sonja, and despite warnings from Jill and LuAnne, Kelly tagged along the trip as well. The women flew out to St. John’s and then took a 2 day yacht ride to a private island and estate where they spent their 5 day trip. Since Kelly became the new housewife during season 2, she and Bethenny never really got along. I personally think it was mainly due to a clash of personalities along with Kelly’s extremely laid back attitude which really came off as “I don’t care about anyone.”

Bethenny, who was pregnant at the time, really tried to keep herself low-key, but Kelly kept instigating numerous fights throughout the trip that ended up leading to her being escorted off the trip by a Bravo producer.

If the drama couldn’t get any worse, the day after Kelly left, Jill randomly decided to show up and “surprise” Ramona after stating that she wasn’t going to come on the trip. Ramona ended up “politely” asking Jill to leave.

The women all agree that it was a trip to be remembered, but hopefully soon forgotten. With all the drama, the addition of Sonja, LuAnn’s single “Money Can’t Buy You Class” (available on iTunes), Season 3 of the Real Housewives of New York will be one to be talked about for a long time.

Tune into Bravo Monday nights at 10pm for the 2nd season of the Real Housewives of New Jersey and keep a look out for the Real Housewives of Washington D.C. which is slated to premier the first week of August.

The new summer season has started and with it comes new shows.

1. Make It Or Break It

Make It Or Break It is the story of four teenagers trying to survive the competitive world of gymnastics and balancing a normal personal life. There’s nothing new about it, but I love the fact that the characters have very extreme personalities. Emily is a gymnast scholar at the Rock and will do anything to ensure her family lives a good life. Payson Keeler, the top gymnast, works hard and sacrifices her teenage life to make it to the top. Kaylie Cruz breaks the rules when she secretly dates another gymnast from the club. And super competitive Lauren Tanner will do anything to make sure she’s on top including selling out her friends.

Mondays, 9/8c, ABC Family

2. NYC Prep

NYC Prep is a reality show about the lives of prep school kids in NYC. The show follows the lives of Jessie, PC, Kellie, Camille, Sebastian and Taylor as they try to live each day to get closer to their dreams. The show is a bit shallow, considering the central idea. If you want to know what kids do to pass time in NYC, you can try and watch this show. Otherwise, avoid the show. It’s intended for kids of the same age anyway.

Tuesday, 9/8c, Bravo

3. 10 Things I Hate About You

Based on the movie of the same title, 10 Things I Hate About You is the story of Kat and Bianca Stratford, two teenagers who’ve just entered the world of Padua High. Kat is a feminist who wants to save the world and get out of high school as fast as she can. Bianca is a social butterfly, determined to get into the good graces of the most popular girl in school. It’s very cute and while it resembles the movie’s storyline, they’ve managed to change some things around and offer a fresh spin on the show.

Tuesdays, 9/8c, ABC Family

4. The Fashion Show

The Fashion Show is Bravo’s replacement for Project Runway, which has moved to the Lifetime Network. The show stars Isaac Mizrahi and Kelly Rowland and features 16 designers competing for the grand prize of $125,000 and a chance to sell their designs in the retail market. It’s a great show, and the designers have turned out amazing pieces, but I do miss the drama of Project Runway.

Thursday, 10/9c, Bravo

Have you been watching these shows? Tell us what you think about it. Watching shows not featured here? Drop us a comment and let us know!

I avoided watching reality TV like the plague. I couldn’t imagine the appeal and I was vocal in my opinions. So, I was careful not to watch because I knew if I didn’t watch them, there was no possible chance I’d get sucked into them and end up looking like a fool. Also, I’d tune out conversations on the shows and their contestants for the very same reasons. With firm resolve, I managed to steer clear of Survivor, sidestep Amazing Race, and keep away from American Idol — even when William Hung was sweeping the nation.

And I was right. Sadly, I now know if I end up watching an episode, it’s all over — I’m addicted. My downfall: my mother, Bravo TV, Project Runway, and Top Chef. She blind-sided me when she turned Project Runway on one evening while I was at her house visiting. Before I knew it, I was spellbound.

My addiction started harmless enough with the scanning of the television waves for repeats of the episodes I’d missed while I’d sit on pins and needles waiting for the next week’s episode to air — desperate to see if the contestants I liked were going to make it to the next level or be eliminated. Before I knew it, I was deep in the thralls of reality TV and sat for hours talking about Project Runway and Top Chef with my mom — fighting over who were our favorites and who we wanted to get the ax — on which we could never agree.

As I watched the last episode of Project Runway’s last season, I vowed this was it — no more reality TV for me. But I was thwarted by the evil genius that is Bravo TV’s advertising. How dare they show trailers of the upcoming season’s Top Chef!