(Spoiler Alert)

The season 5 finale of Real Housewives of Orange County aired on Thursday (March 4) on BRAVO, and there was defiantly no shortage of drama.
 
The last episode left Simon and Tamra Barney celebrating her 42nd birthday on a gondola- kissing.  This week…not so much kissing.

Tamra and Simon started off the show as they dressed for the last party of the summer.  Which is when all the housewives (including previous housewives, Jeana Keough, Lauri Waring Peterson and Quinn Fry), and their families gather for cocktails and snide remarks behind each other’s backs?  Tamra, trying to coordinate with her husband, she asks Simon, “What are you wearing?  I’ve got this dress which you’ll probably hate. It’s totally backless.”  Simon responds, “It looks like something a 20-year-old would wear.  Why would you buy a dress like that?”

Tamra visibly looked distraught as she picked out a little black dress with a modest neckline and said, “I can understand he doesn’t want my boobs hanging out, and I totally respect that.”  But, of course Simon says, as he tries to wear down her self-confidence, “Skirt’s kind of short.  It almost looks like something Lynne would wear. I don’t know if its age appropriate. You’re a married woman.  Dress like a married woman.”

And as we see Tamra slowly growing a backbone and standing up for herself, replies, “I like it. I want to wear it even more because you don’t.”
 
But, that’s not the end of it, as the Barney’s get into a limo, on their way to the party. “You’re like Vicki. You talk to me like I’m Donn and I’m sick of it,” Simon said.  And he continues by telling her that she spends too much time with Vicki and not enough with her kids.  And as we’ve seen in the past, that is Tamra’s button (her kids).  She exploded, telling her husband, “You’re a nasty, vile person. You can go f*ck yourself . I want a divorce! F*ck you!”  Simon, afraid of his image, tried to smooth things over with a hug, and an apology before they walked into the party.

Donn and Vicki Gunvalson arrived at the party with thier two children, Michael and Briana.  But, in the limo, Vicki made sure to hound her son for dressing properly.  Vicki wore a short, backless yellow dress, and she looked wonderful. 

Perhaps, Simon should have said Tamra was trying to dress like Vicki instead of Lynne.

Gretchen Rossi and housewife hopper boyfriend Slade Smiley,  arrived at the party, while he wore a modified tux, and she had on a little white dress and an updo.  Vicki said they looked  “like the little plastic things that sit on top of a wedding cake.” While Tamra said the couple looked like “Cinderella and her toad…I mean, Prince.”

Lauri attended with her husband, George Peterson.  And at one point, Lauri confronts Gretchen about her relationship with Slade.  She almost warns her about Slade’s intentions because he has been with so many of the housewives previously.  Gretchen responds to this with, “Slade said that you two never dated.”  Lauri says, “We definitely did go out.”  And of course, Gretchen defends her attention whore boyfriend, as usual.

Not too long after everyone was wondering the whereabouts of Lynne Curtin and family, in comes more drama.  Lynne and her drunk teen daughters quickly grabbed attention as Raquel and Alexa screamed, laughed and talked about how drunk they were or weren’t. “Raquel and Alexa got into something they weren’t supposed to get into on the way in the limo,” Lynne said. “Oblivious me doesn’t even realize they’re taking the alcohol and filling it up in the water bottles.”

The Curtin girls tried to order margaritas and martinis, but were turned away.  The two got into a fight and Raquel ditched her younger sister at the party. Alexa left and had a breakdown outside the hotel but Jeana and daughter Kara Keough came to offer Alexa and Lynne comfort.
  
It was a wonder that Tamra kept herself together for as long as she did, however, the party wasn’t going to end without her breaking down. “I tend to hold a lot of emotional issues in. I just keep everything buried inside until it just explodes,” she said. “Simon pissed me off . I just couldn’t take it anymore. I needed to talk to somebody.” So, she pulls Vicki away from the party to talk about her problems with Simon. Soon, Simon heard from other partygoers that his wife was crying.  Simon found his wife and asked why she was crying and he demanded to know if she was telling Vicki about their fight in the car.
 
“I just want you guys to make up,” Tamra lied. “I want it to be fine between you and Vicki.”
 
“I don’t think Tamra was truthful with Simon because I think she’s afraid of him,” Vicki said.

Simon, who is always looking out for himself and his self-image, left the party, took the limo and left Tamra stranded.

The ladies ended the show, as usual, with their final group photo of the season, as we are updated on their lives now.

Gretchen and Slade are still together, but not married.   Alexis is no longer a stay-at-home mom, she now works for her plastic surgeon- and Jim lets her!   Vicki and Donn are doing well, continuing their “renewed “ marriage.  After being evicted from their home, Lynne, Frank, and her girls have moved into an “affordable” condo.  And Simon and Tamra sold their house on a short sale and moved out, separately.  Simon filed for divorce.

And that is that…until season 6!

(Spoiler Alert)

Well here are- the episode before the season finale of The Real Housewives of Orange County!

We start off with Lynne Curtin, and daughters, Raquel and Alexa still staying with her mother, while husband Frank Curtin staying at the spa resort after getting served with an eviction notice.

Tamra shows up on Lynne’s mother’s doorstep and after Lynne invites her in, she initiates conversation about what’s going on with her marriage.   . “I’ve always been able to forgive and forget but I don’t want to,” she told Tamra.

And Frank asks Lynne out for dinner to “talk”, of course Lynne obliges.  “My wife has been an angel in the last 20 years,” Frank said. “Whatever happens from here, whatever comes my way, I deserve.”

“I just want to know the truth,” Lynne said. “I’m his partner in life and I deserve to know.”

Frank pleads, “I love you too much to quit … After all we’ve been through, we can handle anything.”

And it worked!  Lynne forgave her husband. “I’m a pushover,” she said. “Frank is a good guy. I still love him. I always forgive him because I love him.”

Meanwhile, we’ve been waiting for the results of Briana’s (Vicki’s daughter) biopsy.  But, it was good news when they found out her biopsy results showed she was cancer free.

The drama that Alexis Bellino stirred up with Vicki Gunvalson in San Francisco was still weighing on her mind.  So, she invites Jeana Keough over for a drink and to talk.

“I can definitely look back and appreciate the friendship I’ve had with Jeana,” Vicki said. “Our friendship has been hurt but at least I know where I stand with Jeana.  In the end, we always had each other’s back.”

Vicki tells Jeana about the lunch in San Francisco, and how she felt like she was being attacked by Alexis. “What is Tamra Barney doing when this girl’s attacking you?” Jeana asked.
 
“I think she’s somewhat siding with her,” Vicki said.

“I kind of thought that Vicki deserved it a little bit,” Jeana said.  “I always had her back, but she didn’t always have mine.”

Now to Alexis, who had her mother, Penelope, in town so she could take her to the plastic surgeon’s office.  Penelope, 58, went in for an eyebrow lift, but it turned into $13,000 worth of procedures. “All women need to have a certain level of maintenance and a certain level of beauty,” Alexis said. “It makes them happier.”

Gretchen Rossi was busy setting up her booth at a convention in hopes of launching her makeup line.  But when no one showed up, she said, “Looks like there’s not going to be that many people this year, which is a little disappointing.   A lot of people don’t have the money to spend on milk and bread right now.”  And we see Vicki, who said on a few episodes ago that it was just the wrong time to launch a make-up line.
 
Should have listened to Vicki, Gretchen!

Tamra got together with her “ho’s and mo’s” for lunch to celebrate her 42 birthday.   Tamra explains that Alexis is not attending due to caring for her mother.  Tamra doesn’t mention Gretchen (not that we need to wonder why).  Lynne is in attendance.  And when Vicki sent an employee to the restaurant to deliver Tamra a present, she said, “That’s pretty hurtful.”

“Who has a birthday at 11 o’clock on Tuesday?” Vicki explained. “I’m working.”

Later Simon Barney and Tamra go out for a more intimate dinner to continue the celebration.  But the tension was so bad between these two; it was very uncomfortable to watch.

Tamra ordered Simon “a shot of happiness,” explaining that on her birthday she wanted to get him drunk so he’d loosen up.

After dinner, Tamra and Simon went for a gondola ride, in which the couple seemed to be getting along better.  “Simon and I are really weird.   We can be fighting with her other one minute and then totally making up and having fun the next,” she said. “The gondola ride was no different. We were out having fun and making the best of it.”

Next week- the season finale!

(Spoiler Alert)

The episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County on BRAVO that aired on February 18, began with the housewives still in San Francisco at their lunch outing.  Alexis Bellino gets offended when Vicki Gunvalson uses her cell phone during lunch because Vicki made fun of her for calling her husband Jim the night before at dinner. ( But during their private interviews- ALL of the girls had a problem with Alexis’ constant ringing phone!)  But, Alexis uses this as a step to confront Vicki in which she tells her that all of the women at the table get offended by what she says, especially a comment she made about being the only one who works.

Vicki gets defensive and tells her that she is new, and they do not know each other, and she walks out of the restaurant. Tamra Barney and Vicki’s daughter Briana go outside to check on her, and Alexis and Gretchen Rossi eventually follow. And where is Lynne at this time?  She went to the restroom, came back and is totally clueless. LOL, classic Lynne Curtin.

After the women go after Vicki, Alexis and Vicki get into it again.  This time Alexis tries to make her point again, and Vicki cuts her off. She told Alexis that since she doesn’t work, she shouldn’t have 2 nannies for her kids, why can’t she raise her kids herself if she does not have a job? And if that’s the “job” Alexis claims to have- then why does she have someone else doing it- she should raise her kids herself.

Chalk one up for Vicki.

The women return to the table after calming down. Then Alexis just has to bring God into the mess by suggesting that all the women say a prayer for Briana. Briana had just had a thyroid biopsy done. And the last word when they leave San Fran?

“ Alexis is a hypocrite,” says Vicki.

When Alexis gets back home, she invites her pastor and his wife over for breakfast so they can discuss how people look at them and may not think they live such a Christian lifestyle. Obviously, Alexis was trying to feel okay for her behavior on her trip, as she seeked justification from her pastor.
 
Now over to the Barney house- Simon asks Tamra how the trip was. She tells Simon about the argument that Alexis and Vicki had at lunch, and Simon turns it into a lecture about how she is never home anymore, she never spends time with the kids, and that the housewife drama is taking control of her life. Does Simon ever listen to Tamra?

So Tamra goes on a walk with Vicki to talk about their friendship, and Vicki tells her she needs to either have her back from now on with the other housewives, or they can end their friendship.

Gretchen’s parent’s rented out Merv Griffin’s estate in Palm Springs and invited Gretchen and Slade to stay the weekend.  And just after they arrive, Gretchen’s parents make some not-so-nice jokes at Slade’s expense.

“I stepped in a pile of Slade”, says Gretchen’s father, after talking about his visit to the horse track on the estate.
 
Slade then goes on a bike ride with her dad, and he reveals his intentions- he wants to ask his permission to propose to Gretchen! But, her dad tells him that he needs to also ask her mom, who doesn’t really care for Slade.
 
That evening during dinner, Gretchen asks her parents how they have stayed happily married, and the secret to staying married, happily. Gretchen was married and divorce, and she isn’t sure if she wants to go through that again.  However, Gretchen overheard Slade telling her father that he wanted to speak to him privately. Looks like Gretchen was heading off that question, which did not take place that night.

Now, Lynne goes to visit her husband in a hotel where he is staying. She and the girls moved in with her mom after they were evicted.  Alexa joins her mom and Raquel was nowhere to be found.

Frank apologizes over and over to both Lynne and Alexa, but they really don’t want to be there or want to listen to him at all. Lynne says that they have always lived beyond their means, and have frequently moved. Frank tells her that he will be open and honest with her from now on, but Lynne won’t make any commitments to him. Alexa gets visibly upset so he suggests that they go on a family vacation together.
 
Nice, don’t have a place to live- lets go on vacation!

Alexa storms out of the hotel room and leaves the situation hanging.

Next week, we should find out how Briana’s biopsy turned out.  Our thoughts and prayers are with you Briana.

(Spoiler Alert)

Last week’s episode left Real Housewives of Orange County, with Lynne Curtin’s daughters — Raquel and Alexa getting served an eviction notice from a man who said, “You’ve been served. Your mom and dad have been served.”

And of course the classy girl Alexa is, her reaction: “What the f*ck?”  And the older daughter to be oh so proud of, Raquel says: “Is this for real? Or am I dreaming because I’m so f*cking hungover?”

And while Alexa hid under the blankets, Raquel held up her middle finger to the camera crew while she called her mother to tell her what happened. Nice, real classy.

Meanwhile, Tamara Barney had already made plans to go to San Francisco with all of the housewives for a shopping getaway.  And do you think Lynne will miss out on going shopping even though she and her husband discuss their financial crisis?

Vicki Gunvalson and her daughter Briana went to see a doctor because Brianna has nodules in her neck that were concerning. But Vicki revealed that she had gone through the same thing when she was young and seemed very concerned about her daughters well being, and if it was going to interfere with her work schedule.

“I might have cancer and all my mom cares about is work,” Briana said.

In San Francisco, the ladies dined at Fleur de Lys, the restaurant of Top Chef Masters contestant Hubert Keller.  Alexis Bellino went along without Jim!  But don’t worry, he was only a phone call away and Alexis sure didn’t forget that as she talked on the phone throughout the dinner.

But when Alexis spit out a taste of Gretchen Rossi’s foie gras into her napkin, gagging because of the texture. And Vicki almost pukes! “When Alexis almost lost it, I almost lost it,” she said, because, you know, vomit can make you vomit. “Classless trash,” Vicki said. “I don’t know why Alexis is here.”

And of course Lynne had another emotional breakdown while she blurted out her financial troubles and the fact that her family was evicted from their home.  But the very next day the ladies went shopping and Lynne bought a black leather jacket by Vera Pelle for $1,185!!!

“I just got paid today. The check is in the mail,” Lynne justified herself. “Shopping is just a sport. It’s my sport. I’m a sport shopper.”

And this is the woman who blames her husband, Frank for their financial troubles!

And of course, it wouldn’t be a “Real Housewives” show without a good argument.  In the last scene, the ladies are eating lunch when Vicki starts texting work.  And of course, Alexis gets on her high horse and calls Vicki out for it because it was so unacceptable (according to Vicki) for her to be calling her husband at dinner.  And there it goes- Alexis vs. Vicki.  But, we’ll have to wait to next week for that conclusion.

Riverside County has issued a warrant for the arrest of Lynne Curtin.  Curtin currently stars on Real Housewives of Orange County.
 
Apparently, Lynne and her husband, Frank failed to show up for court yesterday to answer questions pertaining to a recent civil suit judgment.

The couple had been ordered to pay $1.2 million to a former business partner and hasn’t yet come up with the cash to pay him back.

And it is clear that the Curtin’s have been their share of money problems lately.  They were evicted from their O.C. rental home in August after falling $12,000 behind on their payments, does not come as a surprise.

But that certainly didn’t stop Curtin from getting your usual OC facelift and giving her daughter a birthday present nose job.
 
Priorities people!