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Thursday, September 22, 2011

Extreme Makeover Home Edition - Review of Season 9 Premiere

It is time for the new season - Season 9 - of EXTREME MAKEOVER HOME EDITION!!  (imagine me saying that with all of Ty's enthusiasm) 

This season opens with a 2 hour season premiere on Sunday, September 25 at 7/6c on ABC.  (watch the teaser trailer below)

Through this blog, I have connected with so many wonderful, inspiring, and amazing people.  I have also been contacted with some really great opportunities that I would not have otherwise ever had the chance to be a part of.  I do not always accept the offers, but sometimes the opportunities are just too great to pass up.  Recently I was contacted with an offer to watch the season premiere of Extreme Makeover Home Edition before it airs on national tv.  Me?  Are you serious!?  Yes, please!  I love this show.  I love the idea behind it.  I love watching the houses come down and the new one (in all its grandeur) replacing it.  I love watching the families reaction at the reveal.  I cry.  A lot.  How can you not cry at this show?  So, when offered this opportunity to watch I was all for it...but you know what solidified it for me...the episode will highlight a former Navy Officer, Barbara Marshall,  who is fighting to end homelessness among female veterans.  I knew there was no doubt I was going to watch....and I am so glad I did! 


Here is a little bit about the show that I would like to share (without giving away too much) 
The show opens with the decorating crew traveling to the White House!  No, they are not "re-doing" the White House, hehe:


Instead, the crew of EMHE is stopping by to enlist the help of the First Lady herself. 
The crew moves on to North Carolina to the site of the makeover where we are introduced to Barbara Marshall, her family and the women at the Steps n Stages Jubilee House.  Ms. Marshall opened this house, along with her husband, as a transition home for homeless female veterans (single or with children) to offer them a place to stay, aid with job hunting, medical assistance, and transportation (just to name a few).  Ms. Marshall's spirit and compassion for these women is so inspiring.  What she is doing, empowering and helping these women, is undoubtedly not only making a difference for the women who come through her doors, but also for generations to come, as some of the women have children with them.

The house they live in is in need of many repairs and more space so that more women can be assisted...so in steps the crew of EMHE, Mrs. Obama, the build team, and volunteers from every branch of the service!  That was so amazing to see all the support of every branch. 

The family and residents of the house are sent off on a vacation and the work begins.  I loved the way the house came down!  I loved watching the new house go up.  It is always amazing to me how much they accomplish in just a weeks time.  The house is incredible and definitely just what Ms. Marshall needs to help women veterans get back into the game of life. 

Mrs. Obama was very hands on in this episode.  She seemed to truly care about these women who live at the Steps n Stages Jubilee House and genuinely wanted to help them.   She said somethings in the episode that really stood out to me.  "Everyone can do something"  How true is that?  Really, we can all do something!  We might not can build a house, but we can do something.  Know a family with a soldier deployed?  Take them a meal.  Mow the lawn.  Provide an hour or two of childcare to give the parent at home a break.  As a military wife of a soldier in the midst of his 3rd over year long deployment I can tell you we all need help no matter how together we may look.  
Below is a picture of Mrs. Obama and Ty:


Of course I want to share one more picture with you.  The picture of the family and residents as the crowd is cheering "MOVE THAT BUS" and their new home is revealed!  This part has to be hands down one of my favorite parts.  I find myself saying "MOVE THAT BUS" right along with them, hehe. 

Let me encourage you to watch this episode. It is no doubt one of my favorite episodes.  I promise you will be blessed by Ms. Marshall and her desire to make a difference.  One last thing, some advice, have tissues on hand.  :)    I will watch it again, right along with you and I will have my tissues.  So, watch it and let me know what you think!




*I received no monetary compensation for this review.  This was just an opportunity for me to watch a show before it airs, and share on my blog what I thought of it.

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5 comments:

Nancy said...

How COOL, Jess!!!
I will tune in!! :)

Crystal said...

We are big Extreme Makeover Home Edition fans! I look forward to seeing this episode!

Athena said...

How cool! I can't watch that show without crying and I am sure it will be worse for this one :)

Katie said...

That's so cool that you got to screen it before it airs! The cause definitely sounds interesting and the homeowner deserving. I'm also a crier when I watch this show, but this one sounds like it's well worth the tears. I'm looking forward to watching after reading your review.

gman said...

That’s cool that you are a military wife and featured this on your blog. One of the women was deployed and it was so upsetting to see how being in Afghanistan affected her in a negative way. Tracy Hudson really connected with the people there and wanted to do an amazing job for them which was obvious. The inside of the home too which was nice and I bet she sacrificed a lot to do that. Darn it! I forgot to set my DVR again for this show and I was afraid that I wouldn’t get home in time to see it; and I was right. I remembered that I caught a show I missed once on dishonline.com and so I looked on there and I was able to watch without even having to log into my employee account because it’s free for anyone who goes to the site. I hope EMHE stays on top in the ratings because it’s fantastic.