The Bachelor’s Bekah M. Responds to People Who Have an Issue With Her Age

Questions about Bekah M.’s age have been buzzing around Bachelor Nation ever since fans first noticed that particular detail had been left off of her bio. And on this week’s episode, both viewers and Bachelor star Arie Luyendyk Jr. found out that the woman he’s been falling for is 22 — 14 years his junior.

Though he was clearly shaken by the revelation, he still gave Bekah a rose at the end of their one-on-one date. Some people on Twitter weren’t quite as accepting, though, and questioned everything from her maturity level to her relationship experience to her marriage potential.

And she was fully aware of all of it.

Taking to social media, the woman at the center of the brouhaha tweeted, “The internet: BEKAH IS 12, HER LONGEST RELATIONSHIP WAS IN JR HIGH, SHE’S ARIE’S CHILD.”

She then added, “ah, yes. 22 really is SO young compared to the other girls. hopefully one of the many 25/26-year-olds this season can grant me some of their ancient wisdom.”

She may have a point there. Maquel (who unfortunately had to leave this week when she got the news that her grandfather had passed away) is only one year older than Bekah M. As is Olivia, who went home on the premiere.

And while there were some contestants in their thirties — Lauren J., 33, Annaliese, 32, Lauren S., 31, and Bibiana, Nysha, and Brittany T., all 30 — the other ladies range in age from 25 to 29, making the majority of them around seven to 10 years younger than the leading man.

In any case, Bekah M. isn’t here for the comments or criticism. “If i’m ‘too young’ and ‘immature,’ explain how this week i did all my laundry and put it away immediately WITHOUT LEAVING IT IN A PILE ON THE COUCH FOR 3 DAYS?? #adulting #ready4marriage,” she joked. *slow clap*

Luyendyk had his own thoughts on the situation, telling Ashley Iaconetti and Ben Higgins’ Almost Famous podcast, “It did shock me that she was 22. I really expected her to be in her mid-twenties, even though she looks so young, just because we always had these really great conversations. She’s very intelligent, she’s very mature, and she really read me really well.”

He added that although there was some “inner conflict” over her age, he wasn’t ready to send her home. “I couldn’t deny the fact that there were a lot of feelings toward her. … At that point in the show, I was probably the most connected to her and that made things really difficult for me.”

The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8pm on ABC.

Do you think the age difference between Bekah and Arie is too big? Let us know @BritandCo!

(Photo via ABC/Craig Sjodin)

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives totally dominated the reality TV space in 2024 — and season 2 is will be here before you know it. The show premiered on the Hulu on September 6, and quickly became the year's most-watched unscripted season premiere. Well, MomTok watchers: drop everything (except your phones) because Taylor Frankie Paul and Whitney Leavitt just teased a crazy season 2 of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.

Here's what Taylor Frankie Paul and Whitney Leavitt said about The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 2.

Taylor Frankie Paul & Whitney Leavitt say season 2 is "better" than the first.

"With the second season, you're having conversations constantly with your peers and sitting in your interviews or confessionals where they're constantly asking you questions about yourself and about a scenario. It can be very therapeutic," Whitney Leavitt tells People.

Taylor Frankie Paul admits she has some nerves around filming season 2, considering they're not in total creative control. "It's exciting but I guess I'm always a bit nervous," she says. "We're used to making content that we can control and edit and we don't have control with this. It's nerve-wracking going into it knowing that what happens isn't exactly how the edit might make it look."

"But I do think this one is going to be just as good, if not better, than our first season," she continues. "So far, I think everything has been so fun and entertaining to experience for myself."

And one detail we'll see from both ladies in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 2 are their new babies! Taylor Frankie Paul had her third baby Ever on March 19, 2024, and Whitney Leavitt gave birth to her third baby Billy on October 24, 2024.

"It was a beautiful moment that you'll see more of in season 2. I'm so thankful for him," Taylor says.

And they're still getting used to their 'Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' fame!

Despite their cult followings on social media, both women admit they're still getting used to their fame in the TV space, and how wildly successful the first season was. Taylor says she's "at a loss for words sometimes."

"I remember thinking, 'This will do okay. It should do well, given that we all have a story that people haven't heard about, and all of us do have a following," she adds. "I didn't know the extent of how well it was going to do, so it was shocking as it happened."

And it wouldn't be a show about MomTok without some surprising DM's! "The people that are in your messages reaching out, just unexpected people that you have fangirled over, we've all fangirled over," Taylor continues. "So that was really cool to see. And sometimes I just forget that people are out there watching it. It's a nationwide thing. To this day, I still don't think I even realize it, to be honest."

Maybe season 2 will reveal who's sliding in their DM's. 👀

Have you seen all of this month's incredible December TV shows? They make for the perfect weekend watch.

Colleen Hoover stans, listen up! While the announcement that Anne Hathaway would lead CoHo's Verity movie broke the Brit + Co group chat, it has nothing on the announcement that was made today: she'll be joined by the one and only Dakota Johnson. And we freaked out. Dakota is a master at intrigue and suspense, and I can't think of anyone else who'd be able to draw us into the story like she will.

Verity follows it-girl author Verity Crawford (Anne Hathaway) and her husband Jeremy, who hire Lowen Ashleigh (Dakota Johnson) to finish the remaining books in Verity's series. But as Lowen starts to take a closer look at their lives, she comes to the horrifying realization that not all is as it seems. While It Ends With Us is Colleen Hoover's most popular and widely-known title, Verity is regarded as one of the wildest — and I'm sure the movie is going to be the same.

You already know Anne Hathaway, meet the rest of the Verity cast before the movie premieres!

1. Anne Hathaway as Verity Crawford

John Nacion/Getty Images

The Princess Diaries' Anne Hathaway leads the new movie as Verity Crawford, author, wife, and (apparently) secret keeper.

2. Dakota Johnson as Lowen Ashleigh

Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Dakota Johnson stars as Lowen Ashleigh, a down-on-her-luck writer who's confident working for Verity is her big break.

The actress is also starring in Celine Song's upcoming rom-com Materialists, and told Brit + Co just how much she loved working with "big idiots" Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans.

3. Josh Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford

Theo Wargo/Getty Images

We'll also see Trap's Josh Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford, Verity's husband.

The Verity movie isn't the only Colleen Hoover book adaptation in the works! Read up on the latest news on Regretting You, starring Allison Williams and McKenna Grace.

"What would you do if your entire family, and your hometown, set you up to find love?" That's the question Ashley Williams poses in the first Small Town Setup trailer, coming to Hallmark+ in 2025. And if anyone has the answer, I have no doubt it's Hallmark — if anyone knows about warm, cozy, and sappy romance it's them! Even if you're not a huge reality dating show fan (or if you couldn't stop watching Reese Witherspoon's Love in Fairhope) this is one January TV show you won't want to miss.

Here's everything we know about Hallmark's dating show Small Town Setup, hosted by Ashley Williams.

'Small Town Setup' puts you right in a Hallmark movie.

All six episodes of Small Town Setup premieres on Hallmark+ on Thursday, January 2, 2025, and is hosted by Ashley Williams, who you'll recognize from movies like Falling Together and Two Tickets to Paradise as well as How I Met Your Mother.

Just like your favorite Hallmark movies are all about finding love, Small Town Setup focuses on singles coupling up. The show will follow a single who "has made it in the big city, but has yet to find love." And their concerned parents (definitely a Hallmark trope and an IRL trope...) get the whole neighborhood involved in finding three potential matches.

"When the singleton arrives home for a visit, they are presented with dating options curated by their hometown. After three dates, will they find love in their hometown? Or head back to the big city? All is revealed at a big town hall event, full of heart, warmth, and a few laughs along the way."

Okay, getting the entire town involved in my love life sounds crazy, but the whole community coming together for a town hall event sounds exactly like the kind of sweet and sappy event my life needs. (Listen!! Dating as a 20-something in the city is harder than I expected...)

Throughout the trailer we see our singles looking for love around their hometown, going on small town dates, and finding connection in the most unexpected places. Yeah...I'll be tuning in — especially since Small Town Setup is totally giving Gilmore Girls.

Check out the 11 New January 2025 Movies Viewers Will Adore — and you'll want to add to your calendar ASAP!

I truly feel like I’ve been living under a rock when it comes to what’s good at Whole Foods. Turns out, they’ve been hiding some really impressive deals on groceries in the shadows, but I’m here to shed some light on ‘em. Whole Foods offers savings every week, and I’m fully convinced that my local Whole Foods will be seeing a whole lot more of me from now on.

Scroll on for details on Whole Foods’ top deals to shop starting today!

Kaboompics / PEXELS

1. BOGO 50% off packaged soups (Tuesdays)

Tuesdays and Fridays are the main days of the week that Whole Foods offers savings on their groceries. The first amazing deal for Tuesdays is BOGO 50% off packaged soups – perfect for this time of year!

They’ve got every kind of flavor from minestrone and chicken noodle to Italian wedding and broccoli cheddar. Their packaged soups average out at about $9 per 24-ounce tub, so saving 50% on one when you buy one is pretty good, especially for meal prep purposes.

Lukas / PEXELS

2. $2 off classic and organic rotisserie chickens (Tuesdays)

You can take $2 off two kinds of Whole Foods’ rotisserie chickens every Tuesday. Their classic rotisserie chicken goes for $9 while the organic version sells for $13. I love using rotisserie chicken for soups, sandwiches, wraps, and pastas, so getting a whole chicken to use for recipes all week long for just $7 is so nice!

Nadin Sh / PEXELS

3. $8 large cheese pizzas (Friday)

Sometimes you just do not feel like cooking on a Friday evening after work – that’s where this Whole Foods savings hack comes in! Every Friday, you can get a large cheese pizza for $8. While there’s nothing wrong with a plain cheese pizza (nostalgia galore!), I’d take advantage of this deal then bulk up my slices with various toppings like peppers, pepperoni, and olives.

Nadin Sh / PEXELS

4. 12 for $12 wild caught oysters (Friday)

Ooh, fancy! Every Friday, Whole Foods’ wild caught oysters go for $1 a pop. Buy a dozen for just $12, and you’re golden. This deal would be perfect for a bougie at-home date night.

Pixabay / PEXELS

5. BOGO 50% off packaged sushi rolls (Friday)

This is another great date night pick! Buy one packaged sushi roll, and get another 50% off on Fridays only. From rainbow rolls to California rolls, this Whole Foods savings hack has my cravings going crazy.

Minchephoto Photography / PEXELS

6. $10 family-sized tiramisu (Friday)

Got a hankering for a sweet treat? Don’t fret – you can shop a whole family-sized serving of tiramisu at Whole Foods for just $10 every Friday.

Kseniia Lopyreva / PEXELS

7. $12 bottles of prosecco (Friday)

The death of the work week and start of the weekend is obviously a cause for celebration, and Whole Foods has you covered with $12 bottles of Presto prosecco every Friday. Cheers!

Subscribe to our newsletter to discover more deals!

If there’s one recipe you 100 percent need to crank out some seriously festive Christmas dessert ideas, it’s the classic, basic sugar cookie. Some of the most intricately ordained, masterpiece cookies (like pink Christmas decorations, jolly reindeer, and llamas) begin with a simple foundation. Let’s start with this recipe we love for a vanilla-bean-speckled version that’s sure to hold its own under all that royal icing.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter (room temperature + cubed)
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
  • 1 egg
  • 3 cups flour

Directions

Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then add vanilla bean and egg. Mix until just incorporated. Stop mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Gradually add flour (you may not need the full three cups), and mix until dough forms and pulls away from the bowl. Divide dough into two even discs and wrap in cling wrap, then refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight.

When ready to roll dough, pre-heat oven to 350°F and line baking trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Using a rolling pin, roll cookie dough between two pieces of parchment paper to 1/4-inch in thickness, and use cookie cutters to cut out cookie shapes.

Transfer cookies to a baking tray using a lightly floured spatula. Refrigerate for 10-15 minutes before baking.

Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or when edges begin to brown. The time will be dependent on size and thickness of cookies.

Allow to cool on tray until warm to touch, then transfer onto a wire cooling rackbefore decorating.

Decorate your easy Christmas cookies to you and your family's liking!

Check out our baking and cooking classes for more recipes to make at home!

Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.

See our ‘Grammable Holiday Cookie Guide.

Recipe via Vickie Liu; photos via Brittany Griffin/Brit + Co