Melissa Rycroft

Melissa Rycroft had her heart broken on The Bachelor, found love with a hometown guy in Tye Strickland, then went on to Dancing With the Stars fame.

With the birth of daughter Ava last month, the last piece of her unexpected “happily ever after” fairy tale fell into place. Words cannot describe it.

“People always say you’ll never know true love until you have a child. It’s a hard thing to understand, but it is on a totally different level,” says Melissa.

OH, BABY! For Melissa Rycroft, it's a dream come true.

“I look at this little girl and realize there’s nothing I love more in the world,” Melissa tells OK! “There are no feelings that compare to my feelings for her.”

It's been a crazy ride in less than two years for the girl who was briefly engaged to Jason Mesnick, only to be dumped for Molly Malaney right afterward.

Everything worked out for the best. Will this season have a happy ending, as well? Check out The Bachelor spoilers here for the latest on how it ends.

Melissa Rycroft Strickland is now a mom. She and husband Tye Strickland welcomed daughter Ava Grace on Wednesday afternoon in Dallas on Wednesday!

Ava Grace Strickland is the first child for the pair, who married in December 2009 in Mexico. Mother and child are resting comfortably and happy.

"Our lives have changed so much in the last two years and today we've been blessed with the best change ever, our beautiful baby girl," she said.

The Stricklands have welcomed their newest family member.

The onetime Bachelor contestant – who was famously dumped by Jason Mesnick after becoming engaged in an After the Final Rose stunner – said earlier this year that the surprise turn of events had been an enormous blessing in her life.

"Everything is wonderful and life is exactly as it should be," she said.

Melissa Rycroft also made the Dancing With the Stars finals. Congratulations to the Texas beauty and her husband on this joyous moment in their lives.

Melissa Rycroft was probably seeing red for a time after Jason Mesnick rejected her on The Bachelor in favor of Molly Malaney. But now she's thinking pink!

She and husband Tye Strickland are expecting a girl!

The pregnant reality star broke her silence on the little one's gender, revealing to The Talk that her first child, due in February, will be of the female variety.

So much to celebrate for recently-married Tye and Melissa.

Presented with pink and blue-themed presents by co-hosts Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert and Leah Remini as they guessed the sex of the baby, Melissa Rycroft said, "Of the gifts in my lap, I think I'm going to take home ... the pink!"

Congratulations again!

While the supposed baby news of Miranda Kerr and Orlando Bloom has not actually been addressed by the couple, there's no doubt about this one:

Melissa Rycroft is pregnant!

"It was a shock. We weren't even trying," the former Bachelor winner, who married insurance agent Tye Strickland in December, tells Us Weekly.

"It's the most wonderful surprise in the world. It's such a blessing."

Blessed she may be, but the co-host of ABC's Bachelor Pad says starting a family was the last thing on her mind. Someone forgot to tell Tye that.

Tye and Melissa Rycroft Strickland are starting a family!

"He wanted to have kids right away, and I was laughing at him going, 'No, not ready!'" Melissa Rycroft said. "He's actually cried more than I have."

Rycroft says that her solid relationship with her man has helped her stay calm: "Tye is caring, he's funny. He's going to be a great dad."

Interestingly, she says she's hoping for a boy, while Tye wants a girl. Either way, "We're going to find out as soon as we can," she says.

Melissa, who received the final rose from Jason Mesnick during the 2009 season of The Bachelor, only to have him break up with her for Molly Malaney (who he later married), is "eating everything in sight" and may "gain 90 pounds."

She'd still look great. Congratulations, Melissa and Tye!

A little over a year after being dumped by Jason Mesnick on the "After the Final Rose" special, Melissa Rycroft is heading back to The Bachelor mansion.

Not to find love this time - she's happily married to Tye Strickland, in fact - but to co-host Bachelor Pad, ABC's new spin-off featuring past contestants.

We kid not, this is a real show.

Joining Melissa Rycroft for co-MC'ing duties will be a man who needs no introduction, venerable Bachelor and Bachelorette host-pimp Chris Harrison.

“I’m excited.” Rycroft says. “It’s fun. It’s a brand new experience for me. I’ve never been on that side but I’m anxious. I’m excited and ready to start.”

The gorgeous Melissa Rycroft made the finals of Dancing with the Stars and has been a correspondent for Good Morning America since her Bachelor appearance.

The show, which has already started filming, will feature an all-star reunion of “some of the most unforgettable contestants and suitors,” says ABC.

Two words, ABC: Wes. Hayden. Make it happen.

The gang will live together in the mansion as they compete in a series of challenges and dates for a chance at winning $250,000 and perhaps more.

Could another shot at love await any of these hotties? ABC couldn't care less, as long as it has a Bachelor franchise installment for every season now.

Works for us! We heart Melissa! On a related note, check out THG's recap of The Bachelorette for a humorous take on Monday night's debauchery.

Melissa Rycroft, who starred on The Bachelor and Dancing with the Stars last year, has scored a gig as a special correspondent for Entertainment Tonight.

That won't hurt ratings!

The gorgeous, just-married 26-year-old Texan just agreed to take the job with the entertainment and celebrity news program, according to her rep.

"She debuts on tonight's broadcast and is currently in L.A. working," her rep said. "She's going to stay in Dallas and fly in for special assignments."

We expect Melissa Rycroft to be a natural.

Once an entertainment staple, Melissa has become an entertainment reporter.

Her first assignment? The star-studded "We Are the World" remake. Her rep says ET will also sent her to award ceremonies, premieres and set visits.

Rycroft, who married Tye Strickland in December, is no stranger to the hustle and bustle of showbiz, or reporting on its goings on from the other side.

She's also working for Good Morning America as of last month.

If she's not in the bridal party, we hope she gets assigned to cover the wedding of Molly Malaney and Jason Mesnick. In two words: Awk. Ward.

A year ago, Melissa Rycroft couldn't have been farther off the celebrity gossip radar.

Now, months after being dumped on national TV by Jason Mesnick, the former reality TV star has come full circle: she's happily married and gracing the cover of In Touch Weekly.

Inside the issue, the beautiful new bride gushes about her dream wedding, which took place opposite Tye Strickland in Isla Mujeres, Mexico on December 12.

"I was fine until 'Here Comes the Bride' started," Rycroft said "I think everything hit me at once. My dad started to walk down the aisle, and I just stopped him. I grabbed his arm, and I was like, 'Hold on,' and I started crying. And I saw Tye, and bless his heart, he had these big tears in his eyes, too. It was very emotional."

Strickland didn't keep it together much better.

"When I saw her, I just lost my breath — like I was in a football game and had the wind knocked out of me," he said. "I've never felt that way in my whole life, and I just couldn't help it. She was the most gorgeous bride I've ever seen in my life, and it was amazing. It was absolutely perfect."

After everything Melissa went through, we couldn't be more pleased to hear her add:

"My heart was pounding and we were both looking at each other and squeezing each other's hands. We were both so happy."

It's official: Melissa Rycroft has beaten Jason Mesnick to the altar.

The former Bachelor winner-turned-reject got married to Tye Strickland earlier today in Mexico.

"Tye is my best friend in the world, and now he's my partner forever.  We have had such a journey within our relationship, that to finally look at him and see my husband, gives me the calmest, most content feeling in the world," Rycroft told In Touch Weekly.

"I love him so much and am so excited for our forever to begin!"

During the ceremony, Rycroft wore an Alfred Angelo gown; her former Dancing With the Stars partner Tony Dovolani was in attendance, as was Bachelorette Jillian Harris.

The former will show up on television against next month, as she and Ed Swiderski advise new Bachelor Jake Pavelka during the show's January 4 premiere.

As 2009 draws to a close, it is with great pride that The Hollywood Gossip staff unveils 10 finalists for its prestigious, Third Annual Celebrity of the Year award.

These celebs have given us their best, their worst, their nude pics (sometimes) and their scandals (often). Now it's time THG paid tribute to their greatness.

Yesterday, we kicked off the '09 countdown with Levi Johnston in the #10 spot.

Today: Celebrity of the Year finalist #9 … Molly Malaney and Melissa Rycroft!

Molly and Melissa are both famous for getting engaged to Jason Mesnick.

ABC's The Bachelor isn't know for creating much in the way of real drama. But this spring changed all that when its star changed his mind ... on national television.

Realizing he made the wrong choice, Jason Mesnick cast winner Melissa Rycroft to the curb in favor of runner-up Molly Malaney, who he went on to get engaged to.

This put America in a tough spot. It had fallen in love with Melissa, but Molly Malaney did nothing wrong. In the end, the controversy faded and everyone is happy.

Jason and Molly are planning on getting married and breaking The Bachelor's 0-for-12 curse. Melissa Rycroft also got engaged to insurance agent Tye Strickland.

By handling the situation with class and grace, both ladies showed us that while there's very little real about reality TV, there are some real people who go on it.

Here's a little photo tribute to Molly and Melissa (and the men who will be lucky enough to call them their wives) Click to enlarge images of The Bachelor's finest ...

When does a semifinal four get overshadowed by a former final one?

When that quartet of contestants is part of the most boring season in Dancing with the Stars history; and when that one is the beloved Melissa Rycroft!

Indeed, Rycroft will perform on tomorrow night's results show. Before we get there, though, Donny Osmond, Joanna Krupa, Kelly Osbourne and Mya need to make impressions on the judges tonight.

"It’s anyone’s game,” judge Samantha Harris told People over the weekend. “The competition has picked up so much momentum in the past two weeks and now it’s come down to the final four and the right final four.”

Said Rycroft, who finished third last season and who looks gorgeous with partner Tony Dovolani above:

“I’m so excited, but I’m not nervous. I’m not being judged so it’s all for fun. But I remember that feeling last season when I made it to the semifinals. I was so happy I made it, but I also knew how much hard work was ahead.”

Let's take a look back at Melissa's time on the show. Click on the pics below to be taken back to a season of DWTS that actually excited us each week: