How The Royal Wedding Can Matter To Guys

My qualifications for what I'm about to tell you: I have two brothers, was raised in a neighborhood of boys, and sit for 5 hours in a smallish room with a man who is 100% man (you're welcome, Jack). I'm single, so I can speak freely to what a woman appreciates without getting into trouble with a boyfriend or husband for potentially calling him out. I'm a sensible woman, not prone to fairy tales and happy endings or romanticism, and I recognize reality. I like baseball and football, and I'm not a fan of women traveling to the bathroom in packs. And I don't really like shopping.

Now that I've got that stated, on to the topic at hand.

Guys, I know you don't care about the royal wedding.

Why should you care about two people who aren't even in your own country?

Especially when there's an NFL Draft happening?

Because, guys, you can totally use the royal wedding to your advantage today.

Lemme tell you how:

• Women, whether they're interested in the royal wedding or not, like to feel pretty and be told they're pretty. Feeling pretty doesn't mean they like to dress up. Showing a woman that you care for her can make her feel pretty. If you were still dating, what would you be doing today to win her affection? How can you show your woman that you care for her today?

• At the altar, William leaned over to his bride-to-be and said, "You look beautiful." Daggone if I didn't feel a little something in my heart go squishy. He told her she was beautiful. It was sweet, it was tender, it was a moment. Guys, your woman wants to know you think she's beautiful. Pick a moment today, be intentional, and tell her she's beautiful. She's not going to tell you, "You're only saying that because the prince said it." And if she does say it, you can tell her, "It reminded me that I don't tell you enough that I think you're beautiful. I don't want to miss out on an opportunity to tell you... I think you look beautiful." If you throw an "I love you" in there somewhere, that'd be OK. Trust me, you'll make her day.

• The uniform. Oh, the uniform. Prince William and Harry looked smart and handsome in their uniforms. We women know you don't like to get dressed up for us. Wearing a tie makes you feel like you're wearing a noose. The suit jacket makes you feel so hot that you're going to die. We know. You tell us. We hear you. So when you get dressed up for us without complaining, we know you are making a sacrifice for us. It makes us feel special, treasured, and honored. Does the fact that you look handsome and hot in a suit help? If you tell us to get gussied up because you're taking us somewhere nice, it's a wonderful thing. By the way, you don't have to spend a lot of money to take us some place nice. You could order dinner at a place down the street, put it on your nicest dishes, put some candles on the table to create a moment, and maybe some soft music on in the background. The effort you made has quadruple the value of a $200 meal at a fancy restaurant. Don't forget to do the dishes.

• As they left the church, Prince William gently held his wife's hand, guiding her out of the church, helping her into the carriage. On the balcony, he once again took his wife's hand and guided her through the door. To women, it's a sign of protection, care, and being a gentleman. Last night I was walking into the mall behind a mother and her teenage son. The son's drawers were drooping and the expression on his face said, "I'm bored and I don't want to do this." He began walking through the door ahead of me, paused, and then moved to hold the door open for me, allowing me to enter first. I was shocked and surprised by his gentlemanly display. I thanked him. And I heard his mother say, "Well done, son." A droopy drawered teenage boy held the door open for me and suddenly he looked a little more mature. He made me feel like a queen. Imagine what would happen if you did that for your woman today? Or maybe held her hand? Hello! No brainer, guys!

Seriously, guys, you can totally capitalize on the royal wedding today. Any woman that was watching it is totally ready to have *her* prince make her feel like a princess. Surprise her. Bring her home some flowers today. Hold her hand. Tell her you love her. Make her feel special. Words are free. Showing her you care is free. What you'll in return for your investment will be priceless.

Note to single guys: you can get in on this by holding a door open for a lady, not zoning out when they're talking to you (unless they *really* yammer without giving you an opportunity to talk, then you get a pass), etc. Being a gentleman is a high valued currency in a woman's world.

Note to women: if your man goes out of his way to express appreciation for you, don't dismiss him or make fun of him or bring up a chore he has to do or tell him, "It's about time." Thank him and respect his efforts. Appreciate him.

And now, to restore the man balance after talking about emotions and caring and holding hands and such, I bring you a picture of a manly meat: bacon. You're welcome.

--Erin :-D

The Elvis {Oatmeal}

A few years ago, breakfast wasn't even on my radar screen. I didn't like it, it took too much effort, and I wasn't hungry. Why eat if I'm not hungry?? Um...hello...calories saved for something better! At least that was my philosophy. Then I decided to start training for a 5K, so in January of last year, I made a change. I decided to start eating breakfast to help fuel my system. It took some getting used to. I actually felt sick after eating breakfast, so I would just have a piece of fruit. Eventually, my body began craving breakfast. REAL breakfast. Whole grains, protein, fresh fruit...the real stuff. Now, over a year later, I'm still doing breakfast, and it's helped me eat better throughout the day, and I FEEL better.

One of my staples has been oatmeal. It's cheap, it's easy to make, it's filling, but it's boring. Who wants to eat food that looks boring or ugly? Not me!

I've been playing around my oatmeal to make it more fun. I discovered freeze dried fruit at Trader Joe's (Target also has some under their Archer's Farm label - you can find them next to the nuts and granola mixes). It's great for a little snack, but I decided to add it to my oatmeal and it's just plain awesome. It makes me feel like I'm eating gourmet oatmeal. The other day I was mixing some freeze dried bananas into my oatmeal and it occurred to me that I like peanut butter on my bananas, so why not stir some in? And it was awesome. And then I thought, "Heeeeeey, didn't Elvis like peanut butter, banana, and bacon sandwiches?" And so I added a piece of bacon to my oatmeal.

Boom.

I felt daring for putting bacon in my oatmeal.

Rawr.

I still feel slightly rebellious.

And my tummy is happy.

You think it's weird, but deep down inside you want to try it. Unless you're vegetarian. Then you're repulsed, and I can feel you judging me.

So I will share my Elvis Oatmeal recipe with you (even the vegetarians because they can drop the bacon from the recipe like it's hot!). It's totally non-complicated, easy, breakfast awesomeness.

Microwave a piece of bacon on high for about 35 seconds until it's crispy. That gets crumbled over the oatmeal at the very end but it needs to be cool enough to crumble.

I use the quick cooking oats, because, well, they're quick. If you've got time for the longer cooking ones, go for it.

Measure out 1/3 cup into a large bowl. Nothing's worse than cooking oatmeal and it bubbling up over the bowl and making a ginormous mess in the microwave. Yuck.

Meet my friend Freeze Dried Banana. I could eat these guys straight out the bag. Wait. That sounds weird. Does that sound like I eat my friends? I gave that up a long time ago. Promise.

Measure out a heaping 1/3 cup of freeze dried bananas. You could also use the same amount of the real thing. Pour on 2/3 cup water or milk and microwave for 1:30-1:45 or until it's done. You know your microwave. It may need more or less time.

Now stir in 2 tsps peanut butter. The heat of the oatmeal melts the peanut butter so you get peanut butter swirly goodness. Yum.

Once the peanut butter is swirled in, crumble the bacon on top, and enjoy.

Warning: if you eat this, it may be difficult not to say, "Thank you...thank you very much" to everyone you meet.









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The Elvis {Oatmeal}

1/3 cup quick cooking oats
2/3 cup water or milk
1/3 cup freeze dried bananas (or fresh)
2 tsps peanut butter
1 slice pre-cooked bacon

Microwave pre-cooked bacon according to package directions to crisp the bacon. Let bacon cool while assembling oatmeal.

In a large bowl, combine oats and freeze dried bananas. Stir in water. Microwave for 1:30 until done. Your microwave may need more or less time.

Stir in peanut butter.

Crumble bacon on top.

Devour.