Bringing Back Chivalry, The "Yummy" Dessert and Bobby Knight

This weeks Quick 'n Easy Romance Tip

Bringing Back Chivalry

To most women, chivalry took a hike a long time ago. Well, it’s time to bring this classic back. So, this week’s Quick ‘n Easy romance tip is all old school, it’s about getting back to the basics that so many of us have forgotten about. So, here’s what I want you to do, whether it’s just for one date, a whole day, one week, or the entire month of March and beyond, practice the art of “Chivalry.” Here are some basic examples:

· Open the door for your wife in the morning when she leaves for work
· Open the car door for her if you carpool
· Pull out your wife’s chair when she goes to sit down
· Hold a door open for her & let her walk through it first
· Wait to eat until she’s seated at the table

This week’s video: The “Yummy” Dessert





This dessert was affectionately named by my 3 girls. They just started calling it the "yummy"dessert. It consists of an inner layer of ice cream and two outer layers of sorbet.
You can also top it off with homemade blueberry and strawberry sauce. Sounds "yummy" doesn't it? The above picture is one I made last summer for Laura & the girls. And I do have to say it was “phenomenal.”




If you have any questions about the "Yummy" dessert leave a comment or email me at kandleman@madisonavecandles.com.

And the rest of this week’s post is dedicated to the Big Dance...March Madness:

The “Game Plan” Continued

Last week we started talking about the importance of planning, about laying out your “Game Plan” for your Valentine’s Day (Just Because I Love You Day) in March. By now you hopefully have picked when this special day will occur. This week, we tackle the next step in the plan. You need to start thinking about what you want to do and start making a list of the things you will need.

Are you going to surprise her after work? Do you need to arrange for a baby sitter? Do you need to bring a change of clothes for her? Do you need to get her out of the house for a while on a Saturday to set up? Maybe you want to take her horse-back riding? Maybe you want to cook for her? What friend or family member could you ask for help? Are you going to give her a killer massage? Do you have the oils and lotions you will need? How about music? Are you going to want to dance with her? Do need you need post-its to leave love notes? (By the way, Post-Its are actually available in the shape of a heart & these would be perfect for “just because I love you day.”) Make that list and before too long you'll have your Game Plan.

And if you're feeling a little overwhelmed, I have a quote from Bobby Knight to help inspire you.

“A Pre-Game Pep Talk”

I’m a fan of Bobby Knight’s, who we know will not be on the court coaching this March since he retired a couple of weeks ago. I wasn’t always a fan of his though. I didn’t like him too much in ‘87 when Indiana’s Keith Smart hit that shot out of the corner to beat Syracuse in the National Championship the year before I attended Syracuse. You know how there are some sports highlights that just make you cringe? Well that’s one for me.

But since then, I have come to like Bobby Knight. I love his passion. He may have let his emotions get the best of him sometimes, but he always had a lot of passion. I was reading something about him recently where they featured a quote from him that I loved and immediately put on our quote board.

“Everyone has the will to win…Only those with the will to prepare will win.”

This goes hand and hand with you putting together your Game Plan. Not only do you need to have the “will” to be romantic, you have to be willing to take the time to prepare, to plan, if you will. I believe that anyone can be romantic. You may hit a few bumps at first on your journey but practice makes perfect. The more you practice being romantic, the better you’ll get at it. And the more you plan, the easier it is. So start preparing and planning for your wife’s special day, that effort will go a long way.

March Madness “Post” Up

For the ladies, if you hear the term “post up” when your husband is watching basketball this March, here’s the definition:

“Post Up”- a basketball term where a big man like Shaquille goes down low
(near the basket), establishes a good position, and pins his man with his body
and asks for the ball.

For the gentlemen, since it is March Madness, I would like you to “post” up. But not in the basketball sense, in the blogging sense. I really haven’t had the time to tune up on my college hoops so I need some help. I know Memphis, Duke and Tennessee could all get to the Final Four, but who is the Cinderella story this year? I want to know who you guys think will be this year’s “Bracket Buster?” So, let me hear from you!

And ladies, I would love to hear from you too!

Don’t miss next week’s post:
· Her own Astrological forecast written by you
· English Muffin Pizzas and
· “Good Idea, Bad Idea”

Smiles,

Todd

March Madness

This entire post is dedicated to what I feel is one of the greatest events in all of sports…March Madness.

The March Madness Quick and Easy Romance “Tip-Off”…Spoon

All through March “spoon” with your wife as much as you can. For those of you unclear as to what this means, here’s the easiest definition I could find:

“A form of affection between a couple. Where the man lays front to back with the girl. They fit together like spoons.”

The March Madness Pre-Game Pep Talk



“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”

I love quotes. I don’t know why, but I just do. Always have. And usually it doesn’t matter to me where I hear or see it, whether it’s said by a family member, my friends or some random person at a party, or I read it in a magazine (Sports Illustrated, Readers Digest, Better Homes and Gardens, Los Angeles Magazine, The New Yorker). I just love a good quote.

Like my quote for February… “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

I can’t remember where I heard it, could have been my parents, I could have read it somewhere. But that doesn’t matter, the thing is that it stuck with me. I think it did because it’s so true. No matter what it is you that want to achieve in life, you have to have a plan.

The March Madness "Game Plan"

And that leads me to a little bit of madness that I want you to do. I want you to “plan” to celebrate Valentine’s Day again in March. Pick just one day where you’ll treat your wife as if it was February 14th. But you don’t have to call it Valentine’s Day…call it whatever you want, Just Because I Love You Day, (insert girls name here) Day, whatever. The whole idea is that for one day you sweep your wife or girlfriend off her feet.

So instead of spending time watching a new "feMANine" side video, I want you to pick that day in March. That’s it, just pick the day. Pull out a calendar and do it. That’s the first step of your “plan”.

After you pick the day, you’ll need to start thinking about a “plan” on how you can make this special day happen. What will you do on this day that you wouldn’t normally do any other? Pick her up in a limo and take her to dinner, make her the tissue paper flowers from my 1/17 post and on that “DAY” present them to her before you two go to sleep; buy some nicely scented oils and lotions to give her a hand & foot massage, get some heart shaped post-its and post love notes all over the house. It can be as extravagant or as small as you want.

More March Madness to follow in the next post.

Smiles,

Todd
Myfemanineside.blogspot.com
“Changing the way men think, one blog at a time”

Thank You For...,Words on Wood, The Little Things and Costco

This Week's Quick and Easy Romance Tip

When was the last time you said "thank you" to your wife or girlfriend? This week, I want you to write down at least 5 things for which you should thank that special lady in your life. For example:

Thank you for being a great wife/girlfriend.
Thank you for being a great mom.
Thank you for inspiring me.
Thank you for putting a smile on my face.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for being the family chauffer.
Thank you for all your hard work.
Thank you for letting me be me.

Get a pen and piece of paper and write down the things you should thank your wife for. Put it in an envelope, after you seal it, write "S.W.A.K" on it (Sealed With A Kiss). Then without saying a word, slip it under her pillow and see what happens. Quick and Easy.

This Week's Video: WORDS ON WOOD

This is a great last minute gift for Valentine's Day or any day for that matter. You can either use some wood you have laying around the house, like I did with my first one for Laura, or head to the hardware store. She can add phrases/words on it too like Laura did. The first board I made her, which was about 4 feet long, has phrases that have been written by both her & I. Our kids even got into the act and added their own messages. You might even inspire your own little ones to get creative, like my Madison did when she made this for me:



How cute is that?

If you have any questions about the Words on Wood project you can leave a comment or email me at kandleman@madisonavecandles.com



The Little Things

They say it's the little things that matter and I have to agree. Start doing some today and over time you'll find that they will make a big difference. It can be as simple as making the bed one morning before you head to work or do the dishes one night. How about not leaving the empty roll of toilet paper on the spool...is it really that hard to change it? Whatever it is..just do it. Clean up the sink after you shave and brush your teeth, don't just throw your dirty laundry on the floor.

There is a line in a movie where the couple is arguing and the woman says to her boyfriend, "I want you to want to do the dishes" and he responds with, "Why would I want to do the dishes?" The point, of course, is not that you have to enjoy doing the dishes, you should just do them because it would make her happy. That's all.

Think about that little thing you could do that your wife or girlfriend wishes you would. Do it this week and see what happens. And share your story by posting a comment. We could all use some good ideas.

Candles, Costco and You

And finally, a little something that has absolutely nothing to do with Valentine's Day or being romantic.

I have been a HUGE fan of Costco for about 23 years. When I was growing up my family would shop there. After college, I moved back home to South Florida and got a job there as a caller. That of course was back in the days when Costco wasn't fully automated and someone had to "call" the item numbers to the cashier. When I decided to move to California I wrote a letter of recommendation from the Florida Costco that I sent to every Southern California warehouse and headed out to the West Coast. Upon arrival, I visiited some nearby Costcos and wouldn't you know it, there was a warehouse waiting for a guy from Florida. Turns out they were waiting for a different guy from Florida, but it didn't matter. We both got a job.

Costco was good to me. They paid me well , gave me benefits and when I finally landed that full time TV job that paid dirt, they still let me work weekends. Lucky for me, I only had to keep up that 7 day work week schedule for a year. But I never forgot how good they were to me, and how good they were to my fellow employees. From medical benefits, to a 401K and ESOP, and a positive working enviroment, they treated full and part time staffers like decent human beings. More than 15 years later, many of the friends I made there still work there.

I, of course, have remained a loyal Costco customer ever since my early days shopping there as a teenager with Mom & Dad. Heck, one my first born's words was Costco. I kid you not! She would howl the word with her cute little baby voice. I can still hear it. And when I travel, I go to the local Costco to see what they have that the warehouse I shop at does not. My family & friends may kid me about this affinity for my favorite store, but I am hooked.

Why in the world am I sharing this with you, you ask? Well, besides being Mr. FeMANine Side, I make these kick ass candles & own a candle company with my wife. And I know that my candles would be perfect for a Costco Roadshow. Surely you know what these are? You walk in Costco and you'll see a jewelry show, or a pottery show, rugs, art, furniture. One time they even had lotions & aromatherapy products. They are there for a limited time and the people who work them don't even work at Costco. I called Costco corporate a while back to inquire about it, and let's just say the person I dealt with was not very Costco like.

Anyway, I want to do these roadshows & I have made a ENORMOUS Costco candle for Jim Senegal, the founder of Costco, in hopes that when he sees it he too will realize how well my candles could do at a Roadshow. So if anybody knows anyone that might know Mr. Senegal, please forward this to him because the Costco candle is in the Words on Wood video. Thanks! I appreciate it.

Have a great Valentine's Day.

Todd

myfeMANineside.blogspot.com

"Changing the way men think, one blog at a time."