Do you force your boys to do girly stuff?

Peacock Cake!

I don't! Mostly because I don't believe there is girly stuff.

But I do force my kids to do things I know they'll like. And I know my boys love cake, dance music, and beautiful women in princess gowns. So when a friend invited us to the Pittsburgh Bridal Showcase, I said yes...(here's where you mentally fill in "to the dress!")

In case you're thinking this was a serious financial indulgence, you should know it was free admission for kids under 12. Pre-ordered adult tickets only $9.00 and we scored free parking. 

My boys had some reluctance to head out the door to this event not because it was a Wedding Show but because they like sitting around in pajamas & snacking.  I can't blame them. I had a feeling this would be a memorable outing so I bribed them out the door with promises of sweet treats. And the show did not disappoint.

The food highlights for the boys included red velvet cupcakes, strawberry champagne wedding cake, Reese's peanut butter cup cookies, sour patch kids, Hershey's miniatures, and to top it off: cotton candy. We were at a friction' carnival and I didn't pay a dime for any of it.

A fashion forward four year old

The fashion highlights were the "World's Tallest Bride" (a bride on stilts) and the four dancing dudes in the fashion show. Tricked out in full tuxes these guys provided a hilarious choreographed routine (think family-friendly bachelorette party) to pop songs my kids love ("Party Rock" had them shaking their booties) and ended with an awesome flip. Lovely ladies in unique bridal gowns and bridesmaids dresses also held their attention, especially for my four year old who has a keen fashion eye. He frequently told me the dresses I liked were "not awesome" and pointed out ones that were "the most beautiful."


The finale included a whirlwind tour of wedding party buses and limos. I'm not sure which they enjoyed more: the limo with a TV in the floor and exploding LED lights or the huge bus with a bathroom in the back. Tough choice.

Living the Limo Life

Can I remind you this entire afternoon's entertainment cost me a total of $9.00?

As we walked to the parking lot the boys went wild when a train screeched across the bridge overhead. My oldest told me "this was a great afternoon."

I thought about how when I had mentioned to some acquaintances that I was taking my boys to a wedding show one joked that "it sounded like a good way to scar them for life." So in this moment of happiness, I couldn't help it, I had to subtlety gloat about "girly stuff."

"When you tell your friends you went to a wedding show, they might say 'that's for girls,'" I said. "What will you say?"

"I'll say I got cotton candy," said the oldest.

"I'll say I saw these guys do an awesome flip," said the middle.

"Yeah, you guys are so lucky! If people don't do stuff because they think it's just for girls then they'll miss out on cool things!"

The middle immediately launched into his teasing voice, "I went to a wedding show and you-ou-ou didn't!"

Since the conversation on the car ride home included peeing on gorillas and cats farting, I'm pretty sure this experience hasn't diluted their "manliness" one bit.