The numbers have been crunched and the wisdom of 58 guys revealed more than ever... that's right, the V-Day ballots are in!  And it's practically impossible to thank our outstanding guy friends enough!  For not only their time, but most of all, for always being there for us - for your faith, encouragement, and friendship - and know that because of you, our day is that much sweeter  :-)  

By giving us your thoughts, you've given us a pretty priceless gift, one that we can always come back to whenever we're needing a bit of inspiration, and happy Valentine's Day to you too!!

"From a guy's perspective, I think the best thing that a girl can do for herself is to be confident and approachable. As men, we're happy to be the ones that take the initiative to ask you ladies out but just realize that we work up a lot of nerves and courage to do it, so have an open heart and just be yourself when we do! Happy valentines day :)"

"For me, I am most attracted to a girl's composure. It is similar to style, but entails how a girl carries herself. It involves what a girl does with her eyes, does she look me straight in the eye or is she batting her eyelashes or starting off into space? None of these are bad provided they are done at the proper time. A shy girl is often very cute, so if she is batting her eyelashes and cannot stare at me in the eyes for more than 3 seconds, I find it cute. And if when we talk about something spiritual and I find her gazing into my eyes the entire conversation, I realize I have truly encapsulated this shy girl's attention. And if during this deep conversation we talk about deep concepts and I find her staring off into space to contemplate her answer, then I know she is an intricate thinker and doesn't give half baked answers but instead wants to express herself as truly as possible to me. Similar things can be said about how a girl walks, what she does with her hair. I don't analyze these things in detail but my subconscious does."

"For me, the most important thing is spending time with her; I don't really care what we do. The shared experiences make even the most mundane thing enjoyable. Some of my favorite memories of time spent with my girlfriend (now wife) in college were taking walks and sitting side by side doing homework. We studied completely different things, but just being near her was all I needed."

"Remember, guys are wild at heart so make sure that you encourage authentic masculinity, and don't be afraid to challenge your boyfriend to man up. At the same time, recognize that you are not trying to change your boyfriend. Always find ways to grow in holiness together, and going on adventures together is a great way to bring out the best in both people and to see the beauty that God has placed in your lives."

"Look for your confidence in a relationship with God. Listen to Him when He tells you how you are more than good enough. Guys can sense a woman who strives for this type of confidence in herself, and it is incredibly attractive."

"I had to look up who everyone was other than Hermione Granger but I would have picked her anyways. I like the fact that Hermione is decisive and can voice her opinions in a straightforward manner. I'd find her intelligence and wit attractive. She's feminine but not in a showy way. The only song I knew from that list was the one by Aerosmith as well. Besides, I don't think I would ever pick a song by Taylor Swift and One Direction... =) Making dinner together sounds like the most intimate out of the choices. In a world where people prefer to text, facebook message, tweet, or email, getting a handwritten note means a lot for me. It feels more authentic. I know Valentine's Day can be important for a lot of women but I hope that women don't put pressure on men to do something big for them. Also, Valentine's day can be used by women to show appreciation for men as well. I don't think it has to be a day where women just expect to receive. Please don't get sucked into all the media hype regarding Valentine's Day. Just in general, men don't like to play push and pull. Being straightforward with a guy usually works the best. Intelligence is never unattractive and a lot more men seek intimacy from women than they like to show."

"It was a super tough call between making dinner, going for a bike ride, and canoeing. The "favorite quality in a girl" question was tough because it all goes together in the end. We might be tempted to label just one or two things, but in the end it's the whole woman that we are attracted to. Faith, virtue, personality (interests and femininity could be grouped in this category in my opinion), and appearance all work together to make each girl unique."

"Guys usually like girls to be real and not appear like they are trying to be someone else. We like to be able to have real conversations with them and know that they have real interests that are interesting (Facebook, US weekly, and Gilmore Girls usually don't make the cut for this criteria). The ultimate girl is usually the one that the guy can have a lot of fun with and feel like he can have the kind of conversations that he can have with his good friends."

"Girls that smile pretty are very attractive =D Also, girls who are trustworthy, honest, easy to talk to, and fun to spend time with are awesome"

"Sometimes it is nice to know your mind clearly. I don't like being the guy who makes the plans all the time(ie after a couple weeks, calling me to hang out or having me over for dinner is acceptable and even desired so that I know I am getting somewhere with your affections). Answering "Whatever you want to do" every single time when I am asking what you want to do drives me insane even if I know you only answer that because you just want to spend time with me. My goal is to keep that genuine smile on your face and that is easier if I have some inkling about what you want to do that night. If I don't include you in everything, it is not a slight to you, sometimes I like to have a little ME time. Lastly, understand that I am not perfect and might have a bad day now and then but that communication ultimately is the most important thing when one of is having a bad day rather than just being okay with the answer "I'm fine". I'm fine seems to be the most common lie told in our lifetimes and doesn't help build trust when you can clearly see its a lie. I'd rather hear, "I don't want to talk about it right now, but I just want to be with you (or 'but I just need a little alone time'). And if you say the second, don't mean the first, that is confusing as guys are a very literal group and we take people at their word."

"Personally, I like women who are adventurous. They have ideas of what they think would be fun to do. With that said, I think a lady should pay for events 1/3 of the time. Why? Because, it spurs the fun of discovering--men, don't feel obligated to pay for everything, then they desire even more to pay the next time. Adventurous can be anything from prayer to canoeing to running--even a combination of anything."

"I want a girl to try harder to be a good friend than a good girlfriend. If she has that going for her, then all she needs to do is keep herself up physically and all will be well : )"

"Ladies, compassion, honesty, and a genuine personality, are so important in what I look for! :)"

"Be yourself, and try to pursue guys with commonalities in your interests, personality. Don't change yourself for a dude!"

"Girls, you should not be so quick to judge guys when you meet them. Take myself, for example; initially, most girls see me as a "fratstar," I am in a fraternity, I work out a lot and I do go out on most Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday nights. But what most people don't know is that I go to church on Sunday and Thursday, I pray the rosary every week, I don't go out hooking up with random girls, and the most attractive thing I find in a girl is her Catholic faith. Don't judge guys until you get to know who they are, not on who they hang out with."

"For the question: Your favorite quality in a girl is her... I kinda look for all those qualities..."

"Always give a second chance. Guys can get pretty nervous around girls they like but there are lots of good men out there looking for good women. And always wear a smile!"

"Love is to "will the good of another," for the sake of the other. If you love to receive pleasure from the sentimental feelings of that choice, you won't wish fully the good for the other (only for yourself). Femininity rocks. Feminine creativity rocks. Do your thing and never lower your standards. "To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women." -Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen By this definition, Christ is worthy of the love of all women."

"Intellectual pursuits! One of the greatest misconceptions is that guys just want a homemaker. I feel like guys want an industrious woman, someone who can challenge the guy tete-a-tete. Going off of this, I think it is important to let the guy pursue you. The way you can let a guy know that you are still interested in him is through little things- sending a simple "hey, how's it going?" text or facebook chat message is perfect. All of you are strong women in mind, body, and spirit so I'm not sure this is super helpful advice. Keep up the great work!"

7) If you could travel to only one of the destinations with your girlfriend, it would be...

Alright, we'll admit it... Having the opportunity to pepper you with questions for our annual Valentine's survey is one of our absolute favorite things about YCW!  We LOVE getting your feedback because we really do admire your awesomeness and value your opinion very much.  The 9 multiple choice questions have been puzzled over by several [girl] team members of YCW, and we're sure that many other girls are curious to find out your thoughts as well.  So please!  Take a few moments and tell us what you think!  Really.  It's completely anonymous, so no worries, and we hope you have fun too  :-)  

*The polls close on February 13 at 5 p.m., and results will be posted on Valentine's.  Dozens of thanks!

A tremendous thanks to 57 Catholic men who answered our survey!!  While the vast majority are hailing from Illinois, other respondents are residing in at least 4 other states and even 1 other country.  

The results have been posted into two parts: 1) The guys' comments, which are pretty inspirational and definitely worth reading; and 2) Graphs distributing the 57 responses to our multiple choice questions.

Thank you to our incredible Catholic guy friends who make us feel beautiful.  Happy Valentine's, and God bless!

1) I feel that women need to not only be modest but be proud of it. If you notice a guy is only going to pay attention to you if your dressed immodest then you shouldn't pay attention to him at all either.

2) I think what captivates me most about a woman is her ability to engage me on a philosophical and spiritual level. I'll admit to being a bit of a tortured soul and I'm almost constantly trying to figure out the deepest desires of my heart. The most fruitful female friendships in my life all involve a sharing in this journey. Women who just don't get this, no matter how physically beautiful they may be, are not at all attractive to me. On a slightly random note, I think it's important for a woman to recognize her man's need for adventure and fraternity. Masculinity is not innate; rather, it is bestowed on men by other men. A man without adventure becomes like a lion without claws or teeth. A man needs his woman to encourage him to slay dragons.

3) Answers i wanted to put down but couldn't... 1) all of the above 2) all of the above 3)all of the above 8) i haven't seen those movies... but I like the love story in the ROCKY I and II. Happy St. Valentine's day to you ladies! Please don't forget how much you are worth. We will do our best to remind you!

4) Women, do not be afraid to call men to a higher standard. Be patient with providence. Do not settle for anything less than a man who loves with a selfless love and gives of himself as a selfless gift.

5) Modest is hottest!!!!!

6) Haha strangest survey I have taken in awhile.

7) Cute quiz, but in fact there are a few questions where I feel like I could have picked multiple answers!

8) You didn't have my favorite love story movie which P.S. I love you.

9) This is fun! Thanks for asking.

10) Who is the masochist that came up with #3?? and how did "she's the man" make the list of favorite love stories? in all seriousness, keep being awesome, Catholic women!

11) I'm glad you guys did this it was a lot of fun! As a suggestion though I would've liked to have had some other questions that were perhaps "add your own response questions" about things girls really wanna know. I suppose I have the opportunity now, but I would've liked the opportunity more formally, to simply address questions girls might have etc. Anyhow, keep up the good work!

12) Just a comment on #8 - you might find the results a tad skewed, as some of us have resisted seeing a majority of those movies thus far in our lives... ;)

13) For questions #1 & 2, my answer would really be 'all of the above', but it wasn't an option. And as for question #7, I have never seen The Lord of the Rings trilogy, so I chose a random character. Good luck with your survey!

14) Awesome idea!

15) #1 was the toughest question: it should be choose more than one... :D What you girls are doing is awesome, know of my prayers for you as you strive for holiness!

16) Leggings are unattractive. They tell a guy that you want to show off your body, they do, and it is distracting. Any time a girl's body is the center of attention, I find it can be detracting from the development of a personal relationship. I find it way more appealing when a girl is modest with her presentation, as is discussed in the video at the bottom of this survey.

17) 1. I think the tremendous amount of faith that my mom has shapes her personality and her wisdom. Because we can relate to each other in faith, I have a great friendship with my mom. And who doesn't love a mother's cooking? 2. In this day and age where it is so hard to keep one's faith, a woman who is able to sustain her faith is very admirable in my eyes. As I said above, I think wisdom comes with faith. Same with kindness and personality. I think it takes much courage to stand up for your faith as well. 3. You can eat the baked beans to get more energy if you get tired! 4. Not gonna lie, sometimes I wish girls would be a bit more open and tell guys if they like them or not. They make it so hard on you to figure it out! But I think it takes a lot of courage to ask someone out and I don't want to put the pressure on the girl to take that step. 5. Personally, I think that'd be a lot of fun but might not be so romantic? 6. Men are all beasts seeking for their beauty... right? haha. 7. Most loyal 8. The Titanic is the only one I've watched from this list! 9. Words mean a lot for me. I would want to hear what I mean for her and how she believes in me. I think Valentine's day could be used to reaffirm the love that each person has for one another. Valentine's day puts a lot of pressure on guys. All these over-exaggerated commercials on TV don't help and it's become so materialistic. I don't think an exchange of gifts is bad but I don't think that's the only thing that Valentine's day is about. Regardless of how big or small the gift may be, I think Valentine's Day should be about reaffirming the love that one person has for another.

18) This is so tough :P I wish it wasn't a multiple choice

19) What is best is a girl who is feminine and herself

20) Have a good Valentine's Day, and know that you are beautifully made!