Jenice Armstrong: Kate is engaged to her Prince William - will they live happily ever after?

KATE MIDDLETON gets to become the queen of England and live in a palace all because she met a cute guy in college. And she has just been assigned her own bodyguard.

It's a modern-day fairy tale, with a security detail.

The girlie part of me is going to watch every delicious, overblown moment of her impending royal nuptials to Prince William.

In a way, it will be completing the circle because I got up early to watch Prince Charles and Diana's wedding spectacle. I've been following every stage of William's life since before he was even born. I still remember the photo of Diana cradling her firstborn shortly after his birth and the pitiful sight of him years later as he and his little brother, Harry, walked in their mother's funeral procession. I like to think that Diana is watching from somewhere and is comforted by knowing that her little boy turned out just fine even without her. I plan on watching as William takes this big step in his life. I'll probably shed a tear because his wedding symbolizes how, even after the darkest of days and the worst of tragedies, there is hope and even great joy.

Not to mention fabulous dresses and those big English hats.

Get ready to tune in to the royal version of TLC's "Say Yes to the Dress." Which lucky designer will get the honor of designing what's sure to be the most-talked-about and the most-copied wedding gown of the year and maybe even the decade? Will London designer Stella McCartney, whose dad is none other than Sir Paul McCartney, make waves and create a sleek, sexy, thoroughly modern dress for this self-assured and seemingly confident young woman? She has the figure to pull it off. Or will Middleton stick to English tradition and go big the way Princess Diana and the duchess of York did? No sense ruffling any royal feathers so early on, right?

Yes, this wedding is going to be over-the-top and will rub many the wrong way because of its excess. By the time the wedding finally takes place next summer, we're all going to know way more about the nuptials than we probably should. I say, "Bring it."

Weddings, especially royal ones, distract us from drudgery of bills, commuting and worrying about our 401(k) plans. Kate and William couldn't have picked a better time to walk down the aisle. We all could use a little more pomp and circumstance. Great Britain is in the same sort of economic doldrums as we are. Prince Charles' marriage to Diana did more to help the image and morale of Great Britain than anything in decades. This will do the same.

Especially since Kate and William are so dang photogenic and seem so likable. From outward appearances at least, they seem so in love. I want to see her riding up to the church in the same carriage that Diana arrived in for her wedding to Charles. I'm prepared to be wowed by her dress, and I really want to believe that this couple will be luckier than Prince Charles and Diana.

I know it's a leap, since the royals stink at marriage.

Maybe it will be different for Kate and William. The royal in-laws from hell may have learned a thing or two after helping make Diana's life so miserable. Also, William and "Waity Katie," as she has been dubbed because of their long courtship, have already lived together and have been in each other's orbit for nearly a decade.

Charles and Diana barely knew each other before they got hitched. William and Kate are 28, which makes them eight years older than Diana was when she said "I do." So, it's not going to be another "Shy Di" scenario.

Let's hope there's not another Camilla Parker Bowles lurking.