Let's start with an "About Me," shall we?

That is a) my favorite pair of shoes that I own and b) probably my favorite tattoos that I have currently.  The star on the top was my very first tattoo, it is actually taken from the twinkle of a star tattoo, and I adored that tiny little twinkle more than the star itself; that's kind of me though, usually the support person that makes everyone and everything around me just a little stronger/brighter if I can.  I got it Labor Day weekend, September, 2003...the first weekend my best friend at the time came home from college for the first time and we went to the parlor on a whim....No plan.  No thought.  No ideas.  We just went, and I wouldn't change that experience for the world and I will *never* cover that one up.  The quote is: ad astra per aspera....I used to write it all over the place when I was younger and just adore the meaning -- to the stars through trials.  I believe in it hardheartedly.  It is the epitome of my life, I will reach what I'm supposed to in life; no matter how hard life may get, I will be where I'm supposed to be someday.  The initials just beneath the quote are HJ, they are those of my best friend that passed away on Halloween 2008.  I will never forget the phone call, never.  I may come back to that experience later (...it was probably the oddest/hardest thing ever to say goodbye to the person that was most like me in the world, I mean, even our birthdays are just 10 days apart...), but she was my best friend (I get extremely close to my true friends, so you will hear "best friend" a lot through this thing...) and I will forever have her initials, in her handwriting, on my ankle with a quote that also truly describes her and her pain that she dealt with so bravely. 

Well, now that you know a little about my life, let's back up a second haha
My name is Andrea, I'm turning 26 on May 5th of this year (woohoo, Cinco de Mayo baby!  Ironic tho, I took French and not Spanish....).  I'm the youngest of three and my parents are still together after almost 36 years together.  Sounds ideal, right?  Not always, my family had definitely had its bumps, but all they do is throw us together and we come out stronger.  I'm the aunt to the most *adorable* little booger butt, Bryce...

We started here with him, August 26th, born via emergency c-section at about 32-33 weeks.  He was a little over three pounds in this picture, and when I first saw him in the NICU I broke down, absolutely cried my little eyes out, but my brother, ever the strong one for me (and most of our family) was there, and didn't leave his son for the most of Bryce's 5 week stay in the hospital.  (whoa, holy run-on, sorry!).

BUT ---- Here we are (this was about a month ago, I think, so about 6 months old?)!  And, yes, he is wearing a onesie that says his aunt is the best, and yes, I was the auntie that bought that!  I'm a sucker for anything baby these days, and Auntie Andrea always comes visiting with gifts!!!!

I have four furry children of my own (three dogs - Cody & Maximus & Bryant and a kitty - Elroy) but I'm thinking about doing individual posts about them since they each have a very special and long story about how they came into my life.

Well, this has turned into a book already!  I will post more later a little more in depth but a quick rundown:

Job: none at the moment, after six and half years of a very tumultuous relationship, I left my job March 1st...It is on to bigger and better!
Tattoos: While I have five, I only have a picture of the one ankle, will post more later....
Friends: MANY!  I love them all, couldn't live without them!!
Family: Mom & daddy live on a farm in the country, Trevor & Jamie & Bryce are my brother, sister-in-law and nephew respectively, Amanda is my sister.
Boyfriend: None!  Single as a slice of cheese, and I'm thisclose to being ok with that, but not really.
Movies: I love too many to list, and it is a pretty eclectic taste (I'm currently watching Scream and I'm looking forward to watching Gone with the Wind when I get back home!)
Music: Everything but bluegrass!
Hobbies: reading is a huge passion of mine, quilting, knitting, I just taught myself crochet again, riding 4wheelers on the farm, and so much more I'm excited to share with anyone that happens upon my little slice of the internet :)

If you're reading this, please introduce yourself!  I'm super excited to meet new people, get some pen pals around the country and so much more!  Oh, and I LOVE questions!  If you have one, please don't hesitate to ask!!!

ly.