Wow!!! …
What in the world guys! I woke up the other day with 16 THOUSAND followers on instagram. Thats right. 1. 6. 0. 0. 0. aka 16,000 … like in complete shock over here. I’m just a girl from Forsyth County, GA that lives this crazy life traveling all over the world and I get to take you guys along for the ride with me. This makes my heart smile so big y’all! You have no idea.
SO … I thought it would be fun to share 16 facts about myself to introduce myself to all of my new friends 🙂
- I’m a total Southern Belle.
I may have been born in Ohio, but I only lived there for a few short weeks. I am a Georgia girl through and through and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Y’all is an everyday word in my vocabulary, and I’ll never say “pop”. It’s always going to be soda or coke. No matter where I live 😉.
2. I’m taller than you probably think.
I grew up playing volleyball and my height has always been an advantage to me. Even now that I’m not playing sports anymore (sad 😭), I still absolutely love being tall! I could not image being any shorter than I am, even if I do hit my head ALL of the time on things 🤪. Since I know you’re going to ask, I’m 5’11”.
3. I took a different route to college.
When I was a senior in high school I could NOT figure out what I wanted to go to school for. I felt like I was interested and “good” at a few different things and just couldn’t quite narrow it down. I almost went to school for interior design, which shouldn’t be a surprise to some of you because y’all know how much I love to decorate. I ultimately went to hair school and got my master cosmetology license. That means I am certified to do hair, skin, and nails. I was a hair stylist for a few years but ultimately realized that that wasn’t what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. But I am eternally grateful for the education I did get. I have always loved hair and makeup and this only made me love it more! I also met some really amazing people along the way ❤️.
4. I come from a HUGE family.
Well, extended family. My dad is 1 of 10 kids! Yes, you read that right, 10!! And they all have names that start with “T’s”. Tim, Tammy, Tom, Ted, Terry, Teresa, Tracey, Todd, Trina, and Toby. I have so many cousins it is unreal but I have to say. I truly think this is one of the reasons I love kids so much. I’ve just grown up around them. Which brings me to number 5…
5. I can not wait to be a mommy!
It’s no secret that I love kids. Everyone that meets me instantly can figure this out about me. I can not wait for the day that I have a little girl that I can dress up to match me and we can take cute twinning pictures. I can’t wait until I have a house full of kiddos running around laughing, screaming, and even fighting. These are the days I look forward to. But until then, I get to love on everyone else’s kiddos and treat them like my own.
6. I’m a fat girl living in a skinny girls body.
I know what you’re thinking. Girl what are you talking about. But y’all!! I LOVE food. I will say, I go through stages. I’m like a chipmunk. I eat and eat and eat one month. And then the next month I may eat once a day. It’s like I’m storing up to go into hibernation or something. Who knows. But this girl loves to eat!!
7. I’m the girliest tom boy you ever meet.
We all know I love all things hair, makeup, and fashion, but did you know that I’m a total sports fanatic?! Yep, that’s right. My ideal Saturday is watching football. And if it’s not football it’s basketball or baseball. I just love it all so much. I think it’s because my dad is a man of very few words and that’s how we bonded when I was growing up. Even now! A typically daddy/daughter date consists of a sporting event somewhere along the way. It’s the best!
8. I have a super tight bond with my family.
My entire life my whole side of my moms family and I have only lived a few miles from each other. There’s truly nothing like family. My grandmother use to watch me while my mom went to work everyday. Then, when I got to be old enough, my mom enrolled me into daycare. What my mom didn’t know though was that when she dropped me off, my grandma would come pick me up a few minutes later 😂. It’s true. My mom was spending all of this money on daycare only for me to be spending the whole day with my nana. She’s always been like my second mom and I think it’s because I spent so much time with her all of these years. I go to lunch at least once a week still to this day with my grandparents. It’s amazing! I don’t even want to think about them passing away because I will literally start to cry. So moving on. My mom has one brother. He lives super close to us too! He’s got a big job these days! He’s the Lieutenant Governor of Georgia and he lets us go to work with him sometimes. It’s so interesting and very informative! Him and my aunt have 3 boys. We have all grown up so closely, I’ve never really felt like I’ve only had one brother. I have 4! Austin who is my biological brother and then my three cousins, Parker, Bayler, and Ryder. They are the best. Friends come and go but family is forever! I was blessed with an amazing and supportive crew that is for sure!
9. I’m too spontaneous for my own good sometimes.
I love to travel! Obviously, my job, hello haha. But I’ve been known quite a few times to hop onto a plane and spend a few hours somewhere. Like we are talking I got off of a trip for work, went shopping in the Atlanta airport for some different clothes, and hopped onto a flight to ROME, all to only spend about 10 hours there. The flight getting there was actually longer than the amount of time I was there. But, I missed my sweet friend Dani so much. So much in fact that I flew to Rome, Italy to have dinner with her. Laughing at my life but hey, you are only young once and these are some of my most special memories to me. The ones that are last minute, and not very well thought out and totally spur of the moment. Don’t take life too seriously. You’ll get wrinkles that way 😜.
10. My style is not like anyone else’s.
I often get told this. “You’re the only one that could pull that outfit off. If I tried, I would look ridiculous.” It kind of makes me laugh because I too at some point when I’m looking in my floor length mirror think I look RIDICULOUS. But you know what, ridiculous is me. And I love being ridiculous when it comes to my style choices. I love the fact that one day I can be super preppy and the next day I’m so trendy. And then the day after that I’m rocking a graphic tee with a blazer. I learned at a young age that you can wear anything and make it look “good” if you have the confidence behind it. If you like the outfit you have on and it makes you feel good about yourself, walk with confidence, with your head up high, and rock the heck out of that outfit girl. Everyone will soon tell you too that “you’re the only one that could pull off that outfit”.
11. I’m a hopeless romantic.
Okay. I get asked about 100 times a day about my dating life so here we go. I have been single for 5 years now completely by choice. I go on dates here and there but no one has just caught my eye yet and that’s okay. Yes, it may be tough at times but let me explain something to you that I tell everyone who asks me. I grew up with an amazing father figure who still to this day treats my mom like a princess. Yes they have their arguments at times but she is still, and will always be, his bride. They go on weekly date nights. He opens her car door for her. He cherishes her. The same is true for my grandpa. He lets my grandma do and buy whatever will make her happy. He loves her with his whole heart and is a true gentleman. Same with how my uncle treats my aunt. I want what my whole family has. When I tell people this the immediate response I get is “well the dating world is just different these days”. Yes, the dating world as a whole may be completely different in today’s time than it was when my parents, grandparents, and aunt and uncle were dating, but there are still good guys out there. I know there are because my younger brother is one of them. He opens my car door for me, he always wheels my suitcase for me if I have one when he’s around, and he treats me like a queen more times than not. So yes, the dating world may be “different”, but I personally know what it’s like to be treated like a princess and I will never settle for anything less than I deserve. Even if that means that I’ll be single for the next 5, 10, even 20 years. That’s okay. When you date someone as you are getting older, you are dating to get to know someone with the intention of marry them. If I’m going to date you, you have to have potential, and be someone I could see myself marrying. Simple as that. It’s my life and I’m allowed to be picky. Even if everyone else thinks that I should be in a relationship ❤️.
12. Zaxby’s and Chick-fil-A are two things I can’t live without.
Don’t even ever try to tell me a world without Zaxby’s or Chick-fil-A. I may just start crying. It’s true. I legitimately have either Zaxby’s or Chick-fil-A almost every single day. Whether it’s just a sweet tea purchase or an entire meal, my card has 1-2 purchases from these restaurants a day 😂. THIS. IS. SO. BAD. I am fully aware. But like the house Zalad with grilled chicken and the raspberry vinaigrette is so good. And their sweet tea. Omg… craving one right now! And Chick-fil-A. Yum yum yum. Give me all the grilled chicken nuggets and yogurt parfaits 😋. If you know me, you know I LOVE french fries and fried chicken. Like love it. So much so that I will have a french fry bar at my wedding. But I’m gluten free and can’t have them. It’s so sad. But the grilled options from these places are just as good. I promise you! I definitely see a franchise of either restaurant in my future. You can bet on that one.
13. I want to spend the rest of my life laughing.
I’m totally blaming this one on my grandma. We have always called ourselves “Lucy and Ethel” for as long as I can remember. But she’s Ethel of course because she’s older 😉. She taught me at a young age that laughter is the best kind of medicine and I could not agree more. I often laugh so hard that I start to cry. Or I even pee my pants hahaha. That is way too much information I know but I’m just keeping it real people. When I look around at the people I surround myself with, one quality I want my future husband to have, at the top of the list is a sense of humor. Looks fade, but good personality and the ability to make a positive out of a situation is forever.
14. I have no time for your drama.
It’s actually funny because I am going to write an entire blog post about this because it’s something that as I get older I just don’t have the time or energy for it. But it’s true, I deal with dramatic people every day on the airplane… I don’t need my friend group to be dramatic as well. Actually I’ve “ghosted” a lot of friends because I just can’t with them anymore. That sounds like such a strange thing to say. Actually, a very “basic girl” thing to say but y’all. I am a no drama llama. Some friendships you just grow out of. And that is okay. You had that friendship for a reason. To get through something and that’s amazing. Some friendships have an expiration date and others are forever. This I learned the hard way.
15. Instagram stories changed my life.
I’ve said this before but seriously! They did!! Let me explain. I had this “following” on Instagram for a while and it was all picture based. Actually when I think about it now it’s everything that I hate… You see I am constantly getting judged by my “cover”, like a book, and when people actually get to know me they physically say to me, “wow, you are not anything like I thought you would be like”. For the longest time I let that wear on me. But it’s true for everyone. We judge someone on their feed. Do we want to follow them? Do we like their vibe? Their esthetic? Will this person give me inspiration? We ALL do it. So when Instagram stories came around I decided that I was going to be unapologetically myself on them and show my followers and everyone else who I truly was. And that person is a funny, goofy, sarcastic, fashionable, blunt, and caring person. You know what, everyone loved that they now had the opportunity to see the “real” me. I love a good joke and they now love that about me. So thank you Instagram for creating the story feature. I will be forever grateful.
And last but not least we have number…
16. I will ALWAYS treat a CEO the same way I treat a janitor.
My volleyball coach I had in high school made the biggest impact on my life. He will always be someone I love, admire, and look up to. He instilled some of the best qualities in me and I hope to pass those along to others. One thing he use to always say to us at every single practice was, “You will leave this gym the way you found it. You will not leave a single bobby-pin, water bottle, or piece of paper in here. The janitors are not here to clean up your mess.” Y’all, I respect him so much for this! We live in a world in this day in age where people think they are above other people. No one is “below” you. I truly believe that. You may excel in one area but I bet you any amount of money that someone excels in another. Coach Orr was tough on us. Actually sometimes brutally tough but I am so thankful he was. My work ethic, my drive, and my overall want to do better was shaped by this man. He had so much faith in me when he put me on the varsity volleyball team my freshman year. He saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself. I now see the spark he saw in me and I hope to one day make an impact on someone else’s life like he made on mine. Thank you Coach!
I have to be honest. I asked my closest friends to help me with this this list and every single person said something along the lines of this. “You’re the nicest, sweetest, most genuine person I have ever met.” Wow! What a complement that is. I have the sweetest friends who always build me up. That’s what it’s all about. But I have to give all of the credit to those who have I have encountered on my almost 25 years of life. The way people have treated me, both good and bad, have allowed me to define me. Not the other way around.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for following along with my journey. I absolutely love what I do and I am so glad I get to share it with you too. If you’ve been following me for a while, I love you. And if you’re new here, I love you too 🙂
This is just the beginning, and I’m so glad you’re here ❤️.
Xo, Amanda Kay
Amanda Kay Hoke 