Hello, I'm Andrea!

Hello, and welcome to the Land of Liam!!!

I am Andrea Runk, wife, mother, crafter, DIY loving, novice sew'er, first-time blogger, world traveling, food loving,coffee addict,sports watching, ocean lover, island girl, full time working...Me!!!  I was born a raised in Key West, Florida. I am a Conch (yes, that is a seashell, but that is what they call Key Wester's, and yes, it was our High School Mascot). I lived everyday by the water, in the water, or on the water. I am a true islander through and through.

After High School, in 2002,I left the sandy beaches and clear waters of my small island for the swampy, hilly Panhandle of Florida, with every intention of one day moving back home.I studied at the Florida State University, and finished my degree at Florida A & M University with my Master's in Architecture. I currently work full time as a Construction Project Manager.

I met my husband Paul through mutual friends and we have been inseparable since. I have been happily married to Paul, going on 4 years, and I cannot wait to live the rest of our lives together. We love to explore new cities (and hopefully countries one day), we are craft beer snobs, we eat local and clean, and we are FSU Football fanatics!!! 

Zoey, our first child, was rescued a little over 8 years ago, and she has been our Fur-Baby ever since. She is super sweet, loves giving kisses, and is very playful. She spends her summers in Key West with my parents, lucky dog, and some of her winter's on Ohio with Paul's family, brrr. She longs for our nightly walks together just as much as we do. She thinks she is human and a lap dog! 

Our son Liam was born late last year and our life changed so much for the better!I know that sounds so cliche, but it's the honest truth. We had it pretty good before he came, but somehow things just got that much better. We see things through a different lenses since he was born, and he effects every aspect of our lives in a good way. Since, the time I knew I was pregnant, Paul and I decided to let things happen naturally. We were clueless, but we didn't want to be influenced by the outside world, we wanted this to be an experience all our own. We blocked out what "they" say, we didn't read all the books, and we just dove in headfirst. 

Liam is the happiest little boy, he is always smiling, and his tongue is always out (he learned that from his sister Zoey). We take him everywhere with us. He has flown on planes, traveled across a few states, goes to restaurants with us, has been to major sporting events, and loves going grocery shopping with us.

Since becoming a mom all I do is think about Liam and ways that I can better enrich his life. Every thought I have is "how can I make that for Liam?", "will Liam like to do this?", "Is this a healthy option?" etc. I decided to write this blog to better organize my thoughts, projects, recipes, and any other wild idea that I may have. Since I feel like I live in the Land of Liam, I decided to make that the name of the blog!

I will dedicate the blog to being a mom and all of the fun journey's that I come across. I want to share my DIY Craft projects with you, I want to cook for you, and I want you to travel with us...all on a budget, of course!!! 

I am a novice at most of this, so I won't hesitate to share my fails along with my successes. I have been crafty from birth, I inherited it from my mom, and she taught us that it's OK to color outside the lines. She taught me how to sew. I learned to cook from watching my Grandparent's, they are all of Latin descent, and I was raised eating their foods. I make most recipes my own, trying to make their staples a bit more healthy, and on a budget. We had family living around the world, so at a young age I was blessed enough to be a jet-setter, and I hope one day to extend that fortune to my kids. 

I hope that you will come join me in the Land of Liam!!!

Please contact me directly at thelandofliam@gmail.com .