the damage is done.

8:20:00 PM Unknown 1 Comments

I did it.  I got my first tattoo.



It was by no means spontaneous, and I put years of thought and worrying into my decision.  At the same time it was something I never thought I would do, because it is so uncharacteristic of me.  But I wanted it, and I got it.


Four-leaf clovers have a lot of meaning to me.  My Granny, the only grandparent I really had as a child, was born on St. Patty's Day.  She passed away 3 years ago, and since then clovers have become an obsession for me.  They're all over my house in different shapes and forms, and I love them.  I even had a four-leaf clover charm hanging from my rear view mirror from the day after she died until 2 months ago, when I wrapped it up and sent it to Nick in Iraq (because as I told him, no one would be more proud of him or protect him the way that Granny would).  Of course I'm pretty sure my grandmother would roll over in her grave if she thought I got a tattoo for her, but that's just a minor detail.

I also more recently learned that my aunt Teresa (who's been in a coma for 10?... 11?... maybe 12 years now?) had a love for sitting in the front yard for hours at a time searching for four-leaf clovers as a child.  With that revelation four-leaf clovers took on another meaning, because they were also a way to remember and honor someone else that I love.  (and luckily I think she would LOVE the idea of me getting a tattoo!)

Four-leaf clovers also have a third, more cheesy, meaning for me.  I feel so lucky to have found Nick, and for us to spend our lives together.  He is absolutely amazing (although it took years of training and a broken heart), and when I think of him I feel like the luckiest person alive.  So he was definitely on my mind when I chose this design.

Ironically, I don't feel like a lucky person.  I have been known to say on more than one occasion that I feel like I have the worst luck in the world (and Nick feels that way as well, so together we have a lot ahead of us in the future).  Maybe this tattoo will bring me a little extra luck?  Probably not, but it's worth a shot.

I've known for 3 years that I wanted to get a tattoo of a four-leaf clover, but it took hours and hundreds of designs to figure out exactly what I wanted.  And then I had to figure out where to get it... not an easy task.  The idea of a tattoo on my foot didn't come to me until a couple of weeks ago, but as I thought about it I knew it was perfect.  I definitely wanted to put it in a place that was easy to cover up, and also somewhere that wouldn't show when I was 80 and wrinkly.  Let's face it, if I'm wearing strappy sandals in my old age I have more to worry about than a tattoo on my foot (and I feel sorry for those around me).

So there you have it, my first tattoo.  Sorry Mom (and Dad), but I got a tattoo.  At least I waited until I was old and married, and didn't get some guy's name on my butt when I was 18, or a hand print on my cleavage, or a tramp stamp (no offense to all the ladies out there with the ever-popular butterfly tramp stamp).  

If you see me wearing a lot more of my ballet flats this summer it's not because my toes are cold, I just think my tattoo looks too good with a cute pair of flats :)


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1 comment:

  1. Cute tattoo! Love the story (you know it made me cry).

    ReplyDelete