I thought it would be fun to do a little Instagram round up on the blog and share some of the photos I took since moving to Philly. I love that I have a platform like Instagram to document all of these life changes and new adventures in Philly. Follow along on Instagram @blonderosiee .

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Once a week, I will take a different way home even if it means going a mile out of the way just to explore. I took this photo walking out of City Hall just as the sun was starting to go down. I have always loved the quote “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it” and I try to live by that philosophy every day. 

Pajama Set: The rain kinda ruined my Memorial Day plans while I was at the beach, but that didn’t stop my from wearing my new summer pajamas! I wish I could start every morning with a cup of coffee on the front porch.

Fin-Tastic T Shirt: I loved this t shirt so much that it made it on my Instagram twice already! I have a million shirts in my closet right now, but when I saw the cute saying on it, I just needed it!

.Found this little reminder on my way home from work one day. It seriously brightened my entire evening.

This is just blocks away from my apartment and I had no clue that this little street existed! I walk a block over on my way to and from work and had no clue it existed until I made a wrong turn when I wasn’t paying attention. Talk about #housegoals!

Mascara: As always, I am forever grateful for the opportunities this blog has given me! I get to work with amazing companies and try new products to review on the blog. I know that there are some full time bloggers out there that make a living off of blogging and I know I will never get to that level, but being able to work with brands like this is a dream come true!

Heels: Skirt: This is technically my first corporate job and I am loving the opportunity to dress up for work everyday. Yes, I do miss wearing jeans to J. Crew, but working in a big law firm gave me an excuse to buy some new shoes. These have become my favorite and I ordered them in different colors when they went on sale. I couldn’t resist!

Yes, I was that crazy person who was up at 4am to watch the Royal Wedding. I also skipped school when Will and Kate got married, so I am used to the judgment by now. What was different this time is that I got to curl up on my own couch, in my own apartment and watch the wedding. I just felt so happy being able to have a little life accomplishment during the wedding.

Earrings: 1 and 2 I have had to cut back my spending now that I have a very pretty apartment with a veryyy prettttyy rent every month. So instead of buying the “It Top” or “It Dress” each week, I am investing in earrings instead this year. They are around $10 so I can buy a few at a time and I can wear them a few times  a week without being an outfit repeater.

Shampoo: Conditioner: I have been investing more time on the blog and going back to the beginning of how this blog started by doing product reviews of my favorite products that are not sponsored. I am in love with the entire L’Oreal collection, but this one has been a favorite and I saw immediate improvements in my hair.

With so much rain lately (seriously, like every single day for weeks), I always try to find something that brings me joy. I was taken by surprise when I turned the corner and saw a rainbow outside my apartment one day. I try to be a positive person even when everything seems to be going wrong, so I like it when the Universe gives me little surprises like this.

I don’t dread Mondays and that is how I know I am headed in the right direction in life. Getting dressed up for work has become one of my favorite things to do each day and I know it sounds silly, but making cute outfits brings me so much joy.

I decided to take some time off from looking for a relationship because I am just not in the right place for one. I talked briefly on the blog about a relationship that ended recently and to be honest, I am still healing from it. It made me question who I was and who I could trust. So for now I am investing my time and energy in friendships. I have also started to use online dating for a year of first dates as I like to call it. I hate dating and I am horrible at it, so now I have great stories to share with my girlfriends when we get together. After seeing what kind of guys are out there, I fall more in love with coffee and my cat each day!

There is so much to do in Philly and by now I am sure everyone is annoyed that I am constantly begging someone to explore with me. This is where the year of dating kinda started because a guy asked to show me around Philly on an afternoon for a date. It turned into a perfect excuse to try new things and have a personal tour guide.

I know people talk about networking, but I attended a networking event and it was actually fun. See, I am forcing myself to do things that are uncomfortable and it is actually kinda fun!

Rainy days actually make really pretty sunsets! Since moving to Philly, I feel like we have more rainy days than sunny days a week. Instead of feeling discouraged about the gloomy weather, I try to find something pretty in my day!

There is a 98% chance I had no makeup on and was in pajamas, but put myself together to take this selfie for my Instagram. Which turned into me leaving the apartment because I already had pants on. It is amazing what I can accomplish when I make myself pretty. A bit of self confidence goes a long way. 

This is pretty much how every morning begins for me. I make a breakfast and sit on the couch for a bit while I slowly wake up for the day. I wake up a bit earlier in the day, but I love having a calm morning to myself.

Kind of crazy to think that I walk past City Hall everyday on my way to work. After coming to this city for years as a tourist and then going to college a mile away, I never really took the time to appreciate this building. I will never be able to call myself a local, but I love that this city is becoming my home. 

One thing I don’t talk about often on the blog is my dating life recently. After a breakup right before I moved to Philly, I wanted to take the next few months to settle in the apartment, find some friends and focus on work. Sounds crazy to some of my friends, but I have been going on a lot of first dates lately. I am not looking for anything serious, just want to meet new people, practice my flirting skills (I have to work on the whole not snorting when I laugh part!) and just have an excuse to leave the apartment on a Saturday. I made plans to meet a guy for coffee at a coffee shop a few blocks from my apartment and stumbled across this street on my way there. My first few weeks here were rough because I didn’t have a routine yet- but I have found ways to reach out to people and make plans. 

I dedicated an entire blog post to this jacket because I spent years debating if I should purchase it or not. So happy I did because it was my go to jacket for the chilly spring months here. 

Sneak peak of my bedroom the first week I moved in the apartment. Not much has changed because my mom and I did a good job of having the movers set up everything and added our decorative touch the day I moved in. Cannot wait to share a full apartment tour with you guys soon, now I am just being picky about some last minute decor!

When I found out that Joe Biden was speaking at my alma mater, I immediately got a ticket because this was an event I could not miss. It was during the a weekday, so none of my friends could go because they were working. However, even with no one to go with, I still went and it’s something I will remember forever. 

When deciding on apartment furniture, I knew I would have a very small budget when purchasing new furniture. I tried to take pieces that I already owned, but had to splurge on this lamp and chair because they make the space very homey. Even when my apartment was cluttered with boxes, just having this little space set up in the corner made it feel so cozy!

My bedroom is still in the process of being decorated and needs a few more pieces of furniture. But this is what it looked like just one day after move in. I brought my bed from home, splurged on some new decorative pillows to make it cozy.  I decided on a grey and pink theme since the next time I move it will most likely be with a significant other, so this is the only time in my life when I can have a pink bedroom!

I love springtime because color finally comes back into my closet after wearing 50 shades of black for so many months. One way to brighten your look for spring is new makeup in blush tones. I have been in love with the Lash Paradise Mascara from L’Oreal because it gives the perfect lash look. I often wear more than one mascara to get a full lash look and I like to use this one last to give me the perfect volume. Mascara trick: I use this one on the tips of my eyelashes to build them so they get longer. I stole used this rosey tone moisturizer that my mom had for a bit and I love how it gives you a natural flush look. It is meant for older skin, but one of my biggest skin problem areas is that my face looks washed out without blush. 

I was lucky enough to work with Supergoop recently and try their new setting powder. When I first started to use it, I would use it on top of my foundation like I did all of my other setting powders and was happy with the result. One day I was late for work and didn’t have time to do a full face of makeup, so I threw a bit of this on without foundation and I really liked the finished look. It gives a full coverage look  without the heavy foundation. 

My friend gave me this book a few months ago and I have it in my living room right now where I can easily grab it and flip through for a good laugh. I definitely suggest this book for anyone looking for some life advice and a good laugh.

One of my last few days at J. Crew Factory and I didn’t have a job lined up at that point. What should have been a terrifying moment in my life because I had no job or money to pay my bills –  I was oddly calm because I knew this was the once chance to do something amazing in my life. I took a chance and just went with it. Plan? Ha! I didn’t even have a Pla at this point!

There is a theme for my life this year and it is “new”. New apartment, new city, new job and new adventures. I have taken some time to sit down and actually think about where I want to invest my energy and time. The past year, my whole life revolved around my job and when I decided to leave my job, I felt to empty and lost. While I love my new job and the doors that will open in the future for me, I don’t want my life to revolve around a job. One of my life regrets (or life lessons) is that a job is not permanent, but your friends and relationships are. I cannot tell you how many brunches, weekend getaways and last minute decision to grab drinks with friends I have missed the last three years. Why? Because I was working.

Now that I am in Philly, I am saying yes to every adventure and focusing on a social life because I neglected it for so long. I still go to bed early to get to work on time during the week, but I am willing to make time for those last minute plans to grab dinner or just hanging out with friends whenever I can. Being a shy person, it is terrifying to be in a city and not know many people. Normally I would just stay in my apartment and not want to do anything on my own. But remember that whole new life, new me theme from earlier? Now I go on walks around Philly on the weekends or take the long way home to see things I would normally miss.

I want to invest more time and energy in the things that bring me joy and for a while I put the Blonde Rosie blog to the side because my work schedule didn’t allow time for writing, taking photos or blog planning. The Blonde Rosie Blog started as a creative outlet for me when I was bored a few months after college graduation and a way to express myself. This year I am dedicating more time and energy into the blog because I forgot how much joy it brings me. I don’t care about the views or the likes because I simply just like writing about my life and what I love. I plan to have more consistent content, more photos and share my life that I truly love every minute of.

I make it a point to take a photo every single day. It doesn’t matter if it is of my shoes, a building I see on my way to work or an outfit selfie. My goal is to have 365 photos for my one year moving to Philly anniversary. Seems silly, but I will go down a new street on my walk home from work to see if I can get a unique photo that day. Most of these sights have made it onto my Instagram, so I thought I would share them on the blog as well. I know taking selfies or doing it for the Instagram is such a Millennial thing to do, but I like to preserve a moment in time that makes me happy and share with others. You can bet I will throw on a cute outfit on a lazy Sunday or clean my coffee table to get a picture for Instagram. Sharing photos on social media started as a way to share our life with others that we don’t see everyday as a way to stay connected.

As always, thank you for supporting the blog and liking my photos.