Last week, I celebrated my 31st birthday! As you may imagine, for a planner like me, I thought trying to avoid all activities & celebrate my DOB in isolation would be, well, quite sad. But I had the best day!

A lifestyle blog for young women dining, shopping, playing & living in the city of Philadelphia.
Last week, I celebrated my 31st birthday! As you may imagine, for a planner like me, I thought trying to avoid all activities & celebrate my DOB in isolation would be, well, quite sad. But I had the best day!
I turn 30 today. And in honor of all of the love Philadelphia has brought me during my adult years, I wanted to share a few things I love about Philly, too. I kept this list in the same order as I jotted them down, and I am not kidding, I did a quick count once as I was about midway through, and then landed exactly on 30 before I numbered them. Here’s hoping that is a sign that my 30th year will line up just as perfectly. 🙂
So I’m a little late, but I couldn’t let the month go by without mention. So here she is, the 4th DOB (month) of my little Her Philly beeb.
Much like most of the world, 2016 was not a 12 month period I’d put on the “best years of my life” list. But I am growing as a human, and with that, watching my interests and habits change (which I suppose is normal as a woman gets closer and closer to 30 than she is to 20), and I’m, so far, okay with that.
It’s December, and here we are: over 1,095 days of writing and tweeting and exploring this city along with my little buddy, Her Philly (!!!). Three whole years feels kind of incredible, and I am just as grateful for those of you who are new to the fam as I am for my followers who’ve been with me since the very beginning (hi, Mom & Dad). It’s because of you that I love late nights and early mornings compiling mini-guides to this pretty little city of ours. So, as per usual, I have updates.
Photo by Chrystina Noel
Ahhhh hi! I know I have been MIA, but for good reason: it’s MAY. As you’re well aware, I’m firmly believe that everyone has the right to go all out in their birthday celebrations. And with that philosophy, I’ve been taking advantage this month. Keeping myself busy with really fun things and surrounded by my friends and family has made me feel like one lucky girl. Here’s everything I’ve been up to this month…
So here we are . . . two years since I hit “publish” on my first post, back in 2012. Writing this blog started from a little idea to get out and explore my city, and it turned into so much more. I am so. thankful. for all of the experiences I’ve had and friends I’ve made over the past two years, so obviously, we’re celebrating!!!
As I type these first few words, I instantly feel relief and happiness. Even though it has only been three weeks since I took an unscheduled hiatus from blogging, I have truly missed this so much and I’m glad to be back.
To give a quick explanation of where I’ve been: I started a new full-time job (!!!) earlier this month. On top of a much shorter commute, I’ll now be dedicating most of my time to social media, something I am extremely passionate about. My job falls in a new industry which will definitely be a challenge for me, but it is one I am so excited about and I can’t wait to dig in deeper. It’s great when you get a new job that you want to achieve in, it gives that feeling of ‘newness’. You can always get help as well especially if you are worried about how your resume looks, luckily companies such as https://www.arcresumes.com/local/texas/ are on-hand when required!
To replace the traditional “new haircut” change upon starting a new job (I love my hair too much), my spare time has been spent in full apartment detox mode. Closets were/are the first to be tackled, resulting in me adding a lot to my Poshmark. I’m thinking of doing one of those apartment “tours,” a la my favorite YouTubers, once it’s all done. I’ll keep you posted.
I’ve also had a great month full of girl power. First, I went to see Lana Del Rey at The Mann – she was fantastic. Later that week, I went to see my girls HAIM at Tower Theater. I danced and sang and it was so. much. fun. I’ve also been loving Game of Thrones, because, spoiler alert: the girls are killing it. Sansa is so my #1.
And of course, as May is my birthday month, I’ve been treating myself (which to me includes buying self tanner and indulging in a pedicure here and there). It also means allowing myself to plan my own celebrations, something I felt very self conscious about doing on my single-girl-own last year. This past weekend I was joined by six of my closest friends for a seven course heaven on earth experience at Marrakesh (517 South Leithgow Street). Tonight (my actual birthday!), I am going to The Fat Ham (3131 Walnut Street) with the rest of my Philly crew, and this weekend I’ll be celebrating with my family. I consider myself very lucky that I get to celebrate with the people I love . . . and that my self tanner is finally starting to take effect.
All in all, I am happy to be back (did I mention that yet?) and I hope you’re excited to start reading again. If there’s anything you’d really like to see, as always, let me know. Love ya peeps! xx
Happy (late) Friday! Last night I went to dinner with my BFF Kelly, my pops & his buds, and as we were finishing our meal, approximately eight Eagles players popped up from a few tables away. I’m sure you all know the huge crush I have on Jason Kelce, so as I panicked like a middle school girl, Kelly dragged me up and we asked him for a photo. Love ya, Jason!
My final birthday giveaway is a pretty wonderful one. Serafina (130 South 18th Street) is my go-to restaurant in Rittenhouse. Whenever I’m bopping in the park and need a good drink and some amazing food, I’m there. It’s consistently delicious, and I love sitting outside right on Sansom Street in the spring & summer. If you follow Her Philly on Twitter, you’ve seen me tweeting away about my visits to Serafina . . . so I can’t waiiiit for you to try it too! For my final birthday giveaway, enter for a chance to win a $75 gift card to Serafina – amazing!
And that’s a wrap! My week of 1st Birthday giveaways have all been posted, but there are still chances to enter! Each giveaway is open for one week after its original posting date, and you can enter as many as you’d like. Thank you to each of the brands I partnered with this week – we have some great prizes!
Monday: $25 Gift Card to The Igloo
Tuesday: 4 Passes to Eastern State Penitentiary
Wednesday: $25 Gift Card to The Expressive Hand
Thursday: A Trapeze Lesson from Fly School Circus Arts
Friday: $75 Gift Card to Serafina
Today’s post is a little later than usual, mainly because I was out hanging with my Philly Blog Love gals last night! My giveaway is for my gutsy girls (like Jessica Lawlor gutsy) – and it’s pretty freakin cool.
Last spring, I did something I never in a million years thought I’d a) get the opportunity to do & b) be physically able to do; I learned to fly. Fly School Circus Arts is a local trapeze school that set up shop earlier this year right on Broad Street for PIFA. My trapeze class was literally a once in a lifetime opportunity, and the feeling I had walking away after I did something so brave was so worth the butterflies I had before I launched off the platform. I can’t explain how necessary of an experience I think this is for you all to take advantage of, and that’s why I am SO excited to offer a free trapeze class from Fly School Circus Arts as today’s prize! Enter as many ways as you’d like using the Rafflecopter widget below:
The class will take place when they reopen at their new Philadelphia location this spring, but don’t worry, I’ll get you all the details. The contest will run one week, and I will announce the winner back here on my blog. Make sure you enter my other Philly giveaways below (you can enter as many as you’d like!) and good luck! xx
Monday: $25 Gift Card to The Igloo
Tuesday: 4 Passes to Eastern State Penitentiary
Wednesday: $25 Gift Card to The Expressive Hand
Thursday: A Trapeze Lesson from Fly School Circus Arts
Friday: $75 Gift Card to Serafina
Here we go again! I hope you’re enjoying my birthday giveaways so far! Today I have something for my crafty ladies . . . or my not so crafty ladies who want to improve their skills. 🙂
The Expressive Hand (622 South 9th Street) is an amazing paint-your-own-pottery studio located right off South Street. They have a huge selection of pottery options to choose from, and your completed projects are perfect as gifts or to add something unique to your new Philly apartment. I adore the plate I made last time I visited the studio & can’t wait to go back soon. Hey, maybe we can go together! Since you have a chance to win a gift card, and all . . .
My next two prizes will only get bigger, so stop by tomorrow for a chance to win a new prize! Missed some of the giveaways? Enter below & good luck!
Monday: $25 Gift Card to The Igloo
Tuesday: 4 Passes to Eastern State Penitentiary
Wednesday: $25 Gift Card to The Expressive Hand
Thursday: A Trapeze Lesson from Fly School Circus Arts
Friday: $75 Gift Card to Serafina