Life’s lil’ Milestones

New York Fashion Week has been a whirlwind this season and I was so excited to be a lil’ part of it for the first time and hit another life milestone. Amidst it all, I started thinking about all my life’s lil’ milestones / memories thus far and realized I should take a minute to reflect. I was also in part influenced/inspired by blogger Victoria MacGrath’s (In the FROW) recent post on her life’s iconic moments. This week and this post has made me think about MY OWN life moments that were iconic and I wanted to share them with you!

Getting NYU’s College Acceptance Email/Letter

Starting my milestones list off with my college acceptance! I still remember so vividly the day I found out my acceptance into New York University and the wave of emotions that overcame me all at once. I was at home working on an APUSH assignment (lol at the high school days) and just randomly decided to check my email and it was at the top of the inbox. It felt like my first major achievement in life. Celebrating with my family and friends and realizing together that it was the first step of my future.

College Move-In Day / First Time in Europe

As most of you know, I spent my first year of college at NYU Florence. Before then, I have never been to Europe before and had mixed emotions. It was the first time I left my family for an extended period of time so I was extremely devastated and couldn’t enjoy myself thoroughly for a while. On the other hand, I was able to travel and start a new chapter of my life and getting so much closer to my dreams. I still remember that day like it was yesterday – I arrived with all of my luggage, put everything away, met Alex (hi lovaaa) and tons of my friends who are still my besties today.

First Internship

Going to my first internship and meeting my first boss ever is another lil’ milestone that I will always remember. I got so lucky wth my boss — he has transformed from being my first boss to my friend and mentor. It really set up my expectations of what I wanted in the workplace and the relationships that I want to continue building. I still consider it my first “big girl” working experience and don’t think I will ever forget the memories I’ve made there.

Almost Failing an Exam for my Major

I went through high school barely studying and was able to do fine…for some reason it all worked out. But then college came and I thought I could still apply those methods to college classes. I think I have talked about this before, but I almost failed an intro economics class and it was a huge wake-up call. I felt so confident that I was going to ace the test, but I was so wrong! It reminded me that I cannot go about my old ways if I want to succeed—I have to work harder and to study and do eventing in between. I think without that test, my work ethic wouldn’t be as strong today.

First NYC Apartment

I felt like such an adult when I was able to move into my first NYC apartment – I was able to survive on my own!! HAHAH JK! I still needed my parents help every step of the way…literally. But it was the first step of finding a home away from home. I had the best year in that apartment with Alex and our close friend – we grew to understand each other more and gathered so many laughs. Looking back, I felt like I was such a baby!!

Hitting “Publish” on my First Blog Post

The adrenaline rush I felt when I was ready to hit “publish” on my first blog post about a year ago still gets me so riled up! A 4+ year dream that finally turned into a reality – I had something tangible to show for it! Can you believe that it took me almost 5 months to get everything ready? And I still can’t believe that I am already waaay pass my one-year mark. I can’t wait to hit more milestones with it!

College Graduation

This was such a big deal and I felt like the entire week went by in such a blur! I am the first generation college student so it was such an exciting time for us to experience it together (although I am still sad that my sister wasn’t able to come). It was so bittersweet to see four years go by so fast but also amazing to realize all outcome of all the hard work and efforts. It was also extra amazing to have Justin Trudeau as our commencement speaker!

First Job Offer

So as most of you know, I recently started a new job — my first big girl job! It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do after college and where I want to go. I know that I have always had an interest in law and regulations but never saw it as feasible to get a position in it right out of college. But you know what, go after what you want and keep working for it. Stop striving for something less. I have been so lucky to have parents + siblings to support me through this time and told me to take my time while giving my encouragement. On the other hand, I have Alex and friends who constantly push me to go after what I want without hesitation and who help me no matter what time of the day.

First NYFW Event + Meeting my Fav Influencers 

This NYFW has been the first that I was able to partake in. Although I didn’t do as much as other bloggers/influencers, I was still able to attend some events. I went to the Lulu’s yearly event and it blew my expectations. I never knew that after a year of blogging, I would be standing in the same room with other amazing bloggers much less meet my idols like Negin Mirsalehi and Tess Christine. So many emotions went through me during the event and was star-struck over everything haha. Another best part? There were bite size chicken and waffles! To meet and match faces to these gorgeous photos on the internet has been such an amazing experience – all of these bloggers/influencers I’ve met have been the sweetest people EVER!

Taking time to reflect amongst these lil’ milestones really put into perspective what I have achieved thus far. It also pushes me to continue because these milestones are the backbones to let me know  I can and there are more milestones out there to be created. What is one milestone in your life that you are proud of or always remember?

A million and one thanks for reading — until my next lil’ thought then!

xx jen