7 Year Blogiversary | Ruthie Ridley

Honestly, if you had told me that I would be blogging for seven years and counting when I first started, I would’ve never believed you! We had just moved to California from Connecticut. My kids were 18 months, three years old and four years old. I was working full-time, plus a little overtime as a registered nurse, and I was in desperate need to create again.

I had blogs prior but I didn’t know what I was doing. One was for healthy eating (because I had lost a ton of weight) and the other was a compilation of food, fashion, fitness etc. I realized that, when the kids were really little, my creative outlet then was scrapbooking their photos.

Although I had several blogs prior, they were not in anyway successful. I was scared to try something creative online again. I prayed a lot about it! Finally I felt like the Lord told me if I could post to Instagram consistently for six months than I should start officially blogging in January 2015! That’s what I did.

Initially, I was just doing it for fun. I had a sweet intern living with me at the time who was helping me with the kids while I worked. She would take my photos around town on an iPhone 3! I had no money so I would consign clothing to get new ones and sometimes do a bit of thrifting! I had so much fun!! I had a sweet friend say to me in the first month of blogging well, “I could see you making money doing this! There are bloggers out there that do this for a living!!” I couldn’t believe it! She showed me Kerrently Ker. She had a show, an incredible Instagram, and blog! From that moment on, I started to dream!

When I started to take my posting on Instagram seriously, I had 1,800 followers. I posted consistently 3 to 5 times per week! I did what I could to interact with my community and cultivate relationships within the blogger networking communities! In my first year with only 1,800 followers or so, I had companies willing to work with me for trade! I didn’t know how to pitch, but I reached out to them and they took my offer!

For years, I worked as a nurse full time and created content for brands at the same time! I would do photo shoots on my lunch breaks, after work, on the weekends, etc. I would shoot whenever I could because, not only did I have a full-time job, but I had a full family at home! It began to become my dream to do this full-time! I was happiest when I was creating content, dressing up, and connecting with my community online!

In the craziest year ever (2020), I was able to leave my full-time job as a nurse. I was making six figures and very successful. I got to the point where I was making more as a content creator than I was as a nurse! It was time to take a leap of faith! Earlier that year, I was on a trip for a brand and I met some amazing women that introduced me to my current agency! God was looking out!

Here I am seven years later and I can’t believe I’m here. I’ll tell you what – I was the least qualified. I don’t even think I had the best style. I definitely was not the best writer or communicator, but God saw more! I started out insecure, broke and afraid, but I pushed through all of that and prayed even harder! He opened up doors with brands and companies that I never even dream of working with! This is my job, but I almost never feel like I’m working because I love it so much.

For anyone who wants more in life and is wondering whether or not they can make a living doing what they love, I’m here to tell you it’s possible! Anything and everything is possible! Dream, pray, submit your life to God, dream some more and watch God do the miraculous!

If you’ve been here since the beginning, thank you for hanging out with me so long, even when I didn’t know what I was doing! And if you are just joining my community, I’m so so glad you’re here! So much love!

If you’d like to take a look at my blogging journey, simply click on the images below to see my past blog anniversaries throughout the years!