Sure, she (very) famously played a New York socialite making major waves in her preppy private high school circle and beyond, but actress Blake Lively is a California girl.

The 31-year-old was born in Los Angeles. Back in 2012, she married actor Ryan Reynolds, and the two are now parents to daughters James and Inez Reynolds, their 3- and 1-year-olds.

Serena van der Woodsen was that blond bombshell with all the rumors surrounding her and her crew on the CW’s Gossip Girl, that drama that ran from 2007 to 2012.

I personally took notice of Lively when I decided to give that show a view on Netflix one day shortly after it ended — and, I must confess, ended up binge-watching the entire thing, start to finish, as quickly as I could.

The tall (Google lists her height as 5’10”) blond has been described in many articles as funny, beautiful, and of course fashionable.

Her Instagram posts of her outfits, jewelry, vacations, and other goings-on have fans captivated and “liking” by the hundreds of thousands regularly.

From shots of a stunning high schooler to snaps of a superstar actress, here are 18 pics that make us forget Blake Lively is a mom (and two that remind us).

20 Terrific Tips By Tulips

"Tip: Open your mouth when you smile — like you're having the time of your life," Lively captioned the shot on Instagram, as was reported at EOnline.com. "When you're, in fact, terrified you're going to break your ankle because of what an epic-ly uncoordinated person you are. I are. Am. I am." She also then threw in, "Of course. This is just a random tip."

She’s wearing a fun floral shirt that makes this lighthearted shot (even more) so captivating. EOnline.com said that Lively actually collaborated on that design with Lindsey Thornburg for Preserve. The little heeled booties she’s balancing in are by Sarah Flint.

19 Vivacious On Vacay

You know when you’re on a tropical vacation with your famous-actor husband and decide to post some pictures he took of you on a date at the beach to Instagram? No?

Well here’s what that might look like. People.com reported on the post, saying that a series of three photos were shared, with a photo cred given to her hubs, Ryan Reynolds, and a caption of two emojis, a palm tree and a flower.

She wears a bralette in white lace, a long matching skirt, and a bomber jacket.

Her long hair is worn down, and eye-catching jewelry is featured, too.

18 Yeah, She’s A Mom: Posing Like Cartoon Villains

“Everyone thinks I’m inspired by princesses. If only they knew…” Lively captioned this shot that she shared on Instagram, and then received nearly 600,000 “likes” for.

And so we see that mom side coming out, as she has to think of the cartoon villain from Disney’s The Little Mermaid.

Who knows, though — maybe she was just a fan of the movie as a child of the ’90s, herself.

Preview.ph/ featured the photo with others in a list about how funny and entertaining the celeb, wife, and mama can be.

With purple shades around the eyes and silvery polish for the manicure, the palette certainly is very “Ursula,” isn’t it?

17 No Ordinary Ponytail

Check out this knotted hairstyle sported as Lively peers over a scenic outlook, blue shimmering water below.

The up-do, seen out in nature, was shared on Instagram, and was described by PopSugar.com.au as a “complicated style, that looks like a mixture of knots, weaves and loose plaits — is it not just the coolest Summer hairstyle you've ever seen?”

Lively reportedly included that stylist Rod Ortega created the look and included the hashtag “#WhoWoreItBetterBlakeOrTheBush.”

Sure, there’s the casual dark heather gray T-shirt, but she certainly didn’t just throw her hair back in a scrunchie for this one.

Reporters noted that the look would probably inspire bridal ’dos to come.

16 Prep With A Capital P

I’m loving it. There’s something sort of 1960s, something sort of Clueless (as in the ’90s movie about rich and trendy Beverly Hills teens) about it, but then it’s also all Blake Lively.

Someone shared the shot on Instagram, and it appears to be a still from a spread for Glamour Magazine.

Everything about it, to this onlooker, says flirty, fun, and young, from the short shorts to the pink lip to the smoky eye that are worn.

The gold lace of the shimmering shorts almost matches the hue of the actress’s light-highlighted hair, famously long, thick, and wavy.

The pink pop from the sweater top is all preppy cuteness.

15 A Famous Time At The Film Fest

A couple years ago at Cannes, in 2016, the actress reportedly stole the show at all of the red carpet events, as InStyle.com mentioned in a write-up about those few glorious weeks, from May 22. She made so much news that it was hard not to hear about it.

In case you’re keeping track, yep, she was pregnant at the time, and she documented “each minute of her stay in the French Riviera on her Instagram.”

Perfectly posed, wearing extravagant jewelry, and reportedly also sharing a “nail polish Eiffel Tower” in another shot, Lively shared the fabulousness with her many, many fans and followers.

14 Jumping For Joy

Back in December of 2015, two pals hung out for the day and shared a shot of them jumping up together on Instagram.

Oh, and also, the pal who shared the shot was Taylor Swift.

“Yesterday was such an amazing day off– roller coasters, kangaroos and LOLs with Blake Lively. See you tonight, Adelaide!” she wrote for in the caption.

Swift was currently on a world tour, said ScreenerTV.com, and Lively was oh, just, filming a movie (The Shallows).

With jean shorts, sneakers, and pink T, Lively kicked her heels back and flashed that big smile in a mirrored pose with the pop star.

13 Dark Beauty

Oh, Instagram, always giving us more shots than we ever could have dreamt possible of the various goings-on of famous celebrities’ lives.

In this shot, Blake Lively poses in a black cocktail dress, a strappy one at that, with a matching wrap, and some serious studded heels.

The background of dark wood and an intricate cast iron design certainly make this shot an eye-catching one, am I right?

A whole collection of stacked bracelets are sported on one arm, and those hoop earrings have enough shine to them to sparkle all night long and then some.

She’s all dressed up, and certainly with a place to go.

12 Do ‘Brondes’ Have More Fun?

I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve come across coverage of… the great hair color change!

Lively decided that yes, yes indeed they do.

"...Brondes have more fun," the actress wrote as her caption for the pic of her, in profile, with scenic greenery in the background, as was reported at HelloMagazine.com.

Gone were the light blonde highlights throughout her famously long and wavy hair, and here were locks in a darker hue, but still featuring some lighter accents in tones of honey.

Out on some adventure, with myriad stacked bracelets and her hands forming a heart to frame the view beyond, she decided to debut her new look to the world.

11 Yeah, She’s A Mom: Multitasking

Lively shared this shot of herself on Instagram, captioning it, “… I clearly don’t deserve this special treatment.” More than 750,000 users then “liked” it.

Preview.ph featured the photo in a write-up about how witty the celeb’s Instagram account is.

What do I see here? Mom stuff.

Sure, she’s getting glammed up by a team of professionals, but she’s also attempting to shovel food into her face, as some dribbles out and down onto her chin. She’s laughing at herself as she multitasks the heck out of the moment.

Do any elements of that sound a bit familiar to any moms out there?

10 Rollin’ With The Homies

She’s just palin’ around, having some sweet treats with friends, in what looks like a car.

Oh, and with flawless makeup and stunning jewelry going on, of course.

With bits of chocolate and whipped cream smeared on their lips, this crew is clearly having a good time.

Blake’s bright eyes sparkle, and her turquoise-colored earrings make her complexion look all the more glowing and tan in the Instagram pic.

My honest thoughts as a mom to two toddlers working as much as I can during naptime? Hmmm… I wonder if there’s any espresso in those little cups… If so, I’ll take a couple, please!

9 All-Smiles Celebs

Entire articles have, believe it or not, been devoted to choosing which of Blake Lively’s Instagram posts featuring her with her famous buddies are the most exciting (for example, InStyle.com.

But really, I guess this is pretty fun to see.

Incredibly famous actress Salma Hayek and Lively are all smiles as they share a tight embrace of a side hug while looking at the camera.

"Don't even like each other. At all. Obvs..." the blondie Blake wrote to accompany the pic.

Hayek, now 52, once said, “Life is tough, and if you have the ability to laugh at it, you have the ability to enjoy it,” as is listed with her bio on Google.

8 A Thing For Bling

I sort of couldn’t look away when I came across all the sparklines that gleams brightly from this little shot.

I mean, yes, there’s that ruby-red manicure alone… but then there are also stacked rings that look like a box of Lucky Charms exploded. And was encrusted with precious gems.

As featured at EarnTheNecklace.com and surely elsewhere at the end of December 2015, the pic of the glam jewelry was posted to her famous Instagram account, the green, gold, pink, and silver mini charms shining in all their colorful glory.

Blinded. By. Bling. @ofirajewelz @lorraineschwartz,” she included in the caption.

7 Something Surfy

Posed in a form-fitting white dress with intricate woven detail and with her long locks worn down and slicked away from her face, lively poses in what appears to be a classic vintage car with, upon closer inspection, a surf board propped beside her on the leather bench seat. You know it’s cool now.

This shot was featured in an article about Lively at site EarnTheNecklace.com, which focused on her promoting a painter by the name of Kate Moss.

Capturing that youthful California vibe and also a no-nonsense confidence all at once, the image feels classic and captivating — kind of like Lively, am I right?

6 Lady In Red

As summer turns to fall and I find myself pondering all things fashion, I can’t help but be inspired by the look created in this still, which upon further Googling appears to have been featured at one point in years past in Glamour magazine (and was featured at WhosDatedWho.com).

It’s bold, it’s stunning, it’s captivating. It’s feminine. And most of all, it’s a beautiful blond looking healthful and vivacious as her form pops out brightly against the contrasting natural green background.

It’s the bold statement hoop earrings in an almost perfectly matching scarlet shade that really caught my interest, personally, reminding me that you can say a lot with your appearance and your style, such as, for example, “I’m beautiful, and I’m bold.”

5 Throwin’ It Back

Ahhh! Love it. Does this look take anyone right back to, say, about 2005?

This lovely pic shows Lively at the 18th Annual Kids’ Choice Awards, back in that somehow already so long ago year. A “young Blake Lively wore her golden blonde curls with a turquoise blue eyeliner,” reads the caption for the photo where it was featured at Yahoo.com.

It was actually revived as a throwback in a piece from September 10, 2018, about a post the lovely Lively made about hubs Ryan Reynolds upon the occasion of their 6-year anniversary.

The sequined sparkling top in turquoise and light pink complements the rosy cheeks and bright eyes of its wearer.

4 Oh, Hi, High School

Aren’t these always so, so fun? What did your favorite celebs look like back in the day, long before millions of fans and viewers had memorized every detail of their faces, and before glam squads and professional stylists and more?

That’s right, it’s Blake Lively’s yearbook photo from Burbank High School (in Southern California), as was featured at OKMagazine.com on February 28, 2018.

That site summed up that the leading lady onscreen, for her two daughters, and for spouse Ryan Reynolds has always seemed like “she’s had it going on.”

They added, “She’s enjoyed a thriving career, and has consistently SLAYED the red carpet. The [then] 30-year-old’s high school yearbook photos have arrived and they’ve proven that she has ALWAYS been an overachiever.”

3 Light And Bright

Everything about this, to me, looks awake, bright, and alive. It’s like it makes me want to inhale in some cold fresh air, or go frolic on a hillside somewhere.

But then maybe it’s because it’s about the opposite of how I feel right now, personally, as a mom (to two tiny tots) who slept, oh, I don’t know, maybe 5 hours (?) last night?

Her tousled, windswept blond hair creates a pretty frame for that clear, bright, symmetrical face, with happy, shining eyes looking out toward an unknown something and bright white teeth flashed in that trademark big smile.

2 Looooong Ago

With very blond hair cascading so long that it hits at the hip with the slightest downward tilt of her head, lively gives a happy smile, clad in simple white cotton.

Fashion mag Elle.com featured this shot among others in an entire piece just about the actress’s hair, July 19, 2016’s “43 Times Blake Lively's Hair Said Things.”

What do you think it’s trying to tell us here? Young? Fun? Carefree? Maybe just a little bit of “surfer” or perhaps even “mermaid”?

Long, loose, and tousled with flowing waves, it seems to be just one early step in the glorious evolution of one very famous head of hair.

1 Fabulous With Furry Friends

If you aren’t too captivated by the brightly smiling face of Blake, framed in this instance by some more structured, larger, and super model-esque curls, take a small glance downward to the face of that little fur-ball that she’s holding. OMG.

That petite pooch she’s carrying in one arm has a little sweater on to protect against the cold, and acts as the perfect fashionable accessory for the mama who snuggles it, along with, of course, her golden pendant necklace and large brown leather slouchy bag (with golden hardware and braded shoulder straps).

Though the linen button-up shirt is perfectly and casually crumpled, the details of this look (featured because of Fido, there, at CelebrityPetWorth.com) are clearly pretty carefully thought out.

References: Elle.com, OKMagazine.com, Google.com, Yahoo.com, WhosDatedWho.com, EarnTheNecklace.com, InStyle.com, HelloMagazine.com, ScreenerTV.com, PopSugar.com, Preview.ph, People.com, EOnline.com