Instagram Obsession

I have developed an obsession with an app for my phone called "Instagram". For those who don't know, it is an app that allows you to take pictures with your phone's camera and do some minor editing and then post them directly to Facebook and other social media. The one complaint I have had about my "old school" (a.k.a. First generation) iPhone has been that it takes awful pictures. This app has changed my whole opinion on the need for an upgrade! I have taken some super cute pictures with it recently, so I'll share them here and you, too, can become obsessed. Enjoy!

A few pictures

Here are a few pictures to enjoy!

Inspiration

As you can see, it has been over a year since my last post. Life gets in the way sometimes and boy, have we been busy! But, I was "inspired" to start my blog up again by my friend Kelsey, who let me in on a little secret. There's an app for that! Turns out, I can blog from my iPhone. Who knew? I'm hoping this little revelation will kick me into gear and that my blog posts will become more frequent (given my track record, this shouldn't be terribly hard to do). So, I'm back!

Here's the VERY short version of what's happened in our lives this past year. We moved to Florida in August, Abbey is now in Kindergarten, but is in the gifted program at a private school (which is also our church) and actually goes to the first grade class for math and reading every day. She is a fluent reader and is learning at an astounding rate. She earned the Principal's Honor Roll for getting straight A's (well, the kinder equivalent anyway) in all of her subjects, even the advanced classes. We're so proud of her!

Aiden got glasses, which I was sad about at first, but he is so stinkin' cute in them that we can't go anywhere without people gushing over him. Oh, and he can actually SEE now, which is a plus. ;-). He is in pre-K in the three year old class 3 days per week. His teachers love him and he is having lots of fun in his class.

The reason we moved to Florida was because Steve got a new job. It is going pretty well. He is no longer in IT, but is doing more of a business process improvement role. It has been challenging and it seems every company in America these days is filled with workaholics, but as much as I miss my friends in TX, I'm happy we made the move and Steve is getting some great experience in a new role. He has always had a passion for learning new things and I think he appreciates that opportunity with this new job.

As for me, well, I'm a mom first and foremost, so I dove right in trying to find a group of friends with young kids. I joined a MOPS group (which stands for Mothers of Preschoolers. Talk about a gold mine of mommies!) and joined the steering team not long after. We found a great church and we have a women's bible study on Friday mornings that I just LOVE! These ladies are transparent, open and honest. It has been so easy to fit in! While I miss my friends and church family in TX, this church has been a God send because it has felt like home from the beginning. I also joined the praise team, which took awhile, but I'll be singing for the first time this Sunday. I'm excited and thankful for the opportunity to worship and use my God given talent for His glory.

The other thing I've been up to is sewing. In my last post a year ago, I mentioned that I had hoped to practice and get better over the next year. Well, I have found a true passion in creating things. I am even in the process of starting a small business. Herein lies the other reason this post is titled "Inspiration". My sewing teacher had a small business doing sewing and embroidery and also taught others to sew. I'm so grateful that she did! She passed away a few months ago from breast cancer. It is so devastating for me to lose a friend to this awful disease. She was diagnosed while I was taking lessons with her (and finishing my own chemo treatments) and I truly believe that God put us together during that time to be of some comfort to each other. It almost seems now like she was "passing the torch" of her knowledge and passion for the art of creating fun designs. I also have an embroidery machine and I'm working on building an inventory so that I can start selling some things online and at craft shows in the area. I'm excited to say that I have already filled my first order for "Above the Barr Designs" and have a couple more in the works! I have always wanted to do something that I love and am passionate about, but I can tell you that I never thought this would be it! Stay tuned for more info on that.

Wow, this post got really long! I'll try to post some pictures soon. The kids are adorable (a completely unbiased observation...haha!) and my hair has finally grown out and looks like my own again. Thanks for catching up and I hope to be better about posting now that I can do it on the go!

You need a hobby!

Anyone need a hobby? Because I have too many of them! I really need to pick one thing to stick to. I'm dabbling in so many things now that I love to do but never have time for. For instance, I claim to be a scrapbooker. But, in all reality, I only scrapbook when I have someone else to do it with. I'm really not that creative, so I have to steal ideas and pester other people to make sure my pages are cute. Because if they aren't cute, what's the point! So, here I sit with more scrapbooking supplies than you could imagine (some that I don't even know how to use...haha!) and I rarely do anything with it. I also took up sewing a few months ago. I am slightly better at this endeavor because I have instructions and ideas I have gotten from patterns or free tutorials on the internet, but again, lack of time keeps me from doing it as often as I would like. Then, there is photography. I really think I could get into that since it's all about the shots you would want to take and what you can do with the camera, but I don't know how to work mine! I guess, technically, it's Steve's camera anyway, since he is the one who wanted it for years. I tried to do a "photo a day" journal on Facebook and only made it 2 days before it became too cumbersome to keep up with! Then, there are my two kids, a house to keep up with, oh, and I'm trying to get back into the gym now and do some exercise. Add in Bible study, praise team and small group and I am one busy lady! I guess I am fortunate to like so many fun things, but it frustrates me when I want to do them and can't find the time. Here are a few pictures, some that show off my non-existent photography skills as of late and some are of things that I have made with my sewing machine. I hope to improve my skills in both in the coming year and then to scrapbook the stuff I've done! Guess I'm not giving up any of my hobbies after all. :-)

There is nothing special about this picture from a photojournalistic perspective, but it is of the former President and First Lady! They were at the zoo one day when we went with the kids.

Child's tote bag with crayon holder I made

A Bible cover I made

I took this picture a couple of months ago on the playset in our back yard. I thought it came out cute!

I made this dress for Abbey today

I have lots more pictures and things I made, but I'll save those for another time. I guess I need to work on my time management skills so that I can fit in all of my hobbies!

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Welcome back to my blog! I am transitioning from my CaringBridge site and this one is still under construction, so check back in a week or so and I hope to have a new and improved blog about something much more fun than my cancer! Hope you'll stay tuned and keep up with us as Steve and I are "Raising the Barrs". :-)

Home Sweet Home

Well, after being stranded in Florida for a couple of extra days due to the threat of Tropical Storm Faye, we have made it back home. We had a great trip and had lots of fun. And, for those of you who thought I was crazy for taking both kids by myself, I have to say that it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The plane ride home wasn't quite as peaceful as the trip there, but the kids did okay and, thanks to the grandmother sitting in the row with us who helped us out a ton, we survived! I think Abbey thought we knew her because by the end of the flight, she was hugging her and holding her hand. It was really cute. :-)

While we were in Sarasota, I took Abbey to the beach one morning. The water was really rough, which is not normal for Siesta Key, and I thought Abbey would be scared to go in the water, but she actually LOVED it! She was jumping in the waves and having a blast. Then, she asked me to take her in the "deep end" so that she could go in the bigger waves. I don't have a lot of pictures because it was just the two of us, but here are a few.

We also went to Sarasota Jungle Gardens one morning. They had a few shows to see (a parrot show and a birds of prey show) and you could just walk around the trails and look at all of the animals (mostly birds). There were flamingos that just roamed free. Abbey wasn't so sure about that part since they were taller than she was, but as long as they kept their distance, she thought they were neat. The best part was that Abbey got to hold a bird on her arm. It was a Sun Conure named Ci Ci. She was a little hesitant at first, but after Mommy held one and showed her it was okay, she did it and even gave us a big smile! Here are some pictures.

Abbey and Grandma at Jungle Gardens

Abbey holding a birdie!

Check out those flamingos

Did you know that parrots can ride bikes??

Other than that, we just hung out with friends and family. We saw our friends Sue, Dale, Cassie and Tori and spent some more time with Uncle Steve, Aunt Tammy and the kids. All in all, it was a great trip. I know the kids enjoyed it and as much as we wore them out, my mom and grandmother were happy that we came too. My mom even babysat both kids a couple of evenings for me so that I could have some "grown up" time with my friend Wendy. Thanks, Mom! Here are a few more pics to enjoy.

Aiden showing off his sitting skills for Sue

Abbey and Aiden's cousins Nicholas and Kara

Cassie and Abbey coloring with markers

Abbey and Kara snuggling and watching The Lion King (for the 15th time!)

Aiden sharing his famous grin with Aunt Gail

Look how big I'm getting!

Toga party!

Abbey putting bandages on the doggie's boo-boos

Answered Prayer

Our trip to Florida is going great so far! The flight was totally peaceful. We flew on Southwest airlines and the flight wasn't full, so they let me take Aiden's carseat on the plane so that he would have a seat to himself. He fell asleep the minute we boarded and didn't wake up until after we arrived, so that was a blessing. Abbey watched her movies and didn't make a peep! I actually got to read a book on the plane (I told Steve when I was packing it that it was probably not worth bringing because there was no way I would be able to read with 2 kids on a plane by myself). Well, your prayers must have worked because we had a fabulous trip! We spent the first few days with my best friend, Wendy, in Tampa. She was an awesome host and had a pool party at her house for us on Saturday so that I could see all of my friends. We had a great time!

Then, it was off to Grandma's house. We have been here since Sunday evening and got to see my brother last night. Abbey is having a great time playing with Grandma and Nana and Aiden is showing off his smiles. He has learned to hold his toy and get it into his mouth. He has discovered his hands and he is really holding his head up great when he's on his tummy. He's changed so much already since we left! I'll post more when we get back from our trip, but here are a few pictures of our trip so far. Hope you are all having fun in these last few weeks before school starts. :-)

Aiden and his new friend Bailey who is 2 weeks older than him

Abbey swimming in the pool at Auntie Wendy's house

Nana shared her chocolate with Abbey. Yummy!

Abbey playing soccer with her Princess bouncy ball

Look at me holding my head up all by myself!

Aiden sharing some smiles with Nana

Nana playing ball with Abbey

Abbey and Uncle Steve taking Elvis for a walk

Aiden showing off for Trish and Aunt Tammy

Aiden and Uncle Steve

Super Abbey!

Abbey loves Uncle Steve!