About

Thanks for taking a minute to find out who I am and why I’m writing this little blog!

Who is Barbi? And is that REALLY your name?

If I had a nickel for every time someone asks me that question…!

I am a former fashion retail manager with a Bachelor’s Degree in Fashion Design, and a minor in Publishing and Business. My love of style has been a huge part of my identity since I was old enough to remember! I was constantly drawing and doodling, making (very bad) fashion sketches, and obsessing over the latest trends. Fast forward to 2013 when I married my college boyfriend and became a military spouse. Life started to look a little different, but I maintained my career as a store manager in the White House| Black Market corporation. Then our family grew in 2016 with the addition of our oldest son, Sammy, our second son, Milo, in 2018, and our THIRD son, Victor, in 2020!

Fashion and style will always be my strongest passions, but learning how to raise 3 wild little men is a huge part of life now and I enjoy sharing what I discover along the way!

Why “Something Different”?

Blogging is not new to me. This is actually the 3rd time I’ve started writing online. My first experience with blogging was in college. That blog was basically a place for random book reviews, fashion week critiques, and tips for fellow college girls.  I did a pretty good job keeping it up until I graduated and entered the “real world” of 50-hour work weeks!

Fast forward 3 years when I became a military wife, and moved to a new place where I had to start over with new friends and a new job. The job gave me extra down time, so I decided to try my hand at blogging again, this time with the evolution of Instagram fueling my desire to “be one of those fashionable Insta girls”.  I was kicking myself for giving up on my college blog, and thought it would be great if I could build an online presence and earn some extra income. Obviously my motivation was all wrong, and of course that blog disappeared quickly too.

Fast forward again, only 2 years this time. My journey through motherhood started with a bang (we weren’t exactly planning a pregnancy), and my husband left on a long deployment when the baby was a month old.  I was left wondering if any part of my life was still recognizable. The post-partum hormones went crazy, combined with sleepless nights and a colicky infant. Somehow I got through those long months alone, figuring out how to be a new mom and trying to maintain my career. It was rough. There was lots of crying, and soul-searching, and book-reading, and not nearly enough praying (working on that, as always). When my hubby finally came home, I was a different person. I was stronger than I ever thought I could be, and also more tired and confused than a college girl thought she could be.

As I adapted to having a second parent to help take some of the burden off, I slowly began to come back to life and open my eyes to the possibilities that lay ahead. No, my career would no longer define me. Motherhood did not have to define me, as I learned from all the soul-searching. Being a “fit girl” also did not define me, nor did being a “style girl” like I was in college. While it seemed like my friends all had some THING that defined them, I struggled to put the puzzle pieces together. Slowly, I began to realize that I did not need to be the same. I didn’t need to emulate an insta-model, career woman, or even working-mom. I learned that it is OK to figure it out as I go, take each situation as it comes, and develop a story that is unique to me. It won’t look like anyone else. It will be Something Different.