"When you reach the bottom of the barrel, it's time to find a new barrel."

There are a lot of skills Carrie has acquired over the years that didn't result in a certification or degree.  Some of the hardest times she and her family faced  were their most valuable achievements.  Parenting is hard, and most of the time Carrie figured she had a 50/50 chance of being right if she could narrow her options down to two. She would move forward with her best guess and either, note the success for next time, or immediately back-peddle to change course and try the other option.  It wasn't seamless or smooth by any means, but she continued to put the relationships first and her family grew into a creative and cohesive unit.  

Carrie's Background

 Carrie's first few years were typical until her parents sold everything they owned to live on a 37 -foot sailboat and sail around the Bahamas. This was not a luxury yatch. It had enough battery power to run a few lights at night. Without refrigeration, the family ate what they could catch, Carrie remembers eating a lot of fish, conch, Cheerios with canned milk, and, when they had access to bread, fluffer-nutter sandwiches (peanut butter with marshmallow fluff). After a year, the family settled in South Florida, where Carrie remained until her parents divorce a decade later.    

After College, she married and became a stay-at-home mother. She was active in the community volunteering and also in her son's schools doing whatever was most needed from laminating to starting a new library. 

Happily married for 30 years to a husband in two consecutive high divorce-rate careers, she has moved the household thirteen times to different areas of the country far from family, friends, and support.    

In her work with horses, she learned two impactful life lessons that carried over to her home life.  Nothing is more important than the relationship, and the ego must be sacrificed for learning and growth to occur.  This new wisdom helped her change her relationships with her family by becoming more open-minded,  and a better listener, partner, and parent.   

When the family expanded through the adoption of a teenager from foster care, Carrie learned about advocating for teens in crisis, finding and evaluating suitable resources for help, and mustering the courage to face each day with hope.  The foster teen's demands on the home and family required her most creative parenting skills and the ability to redefine "normal" every day.

She continued her work with children and teens when she founded a youth rugby club working with boys ages 6-19 years and girls 14-19. She was also the Vice President for Youth  for the Florida Youth Rugby Union where she developed programs, implemented new systems, and remodeled the state Rugby organization to advance it, and youth rugby, into a sustainable model for growth.  

Through a DNA website, she discovered she had a half-sister and her family expanded once again. Navigating the first contact was stressful, but rewarding. Both her and her sister are delighting in making new discoveries as the relationship grows and their bond strengthens.  

As a Life Coach, Carrie helps people discover their own path by embracing their strengths and releasing society's judgments and expectations.