{Learning to Love iOS 7}

I'm not a fan of change.  Once I'm comfortable with something, I get quite attached and want it to stay the same forever.  That goes for most things in my life...My home, my daily routine, my hair color, my holiday traditions, my nail color, my cell phone...The list goes on and on, but today I'm going to focus on the latter.

I felt little pangs of anxiety when I heard that Apple was releasing the iOS 7 software upgrade last week, and I immediately went into panic mode...Tons of questions started running through my head, and I got stressed!  Have I saved all of my pictures?  Are my contacts on the cloud?  Am I going to lose all of my favorite apps?  How will I get used to the new screen design?  Again, I love for things to stay the same, and that definitely goes for my cell phone.

Well, I finally got the guts to take the plunge a few days ago, and I must say, I'm starting to like this new look.  Maybe change isn't so bad after all.

Here are a few things that I'm loving about iOS 7:

• Control Center - Apple has put all those things you may constantly need in an easily accessible command center...All you have to do is swipe up from the bottom of your screen to open this convenient panel. There you will find the flashlight, photo button, calculator, alarms, volume controls, lighting controls, etc.  I've loved this feature!
  
• Lock Screen - I gotta admit...Even the cool look of the new lock screen has grown on me.
  
• iTunes Radio - Now this is awesome!  My husband and I were running errands the other night, and I just plugged my phone into the car to play some songs from my iTunes radio stations.  It's like Pandora, but better.  Now you can have your favorite music with you at all times!
  
• Weather App - I love a good weather app, and this new one definitely stepped up its game.  I was tickled the other day when I first opened it and discovered that the backgrounds change based on the weather in each location.  When I checked my Murrells Inlet weather, there were actually raindrops falling on the screen...Super cool!
  
• Camera & Photos - The new camera is so fast!!  It takes a picture literally as soon as your finger touches the shutter button, and this has been awesome for me since I'm always trying to capture a squirmy 8 month-old in photos.  Also, you can hold your camera button down, and it will capture multiple photos until you release the button.  That's so helpful when taking action shots.  Other fun features - There are filters to choose from for your photos, and it's nice to see that the photo library now categorizes your pictures by year and place.
  
• Multitasking - With the new multitasking features, you can swipe left and right to browse open apps or you can swipe upward to close an app.
  
• Message Time Stamps - I was always so annoyed when I couldn't see the time stamp on ALL of my text messages...Not anymore! Now, all you have to do is swipe to the left in your Messages window to see each individual time stamp.
  
  I hope these tips help as you navigate your way through the new operating system.
  
  
  xoxo,
  Katherine