Barb Reiber was introduced in Chicago, where her husband Glen saw a picture of a woman on the news who he realized was his former girlfriend Marlo, who had left town while pregnant with his child. Barb and Glen immediately headed to Salem, identified the body, and began inquiring as to what happened to her child. Although initially they were given the runaround, they were eventually able to clarify that Marlo's child, a boy, was adopted by the Carvers, and immediately they wanted to get him back. After Jennifer Deveraux had a car accident that resulted in a baby being thrown into the river, Barb and Glen rescued him, and took him to Glen's aunt Elsie's cabin, where they cared for him. What they didn't know was that the baby they had was actually J.T. Brady, and not the child the Carvers had adopted (what nobody knew was that Stefano had switched the babies at birth, so the Reibers actually did have Marlo's true son). When he started to have breathing difficulties they eventually returned him to Salem, where they were told that they had the wrong child.

Glen and Barb returned to Chicago where they awaited the results of the DNA test, and where Barb also learned of her own pregnancy. When the test results come in, Barb realized that J.T. actually was Glen's baby, and that the infants had to have been switched at birth. She soon realized that Lexie had to know the truth, and once back in Salem, began blackmailing Lexie with the knowledge that she could destroy their family at any time. She managed to luck out with several thousand dollars, and after telling Glen of her own pregnancy, began to wonder if maybe they shouldn't just leave the babies where they were. Part of her motivation was greed, but part was also that she knew how much suffering it would cause. After Lexie nearly succeeded in getting her killed, all bets were off, and Barb and Glen announced the truth.

Hope and Bo were not thrilled to learn that Glen and Barb wanted their child, and there were dual custody battles launched. One battle was between the Reibers and the Bradys, with Glen fighting for his son, and the other between the Bradys and the Carvers, with the Bradys demanding the return of their son. Bo and Hope firmly believed that they should be raising both boys. With the help of attorney Cameron Reese, Glen and Barb won custody of little J.T., choosing to keep his name and simply adding 'Reiber' onto the end of it. Being a full-time mother softened Barb considerably, and she and Glen graciously offered Bo and Hope the chance to see J.T. whenever they wanted. Barb was last seen in the late stages of her pregnancy when she, Glen, and J.T. were visiting in Chicago.