463: Surviving Seasons of Solo Parenting

Wire Talk with Karen Stubbs

Karen Stubbs

Christianity, Motherhood, Parenting, Parenting Advice, Religion & Spirituality, Kids & Family, Christian Parent, Faith

4.9 • 936 Ratings

🗓️ 22 April 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

When your husband’s job pulls him away from home, it can leave you holding the weight of family life alone—and it’s exhausting. Today Karen is answering questions from moms whose husbands are frequently gone due to their line of work. From managing toddler tantrums and homeschooling to navigating resentment and self-pity, Karen shares hard-won wisdom from her own years in the trenches. Don’t miss Karen’s honest encouragement about what it means to trust God and stay grounded through the hard seasons!

Episode Recap:

2:35 - Karen’s husband Greg travelled extensively with his job during their early family years

6:10 - How did you manage the inconsistency in your husband’s work schedule?

10:25 - We have to bring God into our daily walk as moms, He will sustain us

11:30 - My husband works in a traumatic field, how do I support him without letting the darkness and stress of his job affect our family?

15:05 - How do I help my husband get on board with what I’m doing at home since he’s away so often

18:23 - Emily’s tips for keeping preschooler occupied while mom homeschools other child

21:15 - I’m a working mom and my husband is in residency. I struggle with resentment and self-pity, how did you handle these emotions?

Scripture for Reflection: Psalm 73:26 (NIV)
“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Questions for Discussion:

What do you find most difficult when your husband is away—emotionally, practically, or spiritually?
Have you ever struggled with self-pity or resentment in your parenting journey? What helped you move forward?
Karen talks about letting go of the “scoreboard” in marriage and not expecting equal contribution all the time. How does that idea sit with you?
What are some practical ways you could invite God into your hard season right now?
If you’re parenting a strong-willed toddler, which of Karen and Emily’s ideas could you try this week?

Resources:

Download the BOAW app to send us your questions! https://apps.apple.com/us/app/birds-on-a-wire-moms/id1419899927
Don’t miss the boat! Register for Soar at Sea today: https://www.soaratsea.com
Check out the Scoreboard of Life session within Karen’s The Six Truths of Motherhood curriculum: https://store.birdsonawiremoms.com/collections/available-for-purchase/products/six-truths-study-guide

Transcript

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0:00.0	Some of y'all are new to the show, so you may not know this, but my husband was a Navy pilot for a long time.
0:06.6	And then he went from there to FedEx.
0:08.9	In a little bit, a small stint, about four years, he did both.
0:13.6	And that was even extra hard because he was only averaging like five days a month home.
0:18.4	And that's also whenever we had three children and then we decided to really be crazy
0:23.3	and go to number four.
0:24.4	There you go.
0:24.9	And so four children with your husband only home five days a month is not a great combination.
0:31.3	But why?
0:32.0	I know, right?
0:33.0	Were you exhausted, mom?
0:33.9	I was exhausted.
0:34.6	Were you resentful?
0:35.5	I was resentful.
0:36.4	I was tired, angry, bitter, all the things. But you know what? I'm really glad that I went through that season in motherhood because God really taught me a lot in that season. And honestly, I think that's a huge reason that I started birds on a wire because I started seeing into other people's lives
0:55.3	like, this isn't just me. Other people are really struggling with this too.
0:59.1	Welcome to Wire Talk, where we encourage and equip moms by answering practical questions
1:03.8	about motherhood. We want to help instill God's truth in your heart so you can experience
1:08.1	more joy and peace on your journey of motherhood. Are you ready for
1:11.8	some truth? Let's dive in.
1:16.2	Hello everybody and welcome to Wire Talk. If you don't know or have never met us, I'm Emily,
1:21.0	your host and with me is my wonderful mom, Karen. Good morning, mom. Good morning, good morning.
	...

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