What happens when the beautiful dreams we hold for motherhood collide with unexpected heartbreak? Kristen Christy knows this terrain intimately. As a worship leader, mother of four "earthside" children, and a woman who has walked through the valley of infant loss, she brings profound wisdom about finding joy even in life's most difficult seasons.
Motherhood often feels like a delicate balancing act—juggling the needs of our children, our marriages, our work, and ourselves. But what if balance isn't actually the goal? Kristen challenges us to release the pressure of "having it all together" and instead embrace a life of open hands and surrendered control. Her refreshing approach of simply "doing the next right thing" offers freedom to mamas drowning in expectations.
Kristen's faith was tested in ways she never imagined. The raw honesty she shares about questioning God's goodness while ultimately discovering deeper trust will resonate with anyone who has faced disappointment or grief. Her journey reminds us that our broken pieces, when surrendered to God, can become the foundation for unexpected beauty and purpose.
One of the most powerful concepts Kristen introduces is "inviting the glorious into the mundane." Whether you're singing worship songs on a platform at church or whispering lullabies at 2 a.m., every moment becomes sacred when we recognize it as worship. This perspective transforms how we view the repetitive tasks of motherhood—the endless laundry, meal prep, and child training—revealing them as opportunities for deep heart work and divine encounter.
With the unique perspective of raising both teenagers and toddlers simultaneously, Kristen offers encouragement that the seeds planted during those exhausting early years truly do bear fruit. Her story is a beautiful reminder that motherhood isn't just about surviving the chaos—it's about discovering joy in the midst of it.
Follow Kristen Christy on instagram at
https://www.instagram.com/kk.christy?igsh=OHpxbjltMzZpdGxq
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Mama of the Wild Crew
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Mama of the Wild Crew podcast, the
podcast where we embrace themessy, wild, beautiful journey
of motherhood together.
I'm your host, alexa Schmoker,mama of two beautiful kiddos,
wife, nurse and lover of Jesus.
Motherhood is full of hardmoments, unexpected chaos and
(00:27):
those days where you just reallydon't have it all together.
But in the midst of it all,there is so much joy.
On this podcast, we're divinginto the real, honest
conversations about motherhoodthe challenges, the triumphs and
everything in between.
We'll hear the stories ofincredible moms from all walks
(00:47):
of life, share wisdom, laughterand let's be real probably a few
tears, and we're going todiscover how to embrace the joy
in this chaos.
So, whether you're rocking ababy to sleep, folding that
never-ending pile of laundry orsneaking away for a quiet moment
with your coffee, welcome, mama.
You're not alone here.
(01:07):
Hit, subscribe and join me onthis wild adventure of
motherhood.
I can't wait to do this journeywith you.
Hey, mamas, and welcome back toanother episode of Mama of the
Wild Crew podcast, where wegather to celebrate the
beautiful and messy and deeplymeaningful motherhood moments.
(01:31):
Today's guest is someone whosestory will stir your soul, whose
faith will absolutely encourageyour heart.
Kristen Christie is a mama offour earthside babies, a worship
leader and a woman whose storyis marked by both deep sorrow
and breathtaking joy.
From experiencing loss andgrief to finding strength
through surrender, to walkinginto her calling as a mama and a
(01:54):
ministry leader, kristen bringsso much wisdom, raw honesty and
light to our conversation.
I'm so grateful to share thisspace with her today and I can't
wait for you to hear her story.
Welcome, kristen.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Hey, alexis, thanks so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here today.
So my husband, bill, and I havebeen together for 18 years.
We just celebrated 18 in March.
We met and married when I wasin college.
Fun fact he's six and a halfyears older than me when I was
in college.
A fun fact he's six and a halfyears older than me.
He loves Jesus with all hisheart and he's literally just
(02:28):
the most kind serving husbandand dad.
He works on staff at our churchas worship pastor and I serve
alongside him as well.
And we moved back to Coloradoabout 12 years ago to the one
place I said I never, everwanted to live.
But God just totally changed myheart and I love it so much and
never want to leave Together.
(02:50):
We have four amazing kiddos.
Liam is 15, carbon copy of hisdad, very musical, loyal, loves
to serve other people.
Our son, alex is 13.
He's our little comedian andlives life large.
Our son Alex is 13.
He's our little comedian andlives life large.
And we totally thought we weredone having kids after our two
boys and we walked through threemiscarriages, but then we were
(03:13):
surprised to find that we wereexpecting again in 2019.
But our sweet Cadence wasactually born prematurely and
only lived for 45 minutes.
I'll share more about her laterbut she just opened our hearts
to desire more children.
And our sweet Eliana girl isfour years old now.
Her name means that God hasanswered our prayers and truly
(03:33):
she is just that.
She is so precious a girly girl, sugar and spice, with curly
red hair.
And then God absolutely wentabove and beyond our hopes and
dreams and gave us AdelineNicole, who is going to be two
this Sunday, and she's theperfect little bookend to our
family.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
Oh, that's so sweet and I know you've said before
that you love names and so Inever knew that your daughter
was named after that.
So that's really precious.
I do love that, oh okay, soevery mom that comes on this
podcast, we go through a littlemom fail question just to get
the sillies out, and most of thetime mine have to do with my
(04:13):
kids, but this morning it was me, so I was getting my kids ready
for school and got everyone outthe door.
Everyone was dressed.
They had their hair done.
You know, clothes were on,shoes were on get them to school
.
I'm walking out getting readyto go done.
You know, clothes were on,shoes were on get them to school
.
I'm walking out getting readyto go to work.
I have my slippers on, and thisis not the first time this has
happened.
So I'm still wearing myslippers right now with my
(04:34):
scrubs, because I haven'tchanged.
But I love it.
I'm like a mom fail on my part,but at least my kids are
dressed right.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
One or the other.
It's either them or us, neverboth Right.
Something's got to give Right.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
I'm like no one.
No one has noticed so far.
So we'll, we'll see.
I'm sure someone's going topoint it out eventually.
Um, but what is your like?
Most cringiest, unpredictablemom fail.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Oh goodness, okay.
So having two boys life isnever dull, never dull.
I have two stories actually.
I'll make them short, I'll makethem quick.
One is like a fail and then onejust like makes me laugh.
So my biggest mom fail was oneyear we were taking our boys
skiing and my husband and I boththought that like the other one
had grabbed the boys' ski pants.
(05:24):
And when we got there we wereunpacking everything and we're
like, okay, where are the skipants?
And I was like no, we forgotthem.
Oh my gosh.
And so luckily I had packedlike a couple of extra pairs of
like PJ pants that were fleece,and it was a warmer spring day,
so we were just able to justdouble up their pants.
But we only lasted like acouple hours and I just like I
(05:46):
could not believe it because itwas like a few hours to actually
drive there.
So that is my biggest mom fail.
But then one time we were intarget making, you know the big
potty stop and the familyrestroom running here and there.
Anyway, my little Alex had hisfavorite car in his hand.
He was maybe two and I had justsuggested here let mom hold
(06:09):
your car while you go potty, andnot 10 seconds later I heard a
splash and I was like, oh no,the car had dropped into the
potty and fell down to thebottom.
Oh no, the biggest meltdown andit was like, okay, I've, I can't
leave this car here.
What am I going to do?
So I like plunge my hand intothe potty and grab it out.
(06:30):
I was just like, oh, mortifiedthat I had to touch the toilet
water, but for years after thatI carried a pair of disposable
gloves and a folded metal hangerjust in case I needed to rescue
any other toys.
But it's still me.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
That is so funny, the things you will do that you
never thought that you wouldever do before but you will do
as a mom Number one, like toprevent a meltdown.
You're like we are in target,that's right.
How funny.
Oh, that is so in the glovesand hanger.
So where did you like storethose?
Did you just throw them?
Speaker 2 (07:03):
in my backpack Just like down in like a deep pocket
of it.
Speaker 1 (07:08):
How funny.
Now we're all going to have toadd that to our list, especially
the disposable gloves, becauseyou probably really need
disposable gloves majority ofthe time.
Various different things.
Okay so, kristen, you talkabout inviting the glorious into
the mundane, and I loved howyou said that.
Okay so, kristen, you talkabout inviting the glorious into
the mundane, and I loved howyou said that.
Okay so what does that looklike in your day-to-day life as
(07:30):
a mama to four littles?
How do you anchor yourself inthe truth when days can feel
just heavier, repetitive?
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yes, so I latched onto that phrase.
I first heard it from KristiKnuckles years ago and it just
hit me so deeply that I could gothrough the very routine and
ordinary parts of my day, likewe do as moms, and still invite
Jesus to be right there with me.
And it's like it's a biblicalconcept that Jesus came to women
(08:01):
.
Like he came to them in themiddle of their ordinary days,
like, like the woman at the wellshe was just going in and
drawing water, like that wasvery routine thing, um, or Mary
and Martha were preparing for adinner party and, and Jesus came
to those women.
And so it's.
I know our days can feel heavyand repetitive, but that's where
(08:22):
some of our deepest heartworkis done as Christ followers.
Like it's easy for us to put ona smile and give our all when
others are watching, when it'ssomething that's flashy and
exciting and notable.
It's so easy, like for me, tolead worship on a Sunday morning
and pour out my heart to God inthose moments that are seen.
(08:44):
But it feels really draining toshow up fully at 2 am when my
toddler has had a bad dream andneeds me to sing her back to
sleep.
But it's actually those moments, those ordinary moments, that
my life is being poured out injust as much worship as when I'm
on the platform at church.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
Yeah, absolutely.
I love that you brought outMary and Martha too, because I
feel like I I connected that somuch being Martha, like I can
get myself so busy and even inthe same scenario, like
preparing for parties or dinnerparties, and just like rushing
around and sometimes feelingfrustrated, like I feel like I'm
doing this by myself and it'slike reworking your mind, like
(09:25):
okay, I need to focus on what isimportant.
Like I'm able to have agathering at my house with
people that I love and likeprepare things for them, and
like I need to invite Jesus intothose moments, instead of like
focusing on just the tasks athand and get yourself into like
that, that wheel for sure.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Yes, yes, yeah, it's like, it's just, it's like we
have to humble ourselves beingable to like serve Jesus Like
that's actually serving.
You know, when it's when it'snot glamor, when it's not like
oh, this is so sparkly and fun,and you know, but I'm not going
to lie like, that's hardsometimes.
But inviting the gloriouspresence of Jesus into my
(10:08):
everyday, ordinary moments isabsolutely my heart and my aim
every day even when I don't doit very well.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Yeah, that is so beautiful.
Last week and she talked abouthow, like she would literally
write an attribute of God on herhand, like to look at it and
remind herself, like whenevershe's doing the mundane and the
ordinary throughout the day, andlike that is such a good thing
to do, cause, again, our lives,like as moms, are not always
glamorous, and writing a thingon your hand is like probably
(10:40):
the most easy practical thingthat you could truly do, like
it's not going to be a Prince,like Pinterest worthy, like
drawing on the wall or whateverit may be, but it's just like
something that you can look atand remind yourself every day,
during the the mundane, duringthe ordinary, like attributes.
Yes, I love that too.
Okay, so you shared how yourjourney through loss has
(11:03):
deepened your faith, and I'm sosorry that you guys watched
through that.
I did not know that.
Can you take us into that space?
How did you wrestle with God inyour grief and what did your
surrender begin to look like foryou as both a mother and a
believer?
Speaker 2 (11:18):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Walking through Cadence dyingwas the absolute most
gut-wrenching thing I've everhad to do.
It was a total surprise andshock that we were expecting
another baby back in August of2019.
We weren't trying to getpregnant and honestly, we were
trying not to but from thebeginning, we embraced this idea
(11:40):
of having another baby and wewere excited to welcome another
life into our family.
So when she was born prematurely, at 22 weeks, um, and only
lived for 45 minutes, I was justdevastated that this precious
baby that I had not even askedGod for, um was just ripped from
me.
Like it just felt like a crueltrick, um, and I've known of
(12:02):
other women who have experiencedlate-term loss, but I never
knew the absolute gut-wrenchingexperience that that that is
like like my heart physicallyhurt and some days, like I felt
like I couldn't breathe.
My body was also going throughlike just all the normal
postpartum things, like yourmilk's coming in and you're
(12:22):
bleeding and you're having thehormone swings, like all the
things, but there's like not thebaby, there's just emptiness.
And the middle of the nightswere so hard because I would
just wake up sobbing and justnot understanding why, like why
I was living this terriblenightmare, and so it definitely
shook my faith and just made metake this step back and be like
(12:44):
wait.
I've read about God's goodnessand his faithfulness in the
Bible and I sing about all hehas done and all that he can do.
But this, this death, this lossand pain and grief like this
does not feel like goodness orfaithfulness and I really had to
wrestle through that truth thatGod is good and God is faithful
(13:04):
.
Like that's his character,that's who he is, regardless of
what I'm experienced or walkingthrough in life, and we're all
going to go through hard thingsthat we would never choose, but
Jesus walks with us through thatpain and loss.
Like we, we grieve as followersof Jesus, but we grieve with,
with hope, because we haveeternal life with God forever.
(13:26):
And like Jesus actuallypromised that we would face
trials.
He said that we we would take,we would have hard things that
we walk through, but that wecould take heart because he has
already overcome.
So like I went from this placeof feeling so wrecked, so numb,
so abandoned to rebuilding myfaith and my trust, like taking
(13:50):
it to a deeper level that I hadnever had and it just became
more personal to me in a way, myrelationship with Jesus was
more personal in a way that itnever could have been without
just the completely shatteringexperience of losing our first
baby girl, um, because it pushedme to, like, search God's word
(14:13):
and to soak my broken spirit andhis truth, to speak out loud
who God was.
Um and I, like I, I found everystory I could have other women
who had experienced loss andtrauma.
I sought godly biblical counselfrom a counselor and also
(14:33):
started writing my story just ofinfant loss and grief, just to
process everything.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Right, oh, I cannot.
I cannot imagine what you guyswalked through.
And I'm so sorry that you guyswalked through that, because
losing a child, I feel like,would just be it's I mean, it's
every mom's fear.
Honestly, if you're speakingtruthfully, like that is just
what you fear all the time and Ijust I'm so sorry that you guys
had to walk through that andyou're so true, like whenever
(15:02):
you're in that grief and thatvulnerable state, like God gives
you that strength.
And what is it?
Maybe second Corinthians, wherehe says but he said to me my
grace is sufficient for you, formy power is made perfect in
your weakness.
Therefore, I will boast all themore gladly about my weakness
so that Christ's power may reston me.
(15:22):
And it's like you almost haveto grasp, like grasp onto those
things and just tell yourselfover and over and I hope that if
there's other moms out there,or if you know of a mom, you
have a friend that's goingthrough that, what would you
kind of say or help someone walkthrough that?
You said that you had somesearched out other moms that had
(15:45):
gone through this, you had goneto counseling, um, I think.
Do you think that it was likehard to take those steps, or how
would you encourage someoneelse to just do that, or a
friend to walk through someone,or even a husband to encourage
to take those steps of healing?
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Yes, absolutely.
Like all of it is hard again.
Like just that feeling of likenumbness, of like wait, what do
I, where do I go from?
Like how do I proceed forward,is absolutely difficult.
I would say give yourself graceand know that while that loss
is always with you, it's alwayspart of who you are, that that
(16:26):
the depth of the pain doessubside eventually.
And as a friend walking withsomebody through loss, I would
say just being there, being alistening ear, like I think
sometimes when we go, when wewatch our friends go through
tragic things, it's like wedon't know what to say and
sometimes it's just saying Idon't know what to say, but I'm
(16:49):
here for you, like I'm, I'm alistening ear, I'm, I don't I
don't have words to fix it, Idon't have words to change it.
And then also just likereaching out on you know special
days and birthdays of theirheaven, going and just
remembering them and sayingtheir names, like it's just,
(17:10):
it's so special when someonewill tell me you know something
about cadence or something aboutthat season of loss that that
stood out to them and ministeredto them as we were like walking
through that, like that meansso much to me.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Right, right, cause you want I mean I feel like you
probably do want to invite thatconversation in, and do you?
How do you like face it withyour boys?
Do you keep her in conversation?
Do you talk about cadence withyour boys or how to?
How does someone navigate that?
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Yeah, so we have a photo of her that we took, with
her little hat and blanket andeverything it's so, she's, she's
in with you know, like thefamily pictures and that kind of
thing, and so we, we still talkabout her from time to time and
, of course, our little girlsare, you know, are old enough
now that they're beginning toask who is this.
(18:00):
And you know, um, so, like Imean, our boys came to the
hospital after cadence hadpassed away and they were able
to hold her and, um, like it,just it gave us opportunity as
parents to be, like, you know,our, our time on earth is really
so short and for some of us,like cadence, it's shorter than
(18:21):
we anticipated.
But just knowing that this lifeis so temporal and being able to
share that with our boys andbeing like, hey, heaven is where
we're, where we're going, youknow and we need to live every
day as though it was our lastand love other people well and
lead them to Jesus, so that theycan spend eternity with us in
(18:44):
heaven too.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
Right, spend eternity with us in heaven too, right?
Well, you have walked throughjust both of these seasons of
heartbreak, and you express thatyou've walked through
hiddenness.
And in what ways has, would yousay, your motherhood like
redefined your identity, notjust as a mom, but as a daughter
of God?
Speaker 2 (19:02):
Yeah, hiddenness and heartbreak.
I like how you put that.
I'm walking with the Lordthrough learning about seasons
in life, like just realizingthat there are absolutely
seasons of of hiddenness where,like can life can feel dark,
like it's unseen, and there'slike this deep work being done,
kind of like when a seed isplanted in the ground and we
(19:24):
don't see the plant or theflower that's doing so much work
under the soil.
It doesn't mean that thathidden season for that plant
isn't worth anything.
It's actually worth everythingbecause, just like that plant or
flower needs that hidden timeto have the seed crack open and
to root down and then push upthrough that dark and dirty
(19:47):
place to come up above ground,we need those times too.
Or like seasons of heartbreak,where our life is left in broken
pieces and shards of pain andlike it just doesn't make sense
in our minds.
We can offer up those brokenpieces to God and surrender and
ask him to use them for our goodand for his glory, and he does
(20:09):
it every single time andhonestly, like my identity, I
feel like it's still in constantoverhaul, if I'm being honest.
But when I remind myself that Iam first and foremost a
daughter of God that, no matterwhat outside circumstances are
happening, I can always focus myheart on whose I am, because
(20:33):
the outside things are outsideof my control, but I can always
surrender me to God's best.
I can always humble myselfbefore God and stand firmly in
whose I am.
Not what is happening, becauseI serve a God who is still God
even in unfamiliar or hard orugly things that I would never
(20:55):
choose for myself.
And how I trust God most andsurrender to him when I'm
walking through those things ismore important than like why am
I walking through this?
It's like, okay, god, how can Iserve you through this?
And then that helps to root memore in whose I am instead of
(21:15):
the why, if that makes sense.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Absolutely.
I feel like that has beensomething that I've been trying
to really focus on over like thelast I'd say, probably six
months, because I reflect back.
I have a daughter, that's three,and so I reflect back,
especially through, like thosemiddle school, high school times
and I just wish that I had, Iwas more firm in my identity,
(21:39):
like as a daughter of Christ,throughout, like those high
school times, college timeswhere I really struggled with
like anxiety and I'm like I lookat myself now and still again
like I know that my identity isin Christ, but I can find myself
, like you said, just going, Iguess, not forgetting it, I
(22:00):
guess whenever I'm busy inday-to-day life, so really
trying to anchor myself in beinga daughter of Christ and my
identity is solely found in that, and then the rest of the
things come from that, likebeing a mother comes from that,
being a wife comes from that,being a nurse comes from that,
(22:21):
because I feel like at that timemy identity was being a soccer
player, was being someone'sgirlfriend, it was not being
loved by the one true King, andso I really want to get that,
get that right in my own lifeand then reflect that and teach
that to both my daughter and myson.
(22:42):
But I think I'm just more like Idon't know, I guess aware of it
with, guess aware of it with mydaughter, because my husband is
just so good about that.
He's not like I wouldn't saylike your flashy Christian talks
about it all the time, butwhenever it comes to someone who
is like deeply aware that hefinds his identity in God, I
(23:05):
mean it's just him, like he isjust strong and sturdy and when
big things happen or anythinglike it just doesn't seem to
phase him or shake him Like itdoes me, or even like in the
past through high school andcollege, when things have
happened, like he just isn'tshaken by the world.
Yes, yeah, I want to root ourkids in that.
So I love that you spoke onthat, because I think that's
(23:28):
definitely something that I'mtrying to be intentional about
now.
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
I love that.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Yeah, so you have callings of many different
beautiful things.
So you talk about motherhood,your worship leader, wellness,
encouragement.
How do you balance these rolesand what does it mean to you to
live a life of worship in everyarea, even the unseen ones?
Oh, balance, right the question.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
I have given up on balance and perfection.
I used to feel so in control oflike everything I did.
I used to feel so in control oflike everything I did, Like I
had everything under control,and literally it feels laughable
these days because it's likeokay, like there's just so much
that feels like outside of mycontrol and it's like oh Jesus,
(24:22):
I just I can see that livingthat way doesn't even leave room
for my need of a savior, Likebecause if I'm in control, like,
I don't need God, Right.
But, oh, my goodness, girl, Ineed God.
So I have just come to thisplace of like living with open
hands, where I'm not grasping sohard to hold everything on my
(24:45):
own, um, and with all the rolesthat I have.
I'm just constantly asking Godeach day like show me what your
best is for me today or thisweek.
Like I talk a lot over on myInstagram about like doing the
next right thing, because for meit's become like less about
balance and more aboutconstantly evaluating what is
(25:08):
the next right thing, like justthis next moment, lord, kind of
the like give us today our dailybread.
You know where it's.
Like okay, it's just justenough for this moment.
What?
What do I need to do?
Because I know I can't juggleeverything.
Like I'm a human, so I havelimitations and that's a good
thing, but I know that as momslike we, we do have to juggle a
(25:30):
lot, you know.
But I love how you alsomentioned like living a life of
worship in every area, in everyrole, because that's just it.
Like all of it is worship toJesus.
So, whether I'm on the platformon a Sunday leading worship or
I'm singing a whispered lullabyin the middle of the night to
(25:51):
just an audience of God and mybaby girls, like it's worship
just the same and it all mattersto God.
And kind of going back to thestory of Mary and Martha, like
ultimately, martha came to Jesusso exasperated, like Lord, I
just can't do it all, and he wasso gracious, it's like choose
(26:14):
the better thing, like let mewalk with you and talk with you
and have relationship with you.
And I think that that's part oflearning to maybe let balance
go sometimes and just be likeokay, jesus, I can't do this.
I need your strength, I needyour wisdom to be able to to do
(26:36):
everything that I need to do andthe things that I can't get to
and the things that I can't do,just trusting that, if we don't
have the capacity for whateverthose things are in the season
that we're in, that that's okay,that it's okay to let those
things go.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
Right, yeah, and I feel like that can be so hard to
identify sometimes, but, likeyou said, just going to God and
asking him with open hands likewhat, what do you have for me
today?
What is the next right thing?
Because your plate can alwaysbe full, like and as moms, I
feel like we can, we can alwaysmake our plate full and
overflowing.
Oh yeah, it's very easy to doand sometimes the hard thing is
(27:15):
is to cut things back.
Yes, and if you're spreadingyourself so thin, you can't
possibly worship and all theordinary aspects of life, and
you know, we're called to.
We're called to.
So whether you're eating ordrinking or whatever you do, do
it for the glory of God.
And whenever you're so spreadthin, how do you do that?
And that can be something thatI struggle with is trying to say
(27:37):
no to things, whether it be abirthday party or a baby shower,
because you want to go to allthose things and you want to
enjoy all those things Totallythere with you.
It can be so hard to, I don'tknow, just say no, because then
you feel bad and guilty, but youhave to, I don't know, just
prioritize your time with yourkids or your time with your
(27:58):
husband, whatever it may be.
Like you said, that doesn'talways have to be your choice or
your decision.
Go to God with it.
Go to God with everything thatyou do.
Yes, yes, yeah, so I do.
I do love that and I candefinitely relate to the balance
.
That is like the million dollarquestion, um, and if you do not
(28:21):
follow Kristen on Instagram, Iwill put up her stuff in the
show notes too, because, likeyou said, on your Instagram, you
, you do.
What do you call the chats withKristen?
What do you?
What do you call them?
Combos with Kristen, comboswith Kristen.
I was like what is that called?
And they're so good.
You always put up like suchencouragement and it's not just
encouragement, it's likepractical things, like you said,
(28:43):
like doing the next right step.
As moms like again, we don'talways have time to sit down and
read through all theseparenting books or whatever it
may be that we want to, but,like your, your information that
you put out is so relatable andso practical and so encouraging
that you know it just gives you, like that fuel and something
(29:05):
to latch onto to go throughthroughout the day.
So I definitely recommend goingover and following Kristen.
Thank you so much.
Hey there, wild Crew Mamas, somesuper exciting news.
If you're like me, these daysany day is a hat day.
Literally, probably every dayis a hat day, and we have two
new hats for Mama of the WildCrew podcast.
(29:26):
I am so excited, and huge shoutout to my sister-in-law, bree,
over at Schmokey Designs, fortaking these ideas and bringing
them to life.
We have Mama of the Wild Crewpodcast hat and we also have the
cutest hat.
It says motherhood is myministry.
And ain't that the truth, guys,head on over to our Instagram
at Mama of the Wild Crewunderscore podcast, dm me or
(29:47):
comment on one of the posts andlet us know that you want your
hat today.
Growing up, our parents had asuper special tradition.
We kept this big stork in ourgarage and whenever someone,
either in town or one of ourfriends, had a baby, we would
all load up and go over to theirhouse and put this stork in
(30:07):
their yard to help themcelebrate.
It was one of my favoritechildhood memories and my sister
, addison Sewell, has carried onthat tradition.
She is the proud owner ofOwosso Storks, offering
personalized stork deliveries tofamilies celebrating the
arrival of a new baby, whetherit's a baby announcement, a baby
shower or to celebrate thebirth of a little one, owasso
(30:29):
Storks is the perfect thoughtful, sentimental gift.
There are even options tocelebrate proud big siblings and
even those furry little familymembers.
For a sweet, memorable gift,reach out to Owasso Storks.
Check them out on Instagram.
That's at Owasso Storks, atO-W-A-S-S-O-S-T-O-R-K-S, and you
(30:51):
can find their contact info inthe show notes.
Guys, this is just the sweetestgift.
I have personally been blessedby a stork from Owosso Storks
before.
Owosso Storks was a thing andit was just the sweetest thing.
So definitely reach out toOwosso Storks thing.
(31:12):
So definitely reach out to aloss of starts.
Okay, kristen, you said thatsurrender is essential to how
you love and how you raise yourchildren.
Can you speak to a specificmoment or season where you had
to fully release control andwhat God taught you through that
?
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Yeah.
So I think the specificmonumental thing was of
releasing control was definitelywhen we had to give cadence
back to God.
Like that was when God gave methat picture in my mind of open
hands.
Like with my fingers spreadapart, god's blessings and favor
(31:50):
can flow through my hands somuch more freely when my hands
are open rather than when myfists are balled up tightly, and
like it was just thisrealization that it's like you
know what, it doesn't matter ifI'm pregnant with a child or
I've birthed that child, orwhether it's my husband or
anything that I am doing in life.
Like I literally don't havecontrol of those things and so
(32:12):
it's just by keeping my handsopen and stewarding those things
for whatever period of time Ihave to do that, um, that God is
just able to move so much morefreely when I'm surrendered.
Let me be clear I really don'thave this whole surrender and
trusting figured out, far fromit.
(32:34):
Like it is still something Iwrestle through and I'm learning
and I'm growing in deeper waysall the time.
Like it's like peeling backlayers of an onion.
Like just when I think I'm likeoh man, I am doing really well
at trusting you Lord.
Then he's like, okay, we'regoing to go to a new level then
here you know, um, but he justleads me in.
(32:56):
He's he's been leading me inthis season into just trusting
him in new ways, like expandingmy borders, of releasing control
, which is equal partsfrustrating and freeing, and
uncomfortable and humbling.
But God is so good and faithfulLike I can always tell that I
(33:18):
am much more at rest when I amdoing what I can do in my life
and in raising my children andin loving my spouse.
When I am doing those things, Iam at so much more peace than
when I'm striving and trying tocontrol my kids' reactions or
what my husband is and isn'tdoing, and that kind of thing,
(33:41):
you know.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Right, yeah, absolutely, because man control
is such a hard thing to let goof.
It really is, and it's like abalance, though, because it's
it's such a responsibility.
So I go through times, too,where I'm like I need control,
and then sometimes I feel likeI'm the opposite end of the
spectrum, like I don't want anyof this control, like God,
please take all of it.
So, like you said it is, it isreally like an ebb and flow,
(34:05):
like we absolutely work on, likesurrendering, but it's it's a
continuous, like work inprogress.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Yes, yes for sure, for sure, like that dying to
ourselves daily.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Absolutely Every morning it really does.
It really does take everymorning, every day, like just
diving into the word, dying toyourself and just you know,
start new, yep, yep, becausejust like with your kids.
Every day, there is alwayssomething.
That's right, that's right,that's right, always something.
(34:40):
And you said, okay.
So your husband?
You said he works in the churchtoo.
What does he do?
Speaker 2 (34:45):
He does so.
He is a worship and mediapastor, so he's in our worship
department, helps with puttingtogether videos and getting
those together for the weekend,and he plays lots of instruments
.
He can play piano, the guitarbass.
He's teaching himself the drums.
Speaker 1 (35:05):
He sings.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
So do you have kids musical too?
They are.
Yes, I started teaching theboys piano when, well, I think
they were like four, four orfive.
And Liam's amazing Like he'sgotten to the point where he
plays better than me, so his dadhas to teach him because he's
outgrown me.
Um, and then Alex played pianofor about four years and then
(35:31):
just a couple of years ago hedecided he wanted to switch to
guitar.
So that is his, his love.
He really enjoys playing guitar.
You guys are like that's right,and Eliana loves singing.
So anytime we're like atworship practice or anything
like, she'll grab her microphoneand she stands up there next to
us singing and worshiping, andso it's so sweet.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
That is one of my favorite things is watching my
daughter, crew Pearl, worship,because she worships.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
Yes, I love that.
It's so pure too.
Well and so on Wednesday nights.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
Um, I'm a small group leader for high school kids,
high school girls, so they do um, like worship service with the
kids and it's the kids that leadit, like the high school
students that lead the worship,which I think is so awesome,
because they didn't do that whenI was a kid.
Yeah, and I'm like I would have.
I would have loved that.
But for the last one of theschool year, I took her out of
(36:31):
like the little preschool thatthey have there while we're
doing our small group andbrought her in to watch the big
kids worship and she has notstopped talking about it Like it
was the coolest thing, becauseI think she always sees like
adults worshiping, which is alsoso cool.
I love that.
She's like surrounded by that,but it was just like seeing big
(36:53):
kids worship was cool, and shejust stood in the aisle and sang
and danced and you know sheloves to like listen to worship
music in the car.
So it is so cool and it justfills my heart so much.
I love it.
Little worshipers, I know it isjust the cutest, okay.
So now that your boys aregetting a little bit older and
(37:14):
stepping into responsibility andidentity, what has that
revealed about your long-termfruit of staying faithful in
those quiet years at home.
Speaker 2 (37:24):
Oh man, it is such a joy and blessing to see my boys
as teenagers while raisingtoddlers again.
It keeps so much in perspectivebecause, yes, like there are
some long days of raising babiesand toddlers and wondering like
I don't even know, am I doingthis right?
Is anything getting through?
(37:45):
Am I really messing them up?
Like being able to see the boysas teenagers it's like okay,
there is some things that wasgetting through and I think I
was doing a few things right,like, um, having a huge age gap,
like it's just confirmed overand over that, while those years
of snuggling and feeding andchanging your babies and then
(38:08):
the training and correcting andcleaning up toddler messes, like
it can feel so long and somundane.
Um, but it's all joy and it'sall a blessing because we're
stewarding the hearts and livesof our children, like we always
say, like we aren't babyingbabies, we're raising adults,
(38:29):
we're preparing to launch thenext generation of humans that
God created for this exactmoment in history, and there's
no greater joy than being ableto partner with heaven to make
an impact in this world thatoutlives us.
So, yeah, it's, it's been, it'sbeen a joy.
I'm not going to lie.
(38:49):
It's also been tricky, likehaving toddlers and teens is is
really wild Some days, is reallyloud, is really crazy.
But when I step back and justlook and and see you know, okay,
it's, it's all going to workout, it's all going to be okay,
(39:10):
even in the crazy moments.
So it is we.
Speaker 1 (39:14):
My youngest sister is just graduated college this
weekend, so we have a big agegap too.
So it's fun and I mean itchanges like through the seasons
.
I feel like it's gone like inand out of being like more of a
mom role on my end to now we'relike kind of navigating, it's
like more of a sister role, youknow, instead of just because
(39:37):
we're so far apart in age.
So it's so cool to like seethat transition and then also to
see her flourish.
I mean she is just she's aboutto go to PA school, so it's
really cool and so I'm excitedfor you guys to kind of go
through that too and your boysto go through that.
That's so fun and I can't evenimagine like the boy girl
difference, because boys justgot to love and protect those
(40:01):
little girls, huh.
Speaker 2 (40:07):
That's right.
That's right, and they do.
They're amazing brothers.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
I tell them all the time I'm like man, you're going
to be good dads one day.
Absolutely, because, I mean,most boys aren't exposed to that
.
I feel like, even having mysister that much younger, it
just exposed me to babysittingand changing diapers and you
know, I was old enough toparticipate in those things,
whereas a lot of people didn't.
And how cool is that for boysto be able to do that.
(40:29):
Yeah, exactly, and just help andcare.
And I loved how you talkedabout raising the next
generation, because it's haveyou seen like that Instagram I
forget my brain's not working,maybe trend, I guess it would be
called where, like you say theold phrases to your kids and let
them finish it, like childrenshould be seen and finish it,
(40:51):
you know, and just like allthose different phrases and it's
so cool, like what kids say,you know they're not saying like
and not heard, like they'resaying just all these crazy cool
things and it's like, I thinkthe the mindset of just that
kids are a blessing and they arethe next generation and it's
not like, oh, this generation,like, it's like this generation
(41:14):
is awesome, absolutely.
And yeah, pouring into that andbeing like able to steward the
next generation, I feel likeit's such a cool responsibility
and we were blessed to be likesurrounded by high school kids
all the time.
My husband's a high schoolsoccer coach, so we are just
like surrounded by high schoolkids all the time there and then
(41:35):
at church we've poured intolike high school kids and I feel
like it is obviously I'm not byhigh school kids all the time
there.
And then at church we've pouredinto like high school kids and
I feel like it is obviously I'mnot a high school mom, but high
school age is, I feel, like oneof my favorite ages, yeah.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Yeah, they're amazing , it's, you know, it's like a
lot of times we label where it'slike oh, the terrible twos and
threes and oh, wait till they'reteenagers.
And it's like I mean we couldsay it in a totally different
light Like just wait tillthey're teenagers.
Like when we pour into them andwhen we value them, like they
(42:05):
feel that they see, that theyyou know, and so when we're not
dreading the next season, like,sure, each season comes with
difficulties and trials andfrustrations, but they're all so
beautiful too, they're all sosweet in their own right as well
, and I mean, honestly, I'menjoying my boys as teenagers,
like they're cool people, likeyou know they're.
(42:27):
They've got their own thoughtsand their own feelings and and
beginning to see them, um,pursuing what God has called
them to do and created them todo is it's really neat to watch.
Speaker 1 (42:44):
It's so cool and I've like connected with a few high
school girls who are just likeso on fire for God and it's so
cool just to see them live thatout in their day to day and just
I mean the way they talk andthe way they act and the way
they carry themselves, like I'mjust constantly impressed by
them and I just absolutely loveit.
Like I'm just constantlyimpressed by them and I just
absolutely love it and I lovethat, like my kids have that to
look up to.
Speaker 2 (43:04):
Yes, yes, I love that too.
When like it's it's.
We need other people like, asmoms we pour out and give so
much, but I think that there'ssomething so valuable, too,
about inviting other people tohelp, lead and guide our
children too, whether that'stheir grandparents or, like
you're saying, like theseteenagers who just love God with
(43:26):
all their heart and like thatthey're role models, like our
little kids are looking up tothem anyways, and just having
that for them is so awesome.
Speaker 1 (43:34):
Yeah, so it excites me.
I'm excited for you.
Okay, Kristen, I appreciate itso awesome.
Yeah, so it excites me.
I'm excited for you.
Okay, Kristen, I appreciate itso much.
Thank you so much for coming ontoday and sharing your heart
with us, letting us see both thebeauty and just the
vulnerability of your brokennessand how it shaped your journey.
Your story is a reminder thatthere's so much hope on the
other side of heartbreak andthat motherhood is sacred even
(43:57):
in the mundane.
Even in the mundane, even inthe worship, like worshiping
every single day is.
It's just not a song.
It's how we live and how wesurrender and how we love our
families in the day in and theday out.
If today's conversation hasmoved you, I encourage you to
follow Kristen on Instagram.
It's at kkchristy.
At kkchristy, it's where sheencourages women to do the next
(44:25):
right thing in their health, intheir home, in their faith.
All the things moms.
So mamas, wherever you aretoday, whether you're in the
thick of it, whether you'rewalking through a season of
peace, and just know that yourstory matters, You're not alone.
We're here for you.
There's so many mamas out therethat love you and that are
praying for you.
So thank you so much forjoining us on here today at the
(44:47):
Mama of the Wild Crew podcast.
Mamas, I love you.
You are in my prayers all thetime and I cannot wait to see
you next time, Kristen.
Thank you, you next time,Kristen.
Thank you, Mama.
I'm so grateful that you tooktime out of your busy schedule
(45:08):
today to listen to Mama of theWild Crew podcast.
I'm Alexa Schmoker and I hopeyou love this conversation and
that it resonated with you.
Thank you so much for openingup your circle and letting us in
as we walk through this wildride of motherhood together.
Remember, in the chaos ofmotherhood, there is always joy
to be found, so keep looking inthose little moments that make
it all worth it.
(45:28):
Be sure to follow along onInstagram at mamaofthewildcrew
underscore podcast.
Please don't forget to like,subscribe and share our podcast.
I'd love to hear from you.
So comment, tag me, DM me, letme know what you think and let
me know what you'd like to hearnext.
Mama, I am praying for you.
I love you and I cannot wait tosee you next time.
(45:49):
Thank you.
Welcome to Mama of the Wild Crew podcast, the
podcast where we embrace themessy, wild, beautiful journey
of motherhood together.
I'm your host, alexa Schmoker,mama of two beautiful kiddos,
wife, nurse and lover of Jesus.
Motherhood is full of hardmoments, unexpected chaos and
(00:27):
those days where you just reallydon't have it all together.
But in the midst of it all,there is so much joy.
On this podcast, we're divinginto the real, honest
conversations about motherhoodthe challenges, the triumphs and
everything in between.
We'll hear the stories ofincredible moms from all walks
(00:47):
of life, share wisdom, laughterand let's be real probably a few
tears, and we're going todiscover how to embrace the joy
in this chaos.
So, whether you're rocking ababy to sleep, folding that
never-ending pile of laundry orsneaking away for a quiet moment
with your coffee, welcome, mama.
You're not alone here.
(01:07):
Hit, subscribe and join me onthis wild adventure of
motherhood.
I can't wait to do this journeywith you.
Hey, mamas, and welcome back toanother episode of Mama of the
Wild Crew podcast, where wegather to celebrate the
beautiful and messy and deeplymeaningful motherhood moments.
(01:31):
Today's guest is someone whosestory will stir your soul, whose
faith will absolutely encourageyour heart.
Kristen Christie is a mama offour earthside babies, a worship
leader and a woman whose storyis marked by both deep sorrow
and breathtaking joy.
From experiencing loss andgrief to finding strength
through surrender, to walkinginto her calling as a mama and a
(01:54):
ministry leader, kristen bringsso much wisdom, raw honesty and
light to our conversation.
I'm so grateful to share thisspace with her today and I can't
wait for you to hear her story.
Welcome, kristen.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Hey, alexis, thanks so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here today.
So my husband, bill, and I havebeen together for 18 years.
We just celebrated 18 in March.
We met and married when I wasin college.
Fun fact he's six and a halfyears older than me when I was
in college.
A fun fact he's six and a halfyears older than me.
He loves Jesus with all hisheart and he's literally just
(02:28):
the most kind serving husbandand dad.
He works on staff at our churchas worship pastor and I serve
alongside him as well.
And we moved back to Coloradoabout 12 years ago to the one
place I said I never, everwanted to live.
But God just totally changed myheart and I love it so much and
never want to leave Together.
(02:50):
We have four amazing kiddos.
Liam is 15, carbon copy of hisdad, very musical, loyal, loves
to serve other people.
Our son, alex is 13.
He's our little comedian andlives life large.
Our son Alex is 13.
He's our little comedian andlives life large.
And we totally thought we weredone having kids after our two
boys and we walked through threemiscarriages, but then we were
(03:13):
surprised to find that we wereexpecting again in 2019.
But our sweet Cadence wasactually born prematurely and
only lived for 45 minutes.
I'll share more about her laterbut she just opened our hearts
to desire more children.
And our sweet Eliana girl isfour years old now.
Her name means that God hasanswered our prayers and truly
(03:33):
she is just that.
She is so precious a girly girl, sugar and spice, with curly
red hair.
And then God absolutely wentabove and beyond our hopes and
dreams and gave us AdelineNicole, who is going to be two
this Sunday, and she's theperfect little bookend to our
family.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
Oh, that's so sweet and I know you've said before
that you love names and so Inever knew that your daughter
was named after that.
So that's really precious.
I do love that, oh okay, soevery mom that comes on this
podcast, we go through a littlemom fail question just to get
the sillies out, and most of thetime mine have to do with my
(04:13):
kids, but this morning it was me, so I was getting my kids ready
for school and got everyone outthe door.
Everyone was dressed.
They had their hair done.
You know, clothes were on,shoes were on get them to school
.
I'm walking out getting readyto go done.
You know, clothes were on,shoes were on get them to school
.
I'm walking out getting readyto go to work.
I have my slippers on, and thisis not the first time this has
happened.
So I'm still wearing myslippers right now with my
(04:34):
scrubs, because I haven'tchanged.
But I love it.
I'm like a mom fail on my part,but at least my kids are
dressed right.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
One or the other.
It's either them or us, neverboth Right.
Something's got to give Right.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
I'm like no one.
No one has noticed so far.
So we'll, we'll see.
I'm sure someone's going topoint it out eventually.
Um, but what is your like?
Most cringiest, unpredictablemom fail.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Oh goodness, okay.
So having two boys life isnever dull, never dull.
I have two stories actually.
I'll make them short, I'll makethem quick.
One is like a fail and then onejust like makes me laugh.
So my biggest mom fail was oneyear we were taking our boys
skiing and my husband and I boththought that like the other one
had grabbed the boys' ski pants.
(05:24):
And when we got there we wereunpacking everything and we're
like, okay, where are the skipants?
And I was like no, we forgotthem.
Oh my gosh.
And so luckily I had packedlike a couple of extra pairs of
like PJ pants that were fleece,and it was a warmer spring day,
so we were just able to justdouble up their pants.
But we only lasted like acouple hours and I just like I
(05:46):
could not believe it because itwas like a few hours to actually
drive there.
So that is my biggest mom fail.
But then one time we were intarget making, you know the big
potty stop and the familyrestroom running here and there.
Anyway, my little Alex had hisfavorite car in his hand.
He was maybe two and I had justsuggested here let mom hold
(06:09):
your car while you go potty, andnot 10 seconds later I heard a
splash and I was like, oh no,the car had dropped into the
potty and fell down to thebottom.
Oh no, the biggest meltdown andit was like, okay, I've, I can't
leave this car here.
What am I going to do?
So I like plunge my hand intothe potty and grab it out.
(06:30):
I was just like, oh, mortifiedthat I had to touch the toilet
water, but for years after thatI carried a pair of disposable
gloves and a folded metal hangerjust in case I needed to rescue
any other toys.
But it's still me.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
That is so funny, the things you will do that you
never thought that you wouldever do before but you will do
as a mom Number one, like toprevent a meltdown.
You're like we are in target,that's right.
How funny.
Oh, that is so in the glovesand hanger.
So where did you like storethose?
Did you just throw them?
Speaker 2 (07:03):
in my backpack Just like down in like a deep pocket
of it.
Speaker 1 (07:08):
How funny.
Now we're all going to have toadd that to our list, especially
the disposable gloves, becauseyou probably really need
disposable gloves majority ofthe time.
Various different things.
Okay so, kristen, you talkabout inviting the glorious into
the mundane, and I loved howyou said that.
Okay so, kristen, you talkabout inviting the glorious into
the mundane, and I loved howyou said that.
Okay so what does that looklike in your day-to-day life as
(07:30):
a mama to four littles?
How do you anchor yourself inthe truth when days can feel
just heavier, repetitive?
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yes, so I latched onto that phrase.
I first heard it from KristiKnuckles years ago and it just
hit me so deeply that I could gothrough the very routine and
ordinary parts of my day, likewe do as moms, and still invite
Jesus to be right there with me.
And it's like it's a biblicalconcept that Jesus came to women
(08:01):
.
Like he came to them in themiddle of their ordinary days,
like, like the woman at the wellshe was just going in and
drawing water, like that wasvery routine thing, um, or Mary
and Martha were preparing for adinner party and, and Jesus came
to those women.
And so it's.
I know our days can feel heavyand repetitive, but that's where
(08:22):
some of our deepest heartworkis done as Christ followers.
Like it's easy for us to put ona smile and give our all when
others are watching, when it'ssomething that's flashy and
exciting and notable.
It's so easy, like for me, tolead worship on a Sunday morning
and pour out my heart to God inthose moments that are seen.
(08:44):
But it feels really draining toshow up fully at 2 am when my
toddler has had a bad dream andneeds me to sing her back to
sleep.
But it's actually those moments, those ordinary moments, that
my life is being poured out injust as much worship as when I'm
on the platform at church.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
Yeah, absolutely.
I love that you brought outMary and Martha too, because I
feel like I I connected that somuch being Martha, like I can
get myself so busy and even inthe same scenario, like
preparing for parties or dinnerparties, and just like rushing
around and sometimes feelingfrustrated, like I feel like I'm
doing this by myself and it'slike reworking your mind, like
(09:25):
okay, I need to focus on what isimportant.
Like I'm able to have agathering at my house with
people that I love and likeprepare things for them, and
like I need to invite Jesus intothose moments, instead of like
focusing on just the tasks athand and get yourself into like
that, that wheel for sure.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Yes, yes, yeah, it's like, it's just, it's like we
have to humble ourselves beingable to like serve Jesus Like
that's actually serving.
You know, when it's when it'snot glamor, when it's not like
oh, this is so sparkly and fun,and you know, but I'm not going
to lie like, that's hardsometimes.
But inviting the gloriouspresence of Jesus into my
(10:08):
everyday, ordinary moments isabsolutely my heart and my aim
every day even when I don't doit very well.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Yeah, that is so beautiful.
Last week and she talked abouthow, like she would literally
write an attribute of God on herhand, like to look at it and
remind herself, like whenevershe's doing the mundane and the
ordinary throughout the day, andlike that is such a good thing
to do, cause, again, our lives,like as moms, are not always
glamorous, and writing a thingon your hand is like probably
(10:40):
the most easy practical thingthat you could truly do, like
it's not going to be a Prince,like Pinterest worthy, like
drawing on the wall or whateverit may be, but it's just like
something that you can look atand remind yourself every day,
during the the mundane, duringthe ordinary, like attributes.
Yes, I love that too.
Okay, so you shared how yourjourney through loss has
(11:03):
deepened your faith, and I'm sosorry that you guys watched
through that.
I did not know that.
Can you take us into that space?
How did you wrestle with God inyour grief and what did your
surrender begin to look like foryou as both a mother and a
believer?
Speaker 2 (11:18):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Walking through Cadence dyingwas the absolute most
gut-wrenching thing I've everhad to do.
It was a total surprise andshock that we were expecting
another baby back in August of2019.
We weren't trying to getpregnant and honestly, we were
trying not to but from thebeginning, we embraced this idea
(11:40):
of having another baby and wewere excited to welcome another
life into our family.
So when she was born prematurely, at 22 weeks, um, and only
lived for 45 minutes, I was justdevastated that this precious
baby that I had not even askedGod for, um was just ripped from
me.
Like it just felt like a crueltrick, um, and I've known of
(12:02):
other women who have experiencedlate-term loss, but I never
knew the absolute gut-wrenchingexperience that that that is
like like my heart physicallyhurt and some days, like I felt
like I couldn't breathe.
My body was also going throughlike just all the normal
postpartum things, like yourmilk's coming in and you're
(12:22):
bleeding and you're having thehormone swings, like all the
things, but there's like not thebaby, there's just emptiness.
And the middle of the nightswere so hard because I would
just wake up sobbing and justnot understanding why, like why
I was living this terriblenightmare, and so it definitely
shook my faith and just made metake this step back and be like
(12:44):
wait.
I've read about God's goodnessand his faithfulness in the
Bible and I sing about all hehas done and all that he can do.
But this, this death, this lossand pain and grief like this
does not feel like goodness orfaithfulness and I really had to
wrestle through that truth thatGod is good and God is faithful
(13:04):
.
Like that's his character,that's who he is, regardless of
what I'm experienced or walkingthrough in life, and we're all
going to go through hard thingsthat we would never choose, but
Jesus walks with us through thatpain and loss.
Like we, we grieve as followersof Jesus, but we grieve with,
with hope, because we haveeternal life with God forever.
(13:26):
And like Jesus actuallypromised that we would face
trials.
He said that we we would take,we would have hard things that
we walk through, but that wecould take heart because he has
already overcome.
So like I went from this placeof feeling so wrecked, so numb,
so abandoned to rebuilding myfaith and my trust, like taking
(13:50):
it to a deeper level that I hadnever had and it just became
more personal to me in a way, myrelationship with Jesus was
more personal in a way that itnever could have been without
just the completely shatteringexperience of losing our first
baby girl, um, because it pushedme to, like, search God's word
(14:13):
and to soak my broken spirit andhis truth, to speak out loud
who God was.
Um and I, like I, I found everystory I could have other women
who had experienced loss andtrauma.
I sought godly biblical counselfrom a counselor and also
(14:33):
started writing my story just ofinfant loss and grief, just to
process everything.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Right, oh, I cannot.
I cannot imagine what you guyswalked through.
And I'm so sorry that you guyswalked through that, because
losing a child, I feel like,would just be it's I mean, it's
every mom's fear.
Honestly, if you're speakingtruthfully, like that is just
what you fear all the time and Ijust I'm so sorry that you guys
had to walk through that andyou're so true, like whenever
(15:02):
you're in that grief and thatvulnerable state, like God gives
you that strength.
And what is it?
Maybe second Corinthians, wherehe says but he said to me my
grace is sufficient for you, formy power is made perfect in
your weakness.
Therefore, I will boast all themore gladly about my weakness
so that Christ's power may reston me.
(15:22):
And it's like you almost haveto grasp, like grasp onto those
things and just tell yourselfover and over and I hope that if
there's other moms out there,or if you know of a mom, you
have a friend that's goingthrough that, what would you
kind of say or help someone walkthrough that?
You said that you had somesearched out other moms that had
(15:45):
gone through this, you had goneto counseling, um, I think.
Do you think that it was likehard to take those steps, or how
would you encourage someoneelse to just do that, or a
friend to walk through someone,or even a husband to encourage
to take those steps of healing?
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Yes, absolutely.
Like all of it is hard again.
Like just that feeling of likenumbness, of like wait, what do
I, where do I go from?
Like how do I proceed forward,is absolutely difficult.
I would say give yourself graceand know that while that loss
is always with you, it's alwayspart of who you are, that that
(16:26):
the depth of the pain doessubside eventually.
And as a friend walking withsomebody through loss, I would
say just being there, being alistening ear, like I think
sometimes when we go, when wewatch our friends go through
tragic things, it's like wedon't know what to say and
sometimes it's just saying Idon't know what to say, but I'm
(16:49):
here for you, like I'm, I'm alistening ear, I'm, I don't I
don't have words to fix it, Idon't have words to change it.
And then also just likereaching out on you know special
days and birthdays of theirheaven, going and just
remembering them and sayingtheir names, like it's just,
(17:10):
it's so special when someonewill tell me you know something
about cadence or something aboutthat season of loss that that
stood out to them and ministeredto them as we were like walking
through that, like that meansso much to me.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Right, right, cause you want I mean I feel like you
probably do want to invite thatconversation in, and do you?
How do you like face it withyour boys?
Do you keep her in conversation?
Do you talk about cadence withyour boys or how to?
How does someone navigate that?
Speaker 2 (17:38):
Yeah, so we have a photo of her that we took, with
her little hat and blanket andeverything it's so, she's, she's
in with you know, like thefamily pictures and that kind of
thing, and so we, we still talkabout her from time to time and
, of course, our little girlsare, you know, are old enough
now that they're beginning toask who is this.
(18:00):
And you know, um, so, like Imean, our boys came to the
hospital after cadence hadpassed away and they were able
to hold her and, um, like it,just it gave us opportunity as
parents to be, like, you know,our, our time on earth is really
so short and for some of us,like cadence, it's shorter than
(18:21):
we anticipated.
But just knowing that this lifeis so temporal and being able to
share that with our boys andbeing like, hey, heaven is where
we're, where we're going, youknow and we need to live every
day as though it was our lastand love other people well and
lead them to Jesus, so that theycan spend eternity with us in
(18:44):
heaven too.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
Right, spend eternity with us in heaven too, right?
Well, you have walked throughjust both of these seasons of
heartbreak, and you express thatyou've walked through
hiddenness.
And in what ways has, would yousay, your motherhood like
redefined your identity, notjust as a mom, but as a daughter
of God?
Speaker 2 (19:02):
Yeah, hiddenness and heartbreak.
I like how you put that.
I'm walking with the Lordthrough learning about seasons
in life, like just realizingthat there are absolutely
seasons of of hiddenness where,like can life can feel dark,
like it's unseen, and there'slike this deep work being done,
kind of like when a seed isplanted in the ground and we
(19:24):
don't see the plant or theflower that's doing so much work
under the soil.
It doesn't mean that thathidden season for that plant
isn't worth anything.
It's actually worth everythingbecause, just like that plant or
flower needs that hidden timeto have the seed crack open and
to root down and then push upthrough that dark and dirty
(19:47):
place to come up above ground,we need those times too.
Or like seasons of heartbreak,where our life is left in broken
pieces and shards of pain andlike it just doesn't make sense
in our minds.
We can offer up those brokenpieces to God and surrender and
ask him to use them for our goodand for his glory, and he does
(20:09):
it every single time andhonestly, like my identity, I
feel like it's still in constantoverhaul, if I'm being honest.
But when I remind myself that Iam first and foremost a
daughter of God that, no matterwhat outside circumstances are
happening, I can always focus myheart on whose I am, because
(20:33):
the outside things are outsideof my control, but I can always
surrender me to God's best.
I can always humble myselfbefore God and stand firmly in
whose I am.
Not what is happening, becauseI serve a God who is still God
even in unfamiliar or hard orugly things that I would never
(20:55):
choose for myself.
And how I trust God most andsurrender to him when I'm
walking through those things ismore important than like why am
I walking through this?
It's like, okay, god, how can Iserve you through this?
And then that helps to root memore in whose I am instead of
(21:15):
the why, if that makes sense.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Absolutely.
I feel like that has beensomething that I've been trying
to really focus on over like thelast I'd say, probably six
months, because I reflect back.
I have a daughter, that's three,and so I reflect back,
especially through, like thosemiddle school, high school times
and I just wish that I had, Iwas more firm in my identity,
(21:39):
like as a daughter of Christ,throughout, like those high
school times, college timeswhere I really struggled with
like anxiety and I'm like I lookat myself now and still again
like I know that my identity isin Christ, but I can find myself
, like you said, just going, Iguess, not forgetting it, I
(22:00):
guess whenever I'm busy inday-to-day life, so really
trying to anchor myself in beinga daughter of Christ and my
identity is solely found in that, and then the rest of the
things come from that, likebeing a mother comes from that,
being a wife comes from that,being a nurse comes from that,
(22:21):
because I feel like at that timemy identity was being a soccer
player, was being someone'sgirlfriend, it was not being
loved by the one true King, andso I really want to get that,
get that right in my own lifeand then reflect that and teach
that to both my daughter and myson.
(22:42):
But I think I'm just more like Idon't know, I guess aware of it
with, guess aware of it with mydaughter, because my husband is
just so good about that.
He's not like I wouldn't saylike your flashy Christian talks
about it all the time, butwhenever it comes to someone who
is like deeply aware that hefinds his identity in God, I
(23:05):
mean it's just him, like he isjust strong and sturdy and when
big things happen or anythinglike it just doesn't seem to
phase him or shake him Like itdoes me, or even like in the
past through high school andcollege, when things have
happened, like he just isn'tshaken by the world.
Yes, yeah, I want to root ourkids in that.
So I love that you spoke onthat, because I think that's
(23:28):
definitely something that I'mtrying to be intentional about
now.
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
I love that.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Yeah, so you have callings of many different
beautiful things.
So you talk about motherhood,your worship leader, wellness,
encouragement.
How do you balance these rolesand what does it mean to you to
live a life of worship in everyarea, even the unseen ones?
Oh, balance, right the question.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
I have given up on balance and perfection.
I used to feel so in control oflike everything I did.
I used to feel so in control oflike everything I did, Like I
had everything under control,and literally it feels laughable
these days because it's likeokay, like there's just so much
that feels like outside of mycontrol and it's like oh Jesus,
(24:22):
I just I can see that livingthat way doesn't even leave room
for my need of a savior, Likebecause if I'm in control, like,
I don't need God, Right.
But, oh, my goodness, girl, Ineed God.
So I have just come to thisplace of like living with open
hands, where I'm not grasping sohard to hold everything on my
(24:45):
own, um, and with all the rolesthat I have.
I'm just constantly asking Godeach day like show me what your
best is for me today or thisweek.
Like I talk a lot over on myInstagram about like doing the
next right thing, because for meit's become like less about
balance and more aboutconstantly evaluating what is
(25:08):
the next right thing, like justthis next moment, lord, kind of
the like give us today our dailybread.
You know where it's.
Like okay, it's just justenough for this moment.
What?
What do I need to do?
Because I know I can't juggleeverything.
Like I'm a human, so I havelimitations and that's a good
thing, but I know that as momslike we, we do have to juggle a
(25:30):
lot, you know.
But I love how you alsomentioned like living a life of
worship in every area, in everyrole, because that's just it.
Like all of it is worship toJesus.
So, whether I'm on the platformon a Sunday leading worship or
I'm singing a whispered lullabyin the middle of the night to
(25:51):
just an audience of God and mybaby girls, like it's worship
just the same and it all mattersto God.
And kind of going back to thestory of Mary and Martha, like
ultimately, martha came to Jesusso exasperated, like Lord, I
just can't do it all, and he wasso gracious, it's like choose
(26:14):
the better thing, like let mewalk with you and talk with you
and have relationship with you.
And I think that that's part oflearning to maybe let balance
go sometimes and just be likeokay, jesus, I can't do this.
I need your strength, I needyour wisdom to be able to to do
(26:36):
everything that I need to do andthe things that I can't get to
and the things that I can't do,just trusting that, if we don't
have the capacity for whateverthose things are in the season
that we're in, that that's okay,that it's okay to let those
things go.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
Right, yeah, and I feel like that can be so hard to
identify sometimes, but, likeyou said, just going to God and
asking him with open hands likewhat, what do you have for me
today?
What is the next right thing?
Because your plate can alwaysbe full, like and as moms, I
feel like we can, we can alwaysmake our plate full and
overflowing.
Oh yeah, it's very easy to doand sometimes the hard thing is
(27:15):
is to cut things back.
Yes, and if you're spreadingyourself so thin, you can't
possibly worship and all theordinary aspects of life, and
you know, we're called to.
We're called to.
So whether you're eating ordrinking or whatever you do, do
it for the glory of God.
And whenever you're so spreadthin, how do you do that?
And that can be something thatI struggle with is trying to say
(27:37):
no to things, whether it be abirthday party or a baby shower,
because you want to go to allthose things and you want to
enjoy all those things Totallythere with you.
It can be so hard to, I don'tknow, just say no, because then
you feel bad and guilty, but youhave to, I don't know, just
prioritize your time with yourkids or your time with your
(27:58):
husband, whatever it may be.
Like you said, that doesn'talways have to be your choice or
your decision.
Go to God with it.
Go to God with everything thatyou do.
Yes, yes, yeah, so I do.
I do love that and I candefinitely relate to the balance
.
That is like the million dollarquestion, um, and if you do not
(28:21):
follow Kristen on Instagram, Iwill put up her stuff in the
show notes too, because, likeyou said, on your Instagram, you
, you do.
What do you call the chats withKristen?
What do you?
What do you call them?
Combos with Kristen, comboswith Kristen.
I was like what is that called?
And they're so good.
You always put up like suchencouragement and it's not just
encouragement, it's likepractical things, like you said,
(28:43):
like doing the next right step.
As moms like again, we don'talways have time to sit down and
read through all theseparenting books or whatever it
may be that we want to, but,like your, your information that
you put out is so relatable andso practical and so encouraging
that you know it just gives you, like that fuel and something
(29:05):
to latch onto to go throughthroughout the day.
So I definitely recommend goingover and following Kristen.
Thank you so much.
Hey there, wild Crew Mamas, somesuper exciting news.
If you're like me, these daysany day is a hat day.
Literally, probably every dayis a hat day, and we have two
new hats for Mama of the WildCrew podcast.
(29:26):
I am so excited, and huge shoutout to my sister-in-law, bree,
over at Schmokey Designs, fortaking these ideas and bringing
them to life.
We have Mama of the Wild Crewpodcast hat and we also have the
cutest hat.
It says motherhood is myministry.
And ain't that the truth, guys,head on over to our Instagram
at Mama of the Wild Crewunderscore podcast, dm me or
(29:47):
comment on one of the posts andlet us know that you want your
hat today.
Growing up, our parents had asuper special tradition.
We kept this big stork in ourgarage and whenever someone,
either in town or one of ourfriends, had a baby, we would
all load up and go over to theirhouse and put this stork in
(30:07):
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(30:51):
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Owosso Storks was a thing andit was just the sweetest thing.
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(31:12):
So definitely reach out to aloss of starts.
Okay, kristen, you said thatsurrender is essential to how
you love and how you raise yourchildren.
Can you speak to a specificmoment or season where you had
to fully release control andwhat God taught you through that
?
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Yeah.
So I think the specificmonumental thing was of
releasing control was definitelywhen we had to give cadence
back to God.
Like that was when God gave methat picture in my mind of open
hands.
Like with my fingers spreadapart, god's blessings and favor
(31:50):
can flow through my hands somuch more freely when my hands
are open rather than when myfists are balled up tightly, and
like it was just thisrealization that it's like you
know what, it doesn't matter ifI'm pregnant with a child or
I've birthed that child, orwhether it's my husband or
anything that I am doing in life.
Like I literally don't havecontrol of those things and so
(32:12):
it's just by keeping my handsopen and stewarding those things
for whatever period of time Ihave to do that, um, that God is
just able to move so much morefreely when I'm surrendered.
Let me be clear I really don'thave this whole surrender and
trusting figured out, far fromit.
(32:34):
Like it is still something Iwrestle through and I'm learning
and I'm growing in deeper waysall the time.
Like it's like peeling backlayers of an onion.
Like just when I think I'm likeoh man, I am doing really well
at trusting you Lord.
Then he's like, okay, we'regoing to go to a new level then
here you know, um, but he justleads me in.
(32:56):
He's he's been leading me inthis season into just trusting
him in new ways, like expandingmy borders, of releasing control
, which is equal partsfrustrating and freeing, and
uncomfortable and humbling.
But God is so good and faithfulLike I can always tell that I
(33:18):
am much more at rest when I amdoing what I can do in my life
and in raising my children andin loving my spouse.
When I am doing those things, Iam at so much more peace than
when I'm striving and trying tocontrol my kids' reactions or
what my husband is and isn'tdoing, and that kind of thing,
(33:41):
you know.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Right, yeah, absolutely, because man control
is such a hard thing to let goof.
It really is, and it's like abalance, though, because it's
it's such a responsibility.
So I go through times, too,where I'm like I need control,
and then sometimes I feel likeI'm the opposite end of the
spectrum, like I don't want anyof this control, like God,
please take all of it.
So, like you said it is, it isreally like an ebb and flow,
(34:05):
like we absolutely work on, likesurrendering, but it's it's a
continuous, like work inprogress.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Yes, yes for sure, for sure, like that dying to
ourselves daily.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Absolutely Every morning it really does.
It really does take everymorning, every day, like just
diving into the word, dying toyourself and just you know,
start new, yep, yep, becausejust like with your kids.
Every day, there is alwayssomething.
That's right, that's right,that's right, always something.
(34:40):
And you said, okay.
So your husband?
You said he works in the churchtoo.
What does he do?
Speaker 2 (34:45):
He does so.
He is a worship and mediapastor, so he's in our worship
department, helps with puttingtogether videos and getting
those together for the weekend,and he plays lots of instruments
.
He can play piano, the guitarbass.
He's teaching himself the drums.
Speaker 1 (35:05):
He sings.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
So do you have kids musical too?
They are.
Yes, I started teaching theboys piano when, well, I think
they were like four, four orfive.
And Liam's amazing Like he'sgotten to the point where he
plays better than me, so his dadhas to teach him because he's
outgrown me.
Um, and then Alex played pianofor about four years and then
(35:31):
just a couple of years ago hedecided he wanted to switch to
guitar.
So that is his, his love.
He really enjoys playing guitar.
You guys are like that's right,and Eliana loves singing.
So anytime we're like atworship practice or anything
like, she'll grab her microphoneand she stands up there next to
us singing and worshiping, andso it's so sweet.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
That is one of my favorite things is watching my
daughter, crew Pearl, worship,because she worships.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
Yes, I love that.
It's so pure too.
Well and so on Wednesday nights.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
Um, I'm a small group leader for high school kids,
high school girls, so they do um, like worship service with the
kids and it's the kids that leadit, like the high school
students that lead the worship,which I think is so awesome,
because they didn't do that whenI was a kid.
Yeah, and I'm like I would have.
I would have loved that.
But for the last one of theschool year, I took her out of
(36:31):
like the little preschool thatthey have there while we're
doing our small group andbrought her in to watch the big
kids worship and she has notstopped talking about it Like it
was the coolest thing, becauseI think she always sees like
adults worshiping, which is alsoso cool.
I love that.
She's like surrounded by that,but it was just like seeing big
(36:53):
kids worship was cool, and shejust stood in the aisle and sang
and danced and you know sheloves to like listen to worship
music in the car.
So it is so cool and it justfills my heart so much.
I love it.
Little worshipers, I know it isjust the cutest, okay.
So now that your boys aregetting a little bit older and
(37:14):
stepping into responsibility andidentity, what has that
revealed about your long-termfruit of staying faithful in
those quiet years at home.
Speaker 2 (37:24):
Oh man, it is such a joy and blessing to see my boys
as teenagers while raisingtoddlers again.
It keeps so much in perspectivebecause, yes, like there are
some long days of raising babiesand toddlers and wondering like
I don't even know, am I doingthis right?
Is anything getting through?
(37:45):
Am I really messing them up?
Like being able to see the boysas teenagers it's like okay,
there is some things that wasgetting through and I think I
was doing a few things right,like, um, having a huge age gap,
like it's just confirmed overand over that, while those years
of snuggling and feeding andchanging your babies and then
(38:08):
the training and correcting andcleaning up toddler messes, like
it can feel so long and somundane.
Um, but it's all joy and it'sall a blessing because we're
stewarding the hearts and livesof our children, like we always
say, like we aren't babyingbabies, we're raising adults,
(38:29):
we're preparing to launch thenext generation of humans that
God created for this exactmoment in history, and there's
no greater joy than being ableto partner with heaven to make
an impact in this world thatoutlives us.
So, yeah, it's, it's been, it'sbeen a joy.
I'm not going to lie.
(38:49):
It's also been tricky, likehaving toddlers and teens is is
really wild Some days, is reallyloud, is really crazy.
But when I step back and justlook and and see you know, okay,
it's, it's all going to workout, it's all going to be okay,
(39:10):
even in the crazy moments.
So it is we.
Speaker 1 (39:14):
My youngest sister is just graduated college this
weekend, so we have a big agegap too.
So it's fun and I mean itchanges like through the seasons
.
I feel like it's gone like inand out of being like more of a
mom role on my end to now we'relike kind of navigating, it's
like more of a sister role, youknow, instead of just because
(39:37):
we're so far apart in age.
So it's so cool to like seethat transition and then also to
see her flourish.
I mean she is just she's aboutto go to PA school, so it's
really cool and so I'm excitedfor you guys to kind of go
through that too and your boysto go through that.
That's so fun and I can't evenimagine like the boy girl
difference, because boys justgot to love and protect those
(40:01):
little girls, huh.
Speaker 2 (40:07):
That's right.
That's right, and they do.
They're amazing brothers.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
I tell them all the time I'm like man, you're going
to be good dads one day.
Absolutely, because, I mean,most boys aren't exposed to that
.
I feel like, even having mysister that much younger, it
just exposed me to babysittingand changing diapers and you
know, I was old enough toparticipate in those things,
whereas a lot of people didn't.
And how cool is that for boysto be able to do that.
(40:29):
Yeah, exactly, and just help andcare.
And I loved how you talkedabout raising the next
generation, because it's haveyou seen like that Instagram I
forget my brain's not working,maybe trend, I guess it would be
called where, like you say theold phrases to your kids and let
them finish it, like childrenshould be seen and finish it,
(40:51):
you know, and just like allthose different phrases and it's
so cool, like what kids say,you know they're not saying like
and not heard, like they'resaying just all these crazy cool
things and it's like, I thinkthe the mindset of just that
kids are a blessing and they arethe next generation and it's
not like, oh, this generation,like, it's like this generation
(41:14):
is awesome, absolutely.
And yeah, pouring into that andbeing like able to steward the
next generation, I feel likeit's such a cool responsibility
and we were blessed to be likesurrounded by high school kids
all the time.
My husband's a high schoolsoccer coach, so we are just
like surrounded by high schoolkids all the time there and then
(41:35):
at church we've poured intolike high school kids and I feel
like it is obviously I'm not byhigh school kids all the time
there.
And then at church we've pouredinto like high school kids and
I feel like it is obviously I'mnot a high school mom, but high
school age is, I feel, like oneof my favorite ages, yeah.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Yeah, they're amazing , it's, you know, it's like a
lot of times we label where it'slike oh, the terrible twos and
threes and oh, wait till they'reteenagers.
And it's like I mean we couldsay it in a totally different
light Like just wait tillthey're teenagers.
Like when we pour into them andwhen we value them, like they
(42:05):
feel that they see, that theyyou know, and so when we're not
dreading the next season, like,sure, each season comes with
difficulties and trials andfrustrations, but they're all so
beautiful too, they're all sosweet in their own right as well
, and I mean, honestly, I'menjoying my boys as teenagers,
like they're cool people, likeyou know they're.
(42:27):
They've got their own thoughtsand their own feelings and and
beginning to see them, um,pursuing what God has called
them to do and created them todo is it's really neat to watch.
Speaker 1 (42:44):
It's so cool and I've like connected with a few high
school girls who are just likeso on fire for God and it's so
cool just to see them live thatout in their day to day and just
I mean the way they talk andthe way they act and the way
they carry themselves, like I'mjust constantly impressed by
them and I just absolutely loveit.
Like I'm just constantlyimpressed by them and I just
absolutely love it and I lovethat, like my kids have that to
look up to.
Speaker 2 (43:04):
Yes, yes, I love that too.
When like it's it's.
We need other people like, asmoms we pour out and give so
much, but I think that there'ssomething so valuable, too,
about inviting other people tohelp, lead and guide our
children too, whether that'stheir grandparents or, like
you're saying, like theseteenagers who just love God with
(43:26):
all their heart and like thatthey're role models, like our
little kids are looking up tothem anyways, and just having
that for them is so awesome.
Speaker 1 (43:34):
Yeah, so it excites me.
I'm excited for you.
Okay, Kristen, I appreciate itso awesome.
Yeah, so it excites me.
I'm excited for you.
Okay, Kristen, I appreciate itso much.
Thank you so much for coming ontoday and sharing your heart
with us, letting us see both thebeauty and just the
vulnerability of your brokennessand how it shaped your journey.
Your story is a reminder thatthere's so much hope on the
other side of heartbreak andthat motherhood is sacred even
(43:57):
in the mundane.
Even in the mundane, even inthe worship, like worshiping
every single day is.
It's just not a song.
It's how we live and how wesurrender and how we love our
families in the day in and theday out.
If today's conversation hasmoved you, I encourage you to
follow Kristen on Instagram.
It's at kkchristy.
At kkchristy, it's where sheencourages women to do the next
(44:25):
right thing in their health, intheir home, in their faith.
All the things moms.
So mamas, wherever you aretoday, whether you're in the
thick of it, whether you'rewalking through a season of
peace, and just know that yourstory matters, You're not alone.
We're here for you.
There's so many mamas out therethat love you and that are
praying for you.
So thank you so much forjoining us on here today at the
(44:47):
Mama of the Wild Crew podcast.
Mamas, I love you.
You are in my prayers all thetime and I cannot wait to see
you next time, Kristen.
Thank you, you next time,Kristen.
Thank you, Mama.
I'm so grateful that you tooktime out of your busy schedule
(45:08):
today to listen to Mama of theWild Crew podcast.
I'm Alexa Schmoker and I hopeyou love this conversation and
that it resonated with you.
Thank you so much for openingup your circle and letting us in
as we walk through this wildride of motherhood together.
Remember, in the chaos ofmotherhood, there is always joy
to be found, so keep looking inthose little moments that make
it all worth it.
(45:28):
Be sure to follow along onInstagram at mamaofthewildcrew
underscore podcast.
Please don't forget to like,subscribe and share our podcast.
I'd love to hear from you.
So comment, tag me, DM me, letme know what you think and let
me know what you'd like to hearnext.
Mama, I am praying for you.
I love you and I cannot wait tosee you next time.
(45:49):
Thank you.
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