Solo Parent

This week we are discussing 'What If I Need to Rock the Boat?'

We all know what instability feels like, and many of us don't want to rock the boat even more if we don't have to. But, sometimes we get stuck in what feels comfortable and we recognize things aren't as they should be; they're not healthy and not moving us forward. How do we lean into rocking the boat in a sustainable, positive, and purposeful way?

Today, we cover three main points:

1) Normalizing and demystifying instability.

2) Why instability can lead to stability.

3) How to purposefully disrupt your life.

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing 'How Long, Oh Lord?' with Marty Solomon.

The pain, chaos, and instability that leads to single parenting is so intense we want it to end as soon as possible—but it doesn't, and we don't know when it will. We feel like we're wandering in the desert with no relief in sight. Is it possible to find hope and not live in fear of the rug being pulled out when things are stable?

Marty Solomon grew up in the Reformed tradition before attending Boise Bible College and getting his B.A. in Christian Ministries. In 2008 he studied in Israel with Ray Vander Laan and was challenged to grapple with his own Jewish heritage. As he learned more about the wider conversation surrounding the Bible, especially through a Jewish context, he began to develop BEMA Discipleship as a way to share his experience with others. He found his way into Impact Campus Ministries, seeing college students as in the perfect stage of life to experiment with the methods he saw in Jesus. Marty began leading trips of his own to Israel and Turkey in 2014. After a few iterations of his BEMA material, The BEMA Podcast was launched in 2016, making it accessible to a global audience. He and his wife, Becky, currently live in Cincinnati; they are committed to the work of ministry together and of raising their two kids, Abigail and Ezekiel.

You can find these things and more from Marty at martysolomon.com.

Find Marty's book martysolomon.com/books.

LINK TO SHOW NOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing 'How Much Change Can My Kids Take?' with Kyle Cruze.

Our kids have experienced so much change already, and we know stability is important. How much change can they endure before there are lasting consequences?

Kyle is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of Tennessee.

Since graduate school, Kyle has dedicated almost all his professional time to

working with adolescent/teenage boys and their families. Recognizing the huge

need that boys have for clarity and guidance, Kyle has sat with hundreds of kids

and their parents with the goal of helping them navigate through the difficult and

confusing aspects of this culture and life.

His early lessons in life and relationships came through the paradigm of athletics.

Kyle was blessed with the opportunity to play basketball all four years he was in

college. It was through those experiences on and off the court that much of his

curiosity and interest in people and their stories began.

Prior to moving into full-time private practice, Kyle worked at a residential

treatment center with high school boys and their families who were struggling with

substance abuse and addiction. During these years, Kyle also frequently spoke at

national conferences, local schools, and parent groups.

Kyle was born and raised in Knoxville, TN. It was there that he met his wife Kristen

who is a Franklin, TN native. Together they have two boys and a girl.

LINK TO SHOW NOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing 'What is Stability?' as a single parent.

If you define the life of a single parent, you might say that instability is the word. The challenges and chaos of work-life balance, finances, emotional stress, and more are simply a given when you're a solo parent, and because of that, we may often feel like our situation is not stable. But what does stability actually mean? Are we actually creating a stable environment but we just don't realize it?

Today, we cover three main points:

1) How to tell the difference between uncertainty and instability.

2) Responding to the fluctuations of stability in seasons.

3) Practical ways to pursue stability.

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing "When Your Child Triggers You"

Everyone who has been through trauma has triggers. Our children can often push those buttons and trigger a strong response from us—and single parents don't have a backup person to help out when this happens. If we're overwhelmed, we react to triggers instead of responding—and it doesn't go well. What do we do when our child triggers us, and how can we use them to our benefit?

Today, we cover three main points:

1. Defining Triggers

2. Navigating Triggers

3. The Healing Power of Triggers

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing "Parenting a Child Who's Mad at You"

It's inevitable that our kids will be mad at us, whether they're five years old or twenty-five. Their anger can feel like a heavy weight loaded onto our already-exhausting life! How do we effectively and lovingly parent a child who's mad at us?

3 MAIN POINTS

Today, we cover three main points:

1. Reasons Our Kids Get Angry

2. Our Response (What We Can Do)

3. Keeping Our Side of the Street Clean

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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In this week's episode - "The Three Phases of Solo Parenting" - we are honoring single parents as we lead up to National Single Parent Day.

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed Proclamation 516, designating March 21st as National Single Parent Day. The proclamation recognized the courage and dedication of single parents. Only those who have been on this often-lonely and overwhelming path know just how challenging it is to be a single parent.

We are all at different stages in our solo parent journey—some of us are just beginning, and some of us are decades past that point. We wanted to create something to help you figure out where you are in your journey. That's why we're introducing the Three Phases of Solo Parenting that you can download below—a framework shaped by the stories of thousands of single parents we've walked alongside.

To bring these phases to life, we have the honor of interviewing three solo parents, each sharing their unique story and representing one of these stages.

1. Triage

2. Recovery

3. Wellness

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

What stage of Solo Parenting are you in? Take the free SOLO PARENT WELLNESS ASSESSEMENT *Assessment will automatically download.

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing "Getting Out From Under the Single Parent Guilt"

As a single parent, we are second-guessing and undermining ourselves. We want what's best for our kids but don't feel like we're able to deliver it, so we overcompensate or feel like giving up. How can we parent from a place of balance rather than swinging from a pendulum of too hands-off or too involved?

Today, we cover three main points:

1. The Guilt

2. Present, Not Perfect

3. Good-Enough Parenting

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing "Helping Our Kids Grieve Loss" with Annie F. Downs and Tatum Green - authors of Where Did TJ Go?

None of us are exempt from loss. We have all lost someone we love in some way or another. This is a painful subject that we often don't know how to talk to our kids about—but it's also incredibly crucial that we do. How do we talk to our kids about grief and loss in a healthy, honest, and appropriate way? Our guests this week, New York Times bestselling author, Annie F. Downs and her sister, Tatum Green are Co-Authors on a new book - Where Did TJ Go? (Baker Books) and they will help us navigate this challenging topic.

Where Did TJ Go? helps children and families deal with grief and loss, offering comfort and hope.

After Green suffered the loss of a baby, Downs wrote a story for her nephew, Sam, about where his baby brother TJ went. Beautifully illustrated by Jennie Poh, Where Did TJ Go? helps grieving families explain what happened and what kind of experiences a child might be having in heaven with the God who loves them and makes everything good in its time.Tender and sincere, this story doesn't shy away from the hurt even as it offers comfort and hope to those left behind. "We are so hopeful that this book will serve families in their grief- giving parents some tools for starting conversations with their kids, and giving kids some vision and hope about eternity."

https://wheredidtjgo.com/

LINK TO SHOW NOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

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This week we are discussing Teaching Our Kids Healthy Love

We want to teach our kids what healthy love or a healthy marriage looks like, but without two parents in the household, often what they've seen is broken or simply non-existent. How do we teach our kids about building healthy relationships when we aren't able to model it for them?

Today, we cover three main points:

1. Relationships are Relationships

2. Setting the Tone

3. When our kids are in unhealthy relationships

LINK TO SHOWNOTES

For all the detailed show notes, tips and links click - https://soloparent.org/show-notes-blog

ASK US ANYTHING! We want to answer any Solo Parent questions you may have. Go to SoloParent.org/TalkToUs and ask us anything…it can be related to a topic we cover on the podcast, something you are facing or just something you are curious about. We want you to be part of our podcast!

Learn More About Solo Parent