Trials, Grief, Faith and Hope: Parenting a Child with Special Needs with Sue Lee

Episode 92 

What a thrill to have my friend Sue Lee back again. Last time we talked about Madam Lees French classes for home schoolers. And that was wonderful. You can listen to that episode right here. Today, though, we are talking about another part of Sues life and that is raising her son Marcus, who was diagnosed at 4 months with an extremely rare genetic disorder called Joubert syndrome. Joubert syndrome is characterized by a variety of neurological and developmental abnormalities. After diagnosis, the Lee family just had to wait and see how Marcuss brain and body would be affected by this syndrome. 

Sue vulnerably shares her story in this episode. From the moment of Marcuss diagnosis and the early years of sleepless nights and endless therapies, the Lees realized they had to cling to the truth that Jesus is better. Jesus is better than what we thought wed have in this world, better than comfort or no suffering. And they have clung to that truth through the rest of Marcuss life thus far. Through deciding to home school him and helping him follow his passion for music and now applying for college, they have clung to the truth that God is with them in this and He allows trial but He also provides grace to get through it. 

Sue doesnt sugarcoat the hard, but she also doesnt deny that God has been with them through every bit of this lifelong trial Marcus and the Lee family have walked through. 

Sues story, but especially her reminders to cling to  faith in God during times of suffering will be an encouragement to anyone walking through trial and especially the trail of raising kids with special needs. You are not alone in this. 

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,4who comforts usin all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 

Online Seminar update: Unfortunately my online seminar, Parenting in the Age of Pornography, had to be postponed due to problems with my website. Ill be rescheduling for a Thursday evening in early December. I will keep you posted on the details here on the podcast, on Instagram and via my email newsletter. Make sure you are following along in those places so you dont miss out! Thanks for being excited this resource. I promise it will be worth the wait! 

Womens Walking Retreat in the Cotswolds: Our retreat is live and open for registration! You can get all the info right here. 

Where to find Sue 

Find Sues website here 

Find Sues French classes here 

Find the essay Sue wrote about this journey here 

Find Sue on Instagram here 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Episode 91 

Friends, this is a catch up with Greta episode! There is a lot going on in life and a lot I wanted to tell you about so here we are. And since I recorded this podcast, a couple of things have, and havent, happened so Ill update you on the updates. Insert laughing/crying emoji face here. 

First, the link to my digital seminar is still not live because I am having issues with my website. I do so wish I could speak with a human instead of trying to solve problems with the live chat. Anyway, all I can say at this point is, please, please, check my Instagram account and my blog for updates and links because hopefully theyll be there in the next couple of days. Ill put the links to both those things at the end of these show notes. 

Now something that is up is my food and travel book post on Substack. Do you follow me over there? I am trying so hard to get more writing up there. It is fun to write about whatever I want! I think youll love it there too. Link at end of these notes.  

And oh the excitement my Instagram fam had over my post about the book Everything Sad is Untrue! It was so fun to hear from so many people who loved it and so many people who were going to read it for the first time! And yes, I am going to do a zoom Book Talk with you all about that book soon. All the deets will be on Insta and Ill share on my blog too. So youll have to check those spaces for the link when its ready to go! 

Lastly, there is my 2026 Womens Walking Retreat in the Cotswolds!  

Oh my goodness, I am over the moon excited about this!! We have our full itinerary up and pricing will be up soon. Link for this information is, you guessed it, at the end of these notes! 

You know I always deeply appreciate you leaving reviews of my book and this podcast. Reviews really are key to getting my stuff shown to more people, and also to people deciding to purchase my book or listen to my show. People want to know if something is worthwhile. Will you please tell them it is!? You can leave book reviews on Amazon and podcast reviews on iTunes.  

Thank you, friends, for all the ways you support me and my work out in the world. Now here are the links for all the things! 

Links and things: 

Find my blog and website here 

Find me on Insta here 

Find out about our Womens Walking Retreat here 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Episode 90 

Amy Hughes is a mom to nine, yes nine! She is also a home schoolteacher and an author. In todays episode we are talking about her brand-new book, Words Like Honey. This book, and our conversation, is all about the power of our words as parents. 

Not that our words have some kind of magical powers or that we can manifest something happening. But that God is the one that gives our words power to bless our children, to nurture them, comfort and exhort them. Its so important for us to remember this as parents. 

Amy and I have a lot to say on this topic because as lovers of words and as authors and communicators, we know very well the power words have. We share stories from our parenting and the way weve learned to speak gently and in life giving ways. Amy shares 4 really practical tips from her book about how to speak life into your children. You wont find this episode overwhelming, but rather encouraging and helpful. I just know youll appreciate it very much. 

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

Provers 18;21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love will eat its fruit. 

Proverbs 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath but a harsh word stirs up anger. 

*Be sure you are following Greta on Instagram here to get first notification for her upcoming online seminar! 

*Or you can sign up for my newsletter here to get notification of all the things! 

Where to find Amy: 

Find Amys book here 

Find Amy on Instagram here  

Find Amys website here 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Episode 89 

Todays episode is with Andrea Davis is the founder of Better Screen Time. Better Screen Time exists to help kids engage with screens in a healthy way. Andrea is a former teacher, a mom to five and her husband is a tech expert. Together they bring a wealth of expertise to Better Screen Time and to all of us who are raising kids in a screen saturated world. 

I found this episode with Andrea to be wildly encouraging and motivating in terms of giving our kids a full childhoodyes all the way through high schoolthat isnt ruled by screens and social media. I know it doesnt feel possible sometimes, but Andreas story reminds us it is!  As a parent, it takes courage to ask that of your child and hold to it. As a child, it takes courage to be the only one not on a smart phone or a social media account. It is absolutely possible and people like Andrea show us the way. 

And if youre kid has been given a smart phone and/or social media, and you realize it is not the best way for your child, remember what Andrea says:  is never too early to prepare and its never too late to turn things around. 

Be sure to check out all of Andreas resources in the show notes below and share this encouraging episode with a friend! 

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

Learn more about a home phone through VoIp here 

Get Gretas book Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn here 

Find Andrea here: 

Find the Better Screen Time website here 

Find Andreas book here 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Episode 88 

True to form, this episode starts with me feeling sure that I messed up my guests name. I didnt even bother to edit it out because the reality is, I am who I am. Laugh with me! 

My guest, Eryn Eddy Adkis, is the founder of the company So Worth Loving, and a host of the podcast God Hears Her. 

I loved learning about Eryns upbringing and how it impacted her as an adult and the company she started called, So Worth Loving. This company exists to create product as an entry point to vulnerable conversations. When I read that, I was instantly intrigued. In the work I do, so many people I talk to have been hurt or are hurt. What I find is that they often want to go deep and share vulnerably but it is scary to do so. By going first, I get to help them find the courage to do that. And that is exactly what Eryn is doing with So Worth Loving. 

Eryn and I also talked about the podcast God Hears Her, and the way it has given space for women to have the courage to share their own difficult stories. And that has given Eryn and so many others freedom to walk in freedom and not in shame. What a gift! 

Be sure to look up the work that Eryn is doing with both her company and the podcast. 

You will be blessed. 

Where to find Eryn: 

Find So Worth Loving here 

Find Eryn on Instagram here 

Find God Hears Her podcast here 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org