#01 From Full-Time Career to Stay-at-Home Mom Life

My Story and Why This Matters
In this very first episode of Discovering Home, I’m sharing the heart behind the podcast and the journey that brought me here. Before I became a stay-at-home mom, I spent nearly 20 years in a demanding career—chasing titles, striving to “do it all,” and quietly wondering if this was really the life God had called me to.

When I finally took a leap of faith and followed God’s call home, He not only redefined my identity; He transformed my life and gave me a new purpose. 

In this episode, I open up about:

• My personal story of leaving the full-time hustle to embrace life at home
• The three big questions: Why this? Why now? Why does it matter?
• The truth I’ve discovered about motherhood, identity, and living with purpose
• Why I believe home is holy work and motherhood a ministry worth pursuing

Whether you’re a working mom dreaming of more time with your family or a stay-at-home mom needing encouragement in your calling, this episode will remind you that motherhood is valuable, powerful, and beautiful. 

You are not alone. 

I'm praying for you.

Transcript

Discovering Home

Season 1, Episode 1
From Full-TIme Career to Stay-At-Home Mom Life: My Story and Why This Matters

Welcome to Season One, Episode One of Discovering Home. I'm your host, Karla B. Monterrosa, and I'm so glad you're here.

On this very first episode, I will be sharing my why for this work: Why encourage women to prioritize home and family? Why now? And why does it even matter?

My prayer is that you'll leave feeling seen, affirmed, and more equipped to take steps of faith to design the life you truly desire—one where your faith, family, and creativity flourish.

My Story

Before I was a stay-at-home mom, before I was writing books and encouraging women through speaking and coaching, I was where many of you are now: working full-time, striving to do it all, and silently wondering, Is this really what I'm supposed to be doing?

I began my career working in local government. Over the years, I held roles in community and economic development, managing programs that helped improve the lives of working families and small business owners. For nearly 20 years, these roles were intense, fulfilling, exciting, and very demanding.

I was the “yes girl.” More work? Sure. More projects? Of course. More responsibilities? I love it. Longer hours, weekend events? I'm your girl.

For a long time, I enjoyed my work and was good at it. I had the titles, the salary, the sense of importance—and for many years, that was enough. I was building something, going somewhere. I had career aspirations, and that really was the driving force behind everything I did.

The Shift

Everything changed the moment I welcomed my first daughter. Leaving her became difficult. Saying goodbye was heartbreaking. And the tension only intensified when my second daughter arrived.

I remember coming home late, trying to make dinner while checking emails on my phone, still wound up from the day, completely spent by the time I finally sat down with them.

There was a quiet tug in my heart that I couldn't ignore. On paper, I was successful. Inside, I was deeply misaligned and exhausted.

Boundaries at Work

I was always told that if it was ever too much, just say the word and I'd get more support. But the moment I did, the atmosphere in my office shifted. I went from being a “yes girl” to being a problem—because I started setting boundaries.

I started saying, “I'm sorry, I'm not available for that tonight.” Or, “Sorry, I can't make that weekend event.”

It was unacceptable to make room for my personal life. I knew something had to change.

I asked for a meeting and told my supervisor that I needed more support. I was met with, “If you can't handle it, there's the door.”

That was the beginning of the end. I realized in that moment that I didn’t matter to them. They were going to drain me dry until I had nothing left to give. And my personal life? That was a problem I needed to sort out on my own in whatever spare time I had left.

Breaking Point

My work life became toxic, and I brought that toxicity home. I was exhausted, stressed out, moody, and frustrated by the attention my babies and my life required of me. It was all wrong. That’s not how we should live.

Prior to that moment, I had told my husband that I wanted to quit my job and be home with my daughters. He responded, “There’s no way. We can’t afford that.” So I kept going—until the work itself forced me to leave.

If I’m fully honest, I was on the brink of being fired because I had already decided in my heart and mind that I was going to prioritize my family, even if it affected my career negatively. They were, and they are, my priority.

Unfortunately, that’s not a value system supported in many workplaces. The culture requires all of you. You have to be highly driven, motivated, always wanting more. That worked when I didn’t have kids. I started my career as a single girl, but almost 20 years later, I had young daughters who needed me—and I needed to make room for them.

The Decision

One day, after a particularly awful day at the office, my husband said the words I had been praying to hear for years:
 “I think you should quit.”

Wait, what? Are you sure? Be sure of what you’re saying to me right now, because I’ll do it on Monday morning.

That Friday, we decided as a couple that we were going to trust God fully for our financial provision, that we were going to hit a reset button, and I’d come home—finally, after years of striving and struggling.

We were aligned. It took a movement of God to get my husband there because deciding to go from two incomes to one is not an easy thing. We live in California. The cost of living is outrageous. Families are barely making it on two incomes.

I understand why women choose to work. Not all women are called to come home, and I’m not judging you if you’ve decided to work. But I’m here to speak to the women who are in the position I was in back then—longing to make a change, desperately missing their children.

That’s who I’m talking to.

So if that’s you, I hope you leave here today feeling seen, affirmed, and encouraged to begin taking steps of faith—trusting God with your finances, your provision, your life, and your family. He is faithful.

God’s Provision

He cares for the sparrows. He dresses the flowers. And we are of so much more value than they.

He’s promised us in the Word that He will not forsake us. He already knows the desires of your heart. He knows what you need and He knows what works for your good.

That pressure you’re feeling at work? Maybe it’s God gently redirecting you—letting you know that you don’t fit there anymore. It’s time to make a change.

In 2017, I left my job. No backup plan, no blueprint—just a clear answer from God through my husband’s words and a willingness to trust Him fully. Initially, I thought it was just a break. But God had other plans.

He wasn’t calling me to pause my career. He was calling me to surrender my identity and self-reliance. And here’s what I’ve learned: When God asks you to surrender something, He never leaves a void. He always intends to fill it with something greater.

Today, my faith and marriage are stronger than ever before, and I have a clear sense of calling rooted in Him.

Why This, Why Now, Why It Matters

So why this? Because it has been the greatest gift of my adult life.

Why now? Because I know I’m not alone. Women are tired. Homes are strained. Marriages are suffering. Moms are stretched too thin. And our children desperately need us present, available, and unhurried.

The system set up for us is failing. Society is in moral decline, and moms are realizing something has to change.

We’re tired of the lie that our worth only comes from what we produce and how much we make. We’re tired of giving everything to our jobs and having nothing left for our children, our marriages, or our homes.

I think women are ready for a shift—for a change.

Our children need us present and available. Not just in a hurried frenzy to and from all the places, doing all the things, buying all the stuff—but in the quiet, mundane moments of every day. To see them, hear them, and live alongside them. To equip them and teach them the way they should go.

A Wake-Up Call

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but society is in a very evident decline. Darkness is everywhere.

Families are leaving their children in schools that don’t protect them and don’t teach them in ways that honor their uniqueness, individuality, and creativity.

Parents are wondering: When will a shooting come to a school near me? Will my child know objective truth? Will they be equipped to fight the spiritual battle that seeks to steal their joy—and more importantly, their souls?

This isn’t about judgment. This is about clarity.

There’s a reason you’re feeling that nudge, that pull towards home. And don’t misunderstand me—this isn’t a fear-based lifestyle. We’re not leaving the workplace and taking our kids out of school because we’re afraid.

This is spiritual wisdom and a decision to live differently. To align ourselves more with the Word than the world. To equip and protect our children so that they can do the work of God on this earth.

Education and the Pandemic

When we are present and available, as life happens and issues arise, we are able to see our children and speak into their lives in ways we cannot when we are away from them for the better part of the day.

Schools are not teaching our children in a way that aligns with our values. On Sunday, they hear there is a Creator. But Monday through Friday, they hear that we evolved from apes. Who do you think will win that battle?

We are in a clear spiritual war—a war of ideas, a war for souls. The shaping of ideas in the lives of our children begins in the schools.

It’s no wonder so many children are lost, confused, and don’t trust their parents. Schools are showing them one thing while their parents are saying another.

An unexpected gift of the pandemic was that it exposed just how little our kids are learning in the one-size-fits-all model of government education.

I saw my daughters glued to screens, attempting to learn through a technology that even teachers didn’t know how to adapt. The workload was crazy. It was as if they wanted our children to be full-time employees in front of screens someday.

Think about that for a moment.

Why This Matters

We are giving all our energy to a way of life that isn’t working. Spending 10–12 hours a day away from our families is not a recipe for strong families. It’s not a recipe for strong marriages.

Young people are depressed. Families are struggling. And no matter how hard we try, we feel like we’re not having an impact on the world. Something has to change.

I’m here to remind you: there is another way.

You don’t have to live in a state of constant overwhelm and exhaustion. Motherhood is valuable. Homemaking is a beautiful and powerful calling.

Moms, we can impact the world by raising strong and confident children—children who know God, know themselves, and lean into their creativity.

And remember, they grow up so fast. My daughters are both in high school now, and I’m facing the reality that soon they’ll be adults.

You are irreplaceable at home. Your job can and will replace you quickly. But to your children, your husband, your family—you are not replaceable. No one loves them or can nurture them the way you can. God gave them to you for a reason and a purpose.

Trusting God

Maybe this is resonating with you, but you’re asking, How can we afford it? How can we live on one income?

Trust me, I understand. I’ve been there. It can feel impossible to transition from two incomes to one. But here’s the truth: you can’t make it happen on your own. But God can.

Our God is powerful, generous, and creative. He knows the desires of your heart. He provides in miraculous and unexpected ways.

I’ll get into some practical tools that helped us make home-centered living work on one income later in the season. For now, let me leave you with this:

Scripture

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” --Matthew 6:25–30 ESV

God is faithful. He tells us not to worry but to pray with thanksgiving. And even when you don’t have the words, He already knows what you need. He will take care of you and your family.

Closing

Pour out your heart. Tell Him you need this change and His help to get there. He will provide.

Yes, this change is big and scary. It requires trusting God more fully. But the step of faith is beautiful.

And you won’t do it alone. Your husband will step up in new ways. God will provide in ways you couldn’t imagine. And a life in which you are there—it’s so worth the sacrifice.

📍 That’s why I can’t stop singing the praises of coming home. It’s doable. It’s wonderful. It’s powerful.

Home is holy work, and motherhood is a beautiful ministry to aspire to. I am living proof.

If this spoke to you today, I created a resource to help you begin taking steps of faith toward home. Visit my website, karlabmonterrosa.com. Take my free quiz, Is God Calling You Home Into a New Season of Motherhood? You’ll receive my free guide, Start Your Journey Home. While you’re there, stay a while. Enjoy the blog and read more of my story.

I’ll end with this: I hope today you feel seen and encouraged, and ready to start moving in the direction of more peace, more presence, and more purpose at home.

Finally, if you enjoyed this episode, would you do me a favor? Leave me a five-star review with your honest feedback, share it with a friend, and follow the show so you don’t miss new episodes every Wednesday.

Thanks for listening. Until next time, God bless you.