On Aug. 1, the Mama June: Family Crisis star filed for divorce from her husband of six years, Josh Efird, claiming that their marriage is “irretrievably broken.” The former couple, who share four children—Ella, 6, Bentley, 3, and 2-year-old twins Sylus and Stella—have apparently been in a “bona fide state of separation” since July, according to Lauryn and the settlement agreement.
The pair have agreed to share joint legal and physical custody, according to court documents. They also have a parenting plan in place within the settlement agreement and have each waived the right to request child support.
Josh, 28, has been given 60 days to remove his belongings from the family’s shared home in Georgia, as Lauryn, 24, will be taking over the property herself, per the documents.
Pumpkin and Josh tied the knot in 2018, nearly six months after welcoming their first child together.
“They say [babies] change things, but honestly I think a kid is maybe what we needed in our relationship,” she told Us Weekly in 2018. “We’ve become closer than any other time. We both help each other out. It’s like it’s a team thing now.”
Lauryn has often praised her husband’s skills as a father on social media. While she has posted less this year, in a June 2022 Instagram post, she called Josh the “BEST father I’ve known.”
“All my life I prayed God would send me someone I could have a family with and love forever and he sent me you. Thank you for being the best father to all of our babies including Alana,” she wrote in the caption, referring to her younger sister, Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson.
“You’ve never failed to show up and show the kids what a real man is. I’ll forever be thankful for you. Me and the kids love you so very much. ❤️❤️❤️.”
Both Josh and Pumpkin have been honest about their ups and downs throughout their relationship, including the toll Pumpkin’s mom, 44-year-old Mama June Shannon, has had on them, especially when she made headlines.
“Over the last couple of years,” she shared in a 2022 episode of Mama June: Road to Redemption, “Mama has been a lot of me and Josh’s marriage problems.”
But as they shared at the time, they were trying their best to move forward and remain a united front, with Pumpkin noting, “We’re trying to put our marriage as the top priority.”
Mama June shares daughters Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell and Jessica Shannon with ex David Dunn, Lauryn with ex Michael Anthony Ford, and Alana with ex Mike “Sugar Bear” Thompson.
However, it has been a difficult year for their family as they grappled with the death of Anna in December. She was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma last year and died months later at the age of 29.