30. Meaningful Message: You Were Never Meant to Look Like Barbie
A Meaningful Life
A social media post stopped me in my tracks today, so you are joining me on my morning walk because we need to talk. I came across a post this morning that featured a woman promoting a new treatment for Botox called "BarbieTox," where Botox is injected into the shoulders to create a more doll-like appearance. The post itself was enough to stop me in my tracks but then I saw the hundreds of comments from women eager to learn more about this procedure. Beautiful, real women. Wanting to look like a plastic doll. It crushed me. It is so disheartening to see all of these beautiful women feel the...
info_outline
29. What Nobody Teaches Women About Friendship w/ Licensed Therapist Heather Carlson
A Meaningful Life
When was the last time a friendship made you feel truly known? Not just caught up — but actually seen? In this episode of A Meaningful Life, Kellie Smith sits down with , a licensed marriage and family therapist and creator of — a year-long program helping women build deep, intentional friendships. We get into the real stuff: why female friendship feels harder than ever right now, the myths we were handed that set us up to fail, and what the longest-running Harvard study on happiness tells us about the relationships that actually matter. Heather shares a personal story about...
info_outline
28. How I Made $1,000 a Month as a Stay-at-Home Mom (More Than Once)
A Meaningful Life
Have you ever stepped away from your career to be home with your kids — and felt that quiet ache of missing the part of you that worked, that earned, that contributed? In this episode, Kellie gets personal about what it actually looked like to go from main breadwinner to stay-at-home mom — and how she built her way back to earning her own income, not once, not twice, but across multiple seasons of life. The goal wasn't glamorous. It was $1,000 a month. And she figured it out, more than once, in completely different ways — using the skills she already had. This one is full of...
info_outline
27. Who You Were Made to Be
A Meaningful Life
Have you ever sat with someone — a teacher, a mentor, a pastor — and thought, how does this person just get it so right? Have you wondered what it is about them that makes their words land differently than everyone else's? It's their willingness to be fully, unapologetically themselves. In this episode, Kellie shares a quiet morning reflection that turned into something worth saying out loud. Sitting on her back porch with her coffee and journal, she found herself grateful for someone in her life who refused to fit into the box — and realized that gratitude was actually a mirror....
info_outline
26. Come Home to Yourself
A Meaningful Life
Have you ever looked up from your life and realized you've become a stranger to yourself? You're fluent in everyone else's needs but can barely remember the last time you checked in with your own. This is what happens when we spend so much time living for everyone around us that we forget to live for ourselves. And the tricky part? You can't find your way back to who you were because that woman doesn't exist anymore. You've lived things. Maybe you have birthed children. Your capacity has changed. Your values have shifted and deepened and sometimes completely transformed. The work now is...
info_outline
25. Meaningful Message: Stuck in the Why
A Meaningful Life
Do you ever find yourself obsessing over why things happen the way they do? Feeling like if you could finally get the answer, the ache inside of you would settle — because you'd finally understand? And on the flip side, do you ever get the answer to why — only to toss it aside because it's not what you wanted to hear, or it just doesn't quite fit? What if that's the pattern keeping you stuck? Quietly stealing your most precious, valuable time. In this solo episode, Kellie unpacks the why spiral. Not because asking why is wrong, but because sometimes the question itself is a trap, and...
info_outline
24. Meaningful Message: What To Do With Your Anger
A Meaningful Life
Anger is a normal, human emotion—and yet so many of us are being told how to feel it, how to express it, and how to react to it. But what if the most powerful thing you could do with your anger is simply... let yourself feel it? There's a lot of it swirling around—in our personal lives, in the world, on social media—and most of us are either suppressing it or fueling it without realizing the cycle we're caught in. In this solo episode, Kellie shares a simple but powerful mindset shift: allow yourself to feel the anger fully, let it move through you like a wave, and then get rooted in...
info_outline
23. Healing Beyond the Body w/ Dr. Will Bulsiewicz
A Meaningful Life
In this profoundly moving episode, I sit down with my dear friend Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (aka. Dr. B) to discuss Chapter 8 of his upcoming book Plant Powered Plus – a chapter he calls his "masterpiece" and the very reason he wrote the book. Dr. B is a board-certified gastroenterologist, New York Times bestselling author, and internationally recognized gut health expert. But in this conversation, we go far beyond nutrition science to explore the miraculous healing he's witnessed when treating the physical body reaches its limits. What We Discuss: The Missing Piece in Healing Why some...
info_outline
22. 16 Years of Marriage - What We Have Learned
A Meaningful Life
16 years of marriage. Countless lessons learned. In this honest and heartfelt episode, I sit down with my husband, Greg, on our anniversary to reflect on sixteen years of marriage. We talk about the lessons, the laughter, and the hard-earned wisdom that’s shaped who we are today as partners and individuals. Marriage, like life, is rarely perfect. It takes communication, humility, and a willingness to grow both individually and together. In this conversation, Greg and I open up about how we’ve learned to navigate challenges, keep curiosity alive, and stay grounded in love and faith through...
info_outline
21. Faith, Freedom, and Finding My Way
A Meaningful Life
In this deeply personal episode, I open my heart to share a part of my story I’ve never fully spoken aloud before: my evolving relationship with God. For years, I wrestled with how to talk about faith. I worried I didn’t have the “right” words. But what I’ve come to realize is that God doesn’t want perfection. He wants connection. And today, I’m answering the call to share how that connection has shaped my life, healed old wounds, and grounded me in peace. Whether you’ve experienced religious confusion, spiritual yearning, or are simply feeling called to explore your faith more...
info_outline16 years of marriage. Countless lessons learned.
In this honest and heartfelt episode, I sit down with my husband, Greg, on our anniversary to reflect on sixteen years of marriage. We talk about the lessons, the laughter, and the hard-earned wisdom that’s shaped who we are today as partners and individuals.
Marriage, like life, is rarely perfect. It takes communication, humility, and a willingness to grow both individually and together. In this conversation, Greg and I open up about how we’ve learned to navigate challenges, keep curiosity alive, and stay grounded in love and faith through every season.
Whether you’re married, dating, or simply curious about what makes relationships last, this episode offers a glimpse behind the curtain of real life partnership - the real, the funny, and the deeply meaningful parts.
You’ll hear:
-
Why communication (even when it’s uncomfortable) is the foundation of everything
-
How a very tough season became a turning point in our marriage
-
The importance of shared values, curiosity, and faith as anchors in marriage
-
How we balance individuality, parenting, and partnership through changing seasons
-
The small rituals that keep our connection strong
💬 Have a thought or question this conversation stirred in you? I’d love to hear from you. Share it here.
🌟 If this episode made you reflect on love, marriage, or growth, share it with someone you care about. You never know who might need the reminder that every strong relationship is built one honest conversation at a time.