Minimalist Moms Podcast | Purposeful Life & Parenting Tips

In this episode, Diane sits down with cookbook author and gardener Crystal Schmidt to talk about her approach to meal prep, outlined in her book Freeze Fresh Meal Prep. Instead of relying on fully pre-made freezer meals, Crystal introduces the concept of “meal starters” - prepping the fresh components of a dish ahead of time and freezing them, then finishing the meal later with pantry staples. We talk about how this method helps reduce food waste, simplify weeknight cooking, and make the most of seasonal produce. Crystal shares practical tips for getting started, including how to choose what to freeze, which vegetables need blanching, and what actually holds up well in the freezer. She also offers ideas like freezing cookie dough for easy treats and using what you already have on hand to build a system that feels sustainable. This conversation is a helpful guide for anyone looking to make home cooking more flexible, efficient, and aligned with real life.
Links Discussed in This Episode |
Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.
Subscribe to the Minimalist Moms Youtube Channel
Crystal's Resource: Merlin Bird App
Connect with Crystal:
Instagram | Youtube | Website
Book: Freeze Fresh Meal Prep: 160 Meal Starters and Make-Ahead Dishes for the Freezer

About Crystal|
Crystal Schmidt is the bestselling author of Freeze Fresh, and creator of Whole-Fed Homestead. With a passion for good food, she inspires others to grow their own produce, create delicious meals, and preserve fresh ingredients.
Episode Sponsors |
The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!
Enjoy the Podcast?
Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. 
Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplicity.
You can contact me through my website, find me on Instagram, Pinterest or like The Minimalist Moms Page on Facebook.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/MINIMALIST
* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com
* Check out Boll & Branch: http://bollandbranch.com/minimalist
* Check out Time4Learning: https://www.time4learning.com
* Check out Wayfair: https://www.wayfair.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

What if creating a more intentional life starts with rethinking the spaces around you? Today I’m joined by behavioral scientist and author, Leidy Klotz to explore a powerful (and often overlooked) idea: our surroundings don’t just reflect who we are - they actively shape who we become. While so much advice focuses on mindset, habits, and routines, Leidy invites us to zoom out and consider where those things are happening. From the layout of your kitchen to the design of your neighborhood, physical spaces influence your ability to connect, focus, learn, and thrive. In this conversation, we unpack how to work with your environment - not against it - and how even small, intentional changes can have a profound impact on your daily life.
Links Discussed in This Episode |
Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.
Subscribe to the Minimalist Moms Youtube Channel
Diane's Resource: EP207: Swedish Death Cleaning: Morbid or Mandatory? with Emily McDermott
Previous Episode: Simplify Your Life Using Subtraction
Connect with Leidy:
Website
Book: In a Good Place: How the Spaces Where We Live, Work, and Play Can Help Us Thrive

About Leidy |
Leidy Klotz is a behavioral scientist and engineering professor at the University of Virginia who studies how and why humans design. He has written for the Washington Post, Fast Company, Scientific American, and Harvard Business Review; has published his work in top journals like Nature and Science; and has been interviewed on Hidden Brain, Freakonomics, Mindscape, and The Atlantic’s How to Build a Happy Life. Klotz has advised clients ranging from the Departments of Energy and Homeland Security to CapitalOne and Amazon.
Episode Sponsors |
The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!
Enjoy the Podcast?
Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. 
Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplicity.
You can contact me through my website, find me on Instagram, Pinterest or like The Minimalist Moms Page on Facebook.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/MINIMALIST
* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com
* Check out Boll & Branch: http://bollandbranch.com/minimalist
* Check out Time4Learning: https://www.time4learning.com
* Check out Wayfair: https://www.wayfair.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

What if raising independent kids actually made life easier - for everyone? Today I’m joined by Jenna Michael, author of Let’s Choose Less and the children’s book We Can Help, for a conversation about simplifying family life by inviting our kids into it. Jenna’s work centers around one powerful idea: children are more capable than we often give them credit for. And when we allow them to participate - really participate - in the rhythms of daily life, we’re not only building their confidence and life skills… we’re also creating a more sustainable, connected home. We talk about why parents tend to step in too quickly (hint: time pressure and perfectionism), how to thoughtfully hand over responsibility, and what it looks like to balance independence with a strong sense of safety and attachment.
Links Discussed in This Episode |
Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.
Subscribe to the Minimalist Moms Youtube Channel
Diane's Resource: [REPLAY] Love People, Use Things | The Minimalists
Previous Episode: Let’s Choose Less: Simplifying Life with Young Kids | Jenna Michael (EP389)
Jenna Can't Stop Talking About: Homemade Candles
Connect with Jenna:
Website
Instagram
Substack
Book: Let's Choose Less: A Young Family's Guide to Simply Living
Book: We Can Help

About Jenna|
Jenna Michael is a wife, mother, author, and coach specializing in simplified and intentional living for families. Her writing covers topics such as family-friendly activities and events, wellness, travel, gifts, and essential parenting tips. Her coaching helps moms turn these valuable insights into practical action, reduce clutter and chaos, and ultimately pursue a life of purpose on purpose. In her free time, you can find her at the gym, curled up with a book, or enjoying the outdoors.
Episode Sponsors |
The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!
Enjoy the Podcast?
Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. 
Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplicity.
You can contact me through my website, find me on Instagram, Pinterest or like The Minimalist Moms Page on Facebook.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/MINIMALIST
* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com
* Check out Boll & Branch: http://bollandbranch.com/minimalist
* Check out Time4Learning: https://www.time4learning.com
* Check out Wayfair: https://www.wayfair.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

If you’ve been a listener here for awhile, you’ll know that minimalism goes beyond stuff. I’m thrilled to share today’s guests, Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus - otherwise known as ‘The Minimalists’. Today they’ll dive deeper into the seven essential relationships in our lives: stuff, truth, self, money, values, creativity, and people and how minimalism makes room in our lives to re-evaluate and heal these areas.  
Episode Sponsors |
The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!
Enjoy the Podcast?
Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. 
Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplicity.
You can contact me through my website, find me on Instagram, Pinterest or like The Minimalist Moms Page on Facebook.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/MINIMALIST
* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com
* Check out Boll & Branch: http://bollandbranch.com/minimalist
* Check out Time4Learning: https://www.time4learning.com
* Check out Wayfair: https://www.wayfair.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode, Diane sits down with philosopher, artist, and founder of Sword and Pencil, Josh Nadeau, to talk about his book, Heaven Meets Earth: A 40-Day Journey of Transformation Through the Nicene Creed. Josh explains how the Nicene Creed - written in 325 and foundational to historic Christian belief - can serve as a stabilizing anchor in a time marked by distraction, burnout, and cultural noise. We discuss how intentional living can take shape through small, daily practices, and how this 40-day journey invites just 5–15 minutes a day of reflection, prayer, and art. Josh shares how ancient rhythms like silence, fasting, and structured prayer can feel freeing rather than restrictive when rooted in relationship with Christ. We also explore how beauty, art, and contemplation can help reorient our attention and deepen our faith, offering a grounded, accessible way to engage spirituality in everyday life.
Links Discussed in This Episode |
Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.
Diane's Resource: 
Previous Episode: "Art is the Signature of Man" | Jake Weidmann (EP53)
Josh's Resource:
Connect with Josh:
Substack: https://substack.com/@everydaysaints
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swordandpencil/
Book: Heaven Meets Earth: A 40-Day Journey of Transformation Through the Nicene Creed

About Josh|
Josh Nadeau (nuh-doh) is an artist, writer and creative theologian from the west coast of Canada. Beauty is his apologetic, and his work seeks to translate ancient ideas of embodying the transcendent for a modern time. His art and writing invite Christians to recover the “holy ordinary” and behold the beauty of Jesus in everyday life. He has appeared on numerous podcasts, contributed to magazines and websites, and created art for Jordan Peterson’s History of Western Civilization, The Chosen, Searock, Vuvivo, the Daily Wire, and other churches and organizations. Josh holds an undergraduate degree in physics, a master’s degree in theological studies and—as he quips—a doctorate from the School of Hard Knocks. He is a husband, father, reader, boulderer and explorer of every good and perfect gift
Episode Sponsors |
The Minimalist Moms Podcast would not be possible without the support of weekly sponsors. Choosing brands that I believe in is important to me. I only want to recommend brands that I believe may help you in your daily life. As always, never feel pressured into buying anything. Remember: if you don't need it, it's not a good deal!
Enjoy the Podcast?
Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning into this podcast, then do not hesitate to write a review. You can also share this with your fellow mothers so that they can be inspired to think more and do with less. 
Order (or review) my book, Minimalist Moms: Living & Parenting With Simplicity.
You can contact me through my website, find me on Instagram, Pinterest or like The Minimalist Moms Page on Facebook.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/MINIMALIST
* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com
* Check out Boll & Branch: http://bollandbranch.com/minimalist
* Check out Time4Learning: https://www.time4learning.com
* Check out Wayfair: https://www.wayfair.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy