SERVING OTHERS
“I am very bent toward a missional mindset of serving others. I grew up in a suburb (Reynoldsburg, Ohio) and didn’t have a lot of exposure to the outside world.” Then as a teenager Smith traveled to Papua, New Guinea, inspiring her to spend her twenties building houses in Africa and Mongolia. “I was really humanitarian in my ideals. Going somewhere like that at 15, it expands you and makes you see the world differently.”
MORNING RE-SET
“I typically wake up 7-ish. Over time I’ve been into Ayurvedic things, so I try to incorporate some of that in the morning — skin brushing, tongue scraping, certain vitamins — to help me get a re-set. I love coffee. Canaan just got me for my birthday the little Nespresso. If I do breakfast, I try to keep it clean eating — oatmeal with some berries and almond butter.”
FOR THE BIRDS
She sits at the kitchen table overlooking her raised bed garden and watches the birds. There is a stack of birding guides, binoculars and a small notebook. “These are all just the birds in my backyard! I’ve been keeping track with the dates. I’m not super-geeked out over birds, I use it more as a mediation.”
HELLO EARTH
“I go out to the garden, feed the birds, fill the bird bath. I say hello to the earth, put my feet in the grass. My neighbors are always like, ‘you have three boys, why are you mowing?’, but I love that kind of stuff.”
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
“I get my day started. I’m a big emailer. I get through that. I try to not spend more than 2 or 3 hours a day at the computer. Right now, with the editorial work, it’s a lot of assigning stories, touching base with writers and photographers, putting together mood boards for shoots.”
COACH SMITH
“I do business coaching with women here in town. I’m not the person you’d come to to figure out the brass taxes of finances around your business; but if you’ve got an idea, I can help with being a filling-in-the-dots person. Talk through the pros and cons, work-life balance, developing a mission and vision.”
GRAZING
“The boys are so busy, so we eat a little more European-style, kind of noshing through the day, pulling out the veggies and hummus and things here and there. Canaan calls me every day at his lunch break. We talk about what we’re gonna cook for dinner, what we did the night before.”
LIFELONG LEARNER
“I do homework each day after lunch for my online classes. I’m working toward a degree in Fine Art from Arizona State University. Lots of studio work from home with endless pics of processes along the way.”
LIFE’S A PICNIC
Some of Smith’s days are on set for editorial photoshoots. “Tomorrow I’ll be in Columbus early in the morning. We’re doing a photo shoot for a ‘refined picnic.’ We’ll go to this Italian grocer I love called Carfagna’s, pick up the supplies, then we’ll go to Oakland Nursery Home, do a set design and photo shoot.”
HIT A BALL
“I always have to move at some point. It’s an energy release for me. This time of year, I play tennis at the OCC or go out on a hike. I played competitive tennis for a hot minute. I had it in me to just hit a ball really hard (laughs). But it’s expensive! So now I just play free courts.”
FAMILY DINNER
“In the evenings I’m very ritualistic around sitting at the table, lighting a candle, we put on a record and try to do a family dinner. I love Don Williams and old country. Canaan’s really into jazz. Ezra likes the Beatles and Otto is into classic rock like Rush.”
“Canaan was the cook in the house. He’s a genius in the kitchen. He’s been on ‘Chopped Jr’! He far surpassed me years ago. He moved out two years ago, up until that time he and I were fighting for space in the kitchen.”
SHORT-ORDER COOK
“When the kids were younger, it was like ‘here’s dinner — eat.’ I feel like I’m a bit of a short-order cook right now. For me I’d eat salmon and veggies every night, but they are growing boys and don’t want salmon and veggies. We make it work. For me it’s just be at the table, no phones; even if it’s 20 minutes before you go to your next thing, let’s just have a moment to connect.”
APPALACHIAN INFLUENCE
After dinner, Smith practices dulcimer. “I have been learning how to play the dulcimer over the last few years. Because of our (family) tie to Eastern Kentucky, the dulcimer has been in my world in some way for many years. The boys and I went to a mountain music school a few summers ago.”
OLD SCHOOL
“I thankfully still get Otto at home in the evenings. Around 8, we’ll make a big bowl of popcorn and watch the show ‘Psych.’ It was on back in the day. We’re kind of an old school family. Last summer we were into ‘Loveboat.’ I almost always have Turner Classic Movies playing on mute. The boys went through a long season of loving ‘Gilmore Girls.’”
OPEN DOOR
Some evenings, Ezra comes home with friends. “This house is like Grand Central Station. Kids are in and out all the time. I’ve always wanted the home to be very welcoming. If Ezra is showing up with a whole gaggle of friends, I’ll feed them all. I try to be understanding that these boys need a landing place. I’d rather them be here then at somebody’s else’s house.”
VIBE CHECK
“I go to bed at 10-ish. I try to keep the house as peaceful as possible, especially around evening. Candles or incense burning, some music playing. I’m not one to scroll on my phone a ton at night. I still tuck my boys in, leave notes on their pillows. Yesterday morning, Ezra left a note on my pillow. I try to train them (laughs).”
THE PARTICULARS
Find out more about Megan Smith on her website meganpsmith.com and on Instagram nostalgicallymegan.
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