Faith, Food & Self-Care for Moms with Celebrity Chef Danielle Alex

In this heartfelt episode, I sit down with Danielle Alex—celebrity chef, mama of two (soon to be three!), and true creative soul. Danielle shares her powerful word of the day: Expectant—and what it means to live with faith and openness to the good unfolding in your life.

From working with celebrities to growing up in a family rooted in service, Danielle offers wisdom on food, faith, motherhood, and how divine timing brought our friendship together. Get inspired by her journey and hear how adding simple ingredients to your plate can transform your health, without the stress of perfection.

✨ Topics we cover:

• Living with an “expectant” heart
• Behind-the-scenes of a culinary career
• Nourishing food tips (that are actually doable)
• The power of divine timing + friendship
• Motherhood, faith, and making space for joy

📍: Diversity Kitchen, Food Network, Culinary Institute of America, Ecclesiastes 3:20

 🎧 Listen + share with a mama or foodie friend who needs this!

Transcript

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Hi, welcome to What's the Word. I'm your host, Jamie McFadden. I'm so excited to have you here. This podcast is all about faith, self-care, and the journey of parenthood. I will be interviewing some of the most inspirational people I know, so join me and let's grow together on What's the Word. Hi, I'm Jamie McFadden, and welcome back to What's the Word. This is a very exciting day because today we are actually launching the first in-person person. I get to touch her. In-person interview here at What's the Word and with my dear friend, Danielle Alex, who is an amazing chef, mama of two, almost three went on the way. And she's just someone who inspires me in so many ways. Today, we're going to have a great conversation. And I just can't wait for you to meet my dear friend, Danielle. So Danielle, hi. Thank you for being here. Thank you for inviting me. I can't believe we're live. I know. In person. Right? Yeah. Yeah. Good times though. It is. How are you feeling today? I'm feeling good. I'm feeling good. You know, some mornings I wake up and it's a slow morning, but I actually feel pretty good this morning. Well, you look great. You've got the glow, the baby glow. Thank you. You know, every day you take it day by day, right? So that's true. And speaking of it being what's the word? I asked you for your word today and she gave me her word and her word. I was like, wait a second. I want to hear more about this. So Danielle is someone we're going to dive into her life story and some fun goodies and things that we're even working on together because we're both two moms that met while momming. And Danielle, when I asked you for your word today, you said expectant. Yeah. Can you expand on that a little bit, please? Sure. I think a lot of people are going to think like expectant, though, because you're expecting. No, actually, that I was like, well, I guess you could say it has something to but nothing at all, right? I think that is a word for myself over the years that I have learned to become more expectant with things in my life. You know, life is about perspective, right? What do you expect to happen? And so I think sometimes I've had to turn my expectations around. Mm-hmm. and I'm always, somebody's like, I know this is gonna work out. Even when I'm freaking out. I get those gentle reminders that it always works out, right? So I think that, as I've kind of grown on my adult journey is I have learned to become more expectant of good things. I love that. I love that. Okay, so wait, let's take that a step farther because here at What's the Word, for those of you that don't know just yet, we're essentially taking What's the Word that we started back in 2020 during the pandemic. So Danielle, I know you know a little bit about this, but I think it's really important to reshare this podcast. I knew it would be What's the Word. but I don't think I was ready for it because I always wanted it to be based on the word of the day because that's how I'd let my workouts. Well, then all of a sudden, fast forward, this rediscovering my faith, having these conversations and deep relationship with God, with Jesus, and recognizing, wait a second, maybe there is something tied to scripture here that I wasn't recognizing because I am not someone at this point to say, oh, I know this exact scripture. You know that. We have this conversation all the time. So I'm not the expert here on this. However... Can you share? Is there a scripture? Because I'm guessing there probably is one that has to do with your word of the day. Yeah, you are to expect God to do good things. And you are to expect for things to work out. And so that's Ecclesiastes 3.20. And so I think for me, it's like, okay, I'm freaking out about this, or this wasn't supposed to happen, or I don't understand. And then it's like, yeah, didn't you look at your phone today like 20 million times? Did you not see what was on there? So I think for me... There's just been many instances of my life. I'm like, why is this happening? How? I don't understand. And then it's like I get those little reminders like, hasn't God shown up for you every single time? Like you're freaking out about what? Like this has always worked out. And I think there's there's there's also an essence of like we start to freak out over things and that can actually change. project us and you know get us into a place where like i've got to move my tail like i've got to figure this out yeah and so i need to do something like faith without works is dead right you can't can we wait can we say that again can we say that again faith without works is dead so i can believe something's gonna happen but if i'm sitting on my tail and expecting just for everything to drop out of the sky what is that doing right that means like OK, I don't know how this is going to work out, but I guess I'm supposed to let me just show up every day. Let me have just OK, I guess I'm going to make that call. Maybe I should just, you know, speak to this person that like I feel like, oh, why do I feel like I should say hello to this person? And sometimes it's those little like pushes that you're like, OK, let me do that. And you just don't know what doors will be open. Oh, girl, let's talk about this. OK, perfect segue into this. We're going to talk for a moment about how we met, because I think it's so important to share how we met. For those that are watching, for listening, Danielle is someone that We met doing something that we both loved. So do you want to share a little bit about your your perspective of how we met? Yeah, sure. So a little background, like I just spent like over like 18 years or like we were in New York City for years. And then, you know, we move to the Bay Area and to be closer to family in the northwest and things like that. And, you know, it's like we were in Marin County that we moved down to the peninsula and then everything, you know, it's crazy. Right. And then I take, you know, me and my husband, we have two kids. And he happened to be working this particular Saturday. And I'm like, OK, you know, I'm always somebody like, look, it's better to get out of the house because you guys are going to drive me crazy in this house. So what are we doing today? And even my son, he's always like. mama what is we doing today mom and so I'm like gosh man I'm training these kids so young they're like we're going somewhere and so I think because I love Hawaii and the islands and there was a uh Hawaiian Polynesian festival that they were having at one of the malls and I was like okay why don't we do this you know I'm exhausted I'm not gonna say anything to them because if it's going downhill, then we're gonna stay home. But like, I said, okay, well, sure, I guess I'll go. And so it was funny because when we got there, my daughter immediately gravitates to this other little girl and I'm like, okay, look, they're here, I can see them, they're playing, they're having fun. And then all of a sudden I think it was your mom that I saw first. And I was like, okay, I see that she's with her. She knows like what's going on. And then you appear with baby on body. Oh, right. And I was like, okay, that's the mama. And she's checking on her dog. Hey, is everything okay? Are you okay with these two? And I'm like, sure. I'm like, okay, look, you're rolling with the punches too. Let's go. So I think, you know, I think immediately at that point, like I felt like, oh, she's kind of got the same vibe as me. Like, hey kids, we're rolling. it out. We're doing something. Let's go dance. Let's go listen to some music. Let's do little arts and crafts here. Totally. Totally. So I want to share because I think it's so beautiful. Both Danielle and I went to this Hawaiian Polynesian festival because it was something that we wanted as moms. And I think it's so important to share because so many of the listeners and people in my community are moms. So many people in your community are moms. And so for any mom that's listening right now, You need to remember to do things that you love, right? There's so much we do for our kids all the time, every day, and it's wonderful. But we did that because it was something we love that we knew our kids would enjoy as well. And they did. They certainly did. It was as if their souls saw each other and it was like, oh, I know you. Let's hang out, right? And then we connected. We ended up going to lunch together, had so much fun. And, you know, that's kind of how you and I began. But what's interesting about that is I didn't know anything about Danielle, and I share this because I think it's so important to talk about, especially on the podcast. The guests that I have here, I want it to be about divine timing, and timing is so much about showing up, about doing the things that bring you joy, about being with your family, about prioritizing what's most important. The people in this room right now, Louie, who is the producer behind the camera right now of the podcast, is somebody I've known for so long, and that's another divine timing story, which Louie will have to do another round of that. In divine timing, meeting Danielle, our kids had so much fun together. It was such a reminder that it was really good for me. I wasn't even going to go out that day. I think Danielle was feeling the same thing because we're stressed out moms that are always doing all this stuff, right? So super happy we went, even more happy because now we flourished this friendship. Our kids have had their friendship, but we've both learned, like Danielle is someone I have to just give you a little shout out here. the more and more I've hung out with Danielle, every time I'm like, and you did this, and you do this, and you do that. So not only are you an incredible chef, and okay, let's talk about your chefing, because I did a little backstory deep dive here, everyone. And so Danielle has recently even worked in Paris. She's studied at the Culinary Institute. She's cooked for celebrities, some big, big, big names. And you can see some of the stuff she's done. She's worked for Epicurious. She's done cooking segments for Food Network, right? Yeah. Okay. So I just like to give a little celebration where it's deserved because I also know as moms, it's very difficult. And I'm curious for you, is it difficult sometimes for you to sit in feeling proud of yourself? Yeah. I mean, yeah. I mean, I would say yes and no. I mean, I don't, I think it's just something I don't think about. Okay, so that's what I mean. When I'm sitting here and I was looking through your website and I was looking through, you know, that you also did ballet for eight years and that, you know, just how much you've traveled in the world, working in Hong Kong, like the things that you've cooked, the ways that you've celebrated life through food. It's just so inspiring. And then to know her as the mom that I met at the Hawaiian Festival and now we're teaming up together on things. So it's just super exciting. I... I want you to know, Danielle, you inspire me every day. Thank you. Likewise. Likewise. Likewise. And and I would love for you to share a little bit about who's inspired you in your life. Oh, yeah. You know, it's interesting because I feel like, you know, I've always been really like close to my family and. And both of my parents are very hardworking individuals and they've also committed their life to service. So with the support of like, hey, like go figure whatever it is you love to do. Right. So, you know, I think for me, like having that support system has really kind of allowed me to. Be like, oh, let me try this and let me go here. Let me do that. Yeah, because I left. I left. I grew up in Seattle. I left Seattle when I was 18. I went to live with a French host family in the north of France. This is when you were 18? Oh, yeah. So that's the other thing. We keep realizing that there's so many crossovers of our lives. Like, remember? Well, we'll talk about Marlena Day later. But remember when we discovered that we both... graduated high school and then took a year off and you were in France and simultaneously I was living in Greece how funny is it that I went to France did you ever go to Greece while you were there no okay I was like what if we were there at the same time I know I know like sliding what is it that movie sliding doors or something I don't know yeah yeah but so okay so so she you go off to France yeah so yeah I went off to France I lived in the French host family um I found out just the year before that I was going to go to culinary school. Always loved food. My mother is an excellent cook, although I don't know why she doubts herself sometimes now because I'm the professional, I guess, but still love her cooking. And, you know, I spent some time over there and then I came back to the United States, went to culinary school. didn't think I would ever be in New York City, right? Really? No, never. Oh, my God. I remember my childhood best friend, we wanted to go to UCLA. So we were like, oh, the farthest I'm going to go is UCLA. I'm never going to New York. I learned at that moment, never ever. ever say never never say never ever say never right and then I ended up in New York for almost 20 years um we I did take a break in the middle and I went to um get my master's back in Paris for two years and then in the middle of that spent time in Hong Kong and Vietnam so I was working and then doing an intern or going to school um in either of those you know uh but yeah so I think The question was, like, where have I got... Who inspires you? Who inspires me? You brought up your mom already. I know your dad does. My dad, too. And it's funny, like, we were talking earlier and I kind of joked that, you know, my dad is, like, such a humble man and he, like, has served the community in Seattle for years, like, since I was... probably before I was born. Can you tell whoever's listening right now what your mom and dad did? Sure, sure. So my dad started a ministry that That's called the Matt Talbot New Hope Center in New Seattle. And he helps people get off the streets, drugs and alcohol. My mother has joined forces with him and has helped him do that for years, as long as I've been born, since I was born. And my mother is a was a nurse and she ran the King County detox program. So like helping people get up, you know, get away from homelessness, get off the streets, drugs and alcohol. That is who they are. They're just always somebody who helps. Can I ask you something about that? Yeah, sure. How was that for you as a kid or growing up? Were you also doing those kind of things with them? Were you going along with any of that stuff? Oh, yeah. So for someone right now, because I think we're in a state, look at the world right now, look at the amount of homelessness here in California, look at so many different things that are going on. The fact that you grew up with two parents Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I wonder what that was like for you as a kid. Yeah. Share a little bit about that. Yeah. You know, it's funny because I think as a kid, I just remember like one thing that would always irritate me is like I would hear people say, oh, that bum on the street. And I was like, why would you ever call somebody a bum? Like I it was so foreign to me because I think I just saw that my parents had such they actually had relationships with like that was John. And that was Bill, and that was James, and that was, you know, those were people that we would see come through the doors, right? And so, and, you know, I would always joke that, you know, my dad would, well, I said to my dad at one point, I was like, I said, Dad, you're like famous. You're like... You're like Michael Jackson. You know, like everybody knows you in Seattle. And I probably was like six or seven. Right. Because I was just like, I mean, everybody knows this man. And then, you know, my mom that she same thing, like people knew her, too. And it was funny because, you know, my mom would be like, hey, like you see that, you know, how they're they're twitching and how they're doing this and they're doing, you know, whatever. And I'd be like, OK. And she's like, oh, yeah, that's that drug. And I was like, okay, sure. So she would point out certain symptoms or certain habits and things like that of certain drugs. So for me, I mean, I think I saw the destructive nature of all that and how people were broken from their families and everybody and things like that, that I was like, why would I ever touch any of that? So for me, I mean, luckily that never was a vice for me because I just saw how destructive it was. Right. But I think, like I said, kind of going back to how they've inspired me and how they've given me room to grow is that they were kind of like, hey, follow your dreams. And I was like, okay, great. This is like, I think I'm going to go into cooking. This is not, you know, I was in very academic schools and I loved it and I did well, but I was always somebody who worked with my hands and was kind of more creative. Right. And so I think that allowed me to kind of just do that and then take it a step further. And one reason why I feel like I have been successful is because it goes back to the need to, I am literally here to serve you. Okay. And as a private chef, what might distinguish you from the next person is, are you there to serve? This is no ego amigo. What are we talking about here? This isn't like, I'd want to make this food my way and I want to do it this way. It's like, no, what do they want? And how do they want it? And I make suggestions. I can try things for you and if you like it. And my job is to... know give you a service and give you a product that you feel good with and that that's kind of one thing that i've done is you know especially working with athletes and musicians it's like whether you're taking care of your vocal cords or whether you're taking care of your body for performance what reasons right i want to give you food that you feel good eating every day like you want to eat something that's tasty but on the other hand it's like I would love to give you something that you're like, wow, I feel strong and I feel healthy and I feel good about. Absolutely. So let's talk about that for a minute because I think right now, you know, obviously you and I came together. Food, fitness, family, faith, kind of all encompassing, right? And Hawaii. We're going to get there. We're going to get there. Let's talk about food for a minute, because I know for sure I've seen it. I love food and I grew up in a family very different than yours. However, food was always surrounding our culture. Food was always bringing us together. And I love. So for those of you that are curious and you can see this in the show notes, Diversity Kitchen is something Danielle started. And it's really awesome to see you on camera and doing all that fun stuff, by the way. But she also has a blog and a bunch of recipes. And you, knowing food so well, also probably saw the need for nourishing food and nutritional food, like you were just saying, for people that need to really take care of themselves. Well, we all do, right? And there's such a need for it now with so much junk, for lack of better words, out there. Yeah. What's kind of a couple simple tips you could give to somebody right now as a chef? Yeah. Right. For those that are listening, like, oh, I love I'm a foodie. I love food. But OK, maybe my cholesterol is really high or like maybe I'm like overindulging in certain things that I know I could probably like. I would love to hear it from you as a chef. Like what are certain things people can do at a restaurant or

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or at

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home? Yeah. I think the number one like piece of advice I give to everybody because I've I've evaluated the way I eat. Right. Currently versus over the really over the last 20 years. You're also pregnant. So like hopefully you're eating everything. Are you eating everything pregnant? Yeah. I mean, obviously, like not the sushi. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We shared a cupcake the other day. So. Oh, yeah. Oh, yes. I look. I started off more in pastry. So my sweet tooth is. Like, I've got it. I got that sweet tooth. I was curious about that, started eliminating things. And I was like, oh, please don't let it be the gluten because bread and croissants, like I just can't. And then unfortunately I realized like, yeah, I should probably leave dairy alone. And yeah, have I cut it out cold turkey? Absolutely not. There are some times, yeah, I love a good pizza. I love some ice cream. Like there's things like that that I will treat myself with. But what that is to say is the number one piece of advice I give everybody is, Stop looking at a diet or your diet as like, oh, my gosh, I need to take this in this out. How about we start by adding in? So I always tell people, look at what you can add in. And I think sometimes people realize I don't eat that many vegetables. Right. I could do I need to add more like should I chop up some vegetables and saute them and then toss it into my rice? Right. Or should I add, you know, like spinach to my smoothie in the morning? Like what are ways that I can add things in instead of always trying to take everything out? Right. So like that's one thing. And then, you know, I always tell people, too, it's like, yeah, you can tell, oh, eat everything organic. Who can afford that? What a luxury if every single thing you can buy is organic, right? And especially with the cost of groceries right now. And you can't even find half of them. I mean, an egg is like$20 an egg. I'm not getting chickens. I'm telling you, we're all going to do something in a minute. You know what I mean? But I think what that goes to tell you is like, you know what? Look at the things that you put in your body every day.

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Mm-hmm.

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And that can add up over time. So one of those things is like olive oil. Right. Oh, I only use a little like when I'm cooking and a little in my salad or whatever. And it's like, well, that over time adds up. Right. So maybe I should look at like, OK, making sure my olive oils are organic. And of course, there's the dirty dozen. Right. Like those things that are like laced with pesticides and things like that. So, you know. do what you can on the things that are more organic and less pesticides. But like, believe me, I totally understand buying a hundred percent organic is just, it's going to break your bank. Right. And then also buying local, right? Like at the farmer's markets, that food is fresh. It has traveled less, less than, you know, you know, maybe if you are less, it's, it's traveled a lot less than say something, you know, unfortunately it's, And fortunately, we live in California, like the salad bowl of the United States. So a lot of the stuff is around here. But like, you know, when living in New York, it's like a lot of that produce comes from here. Right. So if I could go to, you know, like the 14th Street, you know, farmer's market and be like, OK, who's local here? Like this, these vegetables still have some nutrients, I hope, because they've traveled a lot, a lot less. Yeah. So it's like those are the little things that I tell people, too. But that number one thing of like, what can I add in? Right. Because how stressed, how stressed are we as moms being like, well, that's what I'm like. What's your next motherhood? And again, in that chapter, we're going to have to probably do a couple of different segments with you, Danielle, because there's so many things that I want to get into, seriously. But one of them, obviously, is motherhood, right? So you have this amazing career as a chef. You have traveled all over the globe. You still travel all over the globe. You have two and another baby on the way, which, congratulations, I'm so excited. When she told me, I was like, oh, my gosh. And then your reaction was like... Surprise! But I think we really do need to tap into motherhood. And your word of the day, it circled back to expectant, right? So obviously you're expectant right now, which is pretty cute that you chose that word. And it is on your phone in the scripture that you shared. But I think for mothers, pretty much all moms I know are running on some sort of fumes, right? And Hopefully they're fueling themselves with good food, nourishing food. And I think that's something that I love that you do. And that makes me so excited. Can you share for you what it's like as a full time working mom, you know, picking your kids up, doing all the things you do so much with your kids? I see you all the time. You're a very active parent. You're a wonderful mother. And you're also, you know, wonderful wife and friend and. How is that juggling all those balls for you? Like what, how do you do it? How do you do it? Yeah, you know, I think you realize that there's certain things that fill different buckets, right? And I think I love my kids, but you know, it's like we have our kids and we pour so much into our kids, right? And I think for me, having lived in Europe and seeing such a different lifestyle, right? Obviously, I didn't have kids while living in Europe, but I saw that like life in Europe was more like, hey, this is what the parents are doing. And no matter what, like the kids are coming along. Right. I feel like in the U.S. here, everybody's like, oh, this is the kid's schedule and we're on the kid's schedule. And is that conducive for kids? It was like, no, bring them along. So I think for me, I luckily I've been able to like kind of bridge those two worlds that I do love that, that it's like. Oh yeah. You know, we're going to this nice restaurant. Yeah. You're going to learn how to sit here and talk to us. Right. And, and it's like, you'd have to make baby steps. Like I'm not, am I going to take them to the French laundry at the first time we go to restaurant? No, not at all. So that's not going to happen. I haven't even been to the French laundry, but you know what I mean? It's like, you know, there's there, I think there's baby steps to this. Um, but I think really, um, You know, I like I said, I'm expected. I'm expected that, you know, like everything's going to work out that like this is a season. Right. That this season will end. There is good in the season and there is rough in this season. Right. Right. And so if I know that, then it's like, OK, I'm here. I try to be present. I think that's something now that I'm trying a lot better to do versus like I remember like. the early stages of having the two kids, like right when my son was born. And I was like, oh my gosh, I thought one wasn't enough, right? And then you have the second and you're like, wait, what? I'm working. I mean, no, honestly, it was crazy because it was like, it was COVID. Yeah. I was working full time. I had two kids. I was breastfeeding. I wasn't sleeping through the night. I was working my full time job and creating content and testing recipes for two different platforms. And being on film, being talent for the film. I don't even, honestly, I don't know. No, and I don't say that to be like, oh, look at me. Not at all. I think what happens is like we get in these seasons of like, oh my God, I don't know how I'm surviving. I don't know what I'm doing. And then you end up, you either burn out or you get to a point where you have to say, I need something in here that's going to fill my book. Yes. And sometimes for me, that's like, Hey, girl, can we go have coffee for a minute? Or like, hey, actually, I can't even get out the house. Can you come over? Can you come over so I can watch these kids play over here? And I can just like sit here and like have some friend time where I'm like, am I the only one that's here? I'm drowning. Right. But I knew and I was all and I have always and I still am. expectant that God works everything out and that everything is going to be OK and that I know that this season is only hopefully going to make me better. I have a choice to be better or to be better. Right. So which one am I going to choose? Right. And sometimes I fail. Right. Then you'll snap out of it. And that's also why it's important to have like the right people around you. Yeah. Right. Because some people will, you know, plant that seed of, oh, girl, be bitter. Yeah, you deserve it. You deserve it. That person wasn't nothing. They did you wrong. And then you're like, okay, then you really start to feel that versus like, you know what? I understand that. They did do you wrong or this didn't work out in your favor. But you know what? You don't have to worry about that because everything's going to be okay. I expect everything. God will provide for me. And I know better is in front of me. So I think having the right village around and yeah, it's tough. Like, Yeah. Yeah. hatred all this kind of stuff just in general and then you throw on top of the mix you know the price of eggs or that there's no eggs and then mom's really gotta like be working while breastfeeding while this while that and we're all trying to do the best we can and so that's why I really wanted to have you on today because you are such a beacon of light and and I want this podcast to specifically bring hope to someone who is feeling like maybe they really need that right now and are able to find it within themselves in the moment because have you ever had that happen where you feel like lost stuck or like down or have you always just been because since i've known you like no i i think i think that's almost natural for anybody okay good like i'm like she does so she is human i'm like i'm like i'm like i'm sorry especially when you throw kids in the bunch hey listen if you're out here you know happy-go-lucky skipping down the street every time then like please give me your secret right right or give me that magic whatever you're you're taking because i need sunshine yeah what do you got um yeah because like kids they will test your patience they will test every ounce of you and then you know it was funny because i think i shared with you the other day it was like my son was yelling at me for something and i knew he was tired right i knew it was like okay honey i see that you're and he's like and then all of a sudden he goes mom i love you huh and i was like oh Okay. And then I just, I just laughed and I'm like calling to my husband in the corner. I'm like, Hey, did you hear that? And then he was like, yeah, I heard it. And then later on, I was like, you see, I'm getting abused one minute. And then the next minute it's like this tender moment. Right. So I think I, yeah, no, like I'm definitely not always like, Oh, everything's perfect. No, no, no. But I think those are the moments when it's like, we talked about self-care. Like during COVID, I definitely made that transition of like, hey, I need a moment for myself. And I put the kids down and because I was so inundated with like touch and sound and they're pulling at me, mama, mama, mama, mama, that like I had to have a moment of silence, light a candle at night, sometimes and literally sit in silence or sometimes put on like some calming music. And that for me was like, okay. Like I can have that moment. Yeah. So just taking moments and I think moment to moment. And also for anyone listening right now, because we're going to wrap this up because Danielle is literally rushing from here to an appointment. And I'm so just thankful that we were able to make this happen. And I think that's the message here for anyone that's listening right now is life's going to be busy. Life's going to be filled with ups, downs, ins, outs, like so much of the unexpected. Right. Right. Yeah. That Danielle is giving us. beautiful light and hope around being expectant of following your dreams of being around supportive people like i want to just reiterate what you just shared because you talked about your family a lot which you and i have that in common obviously we're both mermaids we'll get to that some other day but if anybody knows about merlandia well we'll get there lou have you ever been to merlandia no um you know how life brings certain people into the world that you are in right now. So don't be surprised if you're listening to this. And actually, I'm going to give a call to action for somebody listening. If there's somebody on your heart right now, or somebody that you're thinking about, or somebody that you love you haven't reached out to, or maybe even someone that drives you nuts, but you love them and they came into your mind right now, reach out to that person. Let them know you're thinking of them. Give them some love. Because one thing that I can say, our friendship, as it's still blossoming, has made me come to see every single day is we're not alone. And when we can be more expectant that God's got us, that no matter what's going on in the chaos around us, we need to keep this vessel, this soul as clean and clear as possible and be around people who feed that like your nourishing food, which by the way, you have to go to her website, go check out some of her recipes. And I'm going to be pushing that like, hey, what do you think, Danielle? Do you think maybe we could like put together a little like mini recipe guide for people that if they listen to the podcast, I could get like a special little something from you. Yeah, sure. Oh, this is on the spot. Okay, so you heard it first. If you hear this episode, share this with somebody. Tag Danielle and I. You can see all of the information you needed, the show notes. Danielle, what's the best way to find you? You can find me on Instagram at Danielle Genet. That's D-A-N-I-E-L-L-E G-I-N-E-T. So that's at Danielle Genet. We'll make sure this is all put in there so you can get all everything in there right and um any last thing you want to say before you rush out to your appointment um no i think it's just yeah once again be expected like just know that like hey i think a lot of people think like is god mad at me or whatever like no he's for you he's not mad like you're you're gonna be okay and everything's gonna work out so how about just really trying to change your perspective and be like you know what i'm gonna I'm going to start to expect good things and write it down. Write it down. So we have short memories. And so when you come back in six months and go, oh, I did say that. I was going to be okay. And that particular thing was going to work out. Yeah. I love it. Yay. Thank you so much, Danielle. Thank you. I'm so happy that you're here. Louie, thank you. Everyone, thank you so much for joining us today on What's the Word on our very first in person. I'm so excited. There's multiple cameras. We've got lights. We've got the whole setup. I'm jazzed. And thank you for being the first person to do this with me in person. Thank you. All right. Look forward to seeing you soon. Bye. See you next time on What's the Word.