Giada De Laurentiis' On Her Wildest Year Yet: Empty Nest, Mirror Ball and a Fresh Start

0:01 You're listening to I Choose Me with Jenny Garland. Giada De Laurentiis' whirlwind experience on Dancing with the Stars taught her far more than the tango. The way she handles pressure and disappointment is A plus. And boy, can I relate. Giada is my hero. Here's more of our conversation. Tell me about how your daughter, Jade, kind of influenced you or sort of encouraged you to do this? Because I know how special you're, I can feel how special your bond is with your daughter.

0:38 I think that, you know, her going away to college and me becoming an empty nester really struck a chord with me. I didn't think it would because I have a career and it's, you know, I feel like, oh, I have things to distract me. But I realized that You know, I spent 18 years making her my priority or at least, oh, if I wasn't going to be there, thinking one step ahead and planning her life, making sure that everything was taken care of. Yeah.

1:10 It's not like when we go to work, we stop momming.

1:13 It's more momming almost.

1:14 Exactly. Exactly. Because we feel bad we're not there. So yes. And so I started to feel a loss like mid last year. I was like, oh man, I'm going to go by her room and I'm not going to see her there. And I'm not going to get like, our evening downloads on what's been happening or any of the stuff that we do, our family dinners, it's all going to be different. And I'm going to miss that. And I started to kind of like ponder that and think about that and talk to my friends who had already become empty nesters. And then when this opportunity came up, Jade was like, I've always wanted to learn to dance.

1:49 I think it'd be fun for you to learn. I'll be in college and we'll both go on a scary adventure.

1:54 Hmm.

1:56 And we'll kind of go through it together at the same time, yet coasts apart because she's in New York. But go through it together. And I think that that was like something that I thought, yeah, this is a perfect time for me.

2:10 To do this.

2:11 I'm just kicking the can down the road a little bit. But it could be really fun for us. And it was.

2:17 Why not?

2:18 It was.

2:18 Yeah.

2:18 What a leap, though. She checked in on me every day. We were texting. I was sending her the videos that we would shoot. and she would tell me, oh, mom, your posture, you got to fix this. Okay. Don't make that face. You look like you're terrified.

2:31 I'm like, I am terrified.

2:33 She's like, well, nobody wants to see that. But we had these really fun in-depth conversations. And I think the night I got eliminated, she called me and she was like, mom, are you feeling okay? Are you okay? I'm like, I think so. Like, I don't know. I think that I'm so, like, there's so much emotion going on and it's so raw that I don't know yet. I have to process and see.

2:56 But I think for me, it may have been the first time she saw me do something and not, and get hurt doing it or not winning. Mm-hmm. Not that we ever thought I was even going to come close to winning. Right. But being so vulnerable.

3:13 Something you were innately good at.

3:15 And being criticized for it.

3:17 Mm-hmm.

3:17 And I think for her, she said to me, you know, it makes me feel like I could try something and if I don't succeed or I get criticized for it, it's okay. That it's okay not to win at everything that you try.

3:31 So important.

3:33 Because I think I have three daughters and they've seen me have this incredible ride, you know, and they didn't really know about as much as, you know, they're younger, right? No, my oldest is 29.

3:48 Oh my God.

3:49 I know. I did not know that.

3:51 And then I have a 20, oh, she's about to be 24 and I have a 20 year old.

3:56 Oh wow. So yeah.

3:57 But they've always thought, oh, everything looks so easy. Like I, you know, I, it must be so easy in life to succeed.

4:05 Well, that's what they see because they see their mothers doing well. And you try to shelter.

4:10 Them from your heartache or your disappointment and all this. I wasn't the best at that.

4:14 So they really did grow up with me in that sense. But I think that's so important that your daughters see you having to fight hard for something and work so hard.

4:25 And be in pain and fight through it.

4:26 Yeah.

4:27 And keep putting yourself out there.

4:28 Because life is really about that. Yeah. It's just that our jobs as mothers is to try to shelter our children from the rollercoaster that is. Yeah. And it's a service, but it's also a disservice. Right. Because then they get into their 20s and 30s and they're like, But why was it so easy for you? And now it's so hard for me. That's so unfair. So I think it was really, I didn't mean for that to be the case.

4:56 But it actually, I think it worked out in a beautiful way.

5:02 And she sees how you're coming back. She sees how you're rebounding from this and how you're learning about yourself and being kind to yourself, giving yourself that grace that.

5:12 We talked about.

5:13 She sees all that too. And that's going to have a huge impact on her as well.

5:18 And I think it'll have an impact moving forward to as distance go, you know, as time goes by and you have more time to kind of reflect and watch and see. I think that you start to, cause you know, I feel like I learned something, a little tidbit that's new every day that there's one more day between it, you know? And I, Truly, Jenny, I thought for sure I'd be there a little bit longer. Yeah. And then when it was just done, I was like, oh, wow, that was, I didn't see it coming, which is also a bit of a shock.

5:51 I think the competition was just off the charts.

5:56 Yeah, it was. But I also think like it just wasn't, it wasn't for, it wasn't my time or it wasn't, you know, that the journey was very impactful and sometimes they're impactful, but short. You know, they don't always have to be long. I think, I think that I used to think that in order for something to impact you, you had to be doing it for a long time.

6:19 I don't think that's true anymore. I think something can be impactful, but can also be short, short lived. Yeah. Yeah.

6:26 Because look at all that you're starting, you're uncovering about yourself and questions that you're asking yourself to, to learn more about what makes you tick.

6:35 And things that I've had to come back and re-see again. You know, or sometimes when you're told by somebody else, you know, that you don't know as well, and they're pointing out the same things that maybe other people have pointed out in the past, you're like, oh, now maybe I need to think about that.

6:53 Yeah.

6:54 And I need to think about how to do better, you know, and maybe I have the opportunity to do better.

7:01 And maybe you have the time now because you're not rehearsing 24 hours a day.

7:05 Yeah. And as we get older, we have a little bit more time to reflect. That's one of the beauties of aging, right? Well, hopefully.

7:11 For some of us. So many women my age and your age, our age, I'm 54, you're 56, I think.

7:19 We're really hitting it hard. Because we don't want to be forgotten. I think that's the kind of the thing a little bit is like, I don't know if it's.

7:27 So much that I don't want to be forgotten. I just don't want to stop producing. I don't want to stop providing. You know what I mean? Like I want to have something to leave for my family.

7:37 But don't you think you already have an amazing legacy you're leaving.

7:40 For your family? I do.

7:42 But I think more for me, it's about finances because I see how hard it is for them now. And anybody out there trying to make it, this is a crazy time. And I just, I want to work even harder to sort of pave the road for them a little bit more, you know? But I feel like a lot of women, I mean, a lot of women are doing it for other reasons, like to not be forgotten or.

8:07 Yeah, or just like why do we have to stop because we're a certain age? Like who says that you have to? Nobody.

8:14 Yeah, but it would be nice to slow down a little.

8:17 Well, I think that for me, I think slowing down a little bit actually helps my overall health.

8:24 Yeah.

8:25 Because I don't think where I am in this life right now as in menopause that my body– because I will say that part of the other thing of coming down from the show is my body like saying, Okay, we were in an adrenaline rush, but now your hormones are like all over the place because you were taxing the body so hard. And I think it's just natural that we get into a certain age, and I'm a little bit older than you, where the body just wants a little bit more even. Yeah. It's like, go really fast. Stop.

8:57 Go really, like, you know, gassing the car, stopping. Gassing the car, stopping. It likes a little bit more of a, you know, steady.

9:05 Steady.

9:06 Paced life. Yeah.

9:08 I'm trying to get used to that because I think that's so valuable.

9:12 Well, and I think it's valuable to people at different times. I think for me, as much as I love that adrenaline rush, I just do because I feel young and you just feel hungry and you're like, yes, let's go for it. I don't know that my body loves it so much. My mind does, but my body doesn't.

9:37 How old do you feel in your mind?

9:38 30. Yeah. But sometimes I look at my body and I'm like, you're not 30, are you?

9:45 That's not matching up with what I'm thinking.

9:48 Does it ever match up? I don't know. I'm not sure.

9:51 Oh my God. So will you keep dancing?

9:56 Yes. oh yes i've already started looking into like some dance stuff yeah i don't know if it'll be ballroom dancing but i'm definitely i think it's really exhilarating hip-hop.

10:07 What's happening i don't know i don't know i mean.

10:09 Dancing something fun that isn't gonna it's not gonna be like six hours a day right but um Yeah, I've been looking into it to see where... I hear there's some fun new spots that have all sorts of different types of dance classes. So I don't know. But yeah, I have looked into it.

10:26 Let's take a dance class together because I have recently, literally in the last few days, started thinking.

10:33 I want to do that again.

10:35 It's very freeing. Not so much like when I was trying to learn a dance that I had to perform in live television after four days. But I think that The just expression of dance is very liberating. It feels very liberating.

10:53 It really does.

10:54 And your body's moving in these different ways. And I don't know. It's just I really enjoyed the movement part of it. Yeah. I can relate. So I have looked. There's a place in the Valley I've looked. And there's a place in Hollywood. There's actually one in Santa Monica. I've started to find different pockets of different types of dance classes.

11:14 Oh, my God.

11:14 What if we showed up at dance class together?

11:15 Yeah.

11:16 I can't. This is an Instagram series we're going to have to record.

11:19 So yeah, I am going to continue to dance.

11:22 I love that. I love that.

11:23 Maybe not every single day, but I definitely would like to continue this dance journey on a more sort of relaxed path.

11:33 We hope you do because I could see how much you loved it.

11:37 Well, I'm glad that you started watching again. I'm glad to hear your PTSD has gone by the wayside.

11:43 I mean, I would never have sat down with you if I hadn't been like, I want, please, I want her here.

11:49 I want to talk to her. I want to know how that was for her.

11:52 Yeah.

11:53 So I'm very, very happy that all things led to this.

11:57 Yeah. It's wonderful. You know, like I say, all things have a purpose. There's nothing that we do in life that doesn't have any purpose. You may not know right away, but eventually it unfolds and you see it.

12:09 You see why.

12:10 The why.

12:10 Exactly.

12:11 Exactly. Okay.

12:12 So now that you're no longer competing.

12:14 Yes.

12:15 Who do you want to win? Who do you want to win?

12:18 Who do you think is going to win?

12:20 Is it two different people? Like I want Guillermo to win, but I don't think he's going to win.

12:23 I don't think Guillermo's going to win. I don't think Guillermo's going to win.

12:27 But now, I mean, I honestly don't even know a couple of the people. Like I'm getting to know them a little bit.

12:34 Well, Jenna Dewan, I feel like. She's so incredible, such an incredible dancer. And with Val as her partner and like, but Harry Shum is also, I mean, they were both incredible. I mean, I watched them and I'm like, I'm out of here. Kick me out of here. I will say Amber Glenn is also pretty spectacular.

12:54 She's an ice skater, right?

12:55 Yes. I mean, she, yeah. Flawless. It's clear why she won a gold medal. But Ezra is also really, I mean, he's the youngest dancer. He's also a two-time gold medalist. Yeah.

13:04 I mean, he knows how to compete and he is good.

13:07 Yes. And I will say that the two of them really knew how to get themselves in that space. I was always like, can you rub off on me? Jenna and Amber rub off on me a little. But so Ezra's pretty spectacular also. So it could go that direction. And then there's people like Maura who have just really like blossomed in this dance thing that she didn't. I don't know. Do you know who she is? She's a reality star.

13:32 Oh, she was really great.

13:34 Yeah.

13:35 And I didn't know her before.

13:36 Yeah.

13:37 So it's so fun to kind of get to know these people.

13:40 Well, that's also the fun thing about doing it. I met a lot of influencers I would not, and podcasters like Connor Wood. A lot of people that I would never, it just doesn't end up in my world. Let's talk about.

13:55 Your world for a second because you have your brand.

13:57 Jodsy. Yeah.

13:59 Jada De Laurentiis is powered by pasta.

14:02 That's just like- How's it feel being, you know, having your own brand and just being a baller?

14:08 I think, I mean, I've done so many partnerships over the years that I learned a lot. And I was like, oh, the only way I'm going to be able to control the narrative here and tell whatever story I want to tell is if I do it myself. And I think that the food system, as we all know in this country, is a little bit, sadly, not in a great place.

14:33 And so I'm trying to teach people about pasta and about what to look for. And if you want a great option, I'm presenting you one. But if you don't, at least take a few tips and tricks and read the label and try to buy products that are healthy and that don't have a lot of junk in them because a lot of stuff has a lot of filler, a lot of, sadly, things that don't make us feel good.

15:00 And it's not the pasta's fault that you don't feel good. It's the product that you're eating. Don't blame the pasta. It's not the pasta. It's what you're buying. Yeah. You know? So, yeah. And then Italian grains are really important. They really are, especially now.

15:13 Well, I hope everyone is going to check it out. How do we visit the website?

15:20 You can get it. You can get it on jodsy.com. You can get it on Amazon. Sprouts now carries our pasta.

15:26 Great.

15:26 Gelson's in Southern California. So, and there's a lot of... A lot of new ones. Thrive Market. There's a lot. Perfect. So people can find it.

15:35 I'm going to check it out because I'm interested in clean eating.

15:37 Yeah. We have a whole list of where it's carried on jodsy.com. There's a whole grocery list around the country. So you can kind of see where you get it. But otherwise, Amazon.

15:47 And also people can always visit your beautiful restaurants in Vegas.

15:50 Yes. You have two in Vegas? I have two in Vegas, two in Scottsdale, and I have two in Chicago. Okay.

15:57 Yeah. Busy lady.

15:58 Yeah.

15:59 Holding it all up. It's fun.

16:01 And dancing her ass off. I'm so proud of you. I mean, I don't know if that means anything.

16:06 I hope I know. I know you're proud of yourself.

16:08 No, I am. I am. I think that we just have, you know, a few voices in our head. Right. And they kind of, you know, they come and go. And I think it's important to listen to all of them, but manage the ones that are negative because those can really take you down sometimes.

16:25 Well, thank you for all that you've shared with us about just your personal growth through this experience. I think that that's more interesting and intriguing and helpful.

16:36 Than watching you dance.

16:39 Well, I think that there's more behind the dance than people think, you know, for everybody that's participating. I don't think it's just me. I think all of these celebrities that are doing it, there's a lot that goes on that nobody sees internally, you know? So, and I think it'll be fun to listen to all their stories as they go through it.

17:00 Well, thank you for sharing your story with us. But before I let you go, Giada De Laurentiis, what was your last I choose me moment? Well, I think it was Dancing with the Stars, wasn't it?

17:11 I mean.

17:11 I mean, I don't know that there's a bigger one for me at this moment. I don't either. You did it. I did it.

17:17 And you're still choosing yourself even after you got eliminated.

17:20 Right now, I'm still choosing myself. Yep. I'm hoping that a month from now, Jenny, I still choose myself, but I'm working on it. Keep it up. I'm working on it. You know, I feel like.

17:28 Go stand in the grass.

17:29 This is all... I'm going to try and stand in the grass, just like you suggested. Okay. I haven't done that, and I think that might be an important part of this. Yeah.

17:38 Thank you. Thank you.

17:39 And thanks for bringing so much fun to me when I was young on 90210. Love that show.

17:43 Thank you.