Body Image Breakthrough with Indulgence & Balance with Erin Washington

*This transcript was auto-generated*

Zac:

Hey, Kim.

Kim:

Hey.

Zac:

So I have a surprise for you before we start taping, before we do anything. All right, I have a surprise for you.

Kim:

Oh, Lord.

Zac:

Do you know how we're both kind of obsessed with AI?

Kim:

Zac, when I tell you I think AI. Of course people think AI is like the devil and it's gonna murder death, kill us all. But I absolutely obsessed with AI. Obsessed with it. Like, more so than you.

Zac:

I'm so excited then, because I found this new app. It's called Suno, and it makes whole songs just based on whatever you give it. So I made you a new. I made a new intro for the podcast. I want you to tell me if this should be our new intro. Are you ready?

Kim:

Okay, hit. Hit me with it.

Zac:

Okay.

AI Singer:

Amazing guess on the mind. You gotta love yourself. Everything's so bright. Hosting a podcast show, spreading love and.

Kim:

Inspiration, letting people know.

AI Singer:

Taking you far. Love who you are.

Kim:

Okay, so is this AI Elle debarge from the 1980s? Like, it's.

Zac:

I know.

Kim:

How do they not have Mario music?

Zac:

It goes on and on and on and then just goes.

Kim:

It doesn't quite.

Zac:

Yeah, and then it just ends, and then it just.

Kim:

It sounds like Elle DeBarge. Do you don't know who Elle Debarge is? Because. When were you born? What year were you born?

Zac:

Although.

Kim:

When were you born?

Zac:

I was born 1986.

Kim:

All right, see, I was a 6789. I was a sophomore in high school. And El Divarge, look him up. Everybody knows listening if you heard that. So it's like, AI is, like, what the Internet was in the 1990s, early 1990s. Like, now it's like. So, like, I think 20 years from now, we're gonna look back and be like. Like how the big cell phones.

Kim:

Do you remember those?

Zac:

Yeah.

Zac:

Right?

Kim:

Do you remember the cell phones in, like, a bag that weighed, like, 40 pounds.

Zac:

The car phone.

Kim:

You had to, like, my dad had.

Zac:

A cardinal from under your seat.

Kim:

He had a white Lincoln. Yes.

Zac:

And, like, plug it into the cigarette lighter thing. Yeah, totally.

Kim:

Drain the battery, the whole nine yards. Yeah, that's what that AI says.

Zac:

Yeah. Well, I feel like I knew you liked the eighties, so I literally. I think I told it, like, podcast intro. Love you are 1980s. And that's what it made.

Kim:

Obsessed.

Zac:

Yeah. So you're welcome. That's our new theme song. And guess what? So I made one for our guest today. So I can't wait to hear it. It's gonna be really special.

Kim:

I'm obsessed. Zac, make sure you send me. Text me that link to that thing. Cause now I'm gonna be making songs for the whole family.

Zac:

Gosh. Yeah. It's funny. I texted it to our editor, Mike, and he immediately texted me back, like, once at his kids who are young, like, of course.

Kim:

Do it right now, Blanton. Do this right now. Put it in there, Blanton. Who needs to brush his teeth? Put on deodorant and flush the toilet.

Zac:

Okay.

Kim:

Do your chores every day.

Zac:

Okay, Kim. All right, I just got it to make the song. Do your chores every day. And we've never heard this before. This is gonna be a good experiment.

AI Singer:

All day long. It's gonna feel so right. Put on the odorant, dude, it ain't no joke. Keep the stank away it's a solid. When you're hanging with your friends no need to be shy stay fresh. And clean, you'll be flying high do you chose every day? Blend and listen to love say.

Brush your teeth put on the odor and flush the toilet.No delays, hygiene is free. Gotta keep it on point. Do you choose every day? Boy, it's time to join the joint.

Kim:

Oh, my God. That's hilarious. I've got to have that. You've got to send me this. I've got to get. I'm going to make my kids songs and post them online and totally embarrass them. All their friends follow me.

Kim:

All their friends follow me. That's next level. Send that to me right now. Put it in a text I'm sending to the family.

Zac:

Oh, my gosh.

Kim:

All right. I love that AI is our friend. I will be, like, totally using that. And you know what? We have a good friend that's on the show coming up, Erin Washington. You just don't want to miss it. Missed this episode.

Erin Washington:

This is The Kim Gravel Show. I enjoy my life and maintain my weight. It is easy, and it's the opposite of what women are taught.

Kim:

Women healthy in their mind, in their soul, in their spirit. They're better moms, they're better sisters. They're better friends.

Erin Washington:

When I didn't have my self worth, what I was projecting. Not a lot of confidence, not a lot of drive. I attracted the match for that. You're basically telling your child, we step on this little machine, and this tells us if we're happy or sad.

Kim:

Tell me what your purpose is, and then tell me how you found it. Cause that's what people are looking for. I think God's trying to tell you not to quit. All right, y'all, I'm so excited because I have a very special friend on the podcast today. Erin Washington is on the show, and she is the host of the hit podcast ThERINpy. Uh huh. ThERINpy. Get it? Erin is in her name.

Kim:

Uh huh. ThERINY And I was a guest on her show in December, and we just hit it off. It's like BFF's. Her book is called from pain to purpose, finding meaning in the mess. And, ah, wait till you hear her story. You're all gonna be able to relate. And she's here to talk to me about body positivity, staying healthy and navigating through major life changes, because she's going through some major life changes as we speak.

Kim:

And we'll get into all of this, y'all. Please welcome Erin Washington. Erin Washington is on the show today.

AI Singer:

She's done the squat. She drank the march. Now she's in ThERINPY and living large.

Kim:

Boom.

Zac:

Yeah, that was made with AI. That was an AI singing.

Kim:

Erin, we need your. We need your response.

Erin Washington:

I have no words. I was not prepared for that. Right. I am in awe of that intro. I have never had one like it, and I want that intro everywhere I go.

Kim:

I think, can you believe we spare no expense for our guests?

Erin Washington:

That was very fancy. Thank you. I feel very welcome.

Kim:

We love you. We love you. The reason we did that, because I wanted to. You've changed the name of your podcast from squats and margaritas. So you were drinking and squatting, and now you got a dry January, and now you're in therapy. Tell me what. Give me that. What happened?

Erin Washington:

So I wrote my first book called squats and margaritas after struggling for 15 ish years with body image, not having self worth, multiple eating disorders, and we can get into it. But I finally got it together at 37 after having two kids. So I wanted to talk to the women who were still on the treadmill and who were still restricting like I was for so long, and told them, you know, it's squats and margaritas. It's balance. Have what you want, work out a few times a day, a day?

Kim:

A few times a day.

Erin Washington:

And it's a balance. And once I started living that way with squats and margaritas, I was able to find my physical ideal, and I wasn't trying as hard, and I was enjoying my life. So my first book was squats and margaritas. I ended up going live during the pandemic, and a program director at a radio station gave me a show, and I called it squats and margaritas and initially only talked about living life with balance, how I found my best body my physical ideal. But then, Kim, like, a lot of things changed in my life, and I became sober curious. And I am currently going through a divorce. And I noticed that everybody I wanted to talk to, I was saying, well, contrary to the name of my podcast, I'm actually sober curious, and I wanted to talk about this. And, you know, I had people saying that they weren't going to do my show because of the name.

Erin Washington:

And I thought, why is it even still called squats and margaritas? Like, when was the last time you've grown?

Kim:

You've grown.

Erin Washington:

I have. And I don't talk about fitness, and I'm actually sober curious. So I was like, my show is straight therapy. Every week, I talk through whatever I'm going through, which right now is co parenting, sobriety, divorce with a guest who is equally as vulnerable and authentic. And I do it so other women will feel, like, less alone and seen. And I changed it to Theranpe with Erin Washington. I don't have any letters next to my name, so I'm not a therapist, but it's me working through all of the things and being vulnerable every week.

Kim:

You're junk. Yeah, we've all got it. But can I want to back up to squats and margaritis? Because I was on that podcast, and we talked about getting healthy and my personal weight loss, and I cannot tell you, Erin, how many people. That's, like, my number one question that I get is about my weight loss. And, you know, that's how you launched into a successful podcast. Was that health and wellness? And remember when we had that conversation, girl, and I just said, I made the decision, and I loved what you just said, and I can't let you get away with not mentioning this, because you just said you found balance, and when you did, it was. Didn't you say it was quite easy?

Erin Washington:

It was the easiest. I know you say your weight loss was the easiest thing you've ever done. Maintaining my weight loss is easy. And for someone that struggled, literally from 16 to 36, there was anorexia, bulimia, exercise bulimia, where I would jot down everything I ate and then go on an elliptical and cancel it out. And living with just restriction, I wouldn't go out to eat. Or if I did, I had to look at the menu and already know that there was something that I would order. And living that way in that stressed out state, I weighed almost 25 pounds more than I do now. And all I wanted was to get a weight loss.

Erin Washington:

I never saw it like I was. Like you said, focused on just that struggle and being in the struggle. And now I enjoy my life. It almost feels like it's cheating. I eat what I want, but I'm mindful and I put muscle on my body, which I feel like women aren't taught. Women just think you're supposed to be on the cardio machine. The men are in the weight room. Muscle changed everything.

Erin Washington:

I wasn't eating enough, which sounds not right. Everybody thinks you need to restrict. I started eating more. My metabolism turned back on. I have daily indulgences. For me, it was the margarita. So I just thought one day I'm like, I'm squats and margaritas. Like, I'm maintaining my life.

Erin Washington:

I enjoy my life and I have to have those things allowed. Like, I have to have a daily indulgence. If you don't, you'll quit. Like, you're not going to stick with a healthy lifestyle. If it's not manageable and I enjoy my life and maintain my weight, it is easy, and it's the opposite of what women are taught.

Kim:

But, erin, do you think that, like. Cause I mean, we're. That's probably the number one question I get is about how I've lost my weight. And I know that you have been in this, you know, game for a long time. Do you think that your obsession, especially, like, with the eating disorders and that weight, was it truly because of how you looked or was it more mental? Do you think, like, what do you think caused or brought on this eating disorder because you had. So did I. I have an eating disorder, too. It's not.

Kim:

I ate too much. That was my disorder. And I worshiped food. I planned my life around food. It was my exhale in my life, but for me, it was mental. Can you speak to your journey with that? Was it mental? Was it a mental? Was it something not physical eating or physical not eating?

Erin Washington:

I honestly think it's my personality. And the more I talk to people, I'm like, are you a first born? I'm a firstborn perfectionist type of personality. I'm all or nothing. And I always held myself to this almost unattainable standard. So I was never satisfied. I always had to be skinniere. I think a lot of it started for me with soccer. I played since I was four, and it was my value, it was my worth.

Erin Washington:

And I ended up getting a division one scholarship. I know your sons are athletes. You have to make sure that they diversify and they don't put everything they.

Kim:

Do, honey, they ain't working that hard.

Erin Washington:

I did not. I was only a soccer player. That's why I was important. That was my value. You know, I started varsity since I was a freshman, and that's what I hung my hat on.

Kim:

So that was your identity?

Erin Washington:

Absolutely. My value. That I am a soccer player. I'm going to this college for soccer, and when it didn't work out, and at some point, even if you have a great college career, like, the odds are you're not going to be a professional athlete, and it's going to stop one day. And if you don't have anything else that you find value in, you're going to fall into depression. That's when my bulimia started, because it was like, soccer's done. What else is there? So it initially started my anorexia, being super thin to me, was fast and in shape for soccer. And then it evolved to bulimia when soccer was gone.

Erin Washington:

So it all was kind of tied up to my identity, my personality, as being a perfectionist. So, yeah, probably I would say it was mental.

Kim:

We'll be back right after a quick break, so stick around. This is why I love you. You're so relatable and you're so transparent and authentic. But can I just tell you, we're all going through crap. Like I say it, you're either. Cause, like, I've got the bell's palsy now. You're either going into a storm in it or coming out of one, and you're right dead center in the middle of yet another storm in your life.

Erin Washington:

Yes, ma'am.

Kim:

Do tell.

Erin Washington:

I don't know really what to call him. Cause we're not divorced, I guess he's my ex. We still talk every day. I'm navigating it. We've been together for 18 years, and through therapy, I have realized that when I didn't have my self worth, what I was projecting, which was not a lot of confidence, not a lot of drive, I attracted the match for that, you know?

Kim:

No, no, no.

Erin Washington:

My husband.

Kim:

You've got to say that again.

Erin Washington:

That was living. Yeah. I had no self worth and no real drive. I said I just wanted to be a stay at home mom. Not that there is anything wrong with that. Don't come.

Kim:

Nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with that.

Erin Washington:

Nothing wrong with that. But I didn't see anything else. For me, my husband was shiny. He was in the NFL. And if I'm dating him, then I'm shiny. And I kind of just attached myself to him for value and validation, and I didn't really have much going for me. And I think, Kim, that women don't really find out exactly who they are until at least 40 and agree. I met him at 24, and I wasn't that same person.

Erin Washington:

And I evolved into this better version of me and this more fulfilled and aligned version of me that I know I am supposed to be. And it's not a match anymore. And it doesn't mean that I don't love him. I do love him. I told him the other day, I love you. I just can't live with you. And he said, lol, I feel you. We're on the same page.

Erin Washington:

Like, maybe we were supposed to meet, to come together, have our two beautiful children and bring them into the world, and we're only on the path with each other for 18 years, which is a long time, and we are thriving.

Kim:

That's a huge success. That's a huge success.

Erin Washington:

It's hard for me to see it as a success, but I hear you because it is hard, but. And I know when you were on my show, you were like, I'm gonna pray about it. It's gonna be better. And honestly, at that point, Kim, I was with you. I was like, yeah, I want it. I was praying for God to, like, help save my marriage and fix my marriage. Now I pray for clarity that this.

Kim:

But better doesn't always mean married. And I, you know, better is, you know, like, as women, I don't know. Okay, answer me this, because, you know, I'm divorced. I was married, you know, not very long, when I was very young. And looking back, I'm so glad I got divorced, because it was a mistake to begin with, but I would have never met Travis in all of that. But at the same time, I learned so much from the actual divorce. And it's hard sometimes to like your book. You know, you talk about the messes.

Kim:

It's hard to. In that little saying, your mess is your message. Yes. But also your mess can be an awakening of sorts. Would you say that?

Erin Washington:

Absolutely. And to go off of what I was saying before about what I attracted, now I'm going to live as my authentic self, and I'm going to attract the match for this. And that's exciting. Like, now that I'm putting myself out into the world. Exactly. And authentically as I am, hopefully I will manifest. Manifest. See what I did there.

Kim:

Okay. Okay.

Erin Washington:

The match for this energy in this vibration that I'm on now that I know is what I'm supposed to do. And I.

Kim:

Are you a better mom? Are you a better mom?

Erin Washington:

I am a way better mom. I think anyone that is listening to this, I am not a proponent of divorce, but if you are saying for the kids, you are not doing them a favor. And they are in a toxic environment, whether you think they're noticing what's going on or not. So I probably stayed a year or so too long trying to keep my family together for the kids. And I don't know if I told you this on my show, but, Kim, one day I was screaming at my husband, like, I have completely lost my temper. My kids are in the basement. I'm thinking they're not listening. Oh, my gosh.

Erin Washington:

From the.

Kim:

I just did that last week. I just did that last week. Lord have mercy. Oh, my God.

Erin Washington:

But my kids are. I mean, they were four and six at the time. They come upstairs from their play kitchen, and they're like, mommy, we made you this calm down dinner. Cause you were yelling at daddy. And I. My heart, I was like, they feel it. They feel all of this. I was like, oh.

Erin Washington:

We were just talking, like, no, everything's good. And that was the day. I was like, kids are brilliant. Kids are brilliant. I'm not doing them a favor by keeping us together. And if I would have known how they were going to take it, which was so fabulously.

Kim:

They're resilient. Kids are resilient.

Erin Washington:

They thanked me, Kim. They were like, oh, my gosh, we have two houses. Because I will say this to anyone that's thinking about a divorce and telling their kids or even just separating, we did it together. We took them to lunch as a team, and we said, you're still a team. Yeah, exactly. I didn't want to, like, I didn't tell him without my husband. And we said, we want to be the best mommy and daddy that we can be. We're still a family, but we're going to have different houses.

Erin Washington:

So everybody's the best mommy and daddy they can be. You get to have two houses. And after this, we're going to go to target and we're going to pick out new sheets and new toys and new jammies for daddies. And they were like, oh, my gosh. And we go together, and we're all pushing the cart. And we did it as a team. And they were great.

Kim:

It's a modern family. It's a modern family. And I. And I think it's important for you to share your message, Erin, because I don't care if the divorce is amicable, and it's not. It's still painful. Like, what do you say to those that are listening right now that's either been through a divorce they can't get over or going through one now or even thinking about it. What is, what is your therapy for them?

Erin Washington:

Thank you. You don't have to hate each other. It doesn't have to be this toxic situation. I sadly know three other women that are going through divorces when they call me and they're like, can you believe? And he did this. I'm like, I love my husband. I truly love my husband. I want to talk to him every day. You can still have that person in your life and co parent or do whatever you need to do.

Kim:

Do life, do life with him.

Erin Washington:

I want to do life with him. And I don't know if that's the right answer, but I. For us, we are killing it in co parenting. I've never gotten along with him better, and it was making it a little bit confusing because I'm like, we'll talk for like an hour. We're talking about the kids. And I'll get off the phone and be like, maybe we can make it work. Like, maybe we should just go back to therapy. Sure.

Erin Washington:

Because I enjoy him now. But you have to remember, you're enjoying him in this new capacity. And this is not the reality of the day to day and the resentment. And when they're in the home, I do enjoy him because we're co parenting. So you can get to a point where that is your best friend again. And they are calling you to work through things, and I want him to call me and I want to be the person that he works through things with. But we are working because we're not living together. And that's okay.

Erin Washington:

You can enjoy them in a different capacity.

Kim:

Well, and I think the main thing that I hear you say is you're working on you. And I think at the end of the day, as moms, as women, let's just say as women, because you might not be a mom, but you're a sister, you're a daughter. Women carry the load. We are called helpmates for a reason. And sometimes that helping other people really doesn't help us. All the time.

Erin Washington:

Yes.

Kim:

How? And people get mad at me all the time. And, you know, I have learned to put myself first better than I used to. I mean, that's not always the case. I mean, I've sat here, I've gotten four texts. Mom, can you bring me my calculator? Mom, can I get $10 through venmo? I mean, so it's just like, I mean, I'm learning how to do it. What would you say to the women out there, Erin, who are putting themselves 5th, 6th, 20th on the list?

Erin Washington:

I would first say that self care is not selfish. And I felt like it was for so long. I had so much guilt and shame. If I would just go get a workout, like, I would be like, oh, mommy's gonna be right back. When I get back from that workout or just from a walk, I'm a better mom. You are not pouring into yourself as cliche as it sounds. You can't pour from an empty cup. But it is so true, like you have.

Erin Washington:

I am so passionate about women, realizing that they matter, too. And you are a better mom and.

Kim:

A better spouse, but it's double standards for us. It really is. Like. Cause I, you know, you know, I'm a, I love to call myself, you know, boss bae baller, shot caller. But I always say I was, I should have been born a man. If I was born a man, then.

Erin Washington:

You'D be allowed to do it.

Kim:

I would be celebrated. It's so hard. And, you know, I'm not this crazy feminist woman, but I do think women, healthy in their mind, in their soul, in their spirit, are better helpmates to their partners and husbands. They're better moms, they're better sisters, they're better friends.

Erin Washington:

Yes. When you feel good, how do you do?

Kim:

But how do we do that in a healthy way? Not with the eating disorders, not with the obsessions, not with the I don't add up mentality. How do we get rid of the guilt?

Erin Washington:

Yes. Well, you have to start living like you would want your younger self to live. Or if you're a mom of a daughter, I always, I look at my daughter, I'm the model for what I want her to be. And this goes into, like, diet, culture and all the things that I'm modeling there. But first, like, when I start to feel guilty, if I go do a speaking thing somewhere or I'm promoting my book, I will have that moment of like, oh, I should be here with my kids, right? Don't you want your daughter to find something that she is lit up about and her to be a boss? Babe, she's looking at you. So if you're lit up and passionate about something, that's going to spark something in her, and wouldn't you want that for your daughter? And that just brings me to, I always speak on this toxic traits that you are modeling for your daughter because she's watching you. You have to watch every single thing you're doing. And I think moms get this part right where we hype our daughters up and we're like, you are so beautiful and you are so strong.

Erin Washington:

But if you're in the mirror, like, I got to lose five pounds, and look at this, they're like, you know, this is what we do. They're watching you. If you're on the scale.

Kim:

It's so true. My very best friend, who has no children, okay, she has no children. She's a second mom to my kids. But she said this, and I thought this was so profound when she said this. Cause I just. You know, I just had my kids, and it's the hardest thing you'll ever do. I can't wait to be a grandmother. Cause you can love them and give them back, but it's boiling rotten.

Kim:

But she said that, kids. And she always says, I'm not a parent, so I don't know. But tell me if you think this is right. Erin. She said that kids become who we are. Not even what we do or say. It's who we are.

Erin Washington:

Yes. And that it's like, if you can't find the motivation or you think it's, like, selfish to pour into yourself, that's it. Your child is going to become that. So what you're doing is laying the foundation for them. And if you're on the scale every day, like, ugh, you're basically telling your child, we step on this little machine, and this tells us if we're happy or sad. You're all the little things that you're doing, they're watching, you know, my mom, like, I watched her go on diets. Every time there's a wedding coming up, we have to go on a diet that is showing your child that a more valuable version of you is a thinner one. Like, you have to be thinner to go to this event, and you're not even thinking about it because we think about what we're saying to them, but they are watching you.

Erin Washington:

So it starts with how you talk to yourself. I always say, if you wouldn't say it to your daughter, stop saying it to you. It's not just about what you're saying to them. They're watching you. And you're the model.

Kim:

I got to tell you, I've been failing at that lately. I have been failing at that lately, personally. I mean, I'm being honest with you right now. I have been. I am a person. I'm a stress ball. So now. And it's like, gosh, now that I don't eat my stress away.

Kim:

I'm like, crap. I don't have a vice. I don't have a vice. Like, I am. I am to the point, like I was. I called my bff last night. I do it in text, and I'm like, I'm miserable. I'm like, why am I.

Kim:

And then I know. I'm like, but am I really? I'm like. Or is it just my way of venting out all the. But I think you're right. It's not about. It's not about how what we eat or the scale or. It's all about how we are perceiving our value. Like, you said yes to me, Erin, that was profound when you said that.

Erin Washington:

I just found this, Kim. Like, it's hilarious that I'm on a show talking about finding your purpose and your value, because I did not have any self worth 20 years, and now I just want other women to find this. And once you find why you are on this planet and you're living in alignment with that, you are lit up. And I want other women to find this.

Kim:

Okay. Okay. But I gotta interrupt you. How did you find it? And what is it like? Tell me what's your purposes, and then tell me how you found it, because that's what people are looking for.

Erin Washington:

I was put on this earth to share organic, authentic conversations for other women to feel seen and less alone. And I went through my mess to come out on the other side and so I could share that story and be vulnerable so women could relate. And that's exactly why women relate to you, because you're real. And I got my show, which I believe is my purpose, sharing these conversations by being 100% exactly who I am. I was going live on Instagram during COVID and really just out of necessity, saying, what in the hell am I supposed to do with a two and a four year old when the schools are closed, the playgrounds are closed, I can't go to the gym. What is everybody doing? And moms would come on and they'd be like, scavenger hunt. Have them go find a stop sign in a pine cone. And I'm like, yes, this is great.

Erin Washington:

Next week, I'll go live and we'll talk about momming in a pandemic and how we're going to get through it. I made up a little show. I had no other motive. It was just me being me. It wasn't an audition for anything. But unbeknownst to me, a program director in Washington, DC was watching and she gave me my show, and I got it by putting myself out into the world authentically and organically as I was. And what is for me came to me. It fell in my lap.

Erin Washington:

So I would say to a woman or a mom that's feeling a little itchy, like maybe there's more, start putting yourself out into the world authentically and organically, and what is for you will find you. And I would say, start by something that you've been through. What is something that you have made it out of, that someone else is still in? You find purpose by sharing your story and supporting other people through what you've already been through. And if you think I don't have any letters next to my name, you've been through something, and there is someone still in it. And I have to share this. I had a spiritual business coach on my show a couple weeks ago, and she was like, I can just look at somebody and tell them, this is what you're supposed to do. She's like, come on now.

Kim:

Come on.

Erin Washington:

In three zones. The excellent, exceptional, and the eh. And eh is like, I don't really do well for me, like accounting, finance. It's just not my jam.

Kim:

Me neither, honey.

Erin Washington:

It's not my jamden. It's kind of eh. Then there's excellent. And most people, she said, live in this zone of excellence. It's what you went to school for. You feel confident. Maybe you're like. You said, you're an accountant.

Erin Washington:

We were talking like, this is what I do. I feel very confident. I'm excellent at it. But there's another zone, and it's your zone of exceptional. And that is where you are in flow. Like, you just feel like it's easy and you're just being yourself. And that is why you're put on this planet. And she's like, so many people just live in the excellent because it's comfortable.

Erin Washington:

And that's what. What they went to school for. And it's like, why don't you? Like, maybe you are a great accountant, but maybe you're also the friend that everybody comes to because you're the best listener. Maybe you should look at that. So she's like, you have to get out of that excellent, comfortable. What I went to school for zone. And find your exceptional. And when you feel in flow and she's like, what do people come to you for? Like, for you, everybody's like, well, how did you lose the weight? So maybe that's what you're supposed to be speaking on.

Erin Washington:

Or there are times kim like, when I'm on a stage or even, like, sometimes on a podcast where I will just be talking and flowing, and I don't even remember what I said. And people will come off and be like, oh, my God, that was so beautiful. And I'm like, I don't even remember saying that. Because you're in flow, and I am supposed to be inspiring other women and sharing my vulnerable story, and that is my zone, that you could never have told me, even five years ago, that I would be inspiring other women because I was just kind of stepping into it. But if you are just living in excellence because it's comfortable and you're, you know, proficient in that, and that's what you went to school for, you're not really stepping in to alignment of why you specifically are on this planet. There's another realm of exceptional that you haven't tapped into yet. And if you start putting yourself out into the world authentically and organically, you will start to see signs. And I could get into my mind, will blow your mind of what have happened to me.

Erin Washington:

When I'm, like, asking for guidance, I would get an actual, in the flesh, blue butterfly, living creature that would come to my doorstep and not fly away. And it happened all the time. There was a time where I wasn't feeling great about going to speak at a conference, and someone who will not be named was kind of getting in my head about, maybe you should still be home with the kids. And I'm kind of like, I don't know, Kim. The busiest airport in the world, where we live in Atlanta. I could have stopped to tie my shoe. I could have gone to the bathroom. I could have got stuck in traffic.

Erin Washington:

I come through TSA. I could have gone right or left. I go right. The bin that I pull out to put my shoes in has a blue butterfly sticker in the bin, and I have full body goosebumps. And I'm like, God, okay, I see it. So that's the second part of it. You put yourself out into the world. You ask.

Erin Washington:

Confirmed. Invalidated the confirmation. And I'm saying the confirmation is right there.

Kim:

I agree with that.

Erin Washington:

But you're looking at your phone like, ask for guidance. Put your phone away. It's right in front of your face.

Kim:

And then wake up. Look.

Erin Washington:

Yes.

Kim:

Watch. I told my same thing just happened to my son the other night, and he wanted to quit his sports. He wanted to quit basketball. He said, I'm quitting. I'm quitting. I'm quitting. And the next night, they had the championship game. And he got in and lit it up.

Kim:

And I said, well, I think God's trying to tell you not to quit.

Erin Washington:

Exactly. The signs are right in front of you. Like it is.

Kim:

They're there.

Erin Washington:

They're there.

Kim:

He shouldn't even been in the game. Like, he should not have been in the game. He's not a starter. It just came out of nowhere. So what I'm saying is, you're right. These signs are there.

Erin Washington:

Yes.

Kim:

You might not understand, but wake up. Okay? Look, girl, I could talk to you for hours. Hold on, hold on. We gotta take a quick break. Cause we need your therapy, girl. All right, we're gonna take a quick break. And when we come back, we have a listener voicemail this week, Erin, that we want you to take a listen to and give your two cent on. And then we're gonna be doing rapid fire questions, too.

Kim:

So don't go anywhere. We'll be right back. Welcome back. I am here getting some therinpi with Erin Washington. Her podcast is called Theronpe. I think it's the best name. And I want to really let you hear this voice listener voicemail, if you don't mind. It's from earlier this week, and I think I want your two cent on it.

Kim:

I want your. I want your theron p take on this. So listen to this, Erin.

Caller:

Hey, Kim. I'm sure a lot of people have this problem, but I am so mad and frustrated with my body. Mine seems to write out text that my body says, nope, we can't cash. And I want to help others and spend time with people. And my body says, nope, nope. And I try to get my body healthier, and I try to get my body better exercised, and my body just says, nope, nope, can't do that. Nope, nope, nope. How do you forgive your body? How do you live with the body God is giving you and celebrate it when it just won't quite do what you want it to do? And I'm sure a lot of people have this.

Caller:

Thanks. Bye.

Kim:

I have thoughts, Erin, but I want you to go first. No, I was just. I want you to just speak to that because I think. What a great question. I think that's, like, such a great way to present. I can't get moving. I can't get motivated. I can't get busy.

Kim:

But I have something to say to it. But I want to hear your thoughts on Erin because you've dealt with this.

Erin Washington:

I have. And I'm going two ways with, like, I can give her physical tips on just both give her both. Give her both. When I'm low energy like that, I'm obviously there's a mindset component that I will get to, but it's like, water, water, hydrate and start drinking my. Now me too. Start moving and walking every single day. It seems like too big of a task. Like, when you're like, oh, my God, too jarring to be like, I'm going to take on this whole workout plan or whatever.

Erin Washington:

Change my nutrition. It's small things that will get you feeling better in your body. When you're hydrated, you'll have more energy. Get up and walk every single day. Don't even think about it as, like, I'm walking to burn calories. Walking, for me, is meditation. I come back and I just feel, you know, you connect with nature. It's grounding.

Erin Washington:

And then I feel better in my body and just stacking those habits of drinking more water, even when you're not thirsty and getting out and walking, being in nature will completely change your mindset. And I don't know if you're a mother, but if there's a younger girl in your life, you almost have to fake it till you make it and model positive body image for the other people in your life. And when you start living that way, you start to feel more confident.

Kim:

1000% agree with you, Erin. And that has worked for me. It's just the little small things. Like you said, those small steps. But there was a word in this listener's voicemail that triggered me, and it was the word try. That word. I'm going to quote Yoda. When he said, there is no try.

Kim:

It's just do.

Erin Washington:

Yeah.

Kim:

So that word needs to be eliminated from your vocabulary. Okay. When you say, I'm trying, that is already speaking failure into whatever you're doing. And just as I have been, I just was very transparent with the show, and I've been texting Amy. I'm miserable. I'm miserable. I'm miserable. I'm speaking the misery into my life because I thought, I'm not really that miserable.

Kim:

Why am I saying that? Like, I had to really check my mindset, but yet I've got to check what's coming out my mouth. Cause words are things, Erin, and what we say, we become.

Erin Washington:

Yes.

Kim:

What we put out comes back. Press down, shaking together, running over. So if you're putting out garbage and you're saying, I'm miserable, I'm trying to do this, it's going to come back to you. Press down, shaken together, and running over. And we want the good to come out. So eliminate the word. Try and start with the small steps.

Erin Washington:

And then call me back to journal. Like what you're grateful for. Write down every day the good things in your life, and it doesn't seem like what you're focusing on right now are those things you're thinking about, the things that are kind of weighing you down. And it's exactly what you just said. That's what you're bringing into your life. So every day, write down five things that you're grateful for and put the gratitude out into the universe. And that's what that you'll bring back.

Kim:

Yes. And speak that out. Speak your gratitude out. Because the body and the mind obeys the mouth. So what comes out your mouth is what you gonna become.

Erin Washington:

Exactly.

Kim:

Okay. So if you wanna leave me a voicemail and play it on the show, give me a call at 404-913-6460 and just, that was such a beautiful. And, Erin, I knew you were gonna nail it. Small steps. That's what changed my life.

Erin Washington:

Absolutely. Well, you just made the decision. You're like, I'm gonna change my life. And then you did it. It was like your body followed, and it sounds not right. People are like, yeah, whatever. And I see people come for you and asking all the questions, and I'm like, no, you just. It's a mindset.

Erin Washington:

It was because I can attest to it. When I struggled and tried and restricted and deprived myself, and all I wanted was a weight loss or this ideal body, I never found it. And now I never did. When I don't really focus on it, and I just am mindful. I eat when I'm hungry. I stop when I'm satisfied. I move my body to feel good and not to punish it. I have been able to maintain my physical ideal, and I enjoy my life.

Erin Washington:

I mean, it doesn't sound right.

Kim:

It took me nine, eight months, I would say eight, eight months to lose 50 pounds. That it took me, and I tortured myself for what, what, like three decades?

Erin Washington:

Yeah. And honestly, if somebody's on this weight loss thing just once, a quick. There are three things that changed everything for me, physically. It was eating more often, lifting heavy, like putting muscle on my body and stopping all the obsession. So if you look at it that way.

Kim:

Yeah, obsession, the obsession.

Erin Washington:

You're thinking about it. You're counting calories, you're making. I was calculating what I was eating and then what I was working out to make sure it all canceled out. And it's all stress. And stress leads to cortisol which is a hormone that makes your body hold on to fat. So all of your stress is actually working against you. So when you stop all the obsession, you focus on weight training versus cardio, put muscle on your body.

Kim:

How do you stop the obsession? How do you stop the obsession? Because I think that's where we start.

Erin Washington:

I just started listening to my body. That's a great question. Kim. A trainer changed everything for me. I was in the gym all the time, sometimes twice a day, admittedly. And he came up to me. He wasn't my trainer. He was just, like, at the gym.

Erin Washington:

And he's like, how can I help you? Like, you're so frustrated. And I very defensively was like, well, yeah, because I do everything right. I barely eat. I work out twice a day, and I can't lose weight. And he very matter of factly was like, well, yeah, you're over exercising and under eating. Your body's starving. You just have to eat more. And I'm like, okay.

Erin Washington:

Like, he's. He's clearly trying to sabotage me. Like, eat more to lose weight to someone who wouldn't eat carrots at one point, because it was a starchy carbohydrate, I couldn't even, like, get my mind around it. But at that point, Kim, I had tried every fad diet, and he is telling me, eat more. And anybody that's like, I can't, I can't. And you have all this food noise. It can be healthy food, but eat more food. Eat every couple of hours.

Erin Washington:

And I started doing it, and my metabolism turned back on. I started feeling hungry again. I eat at least two times what I used to eat before, and I weigh 20 pounds less than I used to.

Kim:

Yeah.

Erin Washington:

Women are not taught. Eat more and turn your mistake.

Kim:

And if you good and don't obsess, my God, stop.

Erin Washington:

When you're satisfied, can I tell everybody.

Kim:

Listening, you're more beautiful and look beautiful. More beautiful than you think you do.

Erin Washington:

Yeah, right. Exactly.

Kim:

It's right where you are. Yeah, like, right where you are. You. You are more beautiful and radiant than you think you are right now. Trust what I'm telling you. I'm telling. We always think we are. We are not enough, but you are.

Kim:

You are so beautiful right now. Right where you are right now.

Erin Washington:

You're making me think, like, when you go out on a girls night and you're, like, picking yourself apart, like, looking at everyone else. Like, what if this feels like, what if they're looking at my body? No one's looking at you.

Kim:

Everyone's nobody cares.

Erin Washington:

No one's looking at that. You're the only person that sees that. And again, it's modeling what your daughter or your son will feel about themselves. Like, fake it till you make it project.

Kim:

Be that example.

Erin Washington:

And then you get confident. Like, when I started speaking, I would. Like, my body would physically shake. And, like, I'm, like, I have my microphone. I'm like, here goes nothing. And maybe 15 seconds speaking, I'm still shaking. And I just had to pretend like I was a confident woman on stage, and now it doesn't happen anymore. So, once you start pretending like that you're confident, you will start to feel confident.

Erin Washington:

It's like the law of attraction. You'll bring confidence.

Kim:

What comes out your mouth, your body and mind obeys. All right, so, every time. Okay, erin, every time, you've got. You've got to do this, because you're going to be amazing at this. I know. I do what we call rapid fire questions. Rapid fire questions. When you do this, I don't want you sitting there thinking.

Kim:

I just want. What comes up comes out.

Erin Washington:

Mm. That scares me. I'm a very.

Kim:

I live my life that way. I live my life that way, and it gets me in trouble sometimes. And, hey, you take the. Go to bed.

Erin Washington:

So you're trying to get me canceled. Okay, great.

Kim:

Well, canceled or, you know, more hits and likes on the podcast. Here we go. What's one thing you did this week that made your day better?

Erin Washington:

Wash my hair.

Kim:

Oh. Do you wash your hair every day?

Erin Washington:

No, I wash it today.

Kim:

Girl. I don't wash my hair. Like, sometimes three or four days.

Erin Washington:

That's. Oh, my. Oh, God. I go, honestly, like a week and a half, I had not washed my hair, and I feeling myself. My hair is washed. Wash my hair.

Kim:

I could. I can smell it from here. It smells wonderful. All right, here we go. What? Okay, this is great. What is the last text message you sent?

Erin Washington:

Oh, geez.

Kim:

Uh huh.

Erin Washington:

Oh, my God. I almost want to show it to you because it's so perfect.

Kim:

Show it. Go get it. Go get it. Show it.

Zac:

It.

Erin Washington:

Oh. How on brand is this? My husband, ex whatever I call him, because we're not divorced yet. He is at the beach with our daughter. I don't know. Can you read this?

Kim:

Read it. What does it say?

Erin Washington:

Tell her she looks beautiful. It's a picture of my daughter.

Zac:

Oh.

Erin Washington:

My last text is to my husband, x man. Tell her she looks beautiful to my daughter.

Kim:

You practice what you preach. Okay.

Erin Washington:

Thank God.

Kim:

What's the last thing you did that pushed you outside of your comfort zone.

Erin Washington:

Mm. That's a great question. I feel confident now. So, like, nothing, really.

Kim:

I love that. No, that's true.

Erin Washington:

I know. Like, I think the speaking, like, being on stage has absolutely pushed me out of my comfort zone. Like, I'm, like, I'm so in my head and physically shaking, but I got it now.

Kim:

Yeah, that's a good. No, I like that response.

Erin Washington:

Like, nothing changes.

Kim:

Because this is the thing. If you do it, it doesn't work out. Just do something else.

Erin Washington:

Yeah. Just what I'm doing right now, like, being on a. Like, a show with you. Like, how is it? What is even happening right now? Like, I've gotten myself to a point where I am comfortable doing something like this, and if someone fabulous. We're not feeling that way. You can change your life. Like, you can rewrite everything. Oh, I have to share something.

Erin Washington:

I know we're doing rapid.

Kim:

Share it. Share.

Erin Washington:

Good. And, like, I was talking about a pivot, and I was like, yeah, I used to be squats and margaritas, but, you know, it's a pivot. Now. I'm this, and I used to be with my husband for 18 years, but it's a pivot. Whatever. So I'm at the little happy hour afterwards, and this woman comes up to me and she's like, it's not a pivot. It's a rise. And I was like, oh.

Erin Washington:

She's like, you are a higher version of yourself. You've risen up out of that. It's not a pivot. Pivot is like going right or left. It's not a pivot. It's a rise. So now it's not. Yeah, it's a rise.

Erin Washington:

Sorry. Anyway.

Kim:

I see. I see the next book. You got to get through this book first, but I see that's your next book.

Erin Washington:

Thank you, ma'am.

Kim:

Rise up. Rise up. Let's go. Okay. It's not a picture of teenage kids. Everything is like, let's go. Okay, here we go. What's the next thing on your bucket list that you want to do?

Erin Washington:

I want a TED talk bad.

Kim:

Shut up.

Erin Washington:

I want a Ted talk so bad. And I've applied, and it's going to be called to the woman working out, not seeing results. Nobody will give it to me. I'm putting it back out there. I got three tips.

Kim:

It's done.

Erin Washington:

I want a TED talk.

Kim:

Okay. Done in time.

Erin Washington:

Thank you.

Kim:

Great. You heard it here first, but check it off then. Who do you wish you could be trapped in an elevator with oh, that's a good one.

Erin Washington:

I have to say what I thought of her.

Zac:

Yes. Rapid.

Kim:

Yes.

Erin Washington:

The first thing that came to my mind was, Jason Momoa.

Kim:

I'm gonna have.

Erin Washington:

To just wanna know how his day went. I would just talk to him about bul bul boy.

Kim:

You allow now you ain't being authentic, girl.

Erin Washington:

Yeah, I wouldn't mind being trapped in an elevator. Jason Momoa. That's my answer. I stand by it.

Kim:

We didn't say what you were going to do in the two elevator. We're just saying, okay.

Erin Washington:

Don't have that be the next question.

Kim:

No, that's not. If you had to put. Listen, we are classy here on the Kim gravel show. If you had to put a vanity license plate on your car, what would it say?

Erin Washington:

Butterfly. Yeah, I have to.

Kim:

I have blue butterfly or just butterfly?

Erin Washington:

Ooh. I don't know. Is there enough room for that? Maybe if there's a new.

Kim:

This is your own thing. Do what you want.

Erin Washington:

If I could do blue Butterfly. I have a blue butterfly tattoo. I had a blue butterfly tattoo on my back from when I was 19. I just thought it was cute. And Brittany had one, and so I was like, that's what we do. But now, after my blue butterfly visited me and then the blue butterfly sticker, I named my foundation for teen girls struggling with body image and self worth. Blue butterfly foundation. And when I asked for clarity, I get a blue butterfly in some form.

Erin Washington:

It's going to be a sticker. It's going to be an actual butterfly fly. So I feel like that is my spirit animal and spirit insect, and that's whatever.

Kim:

Yeah. Let's see. I know. You know, I always say God works in mysterious ways, ways you never expect. Okay, what is your biggest pet? Feet peeve. Oh, God, I love this question.

Erin Washington:

Oh.

Kim:

You know, I'll give you mine. I'll give you mine. While you're thinking. Popping gum, like, popping and smacking gum. I can't.

Erin Washington:

So, like, a. What I thought of, because this has happened to me twice when someone, like, comes for me and I didn't do it. Like, for example, I kind of got into it with the traffic cop at my kid's school because I was not in the wrong. And he was, like, throwing his hands up, and I was like, I rolled down the window. I regret it now, but I was like, I didn't. He's, like, telling people to stop, and the two people in front of me went. And when he turned, he saw him moving, and he stopped the other line, and when he turned around, the way he looked at me and pointed at me, and it wasn't me, Kim. And I had to roll down the window.

Erin Washington:

I was like, that wasn't me. That was the people in front of me. And then I did it in front of my kids. And I was like, why do I need him to know that I was not wrong? I don't like when people accuse me of something and give me all this lip, and it wasn't me. And I have to tell people. I have to let him know I am in full.

Kim:

Right. I'm in full support of that, okay?

Erin Washington:

It makes me madden more than other people. Other people would let it go.

Kim:

No, I wouldn't let it go. I call this mama bear syndrome.

Erin Washington:

Okay?

Kim:

It's not. It's like that. Like, this is a whole nother here. Erin, I gotta come back on your show. We have to talk about, like, you know, angry mom syndrome. Cause we have it. But you're being falsely accused. So you're like, no, I'm just.

Erin Washington:

That's what I want to change it to. I don't like being falsely accused. And, I mean, nobody likes it, but I can't let it go. Like, I will have to defend my honor and roll down the window in front of my children that. I was like, that wasn't me. I didn't do it. And he's like, it's a yield. But I was like, I yielded it.

Erin Washington:

You got the wrong person. And I couldn't get the wrong one.

Kim:

You got the wrong one. You got the wrong one. Okay. What's the worst place someone could take you on a first date?

Erin Washington:

Ooh, I wish I would have prepped this one.

Kim:

Can you pretend bowling?

Erin Washington:

But I don't hate bowling. But that's what's coming up.

Kim:

Bowling would be the worst. It's Jeremy.

Erin Washington:

It is Jeremy.

Kim:

And so when you go for the kiss, like, do you believe in kissing on the first date?

Erin Washington:

Mmm. Sure.

Kim:

I don't know.

Erin Washington:

I haven't been on since I was 24.

Kim:

Okay. All right, well, you have to come back when you go and let me know. What advice would you give your younger self?

Erin Washington:

Get off the scale.

Kim:

Okay?

Erin Washington:

You are so much more than a number. Don't let that number dictate your day, because for so long, it did. If it was up, I was unworthy. If it was down, I was having the best day ever. And I speak to teenage girls sometimes, too. And I always say, like, whatever. You're dulling down about yourself right now so that you fit in with everyone else and you just want to be like, that is what you are going to love about yourself and your true. And you'll probably create a whole brand around it.

Erin Washington:

That unique thing that you're trying to dull, you're going to love one day. I would tell her that.

Kim:

Lean into it. What's the best thing about getting older?

Erin Washington:

Confidence. Like, just being okay with who you are. I've never been secure. And now, just like, when people would make comments or like trolls, it would hurt me. And now that I'm 42, like, I feel like in the last couple years, it, like, it doesn't affect me. I have. I'm secure with who I am and I. You find out exactly who you are and why you're here and your why.

Erin Washington:

And so outside things don't really affect you anymore. Like, you get self assurance and confidence that you don't have when you're younger.

Kim:

Amen. Who is your dream podcast guest, other than me?

Erin Washington:

Jason Momoa. No, I already had her. Kim, you were already on.

Kim:

No, you gotta give me somebody else. You know I'm playing.

Erin Washington:

I can tell you who I'm trying. There's two that I'm close to booking right now. Kelly Ripa. I wanna talk her about her sobriety journey. She just stopped drinking. And in her book, she mentioned at the end of her book that she didn't get into a couple things that she wasn't really ready to go into yet. And I have a feeling that's what it is. I finally made it to her.

Erin Washington:

I'm actually going to be on live with Kelly and Mark in March. And, you know, I'm going to shoot my shot like I did with you. So hopefully I can lock that down. I want to talk to her about sobriety. I'm also trying to talk to Kyle Richards, real Housewives of Beverly Hills about.

Kim:

Because she's doing the. Yeah.

Erin Washington:

And sobriety.

Kim:

And the sobriety.

Erin Washington:

It's a double. So those are the two. But I would say my dream podcast guest is Sarah Blakely. Spanx.

Kim:

Oh, God.

Erin Washington:

I want you to minutes. Yeah. And she's here. Well, we both. I love how we both say we live in Atlanta and neither of us do why we live in the.

Kim:

We live in the metro area.

Erin Washington:

We're Atlanta adjacent. And Spanx is here. And if Sarah Blakely is listening to this, at some point calling need about 20 minutes about how you built your empire.

Kim:

We're manifesting it. Here we go. Who is your celebrity crush other than Jason Momoa?

Erin Washington:

He's my answer to everything. Jason Momoa is my celebrity crush.

Kim:

You have to give me one more. Give me the nerd version.

Erin Washington:

Well, he's not a nerd. Do you know Shamar Moore or Boris Kojo?

Kim:

He's a little nerdy. I like him.

Erin Washington:

Little smarty skin, black guy. That is on gorgeous. Gorgeous.

Kim:

Like honey. We all know him. Yes.

Erin Washington:

My kids are mixed race. I believe Shamara's mixed. Shamar Moore. I will put up there with Jason together.

Kim:

Okay.

Erin Washington:

If they put me on a date, we could do that.

Kim:

Let's do it. But just not bowling. Okay, here we go. What is your. Just not bowling. What is your favorite junk food? And don't give me, like, carrots with ranch. I mean, I want a real. Oh, God.

Erin Washington:

Milk duds.

Kim:

Thank you. What's your salty? What's your salty?

Erin Washington:

Ooh, it has sweet in the name, but sweet potato fries. Cause they have salt on them. Ooh, sweet potato fries. Like, if they're on a menu, I will swap them with whatever side comes with whatever I'm getting. I'll say.

Kim:

But. Agreed.

Erin Washington:

Potato fries, but milk duds. I mean, my ex husband, spouse man, whatever I call him, I don't know what to call him. Brought me milk duds for Valentine's Day. That is how good we're getting along.

Kim:

That's. But can I just say with the milk duds and my, like, crowns and all that, I can't eat that. When you get older, your teeth come out. Your teeth will come out.

Erin Washington:

You don't even want to hear this. Then I keep them in the fridge, so they're either. I mean, I'm gonna lose a tooth, honey.

Kim:

You're gonna lose a tooth. Or crack a jaw.

Erin Washington:

I like a chewy, almost crunchy, because it's cold. Milk dud. Milk duds all day long.

Kim:

You know, I'm going to get me some milk duds after this fridge. Here we go.

Zac:

Did you say a cold milk dud?

Erin Washington:

Yeah. Not the freezer. You don't have to go that far. But, Zac, you're missing this.

Zac:

Okay.

Erin Washington:

Milk duds in the freezer.

Zac:

I'm gonna try it.

Kim:

Last thing. Yeah. Milk dust in the fridge. I'm doing. It's done. What is next for you?

Erin Washington:

I wrote a children's book that I am very proud of called I'm just like me, and it's inspired by my daughter, who is five foot tall and biracial in the second grade. And I can give you a little bit of it. Have you ever asked God why he made you like you? It's okay to say yes because I ask him too. I ask him why my eyes are brown when all my friends have blue, and why I'm taller than my classmates and wear a bigger shoe. And it's like this whole rhyming thing about how you're not. It basically ends, I'm not supposed to look like you. I'm supposed to look like me. And I'm just the way I'm supposed to be.

Erin Washington:

I'm not like you. I'm just like me. And it's. I am so proud of it. I feel like God downloaded it into my brain. And I have been hustling it, Kim, and trying to get a publisher. But, yes, a children's book called I'm just like me is in the works. It's written.

Erin Washington:

I'm talking to some publishers, and hopefully you will see it on the shelves.

Kim:

You will.

Erin Washington:

Yeah. And Ted talk.

Kim:

You will listen. And when you have those things, you've got to come back on and tell us all about it. Okay? So, for all of you listening, I've got a rapid fire question for you. I want you to write your answer in the comments or go to kimgrevelshow.com and send me a message with your answer. And here's your question. What's the first thing you would do if you won the lottery? So, whatever that is, I want you to answer my rapid fire question and leave it in the comments. Erin, I love you. Y'all need to go follow Erin Washington, subscribe to her podcast, Theronp, that's t h e r I ndhd.

Kim:

And go buy her book, from pain to purpose, finding meaning in the mess, and follow her on social media at Iamarin Washington. Girl. Girl, thank you for coming on the show. And I want y'all, thank y'all for watching and listening. Erin, go follow Erin. Cause she is, girl, she going places.

Erin Washington:

I'm just following you. I'm following you.

Kim:

I love it. We're gonna do it together. Arms locked, supporting one another.

Erin Washington:

Thank you for having me.

Kim:

Love y'all. Bye. Erin. Come back.

Erin Washington:

Done.

Kim:

And if you ever. Hey, if Jason asks you out on that date, text me. Let me know how it go.

Erin Washington:

If everyone could tag him in this, please. Okay, bye.

Kim:

We'll tag him. Bye. Bye. I love you, girl.

Erin Washington:

I listened to the show, Zac. I am very familiar.

Zac:

Oh, good. I'm so glad to hear that. I listen to your show.

Kim:

She is educated, honey. She's educated, right?

Erin Washington:

I want to Zac on my show.

Kim:

Yeah. I mean, you know, I'm telling you, everybody says that, girl. Everybody.

Erin Washington:

It's telling me to close my other my 97 browsers that I have open.

Kim:

Well, I mean, the struggle is reals girl. I am obsessed with AI though. I love it. 

Kim:

The Kim Gravel Show is produced and edited by Zac Miller at Uncommon Audio. Our associate producer is Kathleen Grant, the Brunette Exec. Production help from Emily Bredin and Sara Noto. Our cover art is designed by Sanaz Huber at Memarian Creative and Mike Kligerman edits the show. Talent booking by Central Talent Booking and a special thanks to the team at QVC. Head over to kimgravelshow.com and sign up for our mailing list.

Kim:

Again, we can't do this without you, so thank you for listening and we love.