HGTV Star Gets Emotional Sending Son to College, and It’s So Relatable
By Movieguide® Contributor
Joann Gaines shared a heartful — and relatable — post on Instagram as she sent her oldest son off to his second year of college.
“Second year in college… saying goodbye doesn’t get easier. Lots of love to all the parents sending their kids off to school this season 🤍,” Gaines captioned an Instagram post with a picture of her hugging her son Drake.
Gaines shares Drake with her husband Chip, along with their four other kids: Duke, Ella, Emmie and Crew.
While Chip and Joanna have found fame through their HGTV series FIXER UPPER and have built a design empire through their Magnolia brand, the couple has remained focused on their kids.
“They’re so young, and we want to give them the chance to have a normal childhood,” Joanna said in 2021, explaining why the couple ended their time on FIXER UPPER. “Family is the most important thing in the world.
Through this time with their children, the pair has emphasized strong values and hard work, rather than allowing their kids to become spoiled by the comfort brought to them by fame.
“It’s in how intentional we are about reinforcing goodness within our home, nurturing our values as a family over and over again until it takes,” said Chip about their approach to parenting.
Though the couple is thankful for taking a step back from their work to focus on their kids, their time parenting has still flown by. As any parent can attest to, one day their kids were seven, and before they knew it, they were seventeen.
“When [Drake] was Crew’s age, people would look at me and say, ‘Oh, you better hold on tight. It goes by fast,’” Joanna said. “Now, being a mother of a 4-year-old and an almost 18-year-old, it’s a constant reminder to not take these moments for granted.”
Movieguide® previously reported:
As Joanna Gaines has gotten older, she’s been reflecting on her life and her mindset as a mother.
Gaines shared that previously, she thought, “I’m the mom, I should have the answers.” However, now she understands the importance of being “vulnerable.”
“The older I’ve gotten, I’ve realized the more humanity these kids can see in me, the more we’re going to connect,” Gaines explained.
She continued, “I want them to see the highs and lows, so when they’re feeling anxieties about school or relationships, they know it’s a safe place for them to come to me.”
