By India McCarty
Former HGTV stars Chip and Joanna Gaines’ second oldest will leave the nest soon, and the couple aren’t sure if they’re ready for it.
“Ella, our second kiddo, she’s graduating this year, so we’re going through that again with another kid leaving the nest and trying to stay emotionally stable,” Joanna told PEOPLE in a recent interview.
When Chip asked if she thought it would be “harder” to see Ella go than it was when eldest son Drake, 20, went to college, Joanna replied, “Yes. I think there’s an emotional difference.”
“With Ella, we love to go to antiques shops, plant shops and go get coffee — that’s our rhythm. I kind of feel like I’m losing a friend in my everyday life,” she continued. “It feels like what’s coming this summer will be a tidal wave of emotions, and I am not going to brace; I’m going to stand there and take it with him.”
Joanna did say she was “excited for [Ella] to learn” at college and said the 18-year-old is “excited about going somewhere and just being known for her. She’s like, ‘I don’t want anyone knowing that you’re…I just want to go and be myself.’”
Joanna had previously shared how difficult it was to send Drake off to school, writing a touching essay for Magnolia Journal.
“In the grand scheme of heartbreaking things, this one comes with a lot of gratitude and excitement,” she wrote. “But still, my first child is moving away, and our family dynamic will change because of it, and that can feel like a loss of its own. I catch glimpses now of what that life will look like and wonder if — or how many times — that might bring me to the floor.”
She continued, “What we learn is that life is not about holding out only for the days of brightest possibility. It’s not only about finding ourselves a crisp new page. Sometimes, in order to move forward, we have to surrender ourselves to the promise of growth that follows the fall. Easier said than done, yes — one thousand times yes.”
The FIXER UPPER star spoke to PEOPLE about it last year, sharing, “I think the greatest gift of having a kid go off to college and having a 5-year-old toddler [son Crew], is kind of that perspective of it’s not here forever. Don’t take it for granted, and cherish these moments. And that’s what this 5-year-old is teaching me.”
Joanna’s advice to “surrender ourselves to the promise of growth” is an excellent suggestion to the many other parents who are preparing to send their own children off to college this fall.
Read Next: Chip And Joanna Gaines: ‘Family Is The Most Important Thing in The World’
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
- Content: +4Share:
- Content: +1