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Joanna Gaines is no stranger to home renovations — but letting go of her own kids is a different kind of overhaul.
The “Fixer Upper” star gave an emotional update on her family as she and husband Chip Gaines navigate life with their kids growing up and leaving the nest.
“Chip is doing good, he dropped the kids off this morning, sent me a little picture,” Joanna said on the “Today” show. “The kids are good. I have my oldest son who is now a junior in college. I feel like, ‘Hey, I’m getting the hang of it every time he leaves, so it’s not as hard.’”
JOANNA GAINES SAYS COLLEGE SENDOFF IS ‘ONE BIG, BREATHLESS SURRENDER’ IN EMOTIONAL POST
Joanna Gaines shared an emotional post as she sent two of her kids off to college. (Getty Images)
The designer and Magnolia co-founder admitted that sending off their daughter Ella took a different emotional toll.
“But my second daughter, Ella, she left last week, so it’s like still raw,” she shared. “I’m like, ‘Oh, God help me.’”
Joanna, 46, said Ella’s departure has been more difficult since she’s further away than her other son, Drake.
“It feels different because she went further, and she’s my girl,” she said. “So I thought I had this down with Drake, I already know. It’s totally different.”
In a previous emotional post, Joanna described sending Ella off to college as “one big, breathless surrender.”
When asked if Ella’s dorm room was decked out with Joanna’s signature design touches, the proud mom explained she let her daughter take the lead.
JOANNA GAINES KEEPS LIFE SIMPLE IN TEXAS AWAY FROM HOLLYWOOD SPOTLIGHT
Joanna said that Ella did her own interior design for her dorm room. (Getty Images)
“She’s very into design, she has her own unique style so I stepped back,” Joanna said. “I said, ‘You show me…’ and I let her do her own thing. It’s really what she wanted.”
As for their youngest, Crew, he’s growing up fast and still very hands-on in the kitchen, she pointed out on “Today.”
“Crew has always loved [cooking], anything mixing, messy,” she said. “It’s not as efficient, but it’s so fun… he’s so intrigued by it, but he’s getting so big.”
The HGTV star’s comments come after she previously opened up about the emotional whirlwind of sending her kids off to college.
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On Aug. 10, Joanna took to Instagram and shared a room full of boxes with an emotional caption.
“They told me it would go by quicker than I think. That the days are slow but the years are fast. And darn it if they were right. This beautiful gift of time has roared past us all just like I was told.”
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Joanna and Chip Gaines are parents to five children: Ella, Drake, Crew, Emmie and Duke. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
“Help me to embrace change with a heart filled with hope for the part I know to be truer than the rest – my kids and I may have been made for each other, but I also believe they were made for more. More experiences, more knowledge, more growing than could ever happen within our walls,” Joanna wrote.
She continued, “My oldest son left for his third year of college while my oldest daughter packs for her first year across the country. This season already feels like one big, breathless surrender. Lord, how do I hold them close while also letting go?”
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She signed off by addressing parents who are sending their kids off to college and those who still have their children at home.
“And let’s all lean on each other when the time comes to hold it together,” she concluded.
Joanna additionally shared an Instagram reel enjoying one last family dinner before two of her kids head off to college.
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The Gaines’ have not shared where Ella or Drake are attending college. (Courtesy of The Paley Center For Media)
“Gulp. Last dinner together before our oldest heads back to college and our second is about to leave home for her freshman year.”
Joanna and Chip are parents to five children: Ella, Drake, Crew, Emmie and Duke.
The Gaines have not shared where Ella or Drake are attending college.
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Fox News Digital’s Janelle Ash contributed to this report.
