Change is good, but it’s also scary. ‘Fixer Upper‘ star Joanna Gaines knows this all too well. The 44-year-old, who shares five kids with her husband Chip Gaines, talked to PEOPLE this week about how much she has changed as a mother.
She revealed how important it is to be “vulnerable” with her children. Before, she thought she always needed to have all the answers.
The older I’ve gotten, I’ve realized the more humanity these kids can see in me, the more we’re going to connect. 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.
It’s all about finding that balance, right? You want your kids to feel protected by you, but you also want them to know you’re not invincible. You want them to know you also have worries and pain, so they know it’s normal to have those feelings.
Joanna also talked about how she’s trying to remember how precious time is, especially now that her oldest son is leaving for college next year.
When [Drake] was Crew’s age, people would look at me and say, ‘Oh, you better hold on tight. It goes by fast,’ 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.
No lies detected. It all goes by so fast. Sometimes you have to stop everything for a moment and just remind yourself to live in the moment and take it all in, even the not-so-great days, because you’ll miss them all soon enough.
