Chip and Joanna Gaines are reflecting on 20 years of marriage and how their relationship has changed over the past two decades.
The couple shot to fame after appearing on the hit HGTV reality series “Fixer Upper,” which followed them as they renovated homes in their hometown of Waco, Texas. Eventually, the Gaineses translated that popularity into a lifestyle media empire, which now consists of their own TV network, a retail emporium, multiple bestselling books, and dozens of product collaborations and other branded merchandise.
Chip, 49, and Joanna, 45 are known for their family-first mentality, which prompted them to take a break from television when their children were younger. Now the couple is discussing how things are different as they enter the next phase of their lives.
“I would say, as we’re getting older, I’m shifting and I’m more like Chip, and Chip is more like me,” Joanna told People about her husband during an interview published November 20.
“Jo and I are in this beautiful moment. We’re evolving into each other,” Chip agreed. “It’s the second part of our marriage.”
On the show, Chip was notorious for his goofy antics and practical jokes, while Joanna was always more outwardly practical and reserved.
“I want to be her biggest cheerleader,” Chip said of his wife exploring her more adventurous side. “I’m like, ‘Hey, you go do whatever. My knees are killing me.’”
Joanna joked about her new outlook being like a “midlife crisis.” She also said now that she’s in her mid forties, “we just see life differently now.”
“You’ve rubbed off on me,” Joanna told Chip at another point in the interview. “I think that’s the beauty of relationships in general. If Chip weren’t my partner, I would probably still be in the corner. From the moment I met him, he’s always experienced change in a positive way. Even if it was negative, it was, ‘All right. What do we do next?’”
“I believe it now,” she said. “We’ve had so much change in our lives, and the proof is there: Change is hard, but it’s always beautiful.”
“I hope that it’s just the beginning,” Chip said. “I hope that we get to look back in 20 years from now, and feel just as confident that we were meant to be. We really feel like we are in some ways just getting started.”
The Gaineses have five children: Drake, 18, Ella, 17, Duke, 15, Emmie, 13, and Crew, 5.
Joanna also reflected on the transition of sending their oldest to college, which she said helps her appreciate her 5-year-old even more.
“It’s this tension of joy and pain, all in one breath,” Joanna said of dropping off Drake at school. “Even now when I’m setting the table, I have to consciously go, ‘Oh, there’s only six here.’”
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“The greatest gift of having a kid go off to college and having a 5-year-old is that perspective,” she added. “It’s not here forever. We don’t want to waste these moments.”