Years later, people are still talking about Chip and Joanna Gaines’ decision to step away from FIXER UPPER. So, why did they do it?
“It’s like when you start realizing you’re living on a thing that’s now — the intentionality is gone, and you’re just showing up — that doesn’t feel fulfilling,” Joanna said during an episode of the “Joy 101” podcast. “It actually feels as though we’re a part of this machine that is like, ‘What’s the life here?’”
She and her husband, who started FIXER UPPER in 2013, made the decision to step away from the HGTV hit show just four years later.
Related: Chip and Joanna Gaines Reflect on FIXER UPPER Ahead of 10th Anniversary: ‘Grace of God’
In a blog post at the time, the couple wrote, This has been an amazing adventure! We have poured our blood, sweat, and tears into this show. We would be foolish to think we can go and go and fire on all cylinders and never stop to pause…This is just us recognizing that we need to catch our breath for a moment. Our plan is to take this time to shore up and strengthen the spots that are weak, rest the places that are tired and give lots of love and attention to both our family and our businesses.”
“I would say that was our first pause of like, ‘We’re doing all this and seeing great reward. This is wonderful. But also, never at the expense of, like, our livelihood, our happiness, our souls,’” Joanna explained.
She continued, “I think now it’s just the older I get, the more conscious I am of that feeling and how, whether that’s time in the garden, that’s a walk, that’s journaling, it’s time with my kids, whatever it is, filling my tank.”
The work-life balance is still something Joanna admits she struggles with.
“Mom guilt never goes away,” she said on the “Joy 101” podcast, explaining that she felt a lot of guilt for being a working mom during her daughter Ella’s life and even apologized shortly before Ella went to college.
“She kind of got mad,” she shared. “She got upset and she said, ‘Mom, are you serious? All you’ve taught me is, I can do anything and everything.’ So the narrative [Ella’s] built up over the years is not the mom guilt that I’ve been holding. Instead, it’s one of strength and empowerment and beauty. And right there, it was a life-changing moment for me that you need to talk more.”
FIXER UPPER fans might have been disappointed to see the show go but are happy to hear the Gaines’ were looking out for their family and their mental health.
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