JOANNA GAINES Family, Fitness & Life on the Farm

Becoming an empty nester is every mom's biggest fear. And while Joanna Gaines admits that she thinks about it “all the time” — especially now that she's got one kiddo in college and another preparing to follow suit — the Magnolia Network cofounder has been working hard to embrace what's to come.

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“I’ve had to practice a healthier mindset about this beautiful rite of passage that my kids are experiencing right now,” says Joanna, 46, who shares Drake, 20, Ella, 18, Duke, 16, Emmie, 15, and Crew, 6, with her husband of more than two decades, Chip, 50. “Every stage of ‘growing up’ has been a cycle of change, then gain. So, for me, it's really a matter of looking at ‘different’ in a healthy, exciting way and being expectant for all these new moments and milestones we get to celebrate as a family.” Fresh off the release of her new children's book, The World Needs the Wonder You See, the designer, author and Fixer Upper alum tells Us more.

This book was inspired by your youngest son, Crew. How has he changed how you see the world?

When Crew came — as a surprise! — I was older, and I don’t want to say that I was “wiser,” but I did have these four older kids as living proof that time really does move as fast as everyone promises. I knew that I wanted to hold Crew’s childhood differently. He slows me down.