They seem like the perfect couple. He\u2019s the handsome and outgoing contractor, she\u2019s the gorgeous and reserved interior designer. Together, Chip<\/strong> and Joanna Gaines<\/strong> \u2014 who celebrated their 22nd wedding anniversary in May \u2014 have built beautiful houses, a big family (they share kids Drake<\/strong>, 20, Ella<\/strong>, 18, Duke<\/strong>, 17, Emmie<\/strong>, 15, and Crew<\/strong>, 7) and a massive empire that includes their long-running hit HGTV show Fixer Upper<\/em> and its spinoffs, a new HBO Max show, Back to the Frontier<\/em>, product lines, books and their own Magnolia television network.<\/p>\n But behind the flawless facade, some cracks are showing for the Texas-based pair. While talking to celebrity trainer Don Saladino<\/strong> on the July 29 episode of his Stronger<\/a><\/em> podcast, Joanna, 47, opened up about how difficult it\u2019s been for her and Chip, 50, to find balance in their hectic schedules, which are packed to the gills with work commitments and parenthood. \u201cIt is hard to do all of it,\u201d Joanna confessed.<\/p>\n According to a source, the pressure of juggling their lucrative brand (together, the power couple is worth an estimated $50 million) with family life is getting to them. \u201cIt\u2019s a struggle for Chip and Joanna to juggle everything,\u201d the source tells Star<\/em>. As their business continues to grow (Joanna\u2019s new cooking show Magnolia Table: At the Farm<\/em> debuts Sept. 7), romance tends to be put on the back burner. \u201cThey find it hard to sit together and talk about stuff that\u2019s not business-related,\u201d adds the source. \u201cIt\u2019s something they continue to have trouble with.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s not the first time they\u2019ve faced hardships as a couple. \u201c[We] were struggling for the first 12 years of marriage,\u201d Joanna confessed to Saladino, noting that when they were building their business, she and Chip were in a constant state of fear of losing their original Magnolia Market shop in Waco, Texas. As Chip put it in a 2023 interview with People<\/em><\/a>, \u201cWe\u2019ve had our challenges, I don\u2019t want to belittle that piece of the equation.\u201d At the time, they were both working together and quickly growing their family. \u201cIn their early years as a married couple, life was a blur,\u201d says the source. \u201cThey were doing so much and raising babies. It was really hard.\u201d<\/p>\n Tension can boil over, sometimes publicly. \u201cChip and Jo bicker \u2014 that\u2019s become their trademark,\u201d says the source. \u201cJo is a control freak while Chip likes to be silly and that often leads to friction.\u201d<\/p>\n And they\u2019re not always on the same page when it comes to work and the future of their brand. \u201cJo has so many great ideas,\u201d says the source. \u201cShe\u2019s into expanding and moving in all these different directions, while Chip would be content just flipping houses.\u201d<\/p>\n As longtime business partners, it can be difficult to keep romance at the forefront. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to figure out the line of \u2018Oh, that\u2019s business. OK, this is marriage,\u2019\u201d Joanna explained to Today<\/em><\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019ve tried to be like, \u2018Let\u2019s go on a date and not talk about business.\u2019 So we\u2019d sit there and be like, \u2018The garden is doing great today\u2026\u2019 When we go on dates, sometimes we get energized by talking about how to problem-solve. So I don\u2019t know.\u201d While the source says neither one is good \u201cat shutting off\u201d work talk, the pair revealed on the podcast that they have started working out together as a means of improving their wellness.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a constant work in progress. \u201cThey had to learn how to iron out issues as they arose,\u201d says the source, adding that as the kids get older, Joanna is learning to slow down. She told US Weekly<\/em><\/a> this spring that after the birth of \u201csurprise\u201d baby Crew, she took her foot \u201coff the gas for the first time in what felt like forever,\u201d adding, \u201cHe is constantly reminding me to look up.\u201d<\/p>\n At the end of the day, they know what matters most \u2014 their family. On Aug. 10, Joanna shared an emotional post on Instagram<\/a> showing her final day with her two eldest children at their farmhouse before they headed off to college. \u201cThankful for the group hug and all the puppies to help me work through my wide range of emotions,\u201d she wrote. Of fame, Chip said on the podcast, \u201c[If] all of this would instantly go away, and my wife and kids would be back on the farm, raising animals,\u201d he wouldn\u2019t have a problem. But, he added, \u201cJo and I believe we can have our cake and eat it too, in the sense that I can be successful, and I can have a healthy marriage and family.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/staging.starmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/feat_gaines_u2cbz348.jpg_master-copy-scaled.jpg\")
Fully Gutted<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Blueprint For The Future<\/strong><\/h2>\n