Giada De Laurentiis Says Daughter Jade Learning to Drive Has ‘Been an Emotional Rollercoaster’ (Exclusive)

Giada De Laurentiis has mixed emotions about a major milestone in her daughter’s life.

During an interview with PEOPLE about her new line of Giadzy Pasta, the chef reveals all the emotions that are brewing now that her daughter Jade, 15, is learning how to drive. 

“It’s so stressful,” she says. “It’s so emotional to watch your child grow up like this, and I feel like driving is such a big step.”

Jade, who is De Laurentiis’s only child with ex Todd Thompson, recently finished her first year of high school at a new school.

“High school was not as big a deal,” De Laurentiis tells PEOPLE. “Driving is a much bigger deal.”

Though Jade is still just learning, De Laurentiis is dreading the inevitable: “It won’t be like, ‘Hey, mom. Can you drive me here? Hey, mom. Can I do this?’ It’s more going to be like, ‘Hey, mom. I’m going to do this. I’ll see you later,’ and I get left in the dust,” adds the Food Network alum.

She explained that this milestone is also “the first big step before college” which makes it particularly difficult while De Laurentiis is still grappling with the idea of her one day leaving the house.  

Giada De Laurentiis and her daughter Jade enjoying a plate of pancakes.
Giada DeLaurentiis Instagram

Because there are highs, too, “it’s been an emotional rollercoaster,” she says. “That’s what it’s really been.”

“It’s also really fun to see her excitement,” the Giadzy founder says. “She is so excited to be independent. It’s like this thing she just so badly wants.”

Ultimately, De Laurentiis adds that her daughter’s discovery of new things while driving, like the purpose of a roundabout, is “almost like an awakening. You know when your child starts to learn to speak and to walk, you’re in such awe? It’s the same kind of experience.”

Giada De Laurentiis with her Giadzy Pasta.

Courtesy of Giadzy and Giada De Laurentiis

De Laurentiis has had a full plate over the last year with the launch of her own pasta line, striking a multi-year deal with Amazon Studios, and all the business that it takes to run those operations. 

“I feel like I’m learning so much in a world that I didn’t really know much about in the past and owning it as we go through it,” she says. “The mistakes are mine and the wins are mine.”

Her Giadzy Pasta shapes — nodi marini, bucatini, taccole, pappardelle, paccheri, bucatini lunghi, manfredi lunghi and spaghetti chitarra — are made in the Abruzzo, Italy region and are cut on 100-year-old bronze dies. They are available exclusively on her website giadzy.com.

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Source: HIS Education