Heidi Klum and Seal have confirmed they are separating after almost seven years of marriage, PEOPLE reports.

While we have enjoyed seven very loving, loyal and happy years of marriage, after much soul-searching we have decided to separate,” the couple said in a statement. “We have had the deepest respect for one another throughout our relationship and continue to love each other very much, but we have grown apart. This is an amicable process and protecting the well-being of our children remains our top priority, especially during this time of transition.”

The German supermodel, 38, and the Grammy-Award winning singer, 48, continued: “We thank our family, friends, and fans for their kind words of support. And for our children’s sake, we appreciate you respecting our privacy.”

What went wrong? The seemingly perfect couple started dating when Heidi was expecting a child with her ex-boyfriend, Flavio Briatore.

Seal stated that he accepted Leni as his own from the very beginning: “A month into our relationship, she told me she was pregnant, but was no longer with the father. I told her it didn’t change the way I felt about her. Apart from being my wife, she’s also my best friend.”

In late 2009, Seal adopted Leni. “It’s [the adoption] only happened fairly recently. But it doesn’t make her any more or less my daughter. She always has been,” Seal said. “All it means is that both Heidi and I wanted her to have the same last name as the rest of us. It was about Leni. I don’t want her to feel different because I know what that’s like, being a kind of stepson. And I don’t want that dynamic for my little girl.”

Heidi has done her fair share of gushing about her “hot and sexy” hubby, whom she has four children with: Leni, 7, Henry, 6, Johan, 5, and Lou, 2.

I believe you have to marry someone that you think is really hot and sexy,” Heidi told Celebrity Baby Scoop. “The other night we met out for dinner and arrived in separate cars. I was waiting for him and when he finally walked in, I was like, ‘that’s my man!!!’ I still get butterflies! I also think we work on being hot for each other; exercising and eating right. I want to look good for him. I think it’s really important.”

Heidi went on to talk about the importance of stealing time away for each other. “We love our kids but we love each other too so we run off and do grown up things- talk about grown up things,” Heidi said. “You can’t just talk about missing teeth or poop all the time! We talk about vacations and what’s troubling each other- you have to do those things. You have to steal time away together.”

Seal has also opened up about their annual wedding vow renewal.

Each year, Heidi and I get remarried,” Seal said. “It’s a great party, but for about an hour, we go off on our own down to a private beach. We sit there with the kids and read vows to each other as the sun sets. It’s a very special moment to us.”

Our thoughts go out to the Klum-Samuel family!

Photos: Bauer Griffin