Minnie Driver's son Henry is officially an adult, and the proud mom marked the milestone by opening up the family album.
The Good Will Hunting actress, 56, shared a collection of rarely-seen photographs of her only child in honor of his 18th birthday on September 5, documenting his transformation from an adorable curly-haired little boy to a handsome young man.
And in the more recent photographs, there is no mistaking the family resemblance, with Henry sharing his famous mom's features. One sweet childhood snap showed Henry as a toddler pushing a toy stroller around the family's home while wearing nothing but a T-shirt, diaper and a pair of oversized boots.
Another showed mother and son relaxing together in a hammock, while Minnie went makeup-free as a young Henry rested his head in his hand beside her.
© InstagramIn a more recent selfie, Henry posed alongside his mom at a restaurant, while another photograph captured the teenager sitting cross-legged on the floor.
Minnie Driver's emotional message to son Henry
Minnie accompanied the collection with a sweet poem dedicated to her son. "HAIKU, ON THE OCCASION OF YOUR 18th BIRTHDAY," she began.
"Small bird, you were once. Now you are big wings and flight. Please don't fly too far." The actress then added: "Happy birthday dearest Hen. You are pure magic. I BLINKED and you're 18. I love you, we all LOVE you."
The milestone is particularly poignant given how openly Minnie has spoken about the profound impact becoming a mother had on her life.
© InstagramHenry Story Driver was born on September 5, 2008, and Minnie has previously revealed that his arrival was especially unexpected because she had been told as a teenager that she was unlikely to have children.
How motherhood changed Minnie Driver
Minnie has never shied away from admitting that raising Henry changed virtually every aspect of her life. "[Motherhood has] made me a far better person than I ever could have hoped to be," she previously said, describing the experience as an "unalterable devotion to another person's happiness."
It even influenced the roles she accepted. As a single mother, Minnie deliberately stepped back from travelling around the world making movies and moved towards television because it offered her greater stability.
"I needed to be home, I needed a regular paycheck, and I needed to know that I could make it to his soccer matches on the weekend and be present for his life," she explained.
© InstagramIt was a decision she has no regrets about, with the actress crediting motherhood with giving her a different perspective on both her career and herself.
Minnie Driver on raising Henry as a single mom
Minnie has also been refreshingly honest about the realities of single motherhood. Henry's father is writer and producer Timothy J. Lea, whom Minnie met while working on the television series The Riches. The pair were not together as a couple when Henry was growing up, although Minnie has said father and son developed their own close relationship.
"All I ever wanted was, well, you want as much love as possible for your child and his dad is an avenue of love, and that's their thing," she told The Guardian.m"It looks different from a lot of people's set-ups, but it works for us."
Minnie admitted that the early years weren't always easy, recalling the extraordinary effort it took to balance working with raising a baby.m"I look back now and it's sort of vertiginous, the feeling," she said. "I cannot believe the [stuff] that I did to keep it together."
But she also remembers being repeatedly surprised by the kindness of strangers, from people who helped soothe Henry on flights to someone who once found her somewhere to breastfeed in a supermarket.
© InstagramThe lesson Henry taught his famous mom
Perhaps most revealingly, Minnie has credited her son with teaching her something she had previously struggled with: putting down roots.
"He taught me about consistency, and also about being able to put roots down and be together without needing these external things," she said.
"He changed my life entirely." She has also described becoming a parent as an opportunity to reconsider her own childhood.
"When you have a child of your own, you get to, in a way, revisit, maybe, the parts of your own childhood that didn't go the way that maybe you wish they had," Minnie told Good Morning America. "You also get to pass on what was great that your parents taught you."
Minnie's pride in Henry
As Henry has grown older, Minnie has allowed fans occasional glimpses into their close relationship. She has even invited him onto her Minnie Questions podcast several times, explaining that recording conversations with him over the years allowed her to hear how his outlook changed as he grew up.
During one particularly candid episode, Henry spoke about his mental health and the challenges faced by his generation. Minnie admitted she hadn't known beforehand what he was going to reveal and tried simply to listen rather than intervene. She described the conversation as "encouraging and enlightening" and said: "I felt deeply proud as a mother."
