James Van Der Beek celebrates his daughter Olivia’s 13th birthday with heartwarming Instagram tribute: ‘You taught me what love was in an instant’
James Van Der Beek’s eldest daughter is officially a teenager.
The Dawson’s Creek star celebrated Olivia’s milestone birthday with a heartwarming tribute on his Instagram page, kicking things off with a photo of his daughter posing with him for a selfie where Olivia looked like the spitting image of her famous father.
‘It feels like yesterday I was staring into your little bassinet in the hospital, beyond exhausted,’ the 46-year-old Varsity Blues star wrote in the caption of a photo dump featuring sweet snaps of himself with Olivia.
He continued with, ‘unable to close my eyes and stop looking at you – and realizing I’d never be able to communicate just how cool it was to have a little you…’
Utterly bewildered by how fast his firstborn daughter was growing up, James wrote, ‘You expanded my heart and my soul’s capacity the second you came out in ways I could’ve never imagined.’
Like father, like daughter: James Van Der Beek celebrated his daughter Olivia’s 13th birthday with heartwarming Instagram tribute: ‘You taught me what love was in an instant’
Doting dad: The Dawson’s Creek star wrote a lengthy, heartfelt tribute to his teenaged daughter
The father of six — he has four daughters and two sons in total with his wife Kimberly Brook, added that Olivia ‘taught me what love was in an instant.’
He previously spoke to People about how he appreciated that his family was, ‘lucky enough to have the space to kick a ball around,’ on their Texas ranch located just outside of Austin.
The Castle In The Sky actor added that even when his large brood lived in Los Angeles, ‘trees were our best babysitter.’
He added that his family appreciated how they could, ‘watch the seasons change,’ in Texas.
Olivia was the first child James welcomed into the world with his wife back in 2010, the same year the couple tied the knot.
Recounting in a separate interview to the outlet that he and Kimberly chose an unorthodox route towards naming their first child, James remembered, ‘We wanted her to come out and then see what her name would be.’
He added that they were inspired by a ‘olive tree in Israel that’s special to us.’
When Kimberly gave birth to their firstborn, the couple realized their daughter, ‘looked like an Olivia.’
Once his precocious young daughter grew up, she demonstrated she had a good sense of humor when she sent her dad the viral meme of his crying face during a moment on Dawson’s Creek.
Golden girl: The CSI: Cyber star recounted in a People interview how he and his wife waited for their firstborn daughter to be born before christening her with the name Olivia
Just like her dad: In the series of snaps the father of six shared on Instagram, Olivia looked like his spitting image
Firstborn and fabulous: James’s firstborn daughter is the first one of his kids to hit the ‘teenager’ milestone
Nothing but love: The One Tree Hill star wrote that Olivia, ‘taught me what love was in an instant’
A-list offspring: The Texas Rangers star’s first daughter was unafraid to roast her famous father over the famous meme of him crying on Dawson’s Creek
In the closing paragraphs of the doting father’s birthday post to Olivia, James wrote, ‘thank you for being you.’
He added, ‘For your kindness that somehow surpasses even your coolness, for your drive, your creativity, your A+ stink-eye and your smart-a** sense of humor.
Staying down to Earth as ever, James added, ‘And for still thinking I’m funny.’
James concluded with an extra dash of fatherly love, writing, ‘I love you for everything you are, and everything I see you becoming. Humbled and honored to be your dad.’
