“Congratulations to all the graduates, especially Apple Martin,” Gwyneth Paltrow captioned a photo she posted to her Instagram story on June 2. In the picture, Gwyneth, 49, posed alongside her 18-year-old daughter, who wore a deep green graduate gown. The two weren’t alone: Apple’s father and Gwyneth’s ex, Chris Martin, was sandwiched between the two. The Coldplay singer, dressed in a black suit jacket and navy tie, had a bright, proud smile as he wrapped his arm around his daughter’s shoulders.
Gwyneth and Chris, 45, welcomed Apple into the world in 2004. The couple also shares a son, Moses Martin, who was born in 2006. Though Chris and the Goop founder famously “consciously uncoupled” in 2014, they remained on good terms while co-parenting their two children. Gwyneth has gone on to marry Brad Falchuk and become stepmom to his two children, son Brody, and daughter Isabella.
When Apple turned 18 in May 2022, Gwyneth celebrated with a loving tribute. “I’m a bit of a loss for words this morning,” wrote a proud but stunned Gwyneth while sharing a picture of her Apple in a white outfit. “I could not be more proud of the woman you are,” the actress told her daughter. You are everything I could have dreamed of and so much more.”
“Proud doesn’t cover it,” she added, “my heart swells with feelings I can’t put into words. You are deeply extraordinary in every way. Happy birthday my darling girl. I hope you know how special you are, and how much light you have brought to all who are lucky enough to know you. Especially me. I say it all the time, and I will never stop… in the words of auntie Drew, I was born the day you were born. I love you.”
A month before Apple turned 18, Gwyneth shared the origin of Apple’s unique name. At the time, “Apple” was the oddest celebrity child name, but in the following decades, the world has met Stormi Webster, Dream Kardashian, Bronx Wentz (the son of Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson), and more. As for where Apple gets her name from? “Her dad came up with the name, and I fell in love with it,” she wrote in an Instagram Q&A, per PEOPLE. “I thought it was original and cool. I can’t imagine her being called anything else.”