STACEY Solomon has gushed with pride over eldest son Zach on his 17th birthday in a sweet message hailing the teen her “biggest blessing.”
The parent of five, 35, took to her Instagram page to mark the special moment with four snapshots taken throughout his life.
Loose Women panelist Stacey, who discovered she was expecting her first child at the age of 17, now is a proud mum of five.
She shares Zach with ex boyfriend Dean Cox, and 12-year-old Leighton with former fiance Aaron Barnham, before she welcomed daughters Rose, three, and Belle, two, and son Rex, five, with husband Joe Swash.
Yet marking her firstborn’s moment, she uploaded a black and white snap of the pair flashing huge smiles to the camera.
Stacey’s mini-me Zach can be seen donning a hoodie as he cuddles up to his make-up free mum, wearing a sports jumper.
The next snap sees Zach as a boy and in his school uniform, before he is captured with his mum after she won reality series I’m A Celeb in 2010.
In her emotional caption she wrote: “17 Today. 17 years of you Zach.
“Your birthday gets me every year. But especially this one. It’s so strange to think that when I was your age your were in my tummy.
“Every year you get older, you keep growing into the most amazing human.
“I’m so proud of who you are Zach. The last 17 years have been the best years of my life.
“It hasn’t always been easy, but growing up with you, made me who I am and having you by my side since I was your age now has been the biggest blessing I could have ever wished for.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Stacey Solomon reveals new dupe in her Asda homeware range she’s most proud of” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6369675442112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]“To the moon and back Zach.”
Made in Chelsea alum Louise Thompson was quick to comment: “He’s literally your twin babe.”
One fan then wrote: “Aww what a handsome lovely young man he’s grown into, he’s a real credit to you Stace X”
Another added: “Happy Birthday, Zach! Can we just take a moment to appreciate that 17 years on, you still look exactly the same? x”
HAPPY CHAPTER
Zach’s milestone moment comes after he bagged a role in Hollyoaks with Leighton.
The show’s Instagram account sent fans into a frenzy on Tuesday, by sharing behind-the-scenes snapshots and a video of the boys filming on the iconic set.
The images featured Zachary and Leighton in and around the Price Slice store.
A video clip showed Zachary, dressed as a Parcel Patrons worker, bumping into Mercedes, played by Jennifer Metcalfe, while delivering a package.
Meanwhile, Leighton appeared as a paperboy, arriving late to collect his papers, earning a stern telling-off from Price Slice employee Pearl Anderson, played by Dawn Hope.
While it’s unclear whether their appearance is a one-off or marks the start of recurring roles, Zachary and Leighton’s surprise appearance delighted fans of Stacey and the soap.
