Jennifer Garner's family are among those to have marked a birthday during lockdown as her mum Patricia turned another year older over the weekend. The 13 Going on 30 actress made sure the special occasion was marked remotely and shared a sweet tribute to her mother on Instagram. The Hollywood star posted a lovely photo of Patricia with her husband William, which had been taken earlier in the year on a skiing trip, alongside a snapshot of the actress and her mum. Alongside the pictures, Jennifer wrote a heartfelt message about her mum's love of life and determination and reflected on her hopes at being reunited with her soon.
Jennifer Garner shared a lovely photo of her parents to mark her mum's birthday
The Peppermint actress wrote: "As a farm girl growing up on a tiny farm in Locust Grove, OK, my mother earned $1.00 a day for babysitting her neighbour’s five children. My mum’s family was poor— I’m sure she cherished that money— but it was the neighbour’s old LIFE magazines that really shaped Mum’s future. Seeing beautiful pictures of far away places gave her a hunger to get out and see for herself. Early this year, with a long dreamed of trip to Antarctica, my parents realized a lifelong goal: they have visited all 50 states and all seven continents."
MORE: Katy Perry reveals difficulties she's facing during pregnancy
The Hollywood star with her mum Patricia
Jennifer continued: "Happy Birthday to my wonderful, loving, adventurous mother, Patricia English Garner. I only hope to be as brave as you are, Mum, and can only try to be half the mother you have been to Melissa, Susannah, and me. We love you and cannot wait to be together again."
READ: Beyoncé reveals the greatest goal for her children
The Alias actress lived in Charleston, West Virginia from the age of three, and later attended Denison University where she studied theatre – which led to her big acting break. The mother-of-three has previously joked that her upbringing was "practically Amish" because her parents wouldn't allow her or her siblings to dye their hair, wear makeup or paint their nails when they were teenagers. However, she has been influenced by her mum's stance on cooking, where her mother would make them home-cooked meals, having lived on a farm herself growing up. The actress told People: "My mum made all of our food. When we were hungry she would say, 'Go out to the garden, child, I bet those tomatoes are ready and grab yourself some sugar snap peas.'"
Like this story? Sign up to our newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.