Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant’s daughter Bianka Bryant just reached what most people would not necessarily consider a “milestone” birthday. But for the Bryant family, this unassuming age is everything. The thirdborn Bryant girl just turned 8 years old. Eight. AKA her late father’s iconic jersey number.
“I’ll keep reminding you it’s your daddy (#8) year. ❤️,” Vanessa wrote in the caption of her tearjerking birthday tribute. It’s such a sweet sentiment, but a hard one to swallow knowing Kobe and Bianka’s big sister Gianna — both of whom tragically passed away in a fatal helicopter crash in 2020 — aren’t here to celebrate with little “BB.”
“Happy birthday to our Sunshine,” Vanessa continued. “We love you so much, Bianka! You bring so much love and laughter into our lives. You are so loved mama! ????❤️????????????”
For the post, Vanessa shared a single heart-melting photo of Bianka in a white dress with a white bow holding back her curls. She’s staring deep into the camera’s soul and has a sweet closed-mouth smile on her face. And she looks so. much. like her late dad. The 8-year-old is undoubtedly the NBA legend’s mini-me.
Vaness and Kobe also share daughters Natalia, 21 and Capri, 5. Earlier this year, Vanessa posted a gut-wrenching birthday tribute for her late daughter Gianna who would have turned 18.
“2024 was your year,” Vanessa captioned the tearjerking montage. “You would’ve been graduating high school and choosing which college to go to. ( I would’ve been trying my hardest to convince you to stay close to home).”
In a rare interview just over a year after Kobe and Gianna passed away, Vanessa revealed to People how her daughters help her through the grief.
“Lying in bed crying isn’t going to change the fact that my family will never be the same again,” she said. “But getting out of bed and pushing forward is going to make the day better for my girls and for me. So that’s what I do.”
“My girls help me smile through the pain,” she continued. “They give me strength.”
Before you go, check out some of Vanessa Bryant’s best motherhood moments.
