Katherine Heigl is filled with mixed emotions as all three of her kids — including her youngest child, 5-year-old son Joshua — start their school years.
On Friday, the "Firefly Lane" star, 43, posted pics on Instagram of little Joshua and his older sisters, Naleigh and Adalaide, getting ready to leave for school.
"Well it’s that time of year again. Back to school for these two and off to kindergarten for my last and final baby," she wrote.
She added, "I feel funny. Like maybe I might start crying. Or maybe I’ll just run around the house for the next seven hours intermittently yelling FREEDOM!!! We’ll see."
In the pics, sisters Naleigh, 13, and Adalaide, 10, embrace and goof around, while Joshua wears a backpack as he waits to board his school bus.
After the school bus picked up her son, the former "Grey's Anatomy" star and her husband, musician Josh Kelley, followed the vehicle all the way to school to be sure their child arrived safe and sound.
The overprotective parents poked fun at themselves in a TikTok video that Heigl also shared in her Instagram stories.
"Our little boy is on the bus," Kelley says as he drives a distance behind the school bus.
After laughing about their antics, the couple grow wistful, both of them acknowledging how much they'll miss their son while he is at school.
"Who's going to change into seven different Superman and superhero outfits today?" Kelley asks.
"I don't know," Heigl responds.
"I guess I will," Kelley jokes, adding sadly, "Oh, my buddy is gone."
As Heigl groans in emotion, Kelley assures his wife, "He'll be back."
Last November, Heigl got just as overcome with emotion when she posted a photo-packed Instagram tribute to Naleigh in honor of her 13th birthday.
In her post, the Emmy winner recalled being filled with love and excitement when she and Kelley adopted Naleigh from Seoul, South Korea, as a baby.
Heigl revealed that she was crying as she looked at the pictures and reminisced about Naleigh’s childhood, calling the teen "the girl that made me a mother. The girl that gave my life purpose.”
She also expressed gratitude “for every new memory I have the privilege of making with this extraordinary girl.”
She concluded her sweet tribute by telling her oldest daughter, "I love you with every fiber of being, every cell in my body, every wish in my heart."
In April, Heigl honored younger daughter Adalaide's 10th birthday with a similarly heartfelt post.
"She has the most beautiful soulful eyes and when she trains them on you just know she’s taking it ALL in and yes…she’s judging you," she wrote next to a video montage showing Adalaide over the years.
"If you are one of her people count yourself blessed. Her loyalty. Devotion. Care. Love. Is Boundless."
She concluded her post, "Happy Birthday my beautiful Adalaide. I match your boundless love with my own…forever and ever. Mom."