It’s official: We are all old.
On Tuesday, Bentley Edwards became the first kid from the ‘Teen Mom’ franchise to turn 18. Bentley— who was born during Maci Bookout‘s episode of “16 and Pregnant”— is currently a high school senior and preparing to go to college next year.
Maci paid tribute to her son in a sweet post to Instagram.
“And just like that my baby Bentley is 18 years old!” she captioned a montage of photos from Bentley’s life.
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“Being your mom is the greatest gift of my life, and I’m so proud of you Benny! We’re not done yet, but we sure did that kid, I love you!”
Bentley’s father, Ryan Edwards, has not mentioned his birthday on social media yet (but, as The Ashley reported, ol’ Ry is dealing with his own issues at the moment.)
Although Ryan didn’t acknowledge his oldest son’s milestone birthday, plenty of Maci’s ‘Teen Mom’ co-stars and family members paid tribute to Bentley.
“I can’t believe he’s 18!’ Ryan’s mom Jen Edwards wrote in the comment section of Maci’s post. “So very proud of him! I could go on and on about how amazing and proud Papa and I are!”
“I seriously cannot believe he’s 18 OMG! HAPPY BDAY!” wrote Jade Cline.
“Happy birthday Bentley” wrote Kristina Shirley.
Maci recently posted a video that revealed Bentley’s plans for after he graduates high school. Bentley will be attending Motlow State Community College (which is about two hours from Maci’s home in Tennessee). He will be playing baseball there and majoring in business. According to the video, Bentley currently has a 3.5 GPA.
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Bentley has also excelled at sports all of his life. He was a five-year starter on his high school’s varsity golf team, 2026 All-Region Selection player in baseball, went to the state meet twice during his high school career in wrestling and is a member of several Christian youth organizations.
On Bentley’s 18th birthday, Maci received several shoutouts for her parenting of Bentley. One tribute came from her friend Keelie, who appeared frequently on ‘Teen Mom’ over the years.
“Welp… you did it [Maci],” Keelie wrote on Instagram Stories. “Not that anyone ever doubted you would. There is so much I could say. But I’ll keep it short and just leave it at I’m as proud of you as I am of him.”
Last year, Maci spoke to People about how fast her time with Bentley has gone.
“On one hand, it feels like it was yesterday that I brought Bentley home from the hospital as a newborn with a full camera crew — that I seemed to not even notice because I was so in awe of Benny,” she told the magazine. “On the other hand I’ve live a thousand lifetimes, and I’m still in awe of him for so many new reasons that I’ve found along the way. He’s a very special human. I’m very lucky.”
The other original kids from ‘Teen Mom’ will turn 18 soon as well. Next month, Amber Portwood and Gary Shirley‘s daughter, Leah, will be 18. In February, Farrah Abraham‘s daughter Sophia will celebrate her 18th birthday.
RELATED STORY: ‘Teen Mom’ Amber Portwood Gives Update on Her Relationship with Estranged Daughter Leah: “[I] Tried, Guys”
(Photos: Instagram; MTV)
Fun fact: you only need to be 18 to qualify for an AARP membership. I’ve had one since I was 29. Still feeling geriatric though lol. Good for Bentley. And having gone to community college myself, this is a great move for him. Even with that Teen Mom money, college is expensive and he should save some of that money for the future.