Tim McGraw Wishes His Mother Betty Trimble a Happy Birthday With Throwback Photos

Happy birthday to Tim McGraw‘s mother, Betty Trimble! Trimble is celebrating her 72nd birthday on March 10, with her famous son acknowledging her big day with a few throwback photos on social media.

“This beautiful, inspiring, remarkable woman has inspired more dreams in my life than I could possibly count,” McCraw captioned the pictures. “She has nurtured me, lit my a–– up when needed (a ton) and given me love, strength and encouragement when I had no more of my own. She is a light and we love her so, so much! Happy birthday Mama!!!!!”

McGraw was raised by Trimble and Horace Smith, whom he believed to be his father until he was 11 years old, when he found out his biological father was really baseball great Tug McGraw. The realization changed almost every area of McGraw’s life.

“It changed what I thought I could do with my life coming from the circumstances I came from,” the Louisiana native revealed on the Today Show. “I felt like when I found that out he’s a professional baseball player who’s successful, to me, it made me think that blood is in my veins, so that ability is in there. So I found sort of that grit inside me that he must have had in order to succeed at what he did. And it changed what I thought I could make out of my life.”

McGraw didn’t develop a relationship with Tug until much later in life, even though many people assume the former Philadelphia Phillies player raised the singer.

“I think a lot of people don’t realize I didn’t grow up with Tug,” McGraw noted. “I didn’t know Tug was my dad. I found my birth certificate when I was 11 years old. We didn’t have a whole lot, and I was in my mom’s closet, I was digging through something and found my birth certificate. It said McGraw. My name was Smith as a kid because my stepdad’s name was Horace Smith.”

Photo Credit: WireImage / James Gourley