The 25-year-old “Confident” singer celebrated her sister’s sweet 16 with a series of loving (and silly) social media snaps.
“Look at how gorgeous you look! So gorgeous!” Lovato gushed as she stood by Madison’s side before the two attended Madison’s party.
Birthday girl Madison was beaming in a sleeveless silk white romper with plunging neckline and removable sheer skirt. The Desperate Housewives alum accessorized her look with a sparkly tiara and matching belt.
Lovato, meanwhile, showed off some skin in a lacy black bra-top and navy and gold-striped blazer.
The sisters hit the dance floor at the swanky party, singing for the camera and dancing to Fergie‘s “Fergalicious,” Justin Timberlake’s “Rock Your Body,” JasonDerulo’s “Swalla,” DJ Khaled‘s “Wild Thoughts,” and of course, Lovato’s own collaboration with Luis Fonsi, “Not On You.”
It was a family affair too, with mum Dianna De La Garza, sister Dallas Lovato and father Eddie De La Garza all joining them for the party.
And of course, there was birthday cake — a three-tiered blue confection with the letter M and the number 16 on top, and a cascade of white flowers flowing down the front and side. “Happy #sweet16 baby girl!!!,” Lovato captioned a video of of her sister as she prepared to blow out the candles, while her guests sang her “Happy Birthday.”
If Lovato appears like one proud big sister, that’s because there was a time when her relationship with Madison could have ended for good.
In September, the former Disney Channel star opened up about the dark days of her alcohol and drug abuse, confessing that while her family and friends had staged a few interventions over the years, they didn’t have an impact until they finally told the star they were abandoning her.
“The final one, everyone was like, ‘We are no longer going to leave, we are leaving,’ ” Lovato recalled during an appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show. “That was the moment when I thought, ‘Okay, I really need to get help and get sober.’ This time I knew… I had hit rock bottom and I just needed to do this for myself.”
Lovato went on to explain that her parents had gone so far as to ban the former Disney Channel star from seeing Madison. “I knew that I had a lot of life ahead of me but one of the main reasons of getting sober was so that I could be around my little sister because my mom and dad [said I couldn’t be around her] if I was doing stuff,” she explained.
That tough love paid off, and it’s now been over five years since Lovato got sober — a journey she chronicled in her acclaimed YouTube documentary, Simply Complicated. She went on to tell Ross she hopes her experience helps others going through similar battles. “I went through some tough times and went to treatment for some struggles that I had and now I’ve come out the other side,” the “Sorry Not Sorry” singer said. “I use my stories to help others and inspire them to get the help they need.”
“I had family and really close friends and my manager, they all were by my side through everything,” she continued. “I wouldn’t be here without them. My fans too, I feel they gave me a reason to live and I’m forever grateful.”
This article originally appeared on PEOPLE
