Madonna praises Rocco on his 17th

ROCCO RITCHIE is painting a brighter picture of family life now he is no longer the subject of an endless custody battle between parents Madonna and Guy Ritchie.

As he celebrated his 17th birthday yesterday, Rocco showed off his creative streak posing next to his own striking painting, which Madonna posted online. ‘So proud of you Rocco!’ she wrote.

Madonna, 58, is also the birth mother of 20-year-old Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon, whom she had with celebrity fitness trainer Carlos Leon. And she adopted four children from Malawi: David Banda and Mercy James, both 11, and four-yearold twin sisters Esther and Stella.