Like Mother, Like Daughter! Christie Brinkley Tells Her Daughter She's Officially an SI Swimsuit Model

Grab the tissues because this is one seriously sweet moment!

Last year, we surprised the world as the iconic Christie Brinkley returned to the pages of SI Swimsuit with her two beautiful daughters in tow. Christie, who appeared in the magazine eight times between 1975-2004, is best known for her record three consecutive SI Swimsuit covers in 1979, 1980 and 1981. Up until that point, no SI Swimsuit model had ever been on the cover two consecutive years when then-SI Swimsuit editor Jule Campbell decided to put Christie on the front three years in a row. 

But this spread wasn't just about the '80s blonde bombshell. Posing with Alexa Ray Joel and Sailor Brinkley Cook, the model mom proved that age is just a number as she spoke candidly about having a full circle moment with her daughters. 

So when we decided to invite her daughter Sailor to officially join OUR family this year, as the first-ever second generation Swimsuit model, we couldn't imagine sharing the news without a little help from our SI Swimsuit legend.

"Obviously we loved Sailor from the get go," said SI Swimsuit editor MJ Day. "Meeting and shooting her last year was one of the highlights of my career. She's the millennial girl next door. She's funny. She's driven. She's smart. She's beautiful. She's interesting. And most of all, she has a voice and isn't afraid to use it.

"Sailor translates so well off the printed page — she takes beautiful pictures but that's only one of the countless things she's good at. Much like her mom, she embodies everything it means to be an SI Swimsuit model, but she's doing it in a way that is very much her own."

To break the good news to Sailor, we invited Christie to interrupt a fake interview Sailor was conducting about her experience during New York Fashion Week, and the results are guaranteed to bring a tear to your cheek! 

"You're on your own now," Christie told Sailor after delivering the good news. "You're out of my sandy footprints, and you are on your own!"

Sailor, who has been outspoken about the pressure of following in her mother's footsteps, will join the SI Swimsuit 2018 rookie class, which already includes fellow models Chase Carter and Robin Holzken. Fans can join Sailor on her journey to Aruba for her first official shoot as an SI Swimsuit model in October, where we'll be live streaming her shoot sans supermodel mom. 

“I grew up looking at these photos of my mom, never thinking that I would ever be able to do that,” Sailor told PEOPLE magazine earlier this year.

Well think again, Sailor, because you are officially an SI Swimsuit model!