Madonna Shared Adorable Photo of Twin Girls with Daughter Lourdes Months Before Adoption

A photo has resurfaced showing Madonna’s eldest child, Lourdes, cuddling up to the twin sisters, whom the singer officially adopted on Tuesday

Lourdes and the twins. PHOTO: MADONNA/INSTAGRAM

Madonna may have initially denied any plans to adopt two children from Malawi, but her Instagram account told a different story.

The 58-year-old singer recently adopted 4½-year-old twin girls from Malawi, the country’s judiciary spokesperson Mlenga Mvula confirmed to PEOPLE. And an Instagram photo from July has since resurfaced, showing the little girls with Madonna’s 20-year-old daughter Lourdes.

She captioned the photo: “3 Beauties! Lola spends time with twins, Stella and Esther at Home of Hope Orphanage.”

She included several emojis of the Malawi flag. The little girls both donned serious expressions as they cuddled up to Lourdes. The photo was one of many the “Papa Don’t Preach” singer uploaded during a summer trip to the East African country.

Prior to adopting the little girls, Madonna was already mother to four children: Lourdes, Rocco, 16, David Banda, 11, and Mercy James, 11.

Mulva told PEOPLE that Madonna appeared in court on Tuesday along with the young children, their father and their uncle.

She “exuded happiness,” Mulva said of Madonna. She added: “[Madonna] smiled while she was making her way out of the courtroom, and then she drove away” with her new daughters.

A rep for Madonna did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Both David and Mercy were adopted from Malawi in 2006 and 2007 respectively. The singer has a long history with the people of the country and has worked to fight against poverty plaguing Malawi’s orphaned children for more than 10 years through her charity, Raising Malawi.

Mulva told PEOPLE that Madonna has “been very close to Malawi” — this year, the charity will build Malawi’s first pediatric surgery and intensive care unit, the Mercy James Institute for Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care.

“She has been involved in so many projects and is currently helping to expand the children’s ward at the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital,” Mulva continued.

“So Madonna has been coming to Malawi frequently. So it is not unusual to people in Malawi at all. They know Madonna very well in terms of the high-profile work she has done for the community.”