ROSIE O'DONNELL and new wife get tattoos of adopted daughter's huge birthmark to make her feel special
Rosie O'Donnell underwent the unusual and painful procedure for the most poignant and heartfelt of reasons.
Rosie and her new wife, both chose to have the tattoos to duplicate the strawberry rose birthmark that covers half of their adopted little girl’s body.
Rosie said: "Most people might think it’s very extreme but to us it was the natural thing to do to ensure our daughter never felt different or alone in the world."
Toddler Honey-Rae, now 18-months-old was born with the huge blemish and as she has grown it has.
Rosie said: "It is bright red and it covers almost half of the right side of her body. It stretches from her toes to her lower back. It hasn’t faded with time. In fact some days, it looks darker than others.’
The caring Mum will never forget the first time she saw Honey-Rae’s birthmark.
She recalls: "She’s struggled to breathe when she was first born and was rushed to the special care unit. When I went to see her she was just lying in a little incubator and that’s when I saw it. It broke my heart.
"And although the tattoo was was incredibly painful, especially as I had a flower to cover some old star tattoos, but it was worth every second of the pain.
"When the swelling went down, I showed Honey-Rae, and she gently touched it and smiled as she said “Match”, pointing to her own leg.
"If I’d have needed any reassurance that I’d made the right decision that was it.
"She now constantly touches my tattoos then her own birthmark and giggles – I couldn’t be happier.
"Some people will says it odd and think what we’ve done is quite extreme, but in our eyes all we have done is ensure Honey-Rae never feels different. Mummy and new mummy now have the same permanent markings as she does."