The majority of women celebrate turning 40 with a lavish vacation, a pampering spa day, or a pricey piece of jewelry.

Tanya Phillips, however, was only interested in the diamond at the end of the tattoo needle.

To commemorate her special day, she undertook the uncommon, four-hour birthmark tattooing on her entire leg.

Tanya acknowledges that it appears a touch garish and is something she never imagined doing.

The mother of four undertook the rare and unpleasant treatment, but she did so for the most emotional and heartbreaking of reasons.

Tanya from Grimsby and her husband Adam decided to have the tattoos to match their daughter’s strawberry-rose birthmark, which covers half of her body.

In order to make sure that our daughter never felt strange or alone in the world, Tanya, a housewife, said: “Most people might think it’s really excessive, but to us it was the natural thing to do.”

From her toes to the middle of her back, it is brilliant red and over half of her right side is covered by it, according to Tanya. It hasn’t faded over time; in fact, some days it appears darker than others.

The devoted mother will never forget the moment she first noticed Honey-birthmark. Rae’s

When she was a newborn, she fought to breathe and was taken to the special care unit, the woman remembers. I first noticed it when I went to meet her and found her merely lying in a tiny incubator. It caused me to cry.

“I just bawled uncontrollably, knowing that my baby would have a permanent mark on her for the rest of her life.

Like any mother, I didn’t want her to stand out. I wanted her to be precisely like every other child who was healthy. Even if the birthmark is not harmful, I was aware that it might have a significant effect on the rest of her life.

“Even though she was perfect in our eyes, I knew that other people would mockingly point and gaze at her.

“For the first several months of her existence, I made sure to protect her legs whenever we went outside. I was unable to handle the weird people’s perplexed looks and whispered remarks.

“I didn’t want people to feel sorry for Honey-Rae or show sympathy or pity.

“Adam and I made the quick decision that Honey-Rae should feel special and proud of her birthmark rather than ashamed of it.

We regularly gave Honey-Rae kisses and told her she was beautiful from the minute she was born.

However, Tanya went out shopping with her toddler last summer when the child was less than a year old and wearing shorts and sandals.

She recalled: “I was at the register when I noticed an elderly couple hushed together and gazing at Honey-leg. Rae’s

“I was inconsolable. I had never taken her outside without covering her, so it validated all my anxieties and worries. Unaware cruelty exists among people.

And I was aware that if grownups could be so callous, schoolchildren would probably follow suit.

At that point, Tanya and Adam made the decision to take extra precautions to make sure their young daughter didn’t feel different.

Tanya stated, “We had briefly discussed getting duplicate tattoos, but that day I had already made up my mind.

We were aware that we had to take action to make sure Honey-Rae knew how much we loved her as she grew up.

Tanya gave her plasterer husband a two-and-a-half-hour tattoo that ran from his thigh to his toe for Christmas last year in exchange for £80.

“As part of it was finished, I went to watch. Although it appeared angry and crimson, there was no denying its perfection for any of us.

And last week, Adam paid for Tanya to have a tattoo as well in preparation for her 40th birthday this weekend.

It was excruciatingly painful, especially since I got a flower tattooed over some existing star tattoos, but the discomfort was well worth it, she claimed.

“When the swelling subsided, I showed Honey-Rae. She gently felt it and grinned as she referred to her own leg, saying, “Match.

“If there was ever any doubt in my mind that I had chosen wisely, it was it.

I couldn’t be happier with how frequently she now feels Adam’s and my tattoos before touching her own birthmark and laughing.

“While others may find it strange and consider what we’ve done to be pretty severe, in our opinion, all we’ve done is made sure Honey-Rae never feels different. Now that she is permanently marked, so do Mommy and Daddy.

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