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It is perhaps the most appropriate symbol that a baby born in February could have.
So it’s no surprise that midwives couldn’t believe their eyes when Jorgia Welch was born with a heart-shaped birthmark.
It sat on the left side of her tummy, in line with her belly button.
Doctors told mother Jayne, 37, and her partner Joe, from Stoke-on-Trent, that the heart would probably disappear with age.
But Jorgia’s symmetrical birthmark has only grown in proportion to her and remains clearly visible before her first birthday next week.
Jayne Welch, from Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire, said midwives “couldn’t believe it” when they saw Jorgia’s perfectly symmetrical heart on her left side shortly after she was born last February.
Jorgia (pictured with her mother) was born on February 22 of last year, arriving three days early via a planned C-section.
Doctors told the 37-year-old woman and her partner Joe that the heart would probably disappear with age. But Jorgia’s birthmark has grown in proportion to her and is still clearly visible.
Jorgia was born on February 22 of last year and arrived three days early for a planned caesarean section.
Ms Welch, care assistant, said: “The heart-shaped birthmark is on Jorgia’s tummy and the midwives couldn’t believe it when they saw it.”
“We knew we were going to have a girl and the pediatrician was surprised when he noticed the red mark on Jorgia’s little belly.
“When he was born, it was just a little red mark, but in the shape of a perfect heart.”
Since then, the mark has continued to grow and is now slightly elevated, he said.
Ms Welch added: ‘The doctors thought it would go away, but it hasn’t gone away or faded away.
“Jorgia is growing fast, she has grown with her and in perfect proportion.
“She’s very cheeky and very funny and Joe has a crush on her.
She is a true daddy’s girl.
Jorgia’s birthmark has been the talk of her midwives and health visitors since she was born, her mother said.
Ms Welch added: “Everyone who knows her loves her and always wants to see her.”
She is known as “the girl with the perfect love heart” and we are grateful that there are no medical concerns about it.
“It’s just a beautiful, unique part of her.”
Now almost a year old, Jorgia has started to notice her unique strawberry birthmark and is quite fascinated by it.
Ms Welch said: “She pushed him in the bathroom, and because he’s developed a pincer grip, she’s tried to pull him off.”
‘We have explained to him, he is attached to her.
“It’s a very special and unique part of her.”
Ms Welch now plans to get a love heart tattoo on her left side, copying her daughter’s unique birthmark.
She said: ‘I’d like to get a matching tattoo in the same spot.
“I really hope that if he stays as he gets older, he will love it as much as we do and that he won’t be ashamed about it.
Ms Welch said: “When she was born it was just a little red mark, but in the shape of a perfect heart.” Since then, the mark has continued to grow and is now slightly elevated, she said.
But Jorgia’s birthmark has grown in proportion to her and remains clearly visible ahead of her first birthday next week, which she will celebrate with her family (pictured)
“We love our baby girl born in February and her unique love heart birthmark.”
Birthmarks are colored marks on the skin that are present at or shortly after birth.
They are very common and most types do not require any treatment.
But some may need treatment if they interfere with health.
For example, a type of mark called a hemangioma causes a lump to form under the skin.
It may need to be removed with a laser if it is near an area that could cause problems as the child grows, such as the eyes, nose, or mouth.