Hey mom look! I HAVE A TATTOO!

[Michele]

Your 15 year old girl comes home with a cute little tattoo on her hip.

or

Your 15 year old boy comes home with a barbed wire tattoo on his arm.

What do you do? They say someone signed for them (you have to be 18) and refuse to tell you who did.

Do you get it removed? What would their punishment be?

[GracieMae]

I'd rip off that arm and beat him with it!

Just kidding ;)

Here in Ohio it is illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to get a tattoo without parental permission.

That said, I would be very upset if my child did this without my permission. Not sure I'd have it removed but they would definitluy have a consiquence.

[Tanya]

Same here in Delaware, they have to have parental permission if under 18. I honestly don't know what I would do. I would just be so disappointed that she snuck behind my back to do it. I think that alone would keep her from ever doing that IRL (me being so disappointed in her actions).

I don't think any "consequence" I could think of would be any worse than that.

[Peanut]

I am uncertain of the laws in Colorado, but this actually happened in Japan, as there is no parental consent law there...funny to hear of a commander's daughter having a Chinese character tattoed on the small of her back...upside down!

[Beelzebub]

Nope, because they have to live with it, not me.

[mom2burgess]

Here in Colorado, last I talked to someone, you have to be 18 to get a tatoo period. No parental consent at all. (that might have changed, it's been a few years) so that being said, I would find out where she got it from, and turn in the tattoo parlor. She would most likely live in her room for a while

[bRATmom]

since I have a tattoo.... its hard for me to say.... I would be extremely dissapointed... they can certainly get one at 18..... with my blessing. 15???? your more apt to change your mind. Hell, at 18, you may regret it one day. I got mine at 27... so it was a long thought process and not a whim that I have mine.... and something that truely has meaning to me.


Of cource, there are going to be consequences for 1) breaking the law....
2) going behind my back and breaking the law

first and formost, would be to go back to the tattoo shop and find out who signed for the tattoo... and letting them know that it was not the parent, and they should get thier act together and be more diligent about who they tattoo as a minor.....

and they have no rights to keeping thier source a secret.... they are not a reporter for the national enquirer.... and thier consequences of thier actions will be delt with...

they will have lost my trust, something not easily gained back... and beleive me... its not going to be fun to have to have mom on your butt 24/7 becouse you choose to do something stupid. (breaking the law) and I would deal with regaining trust in small bits and peices.... very small......

however, I was 15 once, and young dumb and stupid, broke trust, had to gain it back..... I know how it is.... its not easy, but a nessesary evil parents must endure for the wellbeing of the child.....

[Jory]

Nope, because they have to live with it, not me.

See, I told you we agree on things.

[DiznieB]

I wouldn't have it removed. If they later regret it, they can pay to have it removed. I would make sure they couldn't wear any clothes that showed the tattoo. :) Even if that meant long sleeves in the summer. ;)

[Le]

I like ripping the arm off Gracie, sounds good to me...JK, they do have to live with it, I live with mine, and it's going to be a very hot summer wearing winter clothes...nuf said

[Lady Adweri]

I dont have a problem with a tatoo necessarily....
I guess what I have a problem is someone signing for them, NOW I would like to rip THEIR arm off, to be sure that they only way they would be signing again would be with their teeth ;)
I dont want my kid, disobeying me, and I dont want them going to some dirty place and getting an infection.....
I honestly cant say what I would say if they came to me asking.....

[Opus]

I had this exact thing happen to me and my 17 year old son, who got a "tribal" (yeah right) all around his right bicep

he hid this from me for quite awhile by wearing t shirts and never letting me see his upper arm

I find out his mother approved this monstrosity, which I cannot believe , its like she has no brains in her head and wants her kids approval so bad she will agree to any ugly thing they wish to do to their bodies just to show how much of a buddy she is to them

I was pretty upset for awhile, and yes it still looks ugly as sin

[Keri]

I would be very upset with whomever signed the consent for him to have it done but other than that, what's done is done. If they regret it later in life they can pay to have the very painful removal procedure done.

[Keri]

I had this exact thing happen to me and my 17 year old son, who got a "tribal" (yeah right) all around his right bicep

he hid this from me for quite awhile by wearing t shirts and never letting me see his upper arm

I find out his mother approved this monstrosity, which I cannot believe , its like she has no brains in her head and wants her kids approval so bad she will agree to any ugly thing they wish to do to their bodies just to show how much of a buddy she is to them

I was pretty upset for awhile, and yes it still looks ugly as sin


Maybe his mother realized it was such a short time until he was 18 and could do it himself that despite her feelings on a tattoo she decided that it was far better to go with him and make sure it was a clean, safe reputable place where he was going rather than some rathole that a 17 yr old would probably choose on his own. Perhaps it wasn't about being a "friend" to him, but rather making sure her "baby" got it done at a safe place. And Kudos to her for not placing her own beliefs on her *almost* ADULT son. Sounds like a good mom to me.

[GracieMae]

At age 17 my son wanted a tattoo of a dragon on his bicep. He came to me and asked me for permission. We talked for awhile and listened to each other. I ended up approving it only if I were to accompany him and it had to be a reputable tattoo artist.

He ended up deciding against getting a tattoo.

I was very proud of him for comming to me. Had he not and gotten the tattoo without my permission I would have been livid.

[Val]

Being an "almost" adult doesn't cut it in this house. If my DD wants to do something that I think is an incredibly bad idea (including the idea of a tattoo at age 17), her "almost" adulthood isn't going to get her far.

When she is over 18, financially independent and not living with me anymore, she can happily get her own tattoo.

The "well, he/she's going to do it anyway, so I will make sure he/she is safe-r about it" doesn't wash here. Doesn't wash for underage drinking, underage sex, underage tattoos, etc.. You do it, there will be severe consequences, I'm not going to be driving you to the safe-r tattoo artist, providing you with a safe place to screw your boyfriend, or allowing you to have a few beers here so you don't drink and drive.

If the mom thinks a tattoo is a good idea, that is her business, but agreeing to something because "he'll just do it anyway" doesn't fly here.

[Epicurus]

I don't even know what I would do. I doubt we would have it removed as that is costly and painful. I would be disappointed to say the least.
It makes me laugh as I have a 14 1/2 yr old. It is a joke to even imagine him doing such a thing:) My kids are just not into that kind of thing at all.
Of course the deceit would be the worst of it in my mind.

Collette

[Beelzebub]

I had this exact thing happen to me and my 17 year old son, who got a "tribal" (yeah right) all around his right bicep

he hid this from me for quite awhile by wearing t shirts and never letting me see his upper arm

I find out his mother approved this monstrosity, which I cannot believe , its like she has no brains in her head and wants her kids approval so bad she will agree to any ugly thing they wish to do to their bodies just to show how much of a buddy she is to them

I was pretty upset for awhile, and yes it still looks ugly as sin


It's a good job he didn't do it for you isn't it?

[Shannonigans]

I love my tattoo. I plan on getting more, once I find someone to design the perfect one for me. Mine is a whimsical green frog on my ankle. I was 27 when I got it done, it took me that long to really realize I wanted one. *LOL*

DH has 2 tattoos, he got in the Army, one at 17 the other at 18. One is a dragon, the other is his astrological sign, Sagitarius. He didn't get them done at a professional parlor, this was the early 80's and he said he went to a garage and some guy did them. They still look nice. Mine was professionally done in a parlor.

My dad and uncle, whom we'll be living close to, both have numerous tats. I know our kids will want a tat. They will, however, have to wait until they are 18. No ifs ands or butts. I will not sign for them, nor will DH. Getting a tat is a huge decision. It's not like a piercing that can grow up or just a teeny hole. Getting them done is painful, removal is painful, not to mention expensive and I've heard that you can still see a ghost image sometimes even after removal, especially the black ink which soaks in deeper.

I will encourage my children to look up tat designs, even maybe to create their own, and to look forward to 18. Hell I'll probably go WITH them even at 18, maybe I'll get another one too. I have no problem with them whatsoever, I just think that they are a right of passage. And I think that a lot of people get one without really thinking about it. The tribal band, for example. Well it looks cool but what does it MEAN? what's the significance of it?

My little sister is 15, she plays drums in marching band. She's a musician through and through and has already been talking about a tat at age 18, maybe something musically defined. I think that's great. My next tat will be genealogy-influenced, perhaps an English longsword with my Scottish tartan wrapped around it.

Tats should MEAN something. You're wearing them for the rest of your life! :D

[DayDreamer]

He'd probably be grounded until he turned 18 :lol: