'I'll never forget her blowing me kisses from the bus that day as she left for school': Mother's heartbreaking tribute to daughter Grace McDonnell, seven, who was killed in Sandy Hook massacre

'I'll never forget her blowing me kisses from the bus that day as she left for school': Mother's heartbreaking tribute to daughter Grace McDonnell, seven, who was killed in Sandy Hook massacre

In a heart-rending interview the mother of slain seven-year-old Grace McDonnell told of the last time she saw her daughter alive before she was killed in the Connecticut massacre along with 19 of her schoolmates.

A devastated Lynn McDonnell said her last memory of daughter Grace was of the beaming child waving and blowing kisses to her from the bus, on her way to Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Speaking with CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Tuesday night, she bravely said: ‘I take comfort that she’s with friends, and she’s up there with her wonderful principal.'

Amazing grace: Lynn McDonnell, the mother of Grace McDonnell, said that she will always remember her daughter waving and blowing kisses from the bus last Friday morning

Grief: Anderson Cooper, right, spoke with the couple; father Chris McDonnell, left, said that the hardest thing was telling their older son Jack that his sister had been killed

Family love: Mrs McDonnell said she'll always remember her daughter's beauty

‘Each one of those children were so beautiful,’ she said, adding: ‘We have so many angels and so many bright stars shining over us.’

Mrs McDonnell was joined by her husband Chris McDonnell in the heart-wrenching interview.

The devastated parents offered a poignant eulogy to their little girl, speaking of how much she loved to paint, how gracious she was, and how much she will be missed.

When asked what the experience of meeting the President was like, she said that when Mr Obama walked into the room, ‘he was just a dad.’

The couple spoke with the President briefly, and told him of their daughter's artistic talent. They also gave him one of Grace’s favorite pictures – a cerulean and lime-green painted owl. They said that the President told them that he’d treasure the painting forever.

Beach baby: The artistic first-grader loved going to the beach; some of her favorite things were seagulls and lighthouses

Angel: 'She was a truly, truly special girl,' her mother said, noting how the lively seven-year-old loved wearing little bows in her hair

Loss: Grace, back row, second from right, was killed, along with the entirety of her first grade class

Raw emotion: The photograph of the McDonnells moments after they heard their daughter has been killed has become iconic in expressing the raw grief and sorrow felt by a nation

In a touching moment, the mother also explained how Grace loved peace, and how she would always draw peace signs in the bathroom window after it fogged up from the shower.

The day after the shooting, Mrs McDonnell was in the bathroom and saw her daughter’s etchings of a peace sign, and the words ‘Grace loves Mommy.’

The couple then described the moment they saw their daughter’s white coffin at the funeral home. ‘You felt like the floor was falling beneath you,’ Mrs McDonnell said.

'I feel fearless. I'm going to take on the world for my Gracie girl - I have nothing to lose and
everything to gain.'

But the coffin became a canvas when she, Chris, and their surviving son, Jack, took out the Sharpie markers they had brought with them and began drawing all of Grace’s favorite things.

‘By the time we were done,’ Mrs McDonnell said, ‘it was so covered by all the things she loved’ – including ice cream cones, lighthouses, and seagulls.

‘We had peace when we left,’ she said, noting that the coffin was full of colorful drawings and notes from those who knew and loved her best.

Embrace: A woman hugs a boy next to a makeshift memorial for victims who died in the December 14 shootings

Memento: A mourner places a stuffed animal while visiting a memorial in Newtown on Tuesday night

Memorial: Funeral services were held in Newtown Tuesday for Jessica Rekos and James Mattioli, both age six, four days after 20 children and six adults were killed

‘She was so beautiful, and so we’ll take comfort in remembering her beautiful smile,’ adding that Grace would not have wanted them to remember her any other way than with her bubble gum-pink bow placed just so on her blonde hair.

The mother called Cooper following the interview to speak more of her daughter, saying: 'I feel fearless. I'm going to take on the world for my Gracie girl - I have nothing to lose and everything to gain.'

Mr and Mrs McDonnell were pictured on December 14 moments after they heard their daughter had been killed.

The photograph of the McDonnells moments after they heard the horrific news has become iconic in expressing the raw grief and sorrow felt by a nation, and was the main image on many of the nation's newspapers on December 15, including the New York Times and the Washington Post.

Clouds rolling in: A view of the Newtown Meetinghouse and Trinity Episcopal Church as Main Street's flag flies at half-staff on Tuesday

Grief: Mourners wait in the rain at a crosswalk to visit a memorial dedicated to the victims of the shooting

Also on Tuesday, funerals were held for two of the tiny fallen, Jessica Rekos and James Mattioli, both six, both classmates of Grace.

A total of 26 people were gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School, in one of the worst mass shootings in U.S. history.