This is the diary of Lynne and her husband Brian. Lynne is 30 yrs old and Brian is 32. They have been married for four years ,but have been longing for a family for the last 5 years.

Pre-cancerous cells 8 years ago,left them unable to conceive naturally and a bad experience with IVF left Brian and Lynne childless.

In September last year we were approved for 2 children up to the age of seven. It was a hard assessment period, but all worth while.

This is their diary following approval...

WEEK 11

The month is now September, and I wish the school holidays went on forever. David and Ashleigh went back to school at the beginning of this month.

They moved up into their new classes. Ashleigh went into class2, which was David's old class, and David went up into class 3. Ashleigh now has David's old teacher. I was dreading it, but I realise now that I have nothing at all to worry about.

Ashleigh is so easygoing; she takes everything in her stride. She has become the teacher's pet. It's maybe not fair on other children in the class, but I'm happy she's got some recognition from this teacher, especially after the trouble we had with David in her class.

Ashleigh is happy in her new class, and she loves her new teacher. David also likes his new teacher, he thinks she's 'cool'. He asks for crisps and apples to take in for her, and this is a good thing, it shows he really does like her. I don't think we'll have as many problems this term as we did the last term.

She knows what David's like, and she was well prepared for him. I'm happy also, as he is treated like all the other kids in his class. He's not singled out just because he's adopted. He also comes home with a smile on his face, telling me about his work, what he's been doing and the day in general. He's happy, so I'm happy.

The last few days of the summer holidays were spent shopping for new shoes and school uniforms. Brian and I took them to our local indoor shopping centre and we bought them each a pair of black shoes. They had their feet measured and they have now moved up into the next size shoe. Phew! How will I keep up with these growing feet?

Ashleigh had new pinafores and blouses. David had new trousers and shirts. It was exciting buying their new school uniforms. We were treated just like any other normal family in the shops, and no one knew our situation. It was nice to forget about some things when people don't know your situation.

David had another appointment at the enuresis clinic this month. He was given an alarm to wear for bed. It fastened onto his pyjamas and a wire with a sensor at the end went down his pants. When it got wet, an alarm would sound and wake him. Sometimes, when he was in a deep sleep, the alarm wouldn't wake him. I would wake in the middle of the night and hear the alarm sounding. David would be fast asleep and soaking wet. I then had to wake him myself, change him, change the bed, take him to the toilet, and reset the alarm. By the end of the first week with the alarm, the batteries were flat.

They were supposed to last about 2 months. The enuresis clinic wouldn't give us another or a new battery, and we couldn't make another appointment for another 4 weeks. So, my son, after 4 months of going to the enuresis clinic, still has had no help with bed-wetting.

It's starting to get him down, and he says that other children in his class can smell him. He showers every morning using antibacterial shower gel. He's getting paranoid about it. So, I have started washing him twice over in the shower, and putting baby lotion on him, then he is allowed a small squirt of his dad's deodorant. He thinks this is good, and he now calls himself a stud because he's got men's deodorant on.

I don't know if the bed-wetting will eventually stop without help, or if it will go on forever. We have to be patient. We can't expect miracles to happen. he's only 7 yr. old.

Ashleigh had only one tantrum this month. She's doing well with her tantrums. She did it on the bus this time. We went on the bus one Saturday to the beach. There were lots of people on the bus, and it was a double decker. She wanted the front seat upstairs, but it was already taken. I said why not try the back seat. You get a longer ride at the back. She didn't want that.oh no. she wanted the front or nothing at all.

I could see it happening, what was coming next. She threw her beach bag down the stairs and then threw herself on the floor of the bus. She screamed so loud the driver stopped the bus and came up to see what was happening. I told him to ignore it, she would be out of it shortly. He went away laughing to himself. I didn't think it was all that funny, but other people did.

Her face went red, then purple, then she passed out. Other people on the bus were appalled, but I left her there, and sat down in the seat next to her. By the time we got to the beach, she had come out of it, and was excited. It was never mentioned again that day. We found that if we talk to her about her tantrums, it usually starts off another one, so we say nothing about it.

Ashleigh was grounded for the weekend this month. She broke the printer off the computer. We allowed her to play in her bedroom with 2 of her friends when it was raining one day. We have our pc in our bedroom, and Ashleigh thought she knew how to switch it on, and she thought she knew exactly what she was doing.

The printer had paper rammed into it, the ink cartridge was tipped out onto the carpet, and the printer finally knocked off the shelf. Of course, the fairies were in our bedroom, so they must have done it. That was Ashleigh's excuse anyway. I was furious. Her friends were sent out and Ashleigh spent the rest of the day in her own room. She has still yet to explain what she was doing in my bedroom messing with the pc in the first place. Kids!!

We had a review with the adoption agency and social services this month. Everything was okay, and every issue was raised. It was decided that our application was to go into court to have the adoption order made.

Wow, I could hardly believe it was finally going to happen. This was it, the real thing. Our social worker said we would probably expect a date in November. So soon, Wow!

Brian and I could hardly contain our excitement. We were like kids ourselves. When the social workers went, we jumped around the house like loonies laughing and crying. This was it. It was all going to happen. These 2 children were finally going to become ours legally - Forever.

Brian and I took the kids to McDonalds for a treat. This was our celebratory meal. We had ice cream afterwards. Then we went to a Whacky Wharehouse so the kids could burn off some energy. We had to wait a few days for the papers to come from the court, then our social worker would come out and help us fill them in. We had to fill in 3 sets of forms for each child, and there was a charge of £30 per child per application. We would get this free because we get working family tax credit. We didn't mind if we had to pay though, these kids were worth every penny.

I'm more in love with my kids now, but will probably be even more in love with them next month. I will do everything possible to make sure these 2 children are happy.

Its what I have to do. I'm their mam.

E-mail Lynne and Brian

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