WE BOUGHT OUR BABY FOR £500!

Sophie Harper, 32, was running out of options to make her dream come true

- VERONIQUE HAWKSWORTH

Having a family should be the most natural thing in the world, but becoming a parent isn’t always straightforward. Those struggling to conceive know only too well how the months, sometimes years, of disappointment while waiting for that positive test can be enough to crush you. Often you’ll look for any way you can to make your dreams come true. And although my route to being a mum might have been a little unconventional, I only have to glance at one-month-old Kian, sleeping in my arms, to know that he’s the best decision I’ve ever made.

I’ve always had strong maternal instincts but, while I knew I wanted children one day, I was focused on my career path to become a marketing director during my 20s. I met Andrew, then 24, in 2012 and we married in 2017 - first in Taiwan, where I had relatives, followed by another ceremony with his family in Toronto. We’d discussed having kids from the beginning of our relationship and knew they would be a part of our future.

So, in early 2020, doing well in our careers, the timing felt right for us to start trying to become a family. I imagined a new little life in our home, Andrew pushing a pram around the park and us proudly taking our baby to visit our families.

But as the months passed and I still wasn’t seeing those two lines appearing on my pregnancy tests, I felt increasingly anxious. ‘It usually takes about six months,’ friends reassured me. But those six months came and went, and I couldn’t help but think something was wrong.