Penny Lancaster was almost ready to give up on her dream of having another baby before she fell pregnant again.
The 39-year-old model ' who is expecting her second child with husband Rod Stewart ' admits three rounds of gruelling in-vitro ferilisation (IVF) treatment had left her exhausted, and only the pleas of her son Alistair, four, made her continue treatment.
She said: "When you are told, 'Sorry it hasn't worked,' it's devastating and you really don't think you are going to have the strength to go through it again. But that determination and need to have a child kicks in.
"Alastair's pleas of 'Mummy, I really, really, really want a baby!' kind of kept me on the track to keep going.
"I did say that I'd stop at 40, that I'd appreciate that I have a blessed life, that we've got Alastair and give up the chase, but thankfully we were granted with our wish and all is well."
Despite her excitement at the pending new arrival, Penny revealed the news she was expecting another child was tinged with sadness as she found out her brother Ollie's wife Louise was suffering from breast cancer just days afterwards.
She revealed in an interview with the Daily Mirror newspaper: "I got the positive pregnancy test the day Louise found the lump, however she didn't tell me on the day, but a few days later.
"Then three weeks later my brother told me of the scan results and that Louise had cancer.'
Despite her illness, Louise is attempting to stay positive, with Penny's pregnancy giving the family something to focus on.
Penny added: 'Olly told me, 'Look, this is the way we are going to move forward, you have something important to look after, that's you and the baby. It's positive news and it is a gift.' As a couple they are being so strong and see it as an opportunity to live life to the full.
"They even came with me to one of my scans. Louise said it was lovely to go to the doctors and have a scan done and actually get some positive news. Her attitude is amazing."
