"As parents, our sexuality and disabilities haven't mattered at all."

Our names are Laurie Williams and Robyn Love. Both of us are Paralympians who represented Team GB in wheelchair basketball. By telling our story to raise awareness for same-sex families and families with disabilities, we hope to be positive role models for others.

"Becoming parents is a big commitment."

We met at a GB training camp and hit it off straight away. Our mutual passion for wheelchair basketball is what bound us together at first. We got engaged in 2020. Robyn popped the question under the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

We both liked the idea of being parents, but we didn’t know what the process involved for same-sex couples. And we were nervous about what people would presume about us going through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF).

Becoming parents is a big commitment. We spent a lot of time discussing whether we could provide a good life for a child. And starting a family is a long journey, you need to make sure you’re in it together.

“It’s easy to put high expectations on yourself.”

Our IVF journey was relatively short. However, we still experienced the physical and emotional strain that comes with fertility treatment. It’s easy to put high expectations on yourself, whether it’s about getting pregnant, during pregnancy, or as a parent. The best thing you can do is be kind to yourself and enjoy the journey as much as possible. We were very lucky to have great success with treatment. We now have our beautiful daughter!

When Alba was born, we wanted to make sure Laurie had the most support possible following her C-section. The hospital was really accommodating. They let us stay together overnight and do things at our own pace.

Since we announced the pregnancy, we’ve received nothing but support. People are genuinely happy for us, and they really care about our experience. People like to hear positive stories, especially when they involve love and a tiny little baby.

We had to overcome our own worries about people’s perceptions. We know there will always be opinions, but they don’t prevent us from living our lives as a family. We’re proud of what we’ve achieved.

Our sexuality and disabilities haven’t mattered at all. If anything, they make us more unique.

“You just have to know you're doing the best you can!”

Being a first-time parent is challenging, but being a parent in a wheelchair means dealing with more hurdles. The first few weeks have been a learning curve. But we've done a great job of adapting to give Alba what she needs.

We've tried to find the most accessible equipment to make things easier. Going out is still quite daunting, but we're getting more confident all the time. You just have to know you're doing the best you can!

Inaccessible places are more noticeable with a baby. It can be frustrating when you know the world isn't as accessible as you'd like it to be.

We want to be good role models for Alba and show her unconditional love. that’s what’s most important. We’ll teach her to be kind and accepting of others, no matter their differences. Hopefully, she’ll be brave and ambitious, just like us.

We plan to show her, and the world, that you don’t have to be able-bodied to love a child.

We’re glad that representation of families is becoming more diverse, but there’s still a lack of exposure for disabled parents. We’d like for experiences like ours to become part of the mainstream conversation.