'Designs On Life' by Elizabeth Stott

Victoria lies back with her eye mask on her forehead and looks at Charlie's latest picture. His report says that he is exceptional, and that the money they send helps him to stay healthy and pays for his schooling. But if only he could find a sponsor to send him to a private school where his intellect could be developed...To send a child to private school here would cost thousands. She wonders if she'll ever have her own Charlie. Forty is not really so far away now and Annie has told her how expensive children are and that a woman must make sacrifices, especially in the you-know-what department. But Victoria is proud of her toned body. So many of her friends have sagged in the middle after children, despite being Yummy Mummies on the outside. She imagines a huge baby stretching her skin, ruining her pelvic floor, tearing her perineum, her breasts overflowing with milk and all of her becoming a pile of wobbly jelly.