And she was even more stunned when her second child was born with the same debilitating disorder.

Never did she dream then that years later she would be celebrating her daughters' birthdays with such pride and joy.

Mandy, 41, of Hipley Road, West Leigh, Havant, organised a huge party for her daughter Kara to mark her 10th birthday.

Kara beamed with delight throughout the event at the Heron Pub in Havant, along with her 18-year-old sister Lori.

The pair suffer from microcephaly. The condition means that both have a much-reduced brain size and will never be able to read and write.

Both also have epilepsy.

Mandy said it had been a tough journey bringing up two children with such severe mental disabilities but said she did it through love.

Earlier this year she organised a special prom night for Lori and her friends at the Queen's Hotel in Southsea.

She saved her pennies and raised £4,000 over two years to give her daughter the night of her dreams.

She said: 'I do it because they are my daughters and I love them. You get through it somehow. I have to watch them 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

'They don't really understand danger. Kara will touch the cooker even if it's hot just to see if it hurts. If there's a window open she would not think twice about jumping out of it.'

She added: 'It's always a bit of milestone every year on their birthday.

'To see the smile on their faces is so special.

'Kara tells me she loves me and that's enough for me.'

Kara is attending Hollywater special needs school in Bordon, near Petersfield, and Lori attends Highbury College, Cosham.

Mandy's brother Robert Howard said: 'Mandy deserves a medal. The girls are up at 5am every day but Mandy just gets on with it. For what she goes through, she's remarkable.'