Val was living in a flat in Spon Street at the time; over a furniture shop called Stylo which was situated in Spon Street, so I went down the next day and ordered myself a double bed that would be delivered the following week.  It cost £22.00 and I could pay for it in instalments.  I took Billy back up to the prefab to see Josie, and there was a lady living in the prefab in front of our block, called Ann Archer.  She was about 70 and a widow who had her Grandson living with her, but I never saw a lot of him, as he was working. She came from Liverpool and a kinder hearted lady, you never did meet!  She gave me a nice thick kapok flock mattress to sleep on until my bed was delivered.  I had bedding, so I was able to make a bed up. Bill still had his cot, so we were O.K. to move in by Wednesday 27th April.  It should have been two months before my baby was due. The prefab had a cooker built in it and cupboards and wardrobes. There was a nice bathroom and I got a "coin in the slot" rental television.  I still had my old fashioned radio, so I could also get music.  When I'd given the place a lick of paint, I knew we could be happy here.  I got some paint from my Dad and started on the gloss in the front room, as the shelf had been pitted with burning cigarettes.  I also got some lemon paint, to do my kitchen after I had tidied the living room.  The rent was £1.8.0d  (£1.40p) the first week, but it went up to £2.0.0d the following week, which was more than half less than I had been paying the Asians for the honour of living in their rooms!!  Heaven help you if the rent wasn't there on the Friday, if the National Assistant were late sending it to you.  You were out on your ear!  What a nice change to be secure at last, after almost six years.

            On the Friday night, I was out in the kitchen, painting the doors lemon and a face appeared at the back door window.  I wasn't at all surprised to see that it was Robert John!  I, of course, let him in and he grabbed the paintbrush off me and started painting where I'd left off.  You never saw so many runs in your life away from a sports track!!  I soon grabbed the brush back and made him go and sit down.  Interior decorating was NOT Bob's forte! Anyway, that was it!  He was there and there he stayed for the duration.  We settled in and the local Health visitor, Mrs. Dickinson, came and introduced herself to me the second week.  This lady was one of natures angels.  She was such a help to me and the first thing she did, was to get me a pram and cot for my new addition.  The pram was a low one in enamelled metal and was brown and white, with not a scratch on it, but it was a bit plain, so I got some teddy bear transfers and put one on each side of it.  It really made a difference.  Of course  it kept me busy while I was pregnant, knitting and "feathering my nest".  Baby was due on June 22nd.  I was able to have a bath every night now, as the fire in the living room warmed the water without using the electricity.  On May 20th, I was having my bath and we were particularly short of money at the time.  I heard Bob rattling around in the front room, then a few minutes later;  he came into the bathroom with the coin box from off the television!  He emptied £2.10.0d in sixpences onto the bathroom floor!  I nearly had a fit!!!  "Put that back immediately"  I shouted to him.  He laughed and said "Don't worry, we can borrow this until the man comes to collect the money"  Well---I had visions of being prosecuted by the police and paying a hefty fine.  However the deed was done and next morning, he split the money between us.  Off he went for his usual Saturday jaunt;  down the town, to the City Arms, back up to the Radford pub, to Blackie's the betting shop to have a flutter and back to the Radford pub for the evening.  I never saw much of him on a Saturday, as I usually took Billy to see my Mum and Dad for the afternoon. David was divorced by now and had custody of his boys.  They were usually there as well. David hadn't spoken to me much after John and I got divorced and I met Bob, so I didn't have a lot to do with him at the time, but his boys were lovely.

           This particular Saturday though, was different.  No sooner had Bob left, when I started to get pains.  I went up to Josie to tell her and she made me a cup of tea while we waited to see what was happening.  An hour went by and they were coming every ten minutes or so by the afternoon, the time between was getting shorter, so although my baby wasn't due, we guessed that I was in labour. Josie called an ambulance and said that she would take care of Billy until arrangements could be made, or Bob got back.  I had booked a home birth as I didn't want to have my baby in hospital, but as it was premature by a month, they admitted me to Keresley Hospital for 48 hours.  I arrived at about 3.30 in the afternoon and was sitting up knitting a yellow matinee coat, when my pains got stronger.  By the time 4.40 P.M. came, the pains had changed and I started pushing, so they quickly got me to the labour ward, where Dr. Montassi, a lovely Cypriot doctor, was on hand to deliver the baby.  He had met me already during the afternoon and asked me what I wanted;  I told him "A little girl".  He said he would try and arrange it! She was born at 4.45 P.M. on Saturday May 21st 1966, weighing 4lb 8 oz.  I had never had such a small baby and I was frightened as I thought she weighed less than that.  Her little arms we no thicker than Bob's finger.  She had a thick head of black hair and she was the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen!  They immediately took her away from me down to the nursery to put her into an incubator.  I was back on the ward by 4.50 P.M.!  Ten minutes in all!  The nurse brought me a cup of tea and I just lay there looking at it!  I hadn't the energy to drink it.  They gave me a radio and I lay listening to it.  I remember that Cassius Clay was fighting Henry Cooper that night and I followed the fight with gusto!  I thought "Well---I've done my bit Henry---now it's your turn!" This is a link to the story of the fight. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/21/newsid_2504000/2504777.stm  Henry Cooper lost in the sixth round, with a cut to his eye, but Cassius Clay (recently changed his name to Mohamed Ali) didn't put him down, so he didn't win on a knock out!

            After this, as I came round a bit,  I got talking to the girl in the next bed to me.  She had just had a baby girl and I found out that she lived just up the road from me, in Whoberly.  Her name was Pat Blount and we became close friends after meeting in hospital.  The following day (Sunday), Sister Edwards, a lady with a reputation of being somewhat of a tyrant, came to see me and told me that Bob had come to visit me, the night before  at midnight!!!  Well---I was speechless!  She apologised for not letting him in to see me but said that he did see his baby daughter.  Even that amazed me.  Cheeky monkey coming at that time of night!  Everyone was scared of Sister Edwards.  I don't know why, as she was only about 5'2" with short ginger hair, but she commanded respect. Ha! what did my beloved say to her at midnight when she told him he had a daughter?---" Well, turn yourself upside down and let me see what you are!"---Oh the humilation! Soon after this, a friend of mine came into the bed next to me the other side.  Chris Nelson was once engaged to Bob's brother, Fred, but they split up and she married someone with the surname Thomas.  She had a difficult labour, but she was very brave and gave birth to a little boy, Brian. Chris and Pat were a laugh a minute, so I really enjoyed what little time I spent in Keresley hospital, until visiting time, when Bob and Val came to see me.  Then I had a bit of a set back.  Of course, I was so pleased to see them, but not to pleased with what they had to tell me.  Apparently, when Joe came home and Josie told him what had happened, he wasn't best pleased.  I don't blame him either, after all, they'd only known me for three weeks and already had four of their own to attend to, so Josie got in touch with Bob's Mum.  She was working at Embling's at the time in the evenings, an off licence by Val's shop, in Spon Street.  She ran the off licence by herself, so of course, had to be there.  The only thing she could think of, was putting Billy in Keresley Grange children's home temporarily.  When Bob found all this out, he tried his best to get Billy back home before I was aware of it, but as we weren't married, he was not allowed to, even though Billy was his son.  I had to be there.  Thank God I was going home the next day! I often wonder why on earth they couldn't take him to my Mum's, as I know that she would have had him.  Perhaps they were panicking a bit and didn't think to.  However, I came home the next day, having to leave my new daughter in hospital until her weight came up to 5 and a half pounds. Mum's sister, my Aunt Laura, was working there at the time as an Auxillary nurse and when she knew that I would be going home and leaving my baby, she told me not to worry and that she would keep and eye on her. That was a nice comfort! Bob had already been in touch with the Grange and it was arranged that Billy would be home the next day. (Tuesday). My first night home wasn't very happy, as my daughter was at the hospital and my son was in Keresley Grange, so to say I felt bereft was an understatement, however, Bob was so good to me and sorry for not being there.  He bought me a bottle of port.  It was O.K. as I wasn't feeding the baby myself. So I had a few glasses and, looking into the corner of my room where the "new" pram and new wardrobe and layette was waiting for "Shayne" as we referred to her, shed a few tears and went to sleep.

           The next day, I started knitting tiny cardigans in pink for my new baby.  She already had quite a few matinee coats in lemon and white.   Bob's brother Bill and his partner, Sheila, lived with an old man in Engleton Road and he gave her four beautiful Edwardian day gowns to give to me and they made lovely nighties for my little girl.  She had plenty of clothes!  While I was knitting away, the door knocked, and when I answered it, Billy was home.  The lady who brought him apologised for not bringing home before, or letting Bob have him, but she explained that was the rules, and I quite understood.  I brought him in and cuddled him on my knee and, bless him, he didn't say a word for half an hour.  He just stared at me with his big blue eyes.  Oh my gosh!  Did I feel terrible! After that, he came round and was his usual chirpy self.  I vowed there and then that it would never happen again!  We soon got back into a routine and Bill liked to watch Bob Monkhouse who had a programme in the afternoons on the television called "Mad Movies."  This involved clips from silent movies; Keystone Cops, Harold Lloyd, cross eyed Ben Turpin and many other stars from the silent era. He loved that programme!  One afternoon I was writing a letter to someone while I was sitting at the table.  I could see the television and also Billy, watching it.  Ben Turpin was showing at the time and my Billy was engrossed.  His squint was really noticeable while he was watching.  I really chuckled to myself, because there he was, watching cross-eyed Ben Turpin with his cross eyes!  It was almost like seeing double!  This of course, was a legacy from when Billy had the measles at the age of 18 months and we had to wait until October 1969 before he could have an operation to correct it.

           Bob and I visited "Shayne" in hospital and her progress was going well, but it became a race against time, because the new Walsgrave hospital was due to open three weeks after my daughter's birth and if she didn't gain the required weight, she would be transferred there.  Of course, that was the other side of town.  Pat was home by now and I went to her home to visit her and got to know her better.  She had worked when she was younger at Chipperfields circus, with the elephants.  I'd taken John to Chipperfields and at the time, she must have been one of the exotic ladies riding the elephants while they were performing tricks. She was a lovely girl but the future was bleak for her, as she got divorced from her husband and her daughter, Julie (the baby that was born when I had Jeanette) , committed suicide in the 1980's.  I saw Pat some time after that but she had become an alcoholic and died a long time ago of cirrhosis of the liver.  A sad end to a lovely lady! In the meantime, however, there was much debating between everyone and Bob about "Shayne's" name.  I was sitting in bed one night and he came in and said "You know Jo, no-one seems to think that her name suits a girl".  I said " Well, I've got used to it now, but if you're not happy, we'll change it." "What shall we call her then?"  I went through a list of names that I like.  The discussion went like this---" Wendy?-- 'No'--Mandy?--'No'--Tracy?--'No--Annette?--'No'--Jeanette--' Ah! Yes, I like that!'--Right---that's what it is then, Jeanette Shayne!" That was that sorted!  The three weeks was up and we waited for the verdict. Yes---Jeanette could come home as she weighed five and a half pounds!  She wouldn't be taken to Walsgrave after all!

          After I brought her home, I went to register her at Meriden, which was the district that she was born in.  I got on the Birmingham bus and when I got off at Meriden, had to walk down a long lane to sort things out.  Wouldn't you believe it, but the place was closed, so I had to go back home without doing it.  Now what?  I had a letter the next day, to tell me that we had an appointment at Coventry and Warwickshire paediatric department for her check up.  I dressed her in a little pink dress that I had knitted, with matching bootees and cardigan and she looked really lovely.  Everyone was admiring her on the bus, and ladies were saying "That little girl has been here before!"  It was true!  She was looking all around her with her big eyes and she was so knowing!  This tiny little girl---you couldn't believe it!  When we got to Cov. and Warwick, I was sent to a cubicle to await what was to come.  A student nurse was passing and Jeanette caught her eye."  Oh! isn't she super?" were her words.  I was really proud!  Then I was summoned.  When the nurse took me to the room where she was to be examined, I went in and Lo and Behold!  Who should be there, but the formidable Sister Edwards!  She was lovely!  She examined Jeanette and gave her a clean slate then asked me if I'd registered her.  I explained what had happened and she said " Don't worry about it dear!  I'll get it sorted out for you!" Bless her---she was as good as her word!  I didn't even have to go anywhere, as she dealt with the lot and Jeanette's birth certificate came through the post a couple of days later.

        Mum and Dad were thrilled to bits to have a baby Grand-daughter.  Mum went out and bought a lovely lemon pram cover and matching pillow for her.  Dad gave her her bottle on one of the Saturdays that I took her up to see them.  All in all it was a very happy time.  It was a lovely summer and at the end of June, the Jules Rimmer World Cup began at Wembley Stadium. Even me, who hasn't the slightest interest in soccer football, watched all the qualifying matches previous to the final.  The most memorable to me being Portugal and Eusabio.   World cup fever was at it's height. Dad and Roger were glued to the telly every time I went to see them.  Roger was a fervent Sky Blues (Coventry) supporter.  I was at Mum and Dad's on the final Saturday, when England won the cup.  Well---you have never heard such joyful noise in your life as when Kenneth Wolstenhome said the immortal words " They think it's all over------ it is now!"  The only time I can think of matching it, is when Coventry won the F.A. Cup in 1987, but we will come to that, later.  This is a link to the result of the 1966 World Cup http://www.the-english-football-archive.com/england/world_cup/1966.htm   Dad took our photographs that afternoon, in colour, which was a new innovation.  The camera actually took transparent slide shots, but after a while, I was able to get them developed as photographs.  Dad never ever saw the results, as sadly, he was to pass away before they were developed.

           July and August passed happily and my friendships grew with Josie, Pat and Ann and my babies were thriving.  Ann had taken a shine to Billy and enjoyed taking him to the Co-op in the mornings, when she went shopping.  She liked a small bet on the horses and as the betting shop was across a brook behind our prefab, she asked me to put her bets on.  Usually it was a 5s.0d roll-up each way.  No problem to me, as every time she made her lovely soups and stews, she would give me a big bowl for us. She liked to go for a drink every night, with her friends, except on the nights when she was suffering from the gout that played her up now and again.  Did she go to the local pub?----Indeed she did not!  She would catch the 7-30 PM bus across the City and go to the Forester's Arms!  Before she moved to her prefab, she had lived in Queen Street, in Hillfields.  She was really happy there and made many friends, but the Council had a compulsory purchase order for them to knock the houses down to build eight storey blocks of flats, so they put her in the prefab, but, undaunted, she still went to see her friends.

           September came, and during the second week, I went up to see my Dad at lunch time.  They always left the front door key on the ledge in the porch, for me to let myself in.  I walked in as usual and a small voice came from upstairs.  " Come on up, I'm in bed.  I've had a heart attack!"  My first thought was "Why wasn't he in hospital?"  However, he didn't seem worried and the doctor had given him some pills.  We found out later that they were 'Contact' flue capsules!!!  My Father was being treated for the 'flue instead of a heart attack! This was on Thursday 22nd. I didn't stay long, as he wanted to sleep, so worriedly, I went back home.  I went back to see him the next day and stayed longer.  By this time, Dave and Roger had got his bed downstairs into the front room.  He asked me if I would go and get him some wafer biscuits.  I managed to get him some and he lay there nibbling on one.  I looked at him and suddenly noticed that he looked old.  He always had deep lines in his forehead, but they looked even deeper this day and his skin was grey looking. I waited until Mum came home from work----she was working at Copthorne school at the time, and was cook supervisor in the school canteen----and told her how he'd been, then, worriedly, I went back home.  We called in to see him on the Saturday and he was quite a bit brighter and looked better. Judy was there with Stewart and Tim.  On the Sunday, I left Billy and Jeanette with Val, as she was staying with us at the time, her flat in Spon Street also had a purchase order on it, so she had moved in temporarily. I went in at about 6-45 P.M.  Dad was sitting up in bed, quite chirpy!  He had a visit that afternoon from his friend, Charlie Dupenois, who had worked with him in his office, but had emigrated to Canada.  He was home on a visit, and came to see Dad.  Charlie had played at one time for Coventry R.F.C.  Dad was in the front room, and Mum was watching television in the back.  He asked me to get a cigarette from her, as he hadn't had one since Wednesday.  Being totally ignorant of the dangers of smoking and heart attacks, I got one from her for him.  He took three puffs and put it out.  After about half an hour, I kissed him goodnight and left.  "See you in the morning, Pop!", were my last words to him.  Strangely though, I usually kissed his forehead or his cheek, but this time I kissed him full on his lips.  As I was walking home, when I got half way along Brookside Avenue, I had a strange feeling.  The thought came to my mind that I hadn't kissed Mum!  When I got home, it was just before 8 o'clock and the the children were asleep, so I watched some television.  At 9.45 P.M. there was a knock on the door and when I answered it, Roger stood there.  He just said "Dad's gone!".  I turned stone cold.  He had to go and see someone else, but he said that he would call back for me to go to see Mum.  While I was waiting for him to return, I was in a daze, and had to make myself cry to believe it. A little later, I went up to see Mum and, bless her, she was very brave.  Apparently, after I left, Judy's Grandma, Hetty came to see him and she had just had an operation.  They were laughing about their scars and Dad suddenly fell back.  He was gone!  A massive coronary thrombosis.  He was just 58 and two months. He died at 7-45 P.M., which was the time that I had been walking home along Brookside Avenue!

           It was Roger's 20th birthday the following day and a week before, I had bought him some really nice cuff links.  I gave them to Dad to look after for me and he had hidden them so  well that no-one found them for a fortnight!  I went that night to see him in Pargetter's and indeed went every day until his funeral  Even the same morning.  I couldn't let him go. His funeral was on the Wednesday and the church service was at St. John the Baptist in Fleet Street and after that, to Canley where to my shock, he was cremated.  That took a bit of getting used to, but it was his wish and his ashes were scattered over a red rose bush in the garden of rest there. The funeral cortege went along the new Inner Ring Road as Dad had a hand in the designing of it. (I have, as a pedestrian, often cursed him for it!!) One bright spot in the whole of that day, was that John and Celia allowed young John to attend his funeral and it was more than fantastic to see him there especially as he came back home with me for a while.  After that, he came several times to visit me, unbeknown to them and it was always a joyous time.  Billy liked to play with him down at the brook when he came. The Sunday after Dad's funeral, I decided to make a Yorkshire pudding again, as we had beef for dinner.  I mixed my batter, as usual and when it came out of the oven, it was perfect for the very first time!  I knew then that Dad was looking after me!  It was my birthday in October and Pat, and a couple of other friends, came to the Coronation Club with me to celebrate it. Not being used to going out a great deal, we were soon quite merry after a few drinks and when we were on the way home, we got off the Keresley bus at the Belgrade theatre, which had a lovely fountain and pool outside it.  The girls and I were mucking about and dared each other to go under the fountain.  Pat went first I think.  She got through it O.K., with just a small drenching, but when it was my turn, the force of the water pulled me into the pool and I was completely soaked!  Fortunately, it was raining, so when I boarded the Allesley Park bus, it wasn't as embarrassing as it could have been.  Aspley-Tyas were a firm building new houses on the site where the prefabs were being demolished in Lyndale Road, and as we walked home, there was a ladder against the wall of a house that was being built.  Pat had to climb to the top of it!  Fortunately there were no accidents that time!  It's a miracle that none of us were arrested that night! A week later, another national tragedy occurred.  In a small welsh village called Aberfan, a coal tip collapsed after continuous rain and slid down on to a school, burying 112 children in slurry.  This of course, devastated everyone.  Practically a whole generation of the village were wiped out.  I never saw my Mum cry very much, but she broke her heart that day.  Possibly because it was so soon after her personal tragedy.

            Soon after this, Bob asked me to marry him again.  I told him that he'd better not back out this time!!  We had to arrange it secretly, as my family thought that we got married in the previous March, so it was arranged that we would be quietly married on December 3rd.  We were to be married at 10.40 A.M.  We had a massive row before the event, as I'd asked him if he'd paid the rent for me. " No, I didn't!  I had to use it for the marriage licence!"  I was furious and had a chance of calling it all off, but I thought "Ay-Up--you might not get another chance" So I swallowed my pride and arranged to meet him at the Registry Office in Little Park Street.  Josie cut my hair for me, and I was still fuming, but I got ready and went anyway.  I laddered my stockings and had to go into a shop for some new ones on the way and changed them in the Ladies cloakroom in Earl Street.  The only guests were three of Bob's friends, his sister Carol and a friend of hers, and Bill's partner, Sheila.  We went to the Market Tavern for a couple of drinks to celebrate and on the way, Sheila nipped into a shop and bought us a pair of silver hearts, with black cats swinging on them.  I was so pleased with it and it hung above our bed until Jeanette demolished it when she was playing on the bed!  We went to see Bob's Mum and Dad in the afternoon and then went home, where Bill and Sheila were waiting for us.  We went out at night to the Three Spires, as they baby sat for us and we had a lovely time.  Married at last!-----and yes---that piece of paper DID make a difference!

             I had been putting a few shillings by in the butcher's club, ready for our first Christmas in our own home and had enough for a lovely capon and a piece of pork for our  dinner.  It was the very first real Christmas that we'd had since we met.  I decorated the room and put the tree up and we had a lovely Christmas that year!  Billy had a Corgi model of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and James Bond's Aston Martin car, also a model tractor that he could ride on.  Jeanette had a Tiny Tears doll.  I was rather upset at the time though, as I couldn't afford to get my Dad a wreath.  I had a brainwave though and got some fuse wire and several small branches of Cypress  and fashioned a cross from them.  On Boxing Day, I took the children up to the Crematorium (it was only about 20 minutes walk along the Highway) and placed the cross where his ashes had been scattered.  As I turned to walk back out, it started raining very gently and walking out of the gate and back on to the Highway, there was the most beautiful rainbow stretching across!  I felt as if it was my Dad saying "Thanks love!"  About a week later, I had a small legacy from him.  I went to town and the first thing I got was a wedding ring, as mine was only borrowed from Bob's Mum and I wanted one of my own.  It was 9 carat gold with a pattern on it and it cost £2.10s.0d. (£2.50p)!  I am still wearing that ring today after forty two years and the pattern has never faded. I also treated myself to a new coat and other clothes.  Bob got a job with Aspley-Tyas and was working over the road, where they were demolishing the prefabs, so he hadn't far to go!  He used to come home for his tea breaks in the mornings and at lunch time.  At the time, he worked with the husband of my neighbour.  One afternoon that summer, I caught them out a treat!  I was going to the shops and came out on to the road and opposite, there were the pair of them leaning on their spades and ogling a young girl who was walking up the street!  "Get back to work!!"  I shouted!  The pair of them soon moved!

To Be Continued--------