Halle Berry's baby wish

Mar 23, 2007, 9:00 GMT

Halle Berry - © Glenn Harris / Photorazzi

Halle Berry is desperate to have children.

The 40-year-old actress, who is dating 31-year-old model Gabriel Aubry, admits she is ready to have a baby and is thinking about trying soon.

She said: "I definitely want children. Very much."

Halle also insists she will be a strict mother and thinks the most important lesson any parent can teach their child is to realise the importance of hard work.

She told InStyle magazine: "I want my kids to realize it's only through hard work that any success or real joy comes. It's not about money, it's the intangible rewards, it's about having integrity and doing what you say you're going to do."

Halle has made no secret of her desire to have a baby in the past, and had vowed to get pregnant before she turned 40 last August.

She told US chat show host Oprah Winfrey: "If there's no serious man in my life when I get to that age, whoever I'm dating at the time, I'll say, 'Hey, would you like to have a baby?' ''

Halle has also admitted she would be prepared to adopt if she can't conceive naturally, and even contemplated artificial insemination before she started dating Gabriel.

She said last year: "It looks like the only option I have left is to head for the sperm bank! I've been so desperately unlucky in love and that has thwarted my desire for motherhood. It's so frustrating. The only other option would be adoption. I really yearn for a child and I can't wait much longer."

(C) BANG Media International