You've won, believe it!

When she received a phone call informing her that she had won R1-million, Marla Pakaree at first laughed it off.

It took numerous calls from SMS competition sponsor Dreamcall, and a few from the company director, before Pakaree and her husband Patrick began to accept that they had won a million.

Two weeks ago, Pakaree, from Foresthaven in Phoenix, entered the SMS contest on a whim. Dreamcall is a national competition exclusive to Cell C subscribers.

"I never thought anything about it, I just said why not? When the lady called I was sure it was a joke," said Pakaree.

The stay-at-home mother of two said others might want to splurge such a huge sum, but her family wanted to be sensible about how they spent it because "it could go as quickly as it came".

Patrick, 42, agreed, adding that the first thing the family planned on doing with the prize money was to settle the R187000 bond on their three-bedroom home.

"When we got married and got the house, we had nothing, we had to build our way up. It will be so nice after 14 years of working just to come home at the end of the month and be able to say we are free, our home is free," said Patrick.

A car salesman at a local dealership, Patrick said he wanted the money to change the family as little as possible, so he would continue working.

"This will improve our lives, but it is just a springboard for something greater. I love my job and want to carry on like we were before we got the money. Hard work is still important," he said.

The couple will celebrate their 19-year anniversary next week but will not be splashing out on any expensive gifts. They said they were opting to invest the money and will put as much of it as they can towards their children's education.

Their main concern now is their 18-year-old son, who matriculated last year but was unable to go to university this year to pursue his passion for civil engineering.

"We wanted him to work and study, but now that God has made a way, he can study full time," said Pakaree.

"We also want to set funds aside for our 13-year-old daughter."

The only luxury the couple are considering, however, is a trip to Disneyland in the US next year.

"I thought if we were doing something, it was important to do it as a family and give the children something to remember for the rest of their lives," said Patrick.