Amelia, 8, and her brother Max, 5, squealed in delight as they chased each other across the courtyard of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mellieha, as the sun's rays reflected in their red hair.
For the siblings the courtyard doubles as a playground, but for their English parents, Karen and Craig Browse, it is much more significant than that.
"We couldn't have children and I believe that it was only through the intervention of Our Lady of Mellieha that I succeeded in conceiving both Amelia and Max," Ms Browse said, as she sat on a stone bench in a corner of the tranquil square.
The couple, from Sheffield, are not Roman Catholics because they were raised in the Church of England, but their faith that Our Lady granted them a grace is so strong that their daughter's middle name is Mellieha.
"The doctor told my wife that even the chair she was sitting on had a better chance of conceiving, which wasn't very nice, but that showed us how bad things were," Mr Browse said.
Mr Browse, 43, and his wife, 37, started trying to have children in 1996, a year after they tied the knot.
Having honeymooned in Malta, they were drawn to the island's charm and returned every year, sometimes even twice.
In October 1999, the couple hit a wall. Ms Browse was told she was not ovulating, and specialists laid out the slim chances before them - the fertility drug Clomid to stimulate ovulation or in vitro fertilisation.
"We were rather upset and I don't think we anticipated going down that road. We had no guarantee of success with any of the procedures," Mr Browse said.
Since they always stayed in a hotel in the north of the island, they often visited the sanctuary; somehow they felt serene in the ancient place that has been a centre of devotion for pilgrims for centuries.
They were also awestruck by the ex-voto offerings that line the sacristy, a sign of gratitude and devotion to Our Lady for granting them a grace, usually from people who recovered from an incurable illness.
The pictures of the people who have been healed never left their mind, so after three years of trying to conceive in vain, they sought a higher form of intervention than the doctors could provide. So they packed their bags and flew to Malta for some peace of mind, with a visit to the sanctuary their ultimate objective.
"We just sat there (in the sanctuary) and prayed to Our Lady to have children. We felt at peace. We just left it in her hands," Ms Browse said.
The icon of Our Lady of Mellieha is said to have been drawn on the rock face in a cave by the apostle Luke in 60 AD. The cave was later enlarged into a church between 1844 and 1847, and the icon has been revered for years.
The couple returned to Sheffield and a month later they decided to try their luck with Clomid. The day she decided to start taking the pills, her husband was cooking trout for dinner.
"Karen was desperate to take the pills, but don't ask me why, I felt something was going to happen. When she suddenly felt sick, I urged her to try a pregnancy test. When it marked positive we were bowled over; in shock and disbelief," Mr Browse said, adding that the trout went to waste.
Ms Browse added: "After we were told we couldn't have children naturally it took a while to sink in. I was four weeks pregnant and we believe Amelia's birth is a grace from the Madonna."
She endured a very traumatic pregnancy, but the resilient Amelia kept growing and was born on August 2, 2000.
Basking in the sunshine, the family return every year to the sanctuary to thank Our Lady for their two healthy children.
This year they were planning to miss their annual holiday to Malta. However, Mr Browse, a Sheffield United supporter, won a holiday to the island.
Coincidentally, the football team is officially sponsored by the Malta Tourism Authority, which, through its information and support service executive Victor Bonett in the London office, did its utmost to sort out their trip.
Amelia and Max were a walking advert for both Malta and their home team as they ran around in Sheffield United T-shirts, emblazoned with the logo of visitmalta.com.