Rachel and Jordan’s feeding journey with their second daughter, Liana, has felt calm, intuitive, and shared. Born by caesarean, Liana “latched straight away in the side-lying position”. Rachel breastfeeds and pumps, which means Jordan can be part of feeding too. “We have that partnership… that fluidity, which is really nice.” There’s a quiet confidence in the way Rachel talks about feeding this time. She trusts her body, trusts her pēpi, and understands how it all works. “I love knowing my body made milk specifically for my baby, instantly, and that my baby knows when their tummy is full.” Their earlier journey with Māia had more hurdles, including time in NICU, latch struggles, donor milk, and the use of a nipple shield that Rachel says, “is what got us home.” That experience, alongside antenatal breastfeeding education and the ongoing support of the Canterbury Breastfeeding Advocacy Service, has shaped how Rachel approaches feeding now. “Learn about breastfeeding,” she says. “This could be two years of your life.” For Rachel and Jordan, their story shows how feeding journeys can look completely different from one baby to the next, and how each way of nourishing pēpi with human milk is valid, powerful, and deeply personal.
