
Expecting the miracle of a new life, Jaimee Lupton, co-founder of Monday Haircare, and Nick Mowbray conveyed the delightful news of their pregnancy to the world. This joyous announcement comes after a painful period following the loss of their infant daughter, affectionately named “Gingernut” and a miscarriage that ensued.
Lupton took to her Instagram to make the announcement, sharing a video from Kokomo Island that revealed her radiant baby bump, coupled with a brief ultrasound clip.
Throughout the previous year, Lupton had candidly discussed the profound sorrow of losing a child and grappling with infertility. Her plight intensified when her waters broke at just 24 weeks while Mowbray was in Los Angeles. The couple had plans to brainstorm for their baby’s name upon his homecoming. Until then, their anticipated baby girl sported a cute, placeholder name, “Gingernut”. A term of endearment coined in fondness for the digestives Lupton indulged in to alleviate her pregnancy-induced nausea and reflecting Mowbray’s ginger-tinted hair – a potential genetic gift the baby girl was supposed to inherit.
A memory that Lupton can’t help but recall is the painful day of March 25, 2022. The strict Covid protocols imposed by the Auckland City Hospital only permitted Lupton a single accompanying person. Her mother had to make way for the arrival of Mowbray, relegating herself to a mere spectator in the life-altering event. With just four exhausting hours of labour, their baby girl entered and departed this world, her tiny figure not much larger than a mobile phone.
Never before had the couple been so helpless. Lupton, known for her meticulous planning and control over situations, lamented the lack of her control in the situation that mattered to her the most. Initially, she resolved to share her ordeal at a later time, when she would have her baby and her “happy ending”.
However, she soon understood that her silence would only disconnect her from other couples struggling with infertility. She wouldn’t be doing justice to her experiences or their pain if she were to narrate her ordeal with a joyous baby on her lap. Reflecting on her journey, Lupton admits, “I think that’s the worst thing I could do because I’m in the trenches now. I’d be doing others who have gone through the same thing a disservice if I didn’t speak about my experience.”