Iyia Liu may run her own business and star in the reality series BossBabes, but the one who rules in her house is a bossy babe – her two-year-old daughter Summer.
If Iyia and her partner Jordan Delmont had a dollar for every time their sassy lass said “no”, they’d be very rich, but they love the confident nature of their first child, who is soon to be joined by another baby girl.
“I feel like she does have the same traits that I have,” Iyia says while wrestling Summer’s hair into two pigtails, her daughter squirming and flailing on her knee. “I feel like she’s already talking back to me, but I guess I am quite fiery and a little bit sassy too.
“Even at the day care, she’s super-confident. She’s always saying ‘good morning’ to everyone. We are quite social and we love being around a lot of people, so Summer usually is too.”
Iyia and Jordan wanted to have a gap of about three years between their two children, and were surprised to fall pregnant only a few months after Iyia had her contraceptive removed.
“With Summer, I remember being better than this pregnancy,” Iyia tells. “I’ve been sick for a lot longer and even now, after the first trimester, I’m stilla bit nauseous. It’s not nice. I almost feel a little bit depressed sometimes.”
With both 30-year-olds juggling 12-hour work days around caring for Summer, they have already pulled back on their social life. These days, they are likely to be curled up on the couch of the home they rent on Auckland’s North Shore when they watch the third series of BossBabes, the TVNZ+ show following Iyia and her friend Edna Swart, a fellow entrepreneur and Celebrity Treasure Island survivor.
On Celebrity Treasure Island.
The women met about six years ago when Edna modelled for one of Iyia’s businesses.
This season starts post-COVID lockdowns and captures Edna’s wedding, including behind-the-scenes planning and her hen’s do, while also documenting Iyia launching new products and the stalled build of their Coatesville property.
“We have about a hectare of land,” she shares. “The build has been delayed and that has been really difficult. I’m just so excited to be able to eventually move there and have a lawn.
“Growing up, I was constantly between houses – I moved maybe 10 times – so to be able to give Summer a home that she can be in permanently, with a lawn that you can run around in, is really my dream.”
Emotions are high for Iyia and Edna on the new season of BossBabes.
That desire to provide a loving base for their offspring has seen the couple delay any thoughts they might have of marriage – choosing instead to invest in their build, rather than an expensive wedding.
The pair met about four years ago, through friends, and Jordan says they feel married without putting a ring on it.
“Do I see ourselves being married in the future?” he muses. “Absolutely. Do I think it’s something that we need at the moment? Not necessarily. We’re married in a sense – we’re a family. We’ll put a label on it at some stage, but I don’t see any rush.”
Jordan works in a family company and supports Iyia’s desire to build her business, understanding the sacrifices she makes working on her brand Tidal Hair.
“She works very hard and is extremely time-poor, like myself, but we make it work,” he says.
“We’re extremely organised, so there is a calendar for everything, even for lunch prep, but we didn’t schedule baby number two!” he laughs.
Iyia is equally appreciative that Jordan is a hands-on father. “Jordy is a really good dad,” she enthuses. “He also works quite long hours, but he comes home, helps do the bath, does dinner, always helps with nappies… We’re pretty equal in terms of sharing the workload, which is so amazing because I know sometimes the dads are not.”
A wedding’s not a priority for the couple, who are focused on moving into their new home.
Jordan was by her side when a prolonged labour meant an emergency C-section to deliver Summer, with Iyia losing a lot of blood and being incredibly dizzy for the first few days after the birth.
Iyia ponders if she may have had PTSD with the trauma of being conscious while the operation took place, so they hope to be able to have a natural birth, and ideally Iyia wants to avoid having an epidural as she felt she had no control of her pushing last time.
They anticipate moving into their home in June, less than two months after the baby is due, and they’re consciously preparing Summer to share Mummy and Daddy’s attention.
Iyia can’t wait to meet the new arrival – another little girl!
Iyia smiles, “I’ve got an app on my phone that tracks how far along I am. It’s got this 3D little baby and sometimes she’ll ask, ‘Can I see my sister?’ So that’s very cute.”
Putting on her mother’s sequinned Alexander McQueen heels as our interview comes to an end, Summer is clip-clopping across the floor like a true diva. The new baby definitely has big shoes to fill!
BossBabes is streaming now on TVNZ+.
