Photography: Amalia Osborne.
When Jenny Suo and her partner Michael visited Japan in the past year, they made sure to stop at Osaka’s famed Katsuoji Temple, known for its power to grant wishes. After a long and emotional journey trying to conceive, they had only one desire – to become parents. Just weeks later, Jenny discovered she was pregnant and today, the TVNZ star and her doctor partner are thrilled to introduce their long-awaited miracle, Maisie Xiaoli Walker-Suo, born on 4 September 2025.
This precious little girl has filled their lives with more love and joy than they ever imagined, and Jenny says she still can’t believe how lucky she is to finally be a mum.
“This is what I have wanted most my whole life,” reveals Jenny, 35, who suffered a devastating miscarriage in 2023, followed by infertility and IVF treatment.
“I can honestly say that I’ve enjoyed every part of being a mum. “Even in the hard bits, like when I’m rocking her bassinet with my foot while I’m trying to have dinner at 9.30 at night or when I’ve barely slept in days, I think, ‘I choose this over any life without Maisie.’ I remind myself every time how much I wanted it and how perfect it feels that she’s here.”
A night that turned into morning
Jenny smiles as she recalls Maisie’s birth story, which began when her waters broke during dinner the night before her 3 September due date. Instead of rushing to the hospital, the couple played their favourite board game Wingspan – “Yes, we’re huge nerds!” – and headed to bed early in the hope of catching an hour’s sleep before Jenny’s labour ramped up.
But she was shocked to open her eyes eight hours later and find it was the next morning!
Jenny laughs, “It was like, ‘What?!’ I was expecting to have the baby in the night, but instead I woke up and nothing had happened at all.”
Hospital trip for peace of mind
She spoke to her midwife, who advised her to go to the hospital for monitoring, given her waters had broken, a situation that can increase the risk of infection. After being given antibiotics, Jenny and Michael spent the day walking around the Auckland Domain, hoping the movement might encourage their baby girl to make her entrance. But by evening, little had changed and Jenny began the induction process.
They passed the time watching Taskmaster, a poignant choice as the last time they’d been in hospital together, during the loss of Jenny’s first pregnancy, they had watched the same show.
Returning to the hospital with hope
“I remember thinking back then, when everything was going wrong, that one day we’d come back to this hospital to have our baby and feeling really sure the next time would be happier,” says Jenny, who became pregnant naturally during a break in IVF treatment.
“So this time, I wanted Taskmaster on again. I don’t even remember which season or episode we watched as I was in so much pain, but it felt kind of special.”
Labour is in full swing
And within a few hours, labour was well under way and Taskmaster had been sidelined. Despite the pain, Jenny admits she genuinely enjoyed every step of the process. Michael set up battery-powered tea lights around the room, the lights were dimmed and their specially selected playlist was on in the background.
Michael says he was amazed by how calm and strong Jenny was throughout, marvelling, “It was like she instinctively just knew what to do.”
The moment Maisie arrived
At midnight, it was time to push and an hour later, baby Maisie entered into the world weighing a petite 2.8kg. It was a moment neither parent will ever forget.
Jenny recalls, “My midwife put her straight up onto my chest and I was like, ‘Oh, my God, she’s finally here.’ I have to admit that I also thought, ‘Whoa, this is a gunky little thing!’ But then I just looked
at her and felt an incredible feeling – this is my daughter and it was just such a huge, overwhelming moment.”
Michael adds, “It was all relief and joy that everything had led to this. It was special.”
Choosing the perfect name
The couple were relieved she suited the name that they’d chosen months earlier, inspired by both their mums – Jenny’s mother May and Michael’s mum Rosie. Xiaoli is Jenny’s Chinese-born grandmother, who sadly passed away in 2023.
“We didn’t have to go on a name-finding journey at all,” shares Jenny.
“We came up with it straightaway and I remember Michael saying after she arrived, ‘She is 1000% a Maisie. It’s perfect.’ He’s right – she really suits it.”
A perfect morning
Jenny wells up as she recalls the scene several hours after giving birth – she, Michael and Maisie were the only ones in the hospital room, the sun was coming up and life felt impossibly perfect.
“Michael was on the La-Z-Boy next to the bed, I was lying there with Maisie on me and Michael fell asleep,” she remembers.
“I was looking out the window at the Sky Tower and I just remember thinking, ‘I don’t think there’s a more perfect moment.’ I still feel super-emotional because I felt so complete, just so whole. That thing we were waiting for was finally here.”
Feeling whole at last
Going through so much to get there made the moment even sweeter.
Jenny tells, “When we were at the same hospital losing our first pregnancy, we dreamed of this moment for so long. But I didn’t let myself really picture it for a very long time because, you know, you’re not guaranteed anything. “I always reserved just a little part of me that was prepared for the worst, just in case. But this was the first time I could let my entire being feel that wholeness and happiness. I never wanted the moment to end.”
A perfect morning
After a few nights at postnatal facility Birthcare, Jenny and Michael were thrilled to bring their baby home to meet their beloved pooch Kia. Now, after the usual first few weeks of sleep deprivation and getting to grips with breastfeeding, the family’s thriving – and the couple says every day is full of wonder as they watch their wee girl develop and grow.
This week, Maisie giggled for the first time.
A moment years in the making
Michael smiles, “She just changes so fast, so we try to take in all the little firsts and remember them. Before you know it, she’s on to something new.”
The new year brings a major change for the Auckland family, with Michael, a trainee plastic surgeon, starting a new position at Waikato Hospital. While the logistics are still being worked through and
it will involve a commute, the couple’s confident they’ll make it work.
Stronger together
After all, their relationship began long-distance and they’ve already weathered far greater challenges. As long as they have each other, Jenny knows they can handle whatever comes next.
“What Michael and I have been through over the past few years has been incredibly intimate and deeply bonding,” she confesses.
“I honestly don’t think we could be any closer. This next chapter is simply part and parcel of Michael’s career – we’ll find a way. If there’s anything I’ve learnt, it’s that you have to let life happen.”
A wish come true
In late February, the family has a very special trip planned – a return to Japan to revisit the place where their wish was granted. At Katsuoji Temple, visitors make wishes using daruma dolls. One eye
is painted, the wish is made as the doll is held over incense and when the wish comes true, the second eye is filled in and the doll’s returned inside.
“It means the temple is full of dreams that came true,” says Jenny.
“I find that so beautiful.”
Completing the ritual feels important to the couple and they can’t wait for Maisie’s very first overseas adventure.
“I never thought I was superstitious,” Jenny admits. “But when you want something so desperately, I think you become that way. Everything about Maisie feels incredibly special and meaningful.”
