October 16th, 2019. The day that changed our lives forever. My husband and I found out we were expecting our first child and could not have been more happy. From the first ultrasound and beating of the heartbeat we were head-over-heels in love.
My husband and I met in the fall of 2014 and it quickly became apparent we were meant for each other. After 10 months we were living together, after 2 years we were engaged and bought our first place and by 3 years we were married. No relationship is perfect, but I would describe ours as being pretty close. He is the ying to my yang, the calm to my storm and my greatest confidant. To say that I couldn’t wait to start a family with him would be an understatement.
In late January/early February of 2020, we started to hear about a new virus called “COVID-19”. We, like many people globally, brushed it off and didn’t think it would impact us. We were in expecting parental bliss. However, in March 2020, COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic and our blissful unawareness came to an abrupt end.
We were both fortunate to be classified as “essential workers”, so neither of us lost our jobs when the first set of restrictions became enforced. I was also lucky that my employer allowed me to work from home, as pregnant women were and are considered “high risk” for this virus. Our “new normal” came naturally to us; I settled into a new work-from-home setup and my husband continued his normal work (albeit with more precautions taken). We thought this state of the world would be short-lived, but as weeks turned into months, we were again proven wrong. May 15th, 2020 was my last day of work before I took 4 weeks vacation and then began my maternity leave. For me, COVID-19 precautions became second nature. My husband would come home, I would open all doors for him and prepare his shower so that he could “sanitize” and his clothes would immediately go into the wash. As a homebody, it didn’t really effect me that we chose to avoid restaurants and stores – our new priority was the health of our little family.
Soon, my planned baby shower turned into a drive-by baby shower, I had to attend my Dr’s visits and ultrasounds by myself, all of our shopping turned virtual, and my focus on the daily number of cases emerging was growing exponentially. All the while we stayed grateful for the healthy baby boy growing happily in my tummy and tried to focus on the positives instead of the negatives.
Whenever I got anxious or stressed over the state of the world, my husband was there to calm my nerves and reassure me that everything would be ok. We adjusted, adapted and continued to accept that this was just part of our story.
On June 30th, 2020, 12 days after my due date and 2 days after being induced, our healthy little miracle arrived into world. There are no words that truly describe how you feel, the new person you become, or the newfound love you discover when you become a parent. We are still in shock and awe over this little human and are eternally grateful to call him ours.
As I sit here in January 2021, we are still living our “new normal”, but with so much gratitude and love. Love for the frontline and essential workers that have put their lives on line to help us all; love for our friends and families and of course, love for each other. While COVID-19 is still among us, I see hope and brighter days around the corner. In the meantime, let’s appreciate everything we have.
2020 and the life-changing moments that came with it, encouraged me to follow my passions – one of which is writing. If you have read this far – thank you. I am excited for this new blog journey that will explore my beautiful, crazy life!
