The Silver Linings of a Pandemic Baby

You’ve likely seen the powerful Facebook ad, “Born in Quarantine,” which celebrates the strength of all the moms who have given birth in the past few months under quarantine. The coronavirus pandemic has created a vast community of moms bonded by the collective experience of bringing a baby into our precarious world during this unprecedented time. In spite of the obvious downsides, the pandemic can offer some moms with new babies a bright side - actually several.

The Nicolosi Family

The story of the Nicolosi family exemplifies how living on lockdown with a newborn can create lasting memories. A full-time mom in Philadelphia’s Main Line suburbs, Christina Nicolosi gave birth to her fourth son less than a week before the state began to shut down from the coronavirus outbreak. When news about the coronavirus broke, Christina took it very seriously, thanks in large part to her degree in Biochemical Engineering and background in vaccine manufacturing.

When she developed a cough at nine months pregnant, Christina began to freak out. Her anxiety turned into panic when she went into labor triggered by a coughing fit, and her baby was born with a slight fever. Fortunately, both Christina and her baby were fine and cleared to head home the next day. What transpired over the following three months was a postpartum experience completely unlike her previous three.

Co-Parenting for the First Time

Christina’s husband Joe runs the family business DiNic’s Roast Pork, the famous sandwich shop located in Reading Terminal Market. After their previous two sons’ births, Joe had to return to work the day after Christina came home from the hospital due to the demands of his job. This time, however, the new baby arrived as the coronavirus outbreak was escalating. After many long and difficult discussions, Christina and Joe decided that it was in the best interest of their family to shut the business down until it was safe to reopen. Thus began a postpartum period with a pandemic baby that their entire family will always remember fondly.

For the first time ever, Christina and Joe became a true co-parenting team. Witnessing firsthand what Christina had to do with their four boys day in and day out, Joe became hyper-attentive to the family’s needs and gave up the downtime that he used to crave on his days off work. The two of them fell into a tag-teaming routine, orchestrating the older boys’ distance learning and dividing duties to give each child individual attention. They had time to bond in ways they never had before, like going on regular family walks.

Marveling at what a special opportunity they had, Christina remarked, “When does a dad ever get to spend three months at home with his young children?” Christina had newfound freedom to enjoy one-on-one time with her newborn knowing that her other sons were in the best hands. Meanwhile, her two-year-old developed an obsession with his dad, and the pair of them became inseparable. Joe was given a chance to build a relationship with his sons that he wouldn’t have had otherwise.

The Bonus of a Bubble

Coming from a large, close-knit family, Christina was sad at first that they couldn’t share this time with grandparents and extended family. Their now three-month-old has only ever been held by his two parents. At the same time, she appreciated the experience of their immediate family unit alone, “but not so alone since there are so many of us,” she added.

Being in a bubble has its benefits. Always a germaphobe, Christina no longer needed to worry about the bigger kids bringing home viruses from school and infecting the household. It was refreshing to not have to police other people about touching or hovering over the baby. Christina already looks back on this peaceful time with nostalgia, since she knows that everything is going to change now that Joe reopened the business on June 16th. The pandemic brought much unexpected happiness to their family.

Like the Nicolosis, many families are