It has been a wild week or so, hasn’t it? It’s crazy how the entire world can change in such a short amount of time. Coronavirus has been very scary for us and it’s a threat we are taking very seriously in our household (and I hope you are too). While I’ve been sharing my regularly scheduled content (and I plan to continue to do that around here), I did want to touch base and share all of my thoughts right now.

Being Pregnant During the Coronavirus Global Pandemic

I’m not gonna lie, the fact that I’m pregnant right now is terrifying for me. I’ve waited so long to hold that baby in my arms and we are just about to the finish line. I can’t let anything compromise that for us. While the cases of pregnant women with Coronavirus have been low, it’s such a small sample of people and it’s hard to really know the effects on both mom and baby. Pregnant women have a compromised immune system, so contracting this virus puts us at a higher risk than the general population.

I’m also constantly thinking about what the hospitals will be like in five to six weeks. Will I be able to deliver in the hospital? Will it be safe to go there? Will my OB be healthy enough to deliver my baby? My mind keeps going into these “what if” situations and it’s hard to not let those scenarios spiral out of control. I also know there are visitor limitations during this time, which I fully support. I was only planning to have Finn in the room with me during delivery, but I definitely wanted my family to be able to visit us in the hospital afterward. That probably won’t be an option and that’s okay with me because the hospital has to keep its patients safe. But I am worried about them taking away the support partner in the delivery room and Finn not being able to be there for the birth of his daughter (and to support me during labor). That hasn’t happened yet, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed we can be together for the entire experience.

I also think about life once our baby arrives. How can we keep her safe during such uncertain times? Will our family be able to meet her? It’s hard to keep my mind from wandering too far into the future of unknowns.

Social-Distancing for As Long as It Takes

Finn and I are on day 8 of social-distancing. We’ve only ventured out of the house to go to a doctor’s appointment and that’s our plan, indefinitely. My doctors think it’s best to be as cautious as possible, so we’re listening to them. My mom was supposed to come over last weekend to help paint the nursery and it broke my heart that we had to tell her she couldn’t come over (she had just gotten back from a trip to Detroit and we just couldn’t risk it). Don’t worry, she is okay and staying with my brother and his family (she is loving all of the time with her grandkids!).

My entire family is social-distancing for at least 14 days. After that, I’m hopeful that we can see one another and create a little isolation cell. It would be nice to be able to have our little group together to break up the monotony of this new normal, but we are going to play it by ear and listen to the CDC recommendations.

My Sister – An ICU Nurse

My sister is an ICU nurse at a hospital here in Chicago. Her hospital has several Coronavirus patients and I’m so proud of her for being on the front lines of this global pandemic. I can’t imagine how scary it is to be out in the world right now, let alone taking care of people who are infected. She amazes me and I hope you can all send her good vibes to stay healthy and sane amongst this chaos.

Also, a big thank you to anyone out there who is putting their lives at risk to help others right now. Doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers, truckers, mailmen, and more. Whenever I get a little stir crazy at home, I remember that these people would love to be at home with their own families, yet they’re out there helping.

Adjusting to Our New Normal

We’ve both had the privilege of working from home for over a week now and it has been an adjustment for our little family of two. I gave the new office to Finn as he needs it more than I do. He has meetings non-stop and likes using two monitors to get his work done (here is the monitor he just bought two of). I’m fine working from anywhere because I like working on my laptop!

We’re doing our best to keep a routine around here…waking up around the same time, working, taking breaks, working out in the basement, and cooking dinner together. I’m pretty used to being at home a lot since I always work from home, so the only huge adjustment is having another person around (which I really like!). If you’re working from home for the first time, this blog post has some tips to stay productive.

Nesting & Resting

At the end of the day, we can’t change this situation. We can only control our reaction to it. So I’m doing my best to focus on the positives during this season of uncertainty. Finn and I have declared it the time of “nesting & resting.” We have a newborn joining our household in weeks and we have this opportunity to get things done, spend time together, just the two of us, and rest as much as possible. I’m pretty sure any new parent would love to have even a few days of that!

The nursery is in full swing over here as we’re finishing up the design for the space. I’ll be sharing all of those details over the coming weeks. In the meantime, I’ve been going through all of the lovely gifts we received from our baby shower, organizing and sorting baby clothes, and making note of other last-minute items we need to order. I’m confident we’ll be more than prepared for her arrival next month!

How We’re Coping

Besides nesting and resting, these are the other things we’re practicing in our household.

• Facetiming with Family: Every other day or so, my entire family has hopped on Facetime. It’s my mom, brothers, sister, and 87-year-old grandma all just chatting and hanging out for 30-45 minutes and it’s so much fun. My niece and nephew hop on too to show us what they’re up to and it’s a great way to connect.
• Family Game Night: We scheduled a game night this week to play “You Don’t Know Jack”, remotely. It was hilarious and we all had a blast. My brother set it up on his Apple TV and we then Facetimed in on computers and used our phones to play.
• Neighborhood Walks: We’ve had a few nice days and I’ve made it a point to get out of the house whenever possible for a long walk. If I come across another person, I keep my distance and cross the street or stay more than six feet away. The sunshine and fresh air is so invigorating. When the weather gets even better, we’ll be spending time working on our yard and grass (it’s looking pretty terrible right now).
• Limiting News: In the first few days, I found myself googling and reading the news non-stop. Not only was that not productive at all, but my anxiety was through the roof. Now I give myself twenty minutes a day to read and stay informed from reputable sources and that’s that.
• Working Out: I’ve been doing prenatal yoga videos on Youtube as well as my “Move Through Maternity” program on Aaptiv. Here are other at-home workout ideas.

Making the Most of Being at Home

We’re all now forced to spend time at home and I think that’s why I’m always stressing the importance of creating a home that YOU love (no one else). Your home should be your sanctuary and safe place away from the world. And I know I hear from so many readers who say they just don’t have the time for DIY projects, organizing, or cleaning. Well, maybe now is the time?! Here are some past post ideas to motivate you…

• 50+ Home Improvement Projects You Can Do This Weekend
• Organizing a Laundry Room
• Getting Organized Under the Kitchen Sink
• Annual Home Maintenance Tasks
• How I Keep My House Looking Clean
• Tips to Purge & Declutter
• My Weekly Cleaning Checklist
• Organizing your Pantry
• How to Organize your Closet
• 3 Ways to Deal with Paper Clutter
• 6 Ways to Organize Receipts
• My Favorite Organizational Products
• Stovetop Potpourri to Make your Home Smell Like Spring

Plus, a few recipes for all of that home cooking…

• Morning Green Juice
• Finn’s Tips to Grill Perfect Chicken Breasts
• Finn’s Famous Lasagna
• Easy Margarita Recipe (ohhhh, I wish I could have one right now)
• Simple Fresh Pasta
• Healthy Vegetable Soup
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
• Finn’s Tips for Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies (he is the master of cookies, I tell ya!)
• Roasted Pepper, Mushroom, & Pine Nut Frittata

Blog Content Moving Forward

As I mentioned, in the coming weeks you’ll see regular content around here. Many of you have remarked how seeing happy and uplifting home decor posts is a welcome respite from the constant flood of Coronavirus posts. I’m hoping I can continue to make this slice of the internet a home away from home for you. Here are some upcoming posts to get you excited…

• Spring Home Maintenance Tasks
• My Spring Cleaning To-Do List
• Tips to Style Shelves
• Fave Mocktail Recipes (maybe we’ll make some of them boozy too!)
• How Finn Food Preps

Plus, all things nursery & DIY!

Stay Safe, Friends

I’ll end this by saying that I hope each and every one of you stays safe out there. Be kind to one another and use this as a time to recharge and re-energize your life. We’re taking it one day at a time over here and I know we’re all going to come out of this as better, stronger people. We’re all in this together!

Casey