In the past year, many couples decided to hold off having a baby because of the pandemic. Those who are trying had to halt their plan because they wanted to wait for a while to see where the pandemic is going to take them. Whether you have a baby in the house now, one on the way, or planning to have one, you will do well listening to some tips we’ve gathered to welcome a baby in a world forever changed by the pandemic.
If there’s one thing that you should remember, it’s that your home is going to be your own little world for the first few months (and even up to a year) of the baby’s life. It is risky to take the baby out unless absolutely necessary. If you have to take the baby for a walk, it would just be around the block or in your own backyard. The world has become smaller as the virus ravages lives, communities, and economies across the globe.
The first order of business for new parents is to fortify their homes against the virus. While even building a fortress is no fool-proof way to protect your family from the coronavirus (because it is not healthy to not go out of the house for months), you can still try and turn your home into something where you can feel safe with the new baby. Doing so is easy if you know what to focus on.
Indoor Air Quality
The quality of indoor air that you breathe is important for the well-functioning respiratory system of an infant. Making sure that the indoor air is free of toxins and allergens is a priority. To do that, make sure that the air inside the circulates efficiently. That’s either through improving the ventilation of a room such as opening doors and windows to let outdoor air inside or buy an air purifying device that will remove toxins and allergens from the air.
Another thing you should do is schedule a regular duct cleaning with reputable service providers such as St Louis Clean Air. They inspect and clean air ducts, as well as replace filters to purify the air. The process will remove toxins from the air and reduce the risk of harmful mold and bacteria growing.
Sanitation and Hygiene Protocols
What are the hygiene and sanitation protocols you want to follow at home? Refer to health experts’ advice when building your own protocols at home. For example, anyone who comes from outside should immediately jump in the shower and remove their clothes. Should the clothes be thrown in the washer? Or, will there be a separate hamper for these clothes? How about the shoes?
Experts said that contracting the coronavirus from surfaces has a 1:10,000 chance. These are preliminary studies, of course, and could change any minute. But is this something that you intend to follow once you’re settled at home?
Guest Protocols
Even before the pandemic, health experts have frowned upon welcoming guests in nursery rooms. Infants have weak immune systems. Their health can deteriorate quickly when their bodies encounter unfamiliar objects in the form of germs, viruses, etc. In a post-pandemic world, it is even more important to emphasize to your loved ones that you will not accept guests in the meantime. This is to prevent the possible spread of the virus from adults to infants, and vice-versa, too.
This has been one of the most difficult impacts of the pandemic—the inability to welcome guests into your home. For now, you have to content yourself with introducing the new baby to the rest of the family via Zoom. Celebrations will have to be via teleconference, too.
Space, Entertainment, and Leisure
If you are going to welcome a new baby at home, you need the space for it. If you don’t have extra space, then move your things around and make one. The baby and his/her things will not give you an excuse not to have the space for it. Most importantly, in about 10 months or so, the baby will start to crawl and try to walk. Can the space in your house handle it?
You need space for entertainment and leisure, too. The baby is going to end up wanting to play and throw things around. Those activities need space. You also have to think about how they can fine-tune their motor skills when there is no dedicated space for them in the house.
Welcoming a new baby into the house is exciting and overwhelming. It can also be downright frightening because of the pandemic. So, the best thing to do is to prepare your home in a world that’ll be filled with baby stuff strewn around the living room and guests you cannot welcome at least for now.
