Mom gives birth to twins while sick with coronavirus
There's no chapter on pandemics in the bestseller "What to Expect When You're Expecting." So a new mom from Michigan was forced to improvise.
Not only did Jen Laubach give birth to her twins Mitchell and Maksim eight weeks early, she did it while sick with coronavirus.
"These kids really came into this world against all odds," she told CBS News.
Doctors, fearing for the boys' health, immediately whisked them away.
"I gave birth and they were just like ... gone," she said.
Dad Andre was stuck at home. He found out he tested positive for COVID-19 minutes after Jen's water broke.
"She says I love you," Andre said, "And we don't know if it's the last time we're gonna see each other."
"It was like survival mode. Maternal instinct kicked in," Jen explained. "You just want to do anything for your kids."
She had to channel that instinct remotely, watching nurses at Beaumont Hospital, Troy feed the newborns until they finally met after three weeks.
Mitchell's now home, but not Maksim. Jen visits him five hours a day and now feeds him herself.
"The bond just grows day by day. And it's really nice," she said. "Oh, jeez, I'm getting choked up," she laughs. "It's hard work. For sure. With having one at home and one at the hospital."
But after all she's been through, her newborns are her comfort and happy to be in his mother's arms.