Parents finally meet their babies after having COVID-19 during birth

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    FLINT, Mich. (WNEM) — When her water broke, Jen Laubach knew it was time to go to the hospital.

“It was heartbreaking,” she said.

Thirty-two weeks pregnant with twins is scary for any mother but when COVID- 19 is involved things are taken to a new level.

The night before labor started in March Laubach’s husband Andre came down with a violent cough.

“The look on his face just told me, I want to go there I’ll be there for you. But I physically can’t right now,” Jen said.

Andre attempted to accompany his wife, a flushing native, to Beaumont hospital in Troy.

He had been tested for the coronavirus and the couple was waiting for the results.

“Jen grabbed the keys and said ok I’m driving get in the car let’s go,” Andre said. “Only drove about 30 seconds and our primary care doctor called us and told Jen to drop Andre off because he could not go to the hospital.”

It was official, Andre had the virus.

To make matters worse, Jen was also displaying symptoms. They were not as serious as her husband’s, so she went to deliver her twins all alone.

She gave birth to boys, Maksim and Mitch. Healthy but too premature to go home.

Then Jen discovered she also had COVID-19.

“They basically took them away to the other side of the room maybe feet away for me,” Jen said. “Started cleaning them up, the nurses were kind when I was looking over to try and get a glimpse of them. And the nurses will hold them up towards me, which was nice so I could look at them.

Neither baby had the virus but both had to spend time in the NICU.

The new parents had to be quarantined for weeks and get cleared before being able to hold their babies for the first-time last Thursday.

The Laubach’s are still unsure how they caught the illness, but they are relieved to have beat the virus and to finally get to take Mitch home, Max should be coming home soon.

“We’re hoping that Max maybe by the end of the week will be home and we will be all together,” Jen said.

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