While many people put important, life-changing decisions on hold during the pandemic, West Grove resident Christine DiPaolo and her husband Brian decided not to wait before proceeding with in-vitro fertilization, writes Amanda Long for The Washington Post.

The two lost their third pregnancy before Christmas 2019 and had agreed to begin IVF in March. On the day they were supposed to start, they got a call from their clinic encouraging them to postpone.

“It was pretty devastating,” said DiPaolo, a pediatrician.

The clinic reopened in May. However, with no sign of the pandemic’s end in sight, the pair had a heart-to-heart about what it would mean for them to go through with IVF. They knew if they tested positive at any point, it would be canceled. Still, they decided to move forward.

For a few months, they completely walled themselves in to avoid risk. Social isolation was not easy, but it paid off in the end. The couple is now pregnant with their first child.

“There’s never a perfect time to do IVF or have a baby, not even when there isn’t an ongoing global pandemic, so carpe diem,” said DiPaolo.

Read more about Christine and Brian DiPaolo in The Washington Post.