*3.3. The Blessings of Quiet Enjoyment*

Similar to the participants above, many of the participants in this study, found the period during the COVID-19 pandemic to be a time for quiet enjoyment of their baby and their new family as they were required to stay at home. Using the lens of feminist poststructuralism, we can see how these mothers were challenging social norms and expectations of new mothers. Challenging social ideals was a way of using their agency as they clearly articulated their beliefs about how being at home with their babies was very positive and for some a 'blessing'. Many participants believed that this was a time for more personal and intimate family enjoyment. A time where the immediate family could not only enjoy each other but also their new baby.

It's been great ... we have this opportunity to bond as a family and he [partner] is here for every moment during the newborn stage! It has been amazing not having to worry about visitors coming and going and cleaning out home and me worrying about breastfeeding in front of others - instead we have a very relaxed atmosphere for everything!

As the above quote reveals, the participant believed that this was an opportunity to connect with her son in a way that would not have been possible outside of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a time without the worry about visitors and the social expectations that are often placed upon new parents to be perfect and have everything altogether, such as keeping a clean and immaculate house, while tending to the needs of their new baby. It was a time to let go of the many worries of being a new mother that stem from social and cultural discourses of new motherhood, such as breastfeeding discourses. Social breastfeeding discourse often positions public displays of breastfeeding to be inappropriate and can create feelings of discomfort for the general public as well as mothers who are breastfeeding [37]. The participant revealed that isolation during COVID-19 allowed her to put aside such worries and pressures relating to breastfeeding so that she could relax. For many participants, as exemplified here, isolation was constructed as a time to be removed from societal pressures and to bond as a family.
