It's a time of joy and a time of healing for YouTube star Brittani Boren Leach and the rest of her family. After losing her 3-month-old baby, Crew, this past December, Brittani announced to her followers that she is pregnant once again.
The 29-year-old mom shared that she's expecting a baby with her husband, Jeff. She shared a sweet video announcement on her Instagram, "Sent straight from Heaven and without a doubt, hand-picked by big brother Crew himself, estimated to arrive on December 1, 2020. ❤️." It's wonderful news for a family who has gone through such an unthinkable tragedy.
Brittani has a massive social media following, with about 873,000 followers on Instagram alone. Ever since her baby tragically stopped breathing, followers have been utterly amazed at her strength and resilience. She has shared her journey through grief without holding back and has managed to stay hopeful through it all.
It was just a few months ago that Brittani announced her baby had stopped breathing. While she was sitting by Crew's bedside at the hospital, she documented the horrific details of what was happening. She asked followers for their prayers.
“I don’t have any words right now, other than to desperately ask for your prayers,” she wrote. “Not the kind that you say ‘I’m praying for you’ and don’t, but the kind where you fall on your knees and beg God for a miracle. While at a relative’s house last night, Crew laid down for a nap and when I went to check on him, he was not breathing. We are living a nightmare, and I’m dying inside. Please pray for my baby. This can’t be real.”
There was an outpouring of prayers and support. Followers were devastated when Brittani made the announcement that Crew was gone, five days after first entering the hospital. She wrote, "Our sweet Crew went to be with Jesus today. I rode on the bed with him to the O.R, with Jeff walking beside me as the surgical team pushed us through the halls. People lined the halls to pay their respects to our little hero and then we said the hardest goodbye of our lives." The family decided to donate Crew's organs.
During the weeks and months that followed, Brittani kept sharing her journey. She wrote about Crew's funeral, even sharing an image of his tiny casket. She posted about the days when she didn't want to get out of bed. She also shared stories about what she was doing with the rest of her family, and how her other children were holding up.
She also wrote about her marriage, admitting that losing a child is the hardest thing a couple can go through together. She hoped that losing her baby would bring her and her husband closer, rather than tearing them apart. She kept holding Crew's memory with her and feeling his presence.
"Crew would want us here," she wrote of a special trip she and her husband took together. "And I hope he is proud of his Mom and Dad."
After four months of unimaginable grief, the 29-year-old mom shared that she's expecting a baby once again. "We wanted to announce in a way that honored our sweet Crew, so thank you @elliott.beltran for this amazing video," she continued in the post. In the video, Brittani and her family — sons Carter, Cooper, Cash, and stepdaughter Sydney — are walking through a field. Brittani holds a photo of Crew in front of her small baby bump.
Brittani's most recent post shares more details about finding out she was pregnant. "The day I found out I was pregnant, was a week after we moved into our new house, and the Coronavirus pandemic had just begun to hit hard. That night I told Jeff I was pregnant, and we cried," she shared.
After losing a child, especially at such a young age, finding out you are pregnant once again has to feel like a roller coaster of emotions. She continued, "We cried tears of joy and happiness, tears of sadness, tears of nervousness, and tears of hope. God has sent us the biggest blessing in the midst of many difficult trials and we are so thankful."
While the family will always hold baby Crew in their hearts, a new baby can bring so much love and joy to a family. Crew can never be replaced, but it appears that the announcement has brought a lot of hope back into a family that was hurting so deeply. It seems like right now, Brittani and Jeff are focused on feeling grateful for the gift of a new baby on the way.
Followers are thrilled about the happy news, too. While there is nothing that can take away the grief of a parent who has lost a child, time can help to ease the pain. Brittani is such a strong woman with a positive attitude that feels contagious. It's easy to see why she has such a huge following with so many people rooting for her and her family. We certainly are.
