No Baby Carrots for Mama Bear

"Writer, editor, speaker, obstetric nurse, and advocate for women facing
unexpected pregnancy..." I'm singing her accolades, and asking you all to rise
to your feet in support and admiration for a woman who faced two tiny blue lines in a college
apartment one night with her boyfriend and made a decision, against so many odds, to run the gauntlet
of an unplanned pregnancy to bring forth the greatest gift on earth: LIFE.


Chaunie Marie Brusie, author of Tiny Blue Lines, is one fierce vision of a mama.
I devoured her book in less than 48 hours. It was like a box of doughnuts. I'd read one page,
and before I knew it, I had read 100. Ok, I've never eaten 100 doughnuts. In one sitting at least.
One page had me laughing out loud and the next had me bawling my eyes out.

21 years old, a senior in college, with big dreams for the future, she and her boyfriend of four years
at the time, now husband, had plans to study abroad and one day be married. With multiple positive
pregnancy tests (because she thought there must be an error!) - "The question of 'what if I'm pregnant?'
quickly became 'what the heck am I going to do now?'"

The world would say that she had every reason in the world to terminate the pregnancy.
In fact, as sad as it is, I think most people would have patted her on the back and drove
her to a clinic themselves, handing her tissues, and applauding her "noble" decision -
to take back her life and not bring a baby into such "unstable conditions."
It is absolutely ridiculous.

"To me, abortion, in a way, is telling that young girl that she is too broken to repair.
To me, abortion is telling that mother that her baby, flawed already, isn't worth the fight.
To me, abortion is telling that woman that her husband is right - that she and her baby
are nuisances."

That kind of courage should leave you speechless. That kind of courage brought forth a
beautiful baby girl named Ada - who will forever know that her mother was brave enough to say
"yes" to life.


She fearlessly talks about the shame - the squinty eyes and questioning stares from familiar
faces and strangers alike. The guilt that haunted her along the way was a demon she sent howling
back to hell. She shares the "rainbows and butterflies" along the way - like her husband's super
romantic proposal on the beach to the moment she felt God speaking to her heart saying, "my baby
is not a punishment", but she also shares the "storms and serpents" - the ugly tears,
doubts, and the path to reclaiming her life.

She did not see her unplanned pregnancy as the end, but the beginning of the best part of her life.

"I want to celebrate young mothers, not because we are young, but because we are just darn
good mothers and people. We aren't afraid to make our own paths, continue our educations, stay
home with our babies, work, or pursue our passions."

I think we all can relate to thwarted plans in one way or another, but to find the grace
to roll with the punches?! Lord, help us all! Chaunie proves that it CAN be done.

At one point in the book, Chaunie shares about how she had planned to one day tell her "husband"
that they were "expecting" over a romantic dinner of BABY carrots, BABY potatoes, BABY steaks.
As women I think we all daydream about these grand milestones we anticipate! This was such a funny,
cute, relatable antidote - I know I was smiling and shaking my head at the same time feeling the
weight of my own "crushed" dreams, but also remembering the fact that those "crushed" dreams of
mine lead to some of the BEST dreams that God had for me... that God had for Chaunie.

There is something to be said about the love a mother has for her child. It's a fierce, wild,
mama bear kind of thing that is so unique, rich, deep. We're talking about unconditional, run through
the fire, lay down your life kind of love. And you can feel that emanating from every page of
Tiny Blue Lines.

"She (Chaunie's own mother) put things into perspective by reminding me that I was certainly not the
first person this has happened to, nor would I be the last. And most important, she did not judge me..."

I think this was my favorite part of the whole book. The unconditional, fierce, wild, mama bear love
that Chaunie's mother gave her... and then in turn, the passing on of that love to the little girl
that Chaunie (and her husband, Ben!) would welcome into the world.

She ran the gauntlet and her reward is sweet. Life is too precious to sacrifice.
Tiny Blue Lines will teach you how to grow, bend, heal, and see the world of unplanned
pregnancy (and motherhood in general!) through a pair of new eyes.


Celebrate motherhood, in all it's shapes and sizes, with us?
Here's how you can connect with Chaunie Brusie:

BLOG || FACEBOOK || TWITTER || INSTAGRAM

Want a copy of her book? Yea you do. Amazon.


**all quotes taken from Tiny Blue Lines by Chaunie Marie Brusie**