Lifestyle Maternity with Tanya | Rochester, NY

Oh how I love maternity sessions.  And oh how I love this woman and her children.  I am 99.9% certain that I did a happy dance when she called me up and asked me to take some pictures of her. I asked if I could try out a lifestyle session on her, and she so graciously obliged.  

So I went over to her place on a cold, snowy sunny, 70 degree, March day, just in time for lunch.  And a certain little man was HUN-GRY.  He must have brought me that box of pancake mix a dozen times.  And honey, and wheat germ, and anything else little hands could reach in the pantry.  

 And boy was he determined to get that box open.

And Tanya, all beautifully barefoot and pregnant, got a nice, healthy lunch together for her kiddos. 

Just not as quick as the little man would have liked.  :-)  Oh Levi, you are unbelievably adorable- even when you cry.  

But that is what lifestyle sessions are all about- getting the real moments, unscripted and unposed.  Ahh, it's my favorite.

Lunch time at last :-)

Getting to ask Tanya about life as a mom, and about her experience with her pregnancies was so so awesome.  And I love that I can share her insights with you all.  So here is what Tanya and I chatted about.

Me: So... three kids, huh?  :-)

Tanya: I really didn’t think I would have a third kid. We always talked about three, but life is not pretty when I’m pregnant and for that very reason I believed it would be finished at two. Ha, was I wrong! As soon as Levi, my youngest, hit the one year mark I began to dream of the family at five strong. Somehow I forgot about the lagging nausea and could only think of one thing, the missing piece to our family – Baby #3.

I love thinking about how the dynamics of the Folwell family will change to fit the newest member and how full of life it will be when the five of us are dancing in front of the fire place on Friday nights together. I’m sure the challenges will be just as full of life as well! I am trying to mentally prepare myself for the days of 2 kids in diapers, and endless runs to the potty as they train, and all the sleepless nights of sniffles and fevers. A part of me knows I will just need to pace the mommy side of me and take things as they come. All-in-all, it’s worth it; the little hands pulling my jeans to get my attention, the giggles, the wonder and excitement that comes when each child experiences something for the first time…it’s all worth it.

Me: Is there anything different about this pregnancy than the other two?

Tanya: The greatest difference with this pregnancy is that I work from home, so I couldn’t just drop my kids off and go to work I really had to try to engage them during the days even when I felt really sick. That was the hardest part. Some days I found I would just rely on Mickey Mouse Club House and, our favorite, Peppa Pig to do the work and others I would force myself to really connect because I knew I couldn’t just check-out for weeks. Somehow Kenadi learned to write her name and Levi started walking! 

  

Me: Your due date is fast approaching. How do you envision your life with three?

Tanya: June 19^th couldn’t come any quicker even though I’m scared, excited, & in awe all at the same time (I wish I could shut these pregnant hormones off for just a second). I really can’t wait for life with a third child. I envision it will be a bit chaotic at times, but what gets me the most is the fact that there will be a third face smiling in my rear view, another precious head of hair to “pig-tail” and another personality to discover. I once read in a book that each child is a beautiful canvas born already painted and it’s my job as the parent to discover and enable the colors of each individual one to shine and to be exposed to the world. So, in the months to come I really picture myself just getting to know this new little one and figuring out her place in our family.

I can’t wait to get her to the point of walking just so I can see her personality in full tilt and hear all the children’s feet running through the house and their voices playing together. I can’t wait to know what flavor ice cream she will like and if she will prefer jeans or dresses, pink or purple. 

My hope is that Kenadi will be a great big sister, she’s already anxious to feed the baby and help with the pee-pee diapers. She made it a point to let me know she will only help change the pee-pee ones though! And Levi, I pray that he will be her best friend just like my brother was to me. Either way there will be love and laughter between all five of us, and that is what makes me smile the most.

Me: So you know you are having a girl.  Does Kenadi have (or had) any strong opinions about her name?

Tanya: Kenadi has known from the beginning that a little girl would be given to her for a sister.  She insisted on calling the baby "Apple" until we officially figured out what name we wanted. Somehow this name became the official nickname. The baby's actual name will remain a secret until she is born, IF I can help it.  There are a few chased friends Kenadi has confided in, and they just happen to be all the pastors kids and their moms!

mum's the word, Tanya :-)

Me: Tell me about your kids, Kenadi and Levi.

Tanya: Kenadi is the girliest-girl you’ll ever find. She loves picking out her outfits in the morning and going shopping with her auntie. Everything is butterflies and bright colors. She uses words like fantastic, gorgeous, and beautiful to describe even her most unappealing outfits. Her heart is kind and she has a sensitive spirit; when we go grocery shopping she always wants to bring flowers home to her Daddy, and when we watch princess movies she needs us close encase the beast or evil guys scare her. Kenadi has a ton of energy and will always give things a go - she loves, loves, loves to dance and tumble. The one thing I admire the most is her ability to befriend kids on the playground or at the YMCA. Sometimes she is so persistent she even gets the 10 yr olds to play with her because she isn’t intimidated when it comes to social and relational encounters. 

Levi is a huge goof-ball! I can’t even explain to you the beginning of it all. His personality just loves a good laugh and he learned as early as 14months how to make us laugh with funny faces. I had to take him to the doctors once because I thought he had a problem. He would make these faces and freeze for a good 20-30 seconds until he got a response from us, he even did it when the doctor walked in the room and greeted him. Right away she told me that he was fine and that Chris and I “have a big ham for a son”. He’s only a year and a half now, but picks up on things very quickly. Levi is very observant and thankfully he even possesses an athletic quality. Chris has always believed our son would play pee-wee football and I’m sure he will. Intuitively, Levi just knows how to tuck the ball and run and he certainly isn’t intimidated to tackle even his sister when she’s down. He’s my biggest snuggle bug at home and I just can’t get enough of him sometimes. It must be his chunky cheeks and oversized thighs that just make him irresistible. 

Me: What is your biggest piece of advice to all the moms reading this?

Tanya: I’ve only been at this for 4.5 years, but my biggest piece of advice would be to STAY CONSISTENT. When Chris and I decide to change a way we discipline or even our eating habits we implement the plan and stay consistent with it until it sticks. As a mom there have been so many times I’ve wanted to let things just go out the window for a moment; times where I’ve felt bad and wanted to skip the “naughty chair”, or times when I’ve just wanted to let my kids eat every sweet thing handed to them that week, but I know it breaks the pattern and throws things for a loop if I’m not careful. My kids thrive on predictability and that’s what I try to maintain everyday when it comes to my reacting towards their behaviors, nap schedules, and our eating habits. Like I said, it’s only the beginning for us, but my kids are learning and they even eat salads (with a little dressing of course)!

Thank you, Tanya, for sharing your heart, and for sharing your home with me for a while.  Cannot WAIT to meet baby Apple!!!!