TLC has a history of huge successes welcoming television viewers into the lives of little people, and the network has just announced that Nate Webnar, wife Lauren Webnar, and their daughter Juniper Webnar will be the newest additions to TLC’s little people family with the Green Acres inspired reality series Little Life On The Prairie.
The new show, set to premiere Monday, August 20 at 10/9c, will document the Webnar family’s transition from California to rural life on an Arizona farm. “Lauren, Nate and their four-year-old daughter Juniper Webnar were born with achondroplasia dwarfism, but that hasn’t stopped them from chasing big dreams,” the network’s press release reads, explaining that their relocation is “in search of a simpler life that’s more conducive to raising and expanding their family.”
“Fitting in perfectly with our network’s mission to celebrate families from all walks of life, TLC is proud to share this emotional journey,” says Howard Lee, President and General Manager of TLC. “Little Life On The Prairie follows a period of major transition for the endearing Webnar family, including extreme highs, lows and relatable moments that our viewers love to connect with most.”
Here’s the first preview trailer for the new series:
As you see in the trailer, Nate and Lauren are looking to expand their family with another child — which is especially risky for little couples, and has already taken Nate and Lauren on an emotional journey together. Prior to Juniper’s birth, Lauren carried two babies to term, but both suffered from the fatal double-dominant syndrome, and both passed away shortly after birth.
One of those pregnancies was documented on Lauren’s since-deleted blog littlerayofsunshine.net as well as InspiredByThis.com. Here is some of what Lauren’s friends with Inspired By This wrote about Lauren’s pregnancy with son Ray in 2012:
For those of you who don’t know Lauren, she has Achondroplasia – the most common form of dwarfism, also referred to as a “little person.” Lauren doesn’t let that hold her back from anything. She’s hardworking, creative, a great friend and hands down the most stylish person in the Be Inspired office. However, there are complications Lauren and Nate face as little people that most of us aren’t aware of. Their baby has a 50% chance of inheriting one dwarfism gene and will be little like Lauren and Nate, a 25% chance their baby would not inherit a dwarfism gene and will be average size with no dwarfism, and a 25% chance the baby will inherit both dwarfism genes and will not survive outside the womb. About 4 months into her pregnancy Lauren was eligible for the genetic test that would tell her and Nate what genes their baby inherited. They were devastated to learn their baby was Double Dominant. They also learned that their beautiful baby was a boy. Despite knowing he would not live long past the delivery, Nate and Lauren chose to carry full term and cherish the time they had left with their little boy, who they decided to name Ray…
…Ray was born on August 7th via C-section, and was the picture perfect 5lb 7oz baby. He was loved tremendously for over an hour before going home to be with the Lord. While our hearts are absolutely broken for Nate and Lauren, Ray was deeply loved during his time on earth, with the best parents he could’ve asked for. We know Ray will be watching over his mom and dad, anxiously awaiting the day he gets to meet them in heaven. He will forever be their sweet little guy.
* Visit the Inspired By This link above to see numerous photos of Ray.
A photo from Lauren’s pregnancy with Ray when she was 24 weeks along:
Lauren shared a message expressing her gratitude to all of those sharing their love and support throughout her pregnancy, Ray’s birth, and his passing:
First off, I would like to say thank you to everyone who has sent us love and prayers, your support has helped us tremendously throughout this trying time. We didn’t know what we were expecting going into this, all we knew was that we really wanted to meet our little guy. The moment Ray came out he let out a few good cries, we were so excited to hear them because we really didn’t think he would be strong enough. After they got him all wrapped up they put him on my chest and everything that I had been through -all the tears, sleepless nights, and uncomfortable days- were so worth it! He really was the sweetest baby. While he was on my chest he took a few deep breaths and then went into a relaxing sleep. Ray was loved on by our family and friends for about an hour. When he got back into my arms we could tell that there was no life left in him. The nurse confirmed it and although we were so sad, we were prepared for it. I didn’t know how long we would have with him, but I am so grateful for the time we did get. We cuddled and loved on him for a while longer and then we made the tough decision to let him go. That was the hardest part of the whole experience. I’m so grateful for everyone who has helped us along the way with prayers and support. It is totally by the grace of God that we are able to make it through this and share our story!
On a lighter note, if you are thinking that Nate looks a little familiar, it could very well be because you have seen him on the little screen before. In addition to appearances in movies like Christmas Do Over and Balls To The Wall, Nate had a recurring role on the popular Comedy Central series Tosh.0.
According to IMDB, Nate (aka Nathan Webnar) has appeared on at least eight episode, including such Tosh.0 classics as Leprechaun In Mobile, Peter Pan Fail Girls, and Billoon45. Here’s a screen grab of Nate as the wrestler Poquito Diablo (according to the credits) from the Tosh.0 Web Redemption segment Backyard Wrestler:
Those wrestling moves might come in quite handy on the farm!
Little Life On The Prairie will run for six episodes during its first series, and will premiere Monday, August 20 at 10/9c on TLC. I will wrap this up with a beautiful throwback photo of Nate and Lauren Webnar’s wedding in which Nate can be seen trying to establish wedding man sandals as a thing:
Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com
