ParentLife Blog

All About Angie: Our New Mom's Life Columnist! by Jessie Weaver

I'm sure many of you know who Angie Smith is. Her blog, Bring the Rain, has thousands and subscribers and hundreds of comments on each post. She is the author of I Will Carry You and the forthcoming What Women Fear. Her husband and sister-in-law are both recording artists.

I've known Angie for several years. Her sister-in-law Shawn and I went to church together in Nashville, and Angie and I both attended a Bible study at Shawn's house. I have to share a story with you that is a little chracteristic of my ditziness.

One night Shawn was going to be out-of-town so we had the Bible study at Angie's house. The twins were still toddlers and Kate was maybe 1. As I entered their beautiful home, scents of cooking wafted through the house. Angie explained her husband had helped the girls make pumpkin muffins and caramel apples. She mentioned a few other things he had done that day with the girls.

My mind let this stew and after a few minutes I asked Angie, "Um, what does your husband do? Does he work? It sounds like he is home a lot!"

Oh yes, I did.

Angie was gracious. "Oh, he is in a Christian singing group."

Me: "Which one?"

Angie: "Oh, you may not have even heard of them. It's called Selah."

My jaw dropped. I did not feel like the sharpest crayon in the box, friends.

We weren't far removed from that study when Angie conceived Audrey. About the same time she found out Audrey may not live, the spark of life that became Libbie started to grow in my body. It made me ache for her even more.

We live in different cities now, so I'm happy we've gotten to reconnect through ParentLife. Here are her answers to some questions we pulled together for her. Let's meet Angie Smith!

1. Tell us about your family ... your husband and your daughters. My husband is Todd Smith, who you might know from the Christian group Selah. We have been married 9 1/2 years and have 5 daughters: Abby and Ellie (identical twins) who are 8, Kate is 5, and Charlotte is 9 months. Our daughter Audrey would have been almost 3. She passed away the day she was born, in April of 2008.

2. Why did you decide to start a blog? I actually didn't really know what a blog was when I started writing! We had received a diagnosis about halfway through my pregnancy with Audrey explaining that she could not survive outside of the womb due to several conditions which deemed her "incompatible with life." I was overwhelmed by having to share the story over and over, exhausted by the sadness that came along with having to keep everyone updated as I was just trying to get through it myself.

I decided it would be great to have a place where I could update everyone in a way that was comfortable — just me and my computer, sitting on my bed, and sharing what was going on. I had no (emphasis ... NO) idea that it would lead to the ministry God has given me.

3. How many people follow your blog? Were you surprised by its popularity? Do you have any fun facts related to the blog you can share with us? I honestly don't know how many people actually follow it but I think it's somewhere around 10,000. And yes, I was very surprised that it became so well-read. I still am! But I think it's really because people loved my daughter and felt connected to me through that; also, I think people just relate to the way I love the Lord so fully yet imperfectly.

It is nothing short of an honor to be able to share my heart the way I do. Fun facts ... hmm ... I think it always overwhelms me that so many people read it from other countries. I got an e-mail telling me that a woman had put a prayer request for me in the weeping wall. That was phenomenal. I just love that there is such a sense of community, regardless of geography, race, life situation, etc. It is amazing that no matter where people come from (even spiritually), they have found a home on my blog because they cared for a sweet baby girl who we only got to keep for 2 1/2 hours. It's just amazing the way the Lord weaves His story, isn't it?

4. What is your favorite part about being a mom? Are there unique challenges you face since you have all girls? I think my favorite part is the sense that the Lord chose me to guide them. It is not an easy task by any stretch of the imagination, but when we have those moments where we overhear them sticking up for what's right or praying when they think nobody is listening, it is incredible to feel like I had a part in it. The other night I went in to check on them while they were sleeping and I couldn't believe how long they looked on their beds. I have the privelege of watching them grow into the women of God they are called to be. I think as far as "unique challenges" I will better be able to answer in a few years when they hit the teenage years. I am already praying myself into a head of gray hair. Maybe you should pray for Todd more that me! Ha!

5. What is your involvement with dotMOM? What is dotMOM? I am speaking at the dotMOM conference and am deleriously excited about it. SUCH an amazing group of women and all in different stages of parenting. It is a much-needed conference which will uniquely cater to moms through biblical truth about motherhood, but also just plain old FUN.

I know a little bit from the behind-the-scenes stuff about what they are planning, and it is going to be a blast. I think women are going to be really blessed, not just by the teaching but also throught the fellowship of other moms. It is so important that we have a multi-generational approach to mothering, where we can learn from those who are much farther down the road from us. That sense of "mother mentoring" is a gap that I feel really needs to be filled, and I'm so excited to see the way dotMOM does this. Trust me. You're going to want to plan on it!!!

Thanks, Angie, for helping us get to know you a little better. Check out Angie's first "Mom's Life" column in the March issue of ParentLife.