All Black vice-captain Ben Smith proudly swings about his gorgeous little boy Walter in a special photo shoot with New Zealand Woman’s Weekly this week.
Little Walt, who was born in March this year, plays little brother to Ben and Katie Smith’s delightful two-year-old daughter Annabelle.
Together, they’re the picture of bliss, particularly as Ben’s been able to spend a lot more time with his young family whilst he is on a sabbatical from rugby.
But while this year has certainly had its incredible high points for the family, it’s also dealt them a number of challenges.
In February, Katie was 37 weeks pregnant and attending a wedding alone in Alexandra when she got the news that Ben, who was playing a warm-up match for his Super Rugby team, the Highlanders, had left the field after a collision.
“I’d had quite a bad knock,” Ben (31) tells the Weekly.
In fact, he confides that “the knock” and subsequent concussion was actually so bad that he’d entirely forgotten that Katie was pregnant, let alone being so close to her due date.
“I couldn’t believe it,” he admits. “It was like hearing it again for the first time!”
Katie adds, “He goes, ‘What are we going to do with two?’ I said, ‘Mate, we haven’t got long to figure it all out.”
To read the full story and see all the gorgeous photos of the lovely Smith family, be sure to grab a copy of New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, out now.
