“The Women of Duck Commander” pulls the curtain back on who really runs the place - the women! Kay, Klorie, Missy, Jessica and Lisa all share stories about being married to a Robertson man. Melissa "Missy" Robertson is married to Jase and together they have three children, Reed, Cole and Mia. She spoke to FOX411 about how she's always thought the Robertson clan had that “it” factor and how her faith has helped her deal with Mia's cleft palate.
FOX411: You write a lot about your faith.
Robertson: Our faith is the number one thing in our lives. I see God's hand in my whole life especially with all of the stuff that's happened with “Duck Dynasty.” I feel like he is guiding us in this area. It was such a weight because I thought, “Does He really think this much of us to put us in the limelight because I just don't want to mess this up.” That has really weighed on me and Jase. We have had many talks about it and it's not just about fame and the spotlight, it's about turning that spotlight upwards toward Him because He's just using us as a tool to show people that being a Christian and living right and treating people with respect and kindness, even if it means you have to sacrifice something of yourself, that you know? It's pretty cool. There's not just the stuck up way to go, that the sacrificial, giving way leads to so many benefits.
There's a lot of people out there that really relate to that, that Hollywood and New York and the media have crossed over thinking, “Oh those people are just going to be quiet about their faith and we can pretty much do what we want and get away with it,” and now Christians are saying, “Wait a minute, I'm not so sure this is right.” I don't know if that's because of us, I think we had a little bit to do with it, the popularity of the show, saying, “It's OK to stand up for what's right even if it's not politically correct,” because God is sometimes not politically correct.
We go to speaking engagements and people say, 'Thank you so much for not just standing up for your faith but speaking it out loud.' We get that over and over again which just really strengthens our resolve.
FOX411: Does it help you weather the criticism?
Robertson: You know we haven't [had] that much. I know maybe with the whole controversy back in December but with the support we got, it just really did not change anything about us at all and it's not going to be because we are very solid and grounded. Our faith is not something we just say out loud or a platform we created. It's something we have deep in our bones because of what Jesus Christ did for us on that cross. There is no way we can every repay him for that. We can try our hardest to live to be worthy of it.
FOX411: Do you have any idea the show would blow up the way it did?
Robertson: Of course not, no one could have predicted that it would have gotten to the level that it is now however --this is from being an outsider and looking in-- marrying into the family, I knew there was something different about this family, and I've known it for years. Even before the TV show when there were just DVDs there was a really loyal following because of their personalities. Not just the hunting skills but the banter and the laughter and the camaraderie and acceptance of one another and all of that. I, of course, thought they were super cool and so different and I thought if the world knew what I knew, I think they would love them.
It's kind of weird because I remember thinking that because I wanted it for our business, for Duck Commander because it struggled for just so long and that was basically our bread and butter those DVDs and I thought they're the most popular people in the duck hunting world, if people outside the duck hunting world can see what we see, because there's so much more to them than duck hunting, I think it would take off. I'd never call myself a prophet but I thought if the notoriety got out there that people would really fall in love with them.
FOX411: [What is] best advice you ever got?
Robertson: “That the best thing you can do for your children is love their daddy.” I heard that when I was pregnant the first time in a class. I just made that a goal. Not just a goal for myself but a goal for my children to see that I loved him more than anything.
FOX411: I think some mothers feel like it's a betrayal to their kids.
Robertson: I think that's a very scary trend that's happening in America, putting children first because they expect that for the rest of their lives for one thing and no one will ever measure up to their mom treating them like a prince or princess. I mean, I love my kids. We're at every ball game and recital, we encourage them and build them up to try everything they can but they also need to understand they are not going to be the best at everything and if they expect it, that's going to lead to a lot of jealousy and a lot of fighting with teammates and friends. They have to realize everyone has talents, they're not going to be the best of everything in the world and they're going to have to work hard.
Also when they see that mine and Jase's relationship is the most important one in the house then they have to respect that and both of us as a parent. They're not going to one of us and trying to turn us against each other.
FOX411: Your daughter Mia was born with a cleft palate.
Robertson: There are times when it is very stressful. There are surgeries and things just in the cycle of the management of having a child with a cleft. There's different stages that the child has to go through. She grows so then you have to manage it at certain points. It is very stressful because at each phase we have to tell her, “You can't do and then fill in the blank of whatever it is.” Some type of change in behavior and lifestyle follows so each stage can be stressful but back to the faith. I have a few days where I'm kind of down about it and I don't know how we're going to do this but then because of our faith, because of the support of our family and because of Mia's optimistic attitude and resolve we just kind of get through the first few days and it becomes a new normal.
FOX411: It must be great to have that faith to cushion it.
Robertson: We've talked about that many times. How people without faith and God and knowing there's a God up there in heaven that loves my child more than I do, how do people who do not grasp that concept or have a relationship with God, how do they get through it? I don't know because they have to rely completely on themselves to get through it and that's got to be very difficult. I feel for them.
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