l'Histoire de Pontouf

Have we mentioned recently how much we love our little dog Pontouf?
It's hard to believe how much she has grown since the wee little 3 month old pup she was when we first adopted her. Look how tiny she was!
One thing I regret is that we didn't really take that many pictures of her when we first got her. That's one downside of having a great big camera, is that you don't take the time to pull it out to capture all the little moments, so we only have a few from her tiny puppy days.

This is the picture Matt first saw of her on the animal rescue website. She was named Alley at the time, and we drove out to Youngsville to meet her after seeing this picture. And of course, she came home with us. Who could resist that little nose and big brown puppy eyes? (Definitely not me).
Now we can't remember ever not having her. She adds so much life to our house with her sweet puppy personality, a little warm somebody for us to come home to and snuggle up with. We've tried hard not to become some of those weirdos who treat their dog like a child (I have resisted buying her any puppy sweaters or anything), but she is definitely part of our family. These three Broglis are very happy together.

Family Fun

I was thinking about our family today, and what fun they are to be around. We've been really blessed with family that we think of as friends, too. Though we don't have kids yet, we get to be aunt and uncle to two incredible little ones. We have lots of fun with them, and then get to send them home with their parents for the real work! I'm sure someday they will both ask us to please stop taking their pictures.

Ansley was so excited that I came over wearing a pink jacket (that Leanne got for me for Christmas) and she was wearing a pink sweatsuit, that she went and put on everything pink she could find... rain boots, a backpack, and pulled up her hood. She thought it was so funny she twirled around like a little pink puddle jumper. This little girly girl loves her pink!


We also got to spend some time with Evan over at our house for the first time right after Christmas. We realized then that our house is totally not baby-proof and we have zero fun things for a 9 month old to play with! Luckily, Alisa is a mommy genius and brought a whole drum full of toys... but of course, Evan the new crawler wanted to see what was new. One of uncle Matt's XBox controllers, we think, may have produced his first word... "XBox!" We also introduced him to our dog, Pontouf, which he didn't immediately warm to. Pontouf was excited to have a new little thing down on her level, and I think Evan just didn't want his nose licked! But after lots of "yay puppy!"s they were happily coexisting.



We can't wait for the day that brings us our own littles! But, obviously, God has a different timing in mind than we do. For now, we just enjoy watching these incredible mini people, little conglomerates of the brothers and sisters we love, grow up into big people. And hey, I can settle for being everybody's favorite aunt for now!

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Yesterday Lindsey's Dad left to head back down to Orlando and she was not alone in being disappointed to see him go. He has been staying at out house over the last two weeks and we have been able to grieve together, laugh together, work through theological and philosophical issues together, watch John Wayne movies, and grow more as friends. And while I'm glad he's able to get back to Orlando to begin the process of creating a new routine (which is so very important for all of us), I'll miss how much fun we've had together, but look forward to seeing him again. Dads, by default, get to be a leader for their family, but this doesn't necessitate that they will be good leaders. I have been blessed to have tremendous leaders for fathers in both of my dads. After watching Lindsey's dad act as a father, husband, businessman, student, and friend over the past three and a half years I have come to understand that he's a great leader for the Dean Team and I'm proud to have him as a role model and leader for us. We miss you Dad!

What If I Stumble...

Due to some fortunate circumstances, I had the day off of work today and have spent a good bit of it praying and thinking through the road we're heading down. I had been called by God to serve in ministry for a while and had run from it out of fear. It wasn't just a healthy fear of God (which could be considered honorable) but a fear of failing. The words of an old song kept resonating in my soul all throughout the day...

"Father please forgive me for I can not compose
The fear that lives within me
Or the rate at which it grows
If struggle has a purpose
On the narrow road you’ve carved
Why do I dread my trespasses will leave a deadly scar?"
DC Talk “What If I Stumble”

I hate the idea of failure. I know that no one particularly likes the idea of falling flat on their face, but I mean I am a poor loser. I don't like to lose games (like Monopoly) and I don't like to have the world laugh at me because I fell flat on my face. But this is much bigger than a board game or a trip on the stage of life. To me this is about the whole world around me looking at me as I serve God and become the "fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing."(2 Corinthians 2:15) If I fail now, the world around me may laugh at me but what if they laugh at God (wrongfully so) and turn their backs on the Lord because of me? As Christians, we already are that "fragrance," (some of us have a more pleasing odor than others) but in ministry you are taking the blind by the hand and pointing them in a one direction or another. Mistakes, just like with pointing a blind man in the wrong direction, have serious implications; people can become quite lost. Now, as Lindsey and I head down this road together, I find myself beyond excited and believe God will lead us every step of the way if we continue to follow him, I am mindful of that same fear. The idea behind that fear is slowly becoming not something I dread, but something I cling to. It will be the remembrance of that fear that keeps me humble and reminds me that I am to be confident in our calling, but mindful of my deeds. I am confident in the Lord's strength and power, but aware that even my insecurities and fears can be used by God to achieve His will. I know that even when it seems like my faults might scar the world around me, my family and myself, that I should be confident that He who has begun a good work in me will continue to do so and that He requires faith and endurance from me. What if I stumble?...He'll pick me up, dust me off, and we'll continue on together again.

Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. Hebrews 10:35-36

So we finally crossed over into the dark side and started a "family blog" where, most likely, pictures of our puppy Pontouf will reign supreme. Technically she's over a year old and not really a puppy anymore, but she is a lot of fun.
Just a little bit about us: Matt is currently a real estate agent, and God used some recent unexpected events in our lives to strengthen our faith collectively as a couple and reaffirmed our belief that we are called to full-time ministry of some sort. Since this definitely means a change of our jobs, day-to-day routines, and possibly even a move to a new city or state, we thought it would be fun to start a brand-new blog to record it all. Plus, we both really enjoy writing, so it's nice to have an outlet for that as well.

Right now we're waiting to hear back from a few job applications at a few churches and praying to see what the next step will be. Waiting is the hard part, but I know we'll both be excited to get started once we find out for certain.