Celebration!

A celebration in the Clarke family - and a party in heaven - on Christmas day, Logan asked Jesus into his heart. 

Luke 15:3-7  Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep & loses one of them. Does he not leave the 99 in the open country & go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders & goes home. Then he calls his friends & neighbors together & says, "Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep." I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteious persons who do not need to repent.

Taking Lindsey to North Park University

We took Lindsey to North Park this week.  It was a great day of events that they put on for the incoming freshmen and their families.  They have a week of orientation programs & fun things to do.  On Saturday, they take the train into Chicago & spend the day on a tour of the city & then watch the fireworks off Navy Pier at 10pm.  Should be lots of fun. 

Her roommate's name is Krista and she's from Idaho.  They have a triple room, but only have 2 of them in the room, so it's like a mini-suite for them.  Quite spacious!

Video from the Haiti trip

One of the couples who went to Haiti made a cool video of the photos, along with some descriptions.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oES8PDaFxns

Lindsey's back. It was a nice reunion at the airport. Nelson (Youth leader) and a group of kids from the Youth Group left their Monday Night Football game to come and greet her.

I was thrilled to have a full family at the dinner table tonight. We are truly blessed!

Haiti - Day 3

They treated 166 people yesterday and 152 people today! The people walk for miles to be treated at the clinic & wait in line for hours to visit the clinic on the hill.




Below is the school for the Haitian children at Mountain Top Ministries (mtmhaiti.com) orphanage. The next picture is lunch of rice & beans.




In the photos below, Lindsey is helping count pills at the clinic, among the other things I might be able to describe if she'd send me an update. :-) Just kidding -- well, not really, but I'm sure she's got lots of things to keep her busy!



Prayers & praises: Thank God for the opportunity that Lindsey has to serve Him in a safe place and alongside others. Pray for their on-going safety & that lives will be changed for both those who are serving & those who are being loved on.

Lindsey is in Haiti

Lindsey left early Monday morning for Haiti! She is assisting on a medical mission trip at a clinic outside of Port Au Prince, with a church/orphanage that our church partners with. It's called Mountain Top Ministries. She is traveling with a nurse from our congregation, who serves there once or twice a year.

Here is Lindsey's first message to us: We've been pretty busy here but the evenings have been good down time. I did intake at the clinic today - just blood pressure and weight. Last night on the way to the house from the airport it took us about 2 hours just to get through the city. I don't think I've ever seen so many people in the same place before. It was worse than Chicago during rush hour. The sidewalks were jam packed, I have no clue how anyone got anywhere because it was so crowded. And there were very few stoplights so the drivers were really aggressive. Willem had to pretty much just go and if someone else wanted the same spot he made it pretty obvious that they were going to have to back down because he certainly wasn't going to. It was pretty scary. Anna and I took a four wheeler up to the clinic this morning and it was such a bouncy ride because it's so rocky. I was flying all over the place because I'm so little. But it was so fun and the landscape is beautiful. Also the food here is pretty weird. Apparently what we call soup is only called soup if you put pumpkin in it, otherwise it's boulion, pronounced with a French accent.

The two photos are of Lindsey and her boyfriend, Brandon, and of Anna (sorry it's blurry). More photos to come through the week. The camera's batteries were dead when they arrived, so none were taken the first day.


Prayers and praises: Thank God for a safe trip. Pray for their time with the Haitians and that their love for Christ will shine through and make an impact on the people they interact with.

Hayley performs w/ youth band Amp'd

Hayley is in a Youth Band called Amp'd at Hope and they perform monthly. There are 3 guitarists, a drummer, and lead male vocal/guitarist who is also the band leader. She is the pianist for all the songs, but was the lead female vocalist for one of the songs (attached below). They perform monthly, next on Dec 10, and should be the 2nd Saturday of the month thereafter. They will actually begin leading weekend worship for the church on occasion too. Let me know if you want to attend one of the performances -- you won't be disappointed!

Click below to play the videos.. this clip is just her solo portion. The next one has the whole song. Sorry, but the sound quality isn't the best. Not sure if you can play the video from the email you get.... you might have to go to the actual blog to watch. thedaveclarke5.blogspot.com

Hayley's performance (part 2)

I had to load the 2 videos separately, but still couldn't get the whole song on there.... had to cut it down, but this is most of it.

Luc & Logan build a hut

What can 2 boys do with some tomato cages, some sticks, some grass piles, and a straw bale???

Saw a great movie today....

To all the awesome dads out there..... yes, you are awesome.... Do you know you are loved and valued in your families??? http://www.courageousthemovie.com/

Sneak peek of Lindsey's senior pictures

Lindsey had her senior pictures taken. We won't have them all back for another 3 weeks, but they did give us a sneak peek. Check out the photographer's page - click here.

Fall hike at Effigy Mounds

We we went on a Fall hike to Effigy Mounds in northeastern Iowa yesterday. The weather was beautiful & it was a perfect day for a hike. Check out Logan's antlers!

Logan's bday party

We finally managed to have a birthday party for Logan in August. We were on vacation on his birthday & it took us a while to get it planned. The weather was so cold, even in the middle of August, the kids were cold.

Surprise party for Lindsey

We actually pulled off a surprise party for Lindsey's birthday this year. It was a last-minute thought & it worked like a charm.

Our new boat

We started a new hobby this summer on the river with a new boat. Of course, the weather didn't cooperate much, so we're hoping for more time out there next year!

Hayley's birthday

Halloween

Dave had to dress-up for work, so I snapped a quick photo of him before he changed out of his Blues Brothers costume. No, he didn't walk the neighborhood in it, although I wanted him too because he looked so good. Lindsey, too, was guilty of only dressing long enough for a photo! She was back into her regular clothes in time to pass out the candy. Logan is posing as a real Power Ranger & Hayley looks very authentic as a hippie. I got off the hook & didn't even have to answer the door.

For once, we had such beautiful weather that they just had to walk the entire neighbhorhood! Normally they only go to a handful of houses because the houses are so spread out & they get cold.

You'll notice that they gathered an unusually excessive amount of treats this year. Yes, you know me, I'll hide it or freeze it & then ration it back to them over the next year!!

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Wed & Thu were parent-teacher conferences in Dubuque. Logan's was easy - it was one teacher in one location at a set time. But the middle school & high school are something else. They give you a big window of time, then all teachers sit at tables in the gym/cafeteria. You bounce from teacher to teacher, waiting in line for each one, sometimes up to 15 or 20 min (most teachers have 80 - 100 kids). We managed to finish Lindsey's on Wed night, then Logan's & Hay's on Thu a.m. The goal is to go when there are no crowds. We are pleased to say that all reports were terrific, as usual. We are truly blessed.


Jen's been sick all week. Headache, sore throat, & overall just feeling run-down. Fortunately there have been some bits of time that relief has come, which makes it easier to function & care for my family. Fortunately conference times were times I wasn't so bad so I could still participate. We were supposed to have Harry & Angela for a visit this weekend, but they ended up with the same virus. That was a bummer to cancel because we have such a hard time getting visits with them on the calendar between our crazy weekends & the demands of their farm.



Here's a random photo of the kids hanging out. Lindsey & Hayley are growing up so fast. They're at an age where they enjoy the same things & can interact with each other on close to the same maturity level. Logan is right in the middle of it, but looking really thrilled!

1st Week of School

The kids are off to school.

Lindsey is in 9th - YES, HIGH SCHOOL,

Hayley is in 7th, &

Logan now goes to preschool 3 days/week.

Summer Vacation 2008 - Chicago

We went to Chicago for our family vacation this year. On the first day, we went to Six Flags & had a blast! There weren't very many people there & most of the time, we didn't wait more than 10 minutes to ride.

The girls loved the rollercoasters, especially going through the upsidedown & sideways loops. They rode the American Eagle & Viper twice. Logan loved driving the cars, especially when he got to drive his own - he just met the height requirement. Dave also convinced him that he would like the log flume, but forgot that there is a very big drop at the end. Logan screamed the whole way down that hill & was not a happy camper afterwards. You can see him pasted to Dave behind Mommy.

After Six Flags, we headed to downtown Chicago. Our hotel was right on Michigan Avenue, close to the bus stops. It was a great way to get around & not have to navigate traffic & look for parking. We went to the Field Museum & saw Sue, the T-Rex. It was the highlight of Logan's trip.

Some of the other things we did were to go on an architectural boat cruise, visit the Museum of Science & Industry, & the Shedd Aquarium. We also went to the Hancock Building Observatory, which is north of the skyscraper district. We enjoyed it much more than the Sears Tower Observatory. It is glass all the way around & they have audio stations that tell you about different things that you can see. In the photos, you can see Navy Pier & the city skyscrapers.


Oh, it's also nice to have the kids help with the window washing!