Let-Him-Shine

Marilyn's Musings

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 21:56:00 +0000

I have been engrossed in a book. A book with radical thinking for this day and age. A book regarding the importance of instilling a good work ethic in our children and teaching children the importance of character. The author believes the best way to do this is stay within the bounds of the traditional/Biblical roles for males and females. In today's gender neutral/transgender society, this book is one with radical and some would say 'oppressive ideas', however looking at where our society is today, we need these radical ideas to preserve our country. We need to get back to the Biblical roles of father and mother.

I've definitely been challenged to re-evaluate my priorities as a working mom and sincerely & prayerfully look for ways that I could truly be a stay-at-home mom for my children.

In the book, the author quotes Jeff Davidson and his article for the Focus on the Family Magazine in June 1986. Even though the article is almost 30 years old, it is still applicable today and still caused me to look at my children through different eyes. Below is an excerpt from Jeff Davidson's article:

"At quarter of eight, as always, he is sitting across the breakfast table of his 17 winters, sipping and munching, palming back a sheaf of morning hair, an ear cocked for the mating call of the school-bus horn.

And I miss him.

Yet there he sits, still within my reach, intent on blading over each open space of toast with strawberry jam. He misses me not; his sapling mind is rooted in the unsentimental present. he is revving up for flight.

Seven minutes to go before the end of breakfast, a hundred breakfasts to the end of childhood. This swiftly coming September, his place will be empty and unsticky, and he will be licking from his fingers the strawberry jam of independence. Like the henerations before him, from the feet of Socrates to the backfield of Notre Dame, he will be a college man.

Wait a minute. Please. Who says there's such a big hurry to launch his frail bark on the river of whatever? Where have all the breakfasts gone? The bedtime stories, the birthday cakes, the finger paints, the knee patches, the model planes, the goalie gloves and hiking boots, the facts of life, the SATs, the hanging gardens of disco?

We have awakened together 6,000 times. Can't I save any of them for a sunless day? We have eaten 15,000 meals together; why can I remember only half a dozen? What has been the rush?

I crystal-clearly remember the bubbly babble and the rhythmic creaking of the crib; and, after they lanced his infant finger, bearing the white bundle of him shrieking through the street, his mother pale at this first communion with pain. I know we wrestled on the big country bed, and I am sure I heaved hi wiry, giggling frame over and over and over onto a green mountain of hay - I remember the smell of fresh-cut grass and his hair shimmering in the mottled sunlight. But then I skip all the way to some black-night downpour in the Maine woods: he is laughing against the rain and spinning the front wheel of his bike so I can squint at a sodden map in the dim, spotted glow of its headlight. The next thing I know, we are posing triumphant on the peak of an Alp.

But what about the valleys? Where are the Tuesdays, the Februaries? When was 11 years old? What ever happened to 1978? Did we let the rest of it speed away in homework assignments, the purchase of sneakers and vacant Sunday afternoons? Why didn't we take more trips to the moon?"

The rest of the article is quoted in the book and definitely worth taking the time to read!

The book I'm reading, by the way, is "A Life Well Spent" by Russ Crosson.

February Happenings 2013

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 03:22:00 +0000

A couple weeks ago my family all got together in Eden Prairie to celebrate. We were celebrating my grandma being told by doctors after many months of intense chemo treatments that she is now "CANCER FREE"!!!!!!!!! The Lord is so good! It was a great evening with family and we enjoyed our traditional 'duck dinner' at the restaurant :0) Below, the server is preparing the duck wraps for everyone at the table.

In other news, my 2 little munchkins continue to keep me busy. Andrew loves super heroes and enjoys dressing up as Captain America or Batman. Below is his latest Batman suit. He is "ready to defend the world from any and all threats!"

Faith enjoys getting into the action too :0) Below she is wearing Andrew's old pj's that he grew out of. She and Andrew make quite the pair!

Holiday Happenings

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 05:23:00 +0000

well, Christmas has come and gone and 2012 has come and gone. There were so many things happening during the month of December that it was hard to find time to reflect on the whole reason for celebrating Christmas. Our church focuses on Advent during the month of December and each week, after we light the advent candle, we take time to reflect on specific areas of Christ's birth. I really enjoy that time of reflection and focusing on what is truly important in our lives.

This year, my sister and her family were able to fly in for Christmas. What a treat!!!! While my little guy struggled to get along with his cousins, the adults had a great time catching up and talking over coffee. Of course there were many interruptions throughout each visit, but the time was still priceless.

Below is a picture of my mom reading to some of the grandchildren. So precious!!

At first when Faith saw Anthony, she was intimidated by how tall he was, but she soon warmed up to him and Anthony nicknamed her 'Bonkers' because she would always conk heads with him and give him the biggest grin.

Because we celebrated Christmas with my family, we spent a bunch of time with Tim's family for New Years'. Tim's brother, Mike and his wife Staci were in town, along with Tim's sister and her family. Everyone was back in MN for the holidays except for Sam who is still completing his first tour with the Marines.

Andrew received a CAPTAIN AMERICA shield which he LOVED!

Below are pictures of Grace and Jordan. Everyone loved holding their 2 precious little ones.

Above is Aunt Jessica holding little Bella and below is Great Grandma Havlik holding both of the twins!

Tim's mom {below} is snuggling with Bella

And below is one of my personal favorite pictures from the holidays - great grandma havlik and faith reading a book together. What a precious memory!

Tim and I are so blessed by our wonderful family. It was great seeing everyone and getting to spend some time with them over the last few weeks. God is so good!

Quiet thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sun, 16 Dec 2012 04:10:00 +0000

tonight as I sit and enjoy the quiet evening - the children are sleeping peacefully in their beds - I reflect on the goodness of my God: The wonderful home He has blessed us with, the 2 beautiful children He has given to us, He supplies all of our needs, He has given us jobs and good health. We have wonderful families and lots of friends. We are rich indeed and so very, very blessed.

My heart is heavy when I think of the many families who lost little ones yesterday in the elementary school shooting. How very tragic. Those families' lives are forever changed, forever different and forever hurting because of yesterday's events. Tonight as I prepare to close my eyes in sleep, I will be praying for the families who lost loved ones in the shooting and I will be thanking the Lord for the 2 little ones He has entrusted to me.

We are so very blessed!

thanksgiving 2012

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 04:14:00 +0000

October Birthdays

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 02:43:00 +0000

well, we celebrated 2 October birthdays the other night with Tim's family. Both Faith and Jessica have birthdays right next to each other. Faith was able to eat her cupcake and icing (not all of it! :0) I think she enjoyed feeling the icing better than eating it.

Faith's favorite birthday gift was her very first doll! Below, she is giving the doll a kiss (even though it looks like she is trying to eat the poor doll.) Faith also received 6 pairs of pajamas! LOL! so she'll be looking pretty even while she's sleeping.

it's been a year

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 03:35:00 +0000

It's been a year since my little girl was born. Wow, that time has flown by quickly. She is growing so fast! She is almost walking and I'm wishing so badly she was still in the "I'm-content-to-sit-on-the-floor-and-play-with-toys-'cuz-I-don't-know-how-to-crawl-yet" stage.

God sure blessed our family when He brought Faith into our lives. We love our little guy, Andrew, but there is just something special about a little girl. She loves to laugh and smile. She rarely cries (except at 3am every night for the last week 'cuz she's thirsty *ahem* I digress...). She loves to eat, and eat, and eat and eat and enjoys trying new foods. She talks all the time - even though we have no idea what she is saying. She loves to be in the middle of the action and not miss out on a single happening. She loves bath time and loves to splash the water. She is a joy and a delight and we praise the Lord for entrusting us with her life.

One of my dear friends recently took some pictures of Faith for her one year birthday. Below are just a few of the pictures that were taken.

Happy Birthday, Faith. We love you so very, very much!

After...

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 05:14:00 +0000

Since moving into our home in April, so many changes have taken place. Our screen door blew off and broke while we were moving in and the Lord allowed us to find another door - the exact size needed - on Craigslist for $15. Our Dining Room ceiling fan was missing a cover and had electrical tape hanging off of it. The Lord allowed us to find 3 chandeliers on Craigslist for $20. We put one in the Dining Room, one in the stairway and are not planning to use the other one. Of course a lot of painting by Tim and a couple friends from church took place before we moved in (which is a huge 'cuz otherwise it never would have gotten done once we moved in) and we got new carpet as well. It almost doesn't look like the same place!!

One of my favorite things about our house is our porch. It is so peaceful to sit on the porch at night after the kids have gone to bed and talk with my hubby :0) He and I sit and eat ice cream and talk about shoes and ships and ceiling wax and cabbages and kings... It's wonderful!

Here is our dining room with our new chandelier and the repainted walls

Below is a picture of our bedroom. I love the boards on the walls! It's so funny to me though, how people see things differently. Some ladies from church came over and saw our room and said, "Oh, we love the boards on your walls. It's just like a 'Pottery Barn' home!" My dad saw the boards on our walls and said, "Oh, it look like you have concrete blocks for walls in your bedroom." hahaha!! It brought a huge smile to my face when he said that :0D

Below is a picture of Andrew's room. This is the room that had the ripped cloud wall paper and the broken base heater. Eventually my goal is to paint his furniture a different color, but that's a project for another day.

Below is Faith's little bedroom. This room still doesn't have a door on it (there's no door jam and the dimensions of the doorway are odd, so it's hard to find a door to fit her room). Right now, we just have a curtain over the door that we tie back during the day. The stained and smelly carpet was ripped out and we painted the wood flooring underneath and put an area rug over the top of it.

Below is a picture of the bathroom - probably the room we've done the most work on. From caulking the tub, changing the shower head, painting the walls, putting in new light fixtures, changing the mirror and adding towel bars, it's been quite an exciting project!

The Lord has been so good to us and blessed us with so much. I can't thank Him enough for His daily provision in our lives.

Before...

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Welcome to the before pictures of our house that we moved to in April. Yes, I know that these are from a few months ago, but better late than never, right? So, the Lord allowed us to talk with this couple that own a rental home. The couple was looking for renters, but their rental home was trashed by the previous renters, so the place needed some fix-ups. Here are some of the initial pictures that we took of the house...

The living room carpet was stained and smelled super bad. There was a long cable cord hanging from the ceiling. The ceiling fan had a cord that was attached by a piece of string. There were clothes and hangers in the living room and nail holes all over the walls.

The dining room has a beautiful wood floor and is very spacious. There was a bookshelf in the room that needed some painting - it had stains on it, there was a cable outlet that needed repair, and the ceiling fan in the dining room had some exposed bulbs and electrical tape hanging from it. Also the curtains in the dining room smelled pretty bad.

The kitchen overall was good. The cabinetry is beautiful! It just needed a really good cleaning and the cupboards - that smelled like cigarette smoke - needed to be cleaned several times!

The lights in the stairway, bedroom and bathroom were all missing covers.

The cloud colored wallpaper in one of the bedrooms was ripped off the wall.

You can't see it (or smell it, thankfully) in this picture, but the carpet in this room smelled like 'cat' really badly.

The upstairs bathroom had floral wallpaper, blue and white checkered flooring, exposed bulbs with the fixtures, and a wonderful 'Dixie' cup dispenser.

Tim saw this house and said, "Let's rent it!" I was not quite as enthusiastic or as optimistic as he was, but as you know, we did end up renting this wonderful place. We will post some 'after' pictures in a few days.

Cousins

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 03:30:00 +0000

Well, back in 2010, I mentioned that Bethany was going to give birth soon, but I never did post any pictures of her little one. I noticed that I put up a few pictures of her little one scattered between other family happenings, but nothing heralding the baby's birth. Well, since 2010, Andrew and Faith have seen 5 new cousins enter the family! The Lord is so good! Below are just a few pictures of all the new cousins.

Zac was born in June 2010

he is now 2 1/2 years old and talking like crazy! He is athletic, very coordinated and loves video games.

Josh and Bethany had a little girl in August of 2011. Her name is Claire.

we just recently celebrated her 1 year birthday. She is a beautiful and very smart little girl.

My sister Tracy gave birth to a little boy - Leroy - in January 2012

Leroy is the most content and happiest baby I've ever seen. I love taking care of him and think he such a cute little guy!

Of course as mentioned before, Grace & Jordan were blessed with twins - Talon & Arabella

God is so good and it is such a blessing for the kids to have cousins to play with! It's such a treat to watch them interact and play together.

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 03:31:00 +0000

August 26th, Tim and I celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary. Time is marching by so quickly! It seems like just yesterday we were married and in our first small apartment. Now we have 2 small children and 4 different addresses under our belt.

God sure knew what He was doing when He brought Tim into my life! I sure appreciate Tim's passion, dependability, loyalty and strong love for God. The Lord couldn't have selected a finer husband for me!

Together we have seen Tim finish college, get a master's degree, traveled to Israel, Texas, California, Colorado, Louisiana, Oregon, Florida, Kansas, Illinois and Wisconsin, added two precious children to our family, moved 4 times, gone through 7 cars, gone through 9 funerals for family members, seen 6 siblings get married, ministered together at church, taught Children's church together, read God's Word, studied, cried, laughed and sang together. Tim is my best friend and I am so thankful for his love and friendship over the years.

I love you, Tim! Thank you for 6 wonderful years of marriage!!

the twins are here!

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sat, 25 Aug 2012 00:12:00 +0000

Grace had her twins on August 21st! Actually it's the same day as my Grandpa's birthday - which is pretty cool! Talon and Arabella are doing great and will hopefully be home in a few days. We are praising the Lord for these precious little lives.

Summer Adventures

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 02:38:00 +0000

The family took a week long trip up to Schroeder, MN and half way thru the trip went over to Baxter, MN. It was a great time and we have a lot of fun memories from the trip. Below are just a few of the wonderful times we had Up North...

Andrew's first canoe ride. We were in the Boundary Waters one day and rented some canoes. The kids loved canoeing and the guys loved the fishing. We also had fun roasting hotdogs and marshmallows over the fire.

Anthony and Dan ended up canoeing 8 miles - about 5 hours - to find a place to rent fishing gear, only to discover the place was nearby the place where they started. Needless to say, they missed some great fishing opportunities and were very tired and sore.

Grandpa talking with the grandkids before breakfast. :0)

Faith loved my sister Jen - Mainly 'cuz Jen fed her Oreos, Whipping Cream and other things babies aren't supposed to be eating...

Aunt Mimi spending time with her nieces and nephews

Pizza at Sven and Ole's in Grand Marais. YUMMM!!

Dan found a great place to jump into the water. He and Marnath climbed the rock and proceeded to try to get Anthony to join them. My favorite reason that Anthony gave for not joining the guys was, "Where I come from, the water never gets this cold!" Five Minutes later, Anthony was climbing the rock to jump in too. :0)

Marnath's first time to the North Shore. Before he got to Duluth, all he could think about was swimming. As soon as he felt the water, he realized he wouldn't be doing as much swimming as he was planning. in the picture above, he was counting to 100. Then he was going to dunk in the water.

Tim came up on Tuesday - 'cuz he had to work Sunday and Monday. It was So good to see him!!!

The kids found some rope and were riding it up and down the hallway like cowboys. They were whooping and yelling. It was so fun to see them all playing together.

My favorite aunt holding Faith :0)

My wonderful parents resting on the shore at Lutsen Lodge

A family photo

Andrew playing in the water.

Anthony and Elijah playing football at the sandbar in Crosslake

The backyard at the Bluhm's cabin. So relaxing!

the Fam

My view of Crosslake - for me to look back in December and January and remember what the best days of summer look like. awww...

Boat ride with Terry

Sisters and best friends! (wow, I look like I'm up to no good here!)

2 tired kiddos

I love my munchkins :0)

Volleyball at the cabin!!

Plus fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. I didn't ever want to go back to reality.

Andrew gearing up for a paddleboat ride with Daddy.

Faith trying to steal Tim's pizza.

2 happy boys

It was a great trip - one that I had been looking forward to all spring and summer. It's hard to believe it's already gone. I'm so thankful to the Lord for a family that enjoys spending time together and for the opportunities that the Lord gives us to get away and spend fun times with our family. God is good!

a milestone

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 05:01:00 +0000

Faith started crawling today. She is 9mos old, so it was time for her to crawl; and even though I'm excited that she has reached this milestone, I know that life will never be the same again :0) It will be interesting to see what she is like now that she is mobile. Before, she was content to sit in one place and play by herself. Now, who knows what she'll be getting into!!

I was at my parent's home today talking with my mom and sister, when my mom interrupted me and pointed to Faith. I looked over to see her crawl her first few steps towards the board game 'Clue'. Andrew has been enjoying the game 'cuz of the rooms on the board and the weapons. We've tried keeping it out of Faith's reach, but today it was nearby and she was determined she was going to get it.

We thought we scooped the game and all the pieces up before she got there, but my mom discovered 'Miss Scarlet' rolling around in Faith's mouth! *whew* I'm so glad my mom noticed that!!!! I'm going to have to really keep my eyes on my little munchkin :0)

We are so blessed and so thankful for our kids! God sure is good!!

More cousins!!

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 04:53:00 +0000

Tim's sister, Grace, contacted us a few months ago to tell us that they are expecting...TWINS!!! A boy and a girl :0) When Grace was in MN for Nate's wedding, we had a baby shower for her and the twins. It was a nice time of celebrating life, talking with old friends, making new ones, and hearing how Grace found out she was expecting twins!

Grace is now in the hospital on bed rest. She is hoping to make it to 36 weeks with the twins, but her little guy is breech, so the twins might come sooner. We are excited for Grace & Jordan, but also know that it will be a lot of work trying to care for 2 small babies.

2nd wedding of the year

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 04:29:00 +0000

In June, another brother was married to a sweet girl named Jessica. This wedding was a lot closer to home - they were married in Champlin, MN. Although it started as a rainy day, it turned out to be gorgeous just in time for the wedding. It was a long day for the kids, but the church had a nursery that we enjoyed hiding out in.

We tried sitting in the back of the sanctuary for the ceremony, but when Andrew took the pen we gave him and started swinging it in the air and saying, "Let's fight, Mom" (after only 5 minutes into the ceremony), I knew that we've never make it and we trooped right back down to the nursery.

The 2 flower girls also found the nursery and Faith to be quite entertaining and they kept us company most of the day. They both were quite the sweethearts and were a lot of fun to talk to.

Do you see Andrew in the picture above? He really enjoyed playing with all the toys in the nursery. Below, Tim is gearing up to escort people down the aisle...What a stud!

Below, Nate & Jess are heading out from the wedding as Mr & Mrs Havlik!

Below are pictures from the reception - held at TCF stadium on the UofM campus. They put the wedding slideshow on the big screen, which was just AWESOME! Inside the building, they had a pasta bar for the meal and cupcakes for the dessert. It was a beautiful facility and fun talking with family and friends.

Around 8:45p, we saw our kids were worn out from a long day and said our goodbyes. It was a great day and great to be a part of it!

Mike & Staci wedding extravaganza!

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 04:46:00 +0000

In January 2012, Tim's brother Mike married a wonderful girl named Staci. The biggest adventure of this wedding ceremony was getting to the ceremony :0) The wedding was to take place in Florida, on an island, accessible only by boat. This made for some interesting times trying to figure out all the logistics. We were so thankful for Tim's mom and dad 'cuz they helped us with so many of the details of this trip. We pretty much just needed to buy the plane tickets and drive to the boat marina where we would board a charter boat to take us to the island.

Of course things aren't always as easy as we'd like them to be. Andrew ended up getting sick the morning we were supposed to drive to the marina. He had a fever and an ear infection. We took him to the doctor, filled a prescription for medication, called Tim's dad to see if we would still be able to get a ride over to the island, and proceeded to drive south. We got lost several times along the way, were starving, had 2 tired, hungry and crabby children, froze on the boat ride to the island, but finally made it!

Once on the island, I never wanted to leave - not because I dreaded the ride home, but because the island was so beautiful! Now I understood why Staci choose this location for the wedding. It was gorgeous!! The next few days, though busy, were paradise! I loved being on the island with the rest of the family and enjoying the warm sunshine and hearing the waves lap the beach. Tim enjoyed playing croquet with the men, and beach volleyball. Andrew loved the water and the park on the beach. Faith just loved all the attention she received.

Andrew was one of the ringbearers in the wedding and he really struggled on the day of the wedding. I don't think he likes weddings..It seemed like every little thing set him off! We had practiced walking down the aisle several times with him, but I learned the hard way - waking a little guy up from naptime early is not a good thing to do! He made it down the aisle fine, but began wailing as soon as he sat down and had to be whisked out of the ceremony and back to the house we were staying (3 houses down from the ceremony location).

Below are some of the wonderful memories from our island adventure!

Collier Inn - location for the wedding ceremony & reception

Josh, Bethany & Zac enjoying the island

Great Grandma holding Faith

the men playing croquet

Jessica, Nate & Katie posing for the camera

Grace & Jordan enjoying the sunshine

Our humble lodgings for the wedding weekend

enjoying the pool! (I forgot to pack swim shorts for Andrew, so he had to use his cousin's spare pair. What mother doesn't pack swim shorts for a Florida trip???)

Tim & Andrew

He's just a little guy. There were over 400 tortoises on the islands - all different sizes!

The bride pulled up to the Inn via the island's main means of transportation - golf carts :0)

Staci and her brother

Tim walking his mom down the aisle

Here come the ring bearers!

Now here is the bride!!

Mr. & Mrs.!!!!!!!!

The cake! (The 'H' on top of the cake was covered in rhinestones, was handmade and purchased thru Etsy - an online store for homemade items. Well, the cake topper was misplaced on the way over to the island, so the family had to re-order the cake topper the day before the wedding and have it over-nighted to the island! Crazy!!)

Tim's mom had a bunch of family attend the wedding. They all live in Oregon, so we don't get to see them very often. It was super-special having them at the wedding!

Wedding food - so colorful and delicious!

Faith Ashley

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 05:31:00 +0000

On Saturday, October 15, 2011, I woke up with contractions at 5am. They continued throughout the day and Tim had to be at work at 3pm. He wasn't sure if he should go or not. Because my contractions were not getting closer together, he decided to leave for work - thinking that we would be making a trip to the hospital late in the evening or sometime on Sunday. Well, wouldn't you know that shortly after he left, my contractions became stronger and closer together.

I called my sister and she drove me to the hospital. The nurse checked me and said that I was dilated to a 5 and would not be going back home. I called Tim to tell him what the nurse had said. He wasn't sure if he should leave work or not. The job was short-staffed that evening so he decided he'd work till 7p. It was around 4:30p when I phoned him and surely our bundle of joy wouldn't arrive before 7p.

Well, wouldn't you know that around 6p, the doctor came into the room to check my progress. I was progressing but it was slow. My doctor decided to break my water. Seventeen minutes later I had a beautiful baby girl crying in my arms! My mom had come down to the hospital to sit with me and was there for the birth, but unfortunately, Tim had missed the birth!

I'm so thankful for my family and all the support they gave us during this transition time in our lives!

Washington D.C.

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 04:51:00 +0000

even though the picture is a little bit hazy, I love this picture below of the jefferson memorial - taken from the top of the Washington monument. What a view!!

Tim had the unique privilege of going to Washington D.C. with his parents and two of his brothers last spring - May 2011. Tim loves history and had never been to Washington D.C., so it was an awesome opportunity for him to go with his family. He had a blast and took TONS of pictures and has a bunch of stories and interesting facts that he learned. It would have been fun for me to go as well, but it just didn't work out.

above is a picture of Tim's 2 brothers and below is Tim in front of the Capitol

North Shore 2011

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 02:36:00 +0000

My sister and her family came up to MN from Florida for a visit. Since they were in town, we decided to take a family trip up to the North Shore. We love staying at Superior Ridge and this year was no exception. It was just perfect there! Each family had their own room and two of the rooms had decks and kitchenettes.

Tim and I came up a day later than the rest of the family and when we arrived, everyone was heading to Carlton Peak to go hiking. Andrew and I needed naps from the long car ride, so we stayed back. Everyone had a great time on the hike, but they were all very tired when they got back.

Below, Melissa, Tracy and Laura get to rest after making it to the top of the peak!

Here is a view from the top of Carlton Peak! Just Beautiful!!
Andrew loved collecting rocks (it runs in the family). He had his pockets and hands full of rocks!

On Monday night, we drove up to Grand Marais for dinner. The kids (and adults) loved sitting on the beach throwing and skipping rocks in the water.

We ate supper at Sven & Ole's Pizza. Tim and I ordered the vegetarian pizza (aren't you proud of us, Wendy?? :o) and it was probably the best pizza I have ever eaten! If you are ever in Grand Marais, that is the pizza to get!!!

On Tuesday night, after the guys got back from a full day of fishing, we had the mandatory (because of popular demand) salmon dinner. Dan, my brother-in-law, has a special marinade that he uses on salmon, then he grills the fish on smoked pieces of wood and the flavor is out of this world! All the kids gobbled up their fish and I don't think there were any leftovers that night!

These pictures are a little out of order. These are the pictures of the guys BEFORE fishing. It was pretty rough for them on the water, lots of mosquitoes, and not many fish, so the AFTER picture is not available for viewing :o)

Gooseberry Falls is so beautiful and the kids had so much fun playing in the water!

Our last event before heading home was a family picnic by Lake Superior. We had such a wonderful time together and we are already planning next year's North Shore trip! I'm so thankful to the Lord for giving me such a wonderful family!

Trip to CA

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Wed, 18 May 2011 02:53:00 +0000

I arrived in sunny California around 11pm in the evening (1am MN time). The weather was so wonderfully warm! It was what I had been looking forward to for weeks! My family picked me up at the airport and before arriving at our condo, they treated me to an In & Out burger - delicious - especially since I hadn't had dinner.

Above is a picture of our condo and below is a picture of the view we had from our deck.

For lunch the next day, we ate at a wonderful deli/bakery called "Shermans" I loved the signage they had around the place :o)

Just LOOK at that sandwich that Dan is holding. It is a Rueben with pastrami on it rather than corned beef. He let me take a bite and I can't remember when I've eaten a better sandwich! It was Incredible!

Next we headed to the Living Desert. I wasn't quite sure what to expect and when we arrived, I realized that there really is no way to KNOW what to expect until you have been there for yourself. It was a cross between a zoo, park and a museum.

After the Living Desert - where the temps reached over 90 degrees - compared to the 50 degree weather back home - it was time to go swimming. The place where we were staying had a pool for everyone to use. It was probably the nicest pool I have ever swam in! If only I could pack the pool and the weather in my suitcase and take it home with me...

My grandma celebrated her birthday while we were in CA, so we all went out to Tommy Bahama's restaurant to celebrate. It was a memorable night with good company, expensive food, lots of appetizers (we ordered at least 6 for our table), pigeons walking under our table, a bread basket that caught on fire, and a broken salt shaker. Yes, a very memorable night.

I posted the picture of the street sign because this street "El Paseo" pronounced "El Pass A O" is the main street where all the high-end stores are located. If you want good shopping, this is where it is at. Of course, Tim gave me a wad of cash before I left on the trip and he told me, "buy whatever you want, honey". Okay, wishful thinking... Just looking in the store windows told me that I wasn't in Kansas anymore.

While it was a wonderful trip and I absolutely LOVED the warm weather, I was really missing Tim. He did a great job taking care of Andrew. Unfortunately, Andrew got sick while I was gone, so Tim had to be a doctor as well as a Daddy for a couple of days.

I'm so thankful for family and the opportunity to go out to CA for a visit.

It's spring in our hearts!

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:08:00 +0000

Though weeks turn into months, winter seems to last forever in Minnesota. Listening to local weather, I learned that up to date this year was the 7th snowiest on record. We did get blanketed with the snow storms this year. However, we are comforted with signs of spring...

ROBINS!!!

Because the snow came so early and stayed this year, the ground did not freeze like it usually does. These red-breasted birds that usually appear in the spring are already searching the ground for worms. We hope that this is a sign of a mild March and an early spring.

Drew is 13 1/2 months and is sprouting up like a weed. He just cut his 7th tooth and is so close to walking that it could be any day now. He loves to tease, play games, and read books among many other things. Andrew is always moving, but we are making encouraging headway in teaching him "no touch" and "lie still". Below is a movie recorded tonight.

Mare is excited that it worked out coming up in March for her to join her grandparents and family for a couple days in Palm Springs, California. I will be watching Andrew while she is gone, which will be a good break for her. I know that this will be a special time with her family, so it was worth the expense.

My family is headed to Washington D. C. at the end of April and God graciously worked it out for me to join them for four days. I have never toured the Capital and since I love history, I am thrilled to go. Marilyn seems just as excited to have me go because she knows how much I enjoy history and politics. I am so thankful that God has allowed me this privilege. -Tim

A Night Out

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 04:54:00 +0000

Ruby Tuesday: one of our favorite places to eat

Marilyn and I were both thinking that this Tuesday night was a good time to spend a little time out together. We tried to find somebody to watch Drew, but it was last minute, so that didn't work out. He did so well at the restaurant that we really enjoyed the meal. I ordered steak, which was excellent!

Our boy: He is growing up so fast! (More Below)

Mare tried Chicken Alfredo with broccoli. I usually prefer red or pesto sauce for pasta, but her entree was delicious! The meal was super cheap for us because we had a coupon and a gift card. What a blessing that was.

Now a quick news update:

Drew is growing up so quickly. We just had the family over to celebrate his 1st birthday. He is not walking yet, but it could happen any day now. The other day, I was holding my cell phone and he stood up on his own to reach for it. I was so proud of him.

Drew loves music. I'm looking forward to teach him how to sing and Mare will no doubt be giving him piano lessons. We are understanding the joys of parenting. The Bible is true when it states that children are a blessing. We daily thank Him for our boy!

Last weekend I got out on the ice to skate in our annual Havlik Cup invitational game. The weather was perfect for Minnesota hockey. We all had fun and no one got hurt, though one of Josh's skate blades cracked in half near the end of the final period. It took away our momentum, we lost by a goal. It was still a blast!

All my brothers and I played except for Sam, who is training in the Marines. We were all touched that prior to the game, Shawn, our announcer, called us to remember Sam and his service to our country.

Mike poses with Sam at boot camp graduation

Defending our freedoms always requires sacrifices. We hope and pray that our men and women in uniform stay safe as they uphold the call of freedom that we hold dear. May God bless them all. Sam, we miss you. We trust that God will keep watch over you while you are gone.

As a Christian, the greatest benefit of freedom is the right to worship the Triune God openly and in fellowship with other believers without the threat of persecution. Too often we take this gift for granted. Let us dedicate ourselves to living a life that is worthy of the God and Savior that we serve! -Tim

Christmas Memories 2010

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 03:35:00 +0000

Well, another Christmas has come and gone. This year was especially busy for us because Tim was working on graduate projects all the way up until December 31st. Lord willing, Tim will graduate in May with a Masters in Theology!! I'm so excited and proud of him
and all the hard work he has done.

This year my sister Jen and her family joined us for Christmas. It was wonderful having them here for the holidays! Because we don't get to see them very often, we asked Ashley to take some pictures of the 4 sisters and the kids. Good thing Ashley didn't know exactly what she was getting herself into, otherwise she may not have been willing to take the pictures. The place was a nut house trying to get the kids ready and focused for the pictures! When one was looking at the camera, 3 others were crawling away :o) We did get a few good pictures! Thanks so much, Ashley!!

Above is a picture of Andrew and his partner in crime - cousin Zac. My sister-in-law watches Andrew during the day so I can go to work. Zac and Andrew have become good friends, although they have opposite personalities, so it will be interesting to see how they interact as they grow up :o)

Christmas Morning was at Tim's family's home. It was a great time together and it was especially fun 'cuz everyone was home for Christmas this year! This was Andrew's very first Christmas and he opened his first gift with Uncle Nate. It was a big, red dump truck and after it was opened, Andrew began to cry! Maybe it was 'cuz Andrew was hoping for a winter hat like his uncle had.

On Sunday, the 26th, we celebrated Christmas with my side and had a great time opening gifts and laughing together. The picture below depicts the handiwork of me and my sister Melissa. We wrapped a special gift for my sister Tracy. A lot of hard work and lots of love went into the gift wrapping, but I don't think Tracy truly appreciated our effort!

My little bundle of joy!

Below is a picture of our big happy family (girlfriends included :o) The Lord has blessed us so much this past year, and He continues to pour out His blessings on our lives. He is so good to us and we are overwhelmed by His love and goodness in our lives. -Mare

San Diego, CA

noreply@blogger.com (tshavlik) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 01:31:00 +0000

we arrived in un-sunny San Diego on Wednesday night around 11pm (1am MN time). It was our first visit to California and we were excited to see Sam - Tim's brother - graduate from Marine bootcamp and also see some of the sights in San Diego.

On Friday, October 15th, Sam Havlik became a Marine! It was so stirring to see all the new Marines lined up with a large American Flag waving in the breeze behind them. The Marine Marching Band played the Star Spangled Banner while proud parents, siblings and friends looked on, with their right hands covering their hearts. We are so glad we could be there to be a part of this exciting time in Sam's life.

As I said above, San Diego was un-sunny - the whole time we were there, we didn't see the sun once! The hotel had a lovely pool/hot-tub area, but I never enjoyed it (other than taking a picture with me sitting on one of the lawn chairs wearing my sweatshirt and sweat pants!) I definitely packed for sunshine and am thankful that I brought some sweats 'cuz that is about all I wore the whole time!! :o)

For lunch after Sam graduated, he wanted to go to a wonderful fast food restaurant called "In & Out". I guess ALL the Marine graduates decided to go there for lunch because the whole place was PACKED OUT!! Even the drive thru was packed. Below is a picture of the drive thru line-up that wrapped around the back of the building to the other side of the restaurant. Once we got the burgers and fries, though, I realized that the food was worth the wait. IT WAS DELICIOUS!!! Definitely go there for lunch if you are ever in San Diego!

After lunch we went on a boat ride around the San Diego harbor. It was pretty awesome to see so many huge military ships in the harbor and to see sea lions hanging out on docks in the harbor.

I love the black and white photograph "Kissing the war good-bye". Below we saw the statue that was inspired by that photograph. So cool!!
Below is a picture of the USS Midway. This war ship was docked in the harbor and we wanted to get a tour of the ship, but weren't able to. Next time!!

On Saturday, we all spent the day at the San Diego Zoo. It was pretty incredible to see the bird sanctuary and the hippos. We took the tour bus around the zoo and saw so many awesome animals that God has created! He sure is creative and imaginative!! Below, Tim and his brothers Dan and Chris are stopping to take a little break from all the walking at the zoo.

Andrew was tuckered out and took a little nap in the carrier that Tim brought (I told Tim not to bring it 'cuz I didn't think we'd use it. Good thing he didn't listen to me :o)
It was so great that Jordan and Grace came up from Texas for the graduation. It was fun getting to see them and hang out with them over the weekend. Andrew just loves Grace and enjoyed all the attention she gave him.

Saturday night, after dinner, we all went out for icecream to Cold Stone. It was a delicious treat!!

The last big thing we did before heading home to MN was to visit the beach. How could we come home saying that we never went to the beach when we were in California?? Even though it was overcast and cold, we still had a blast! Almost everyone played football in the sand. Andrew loved the ocean water and all the sand. It was a great way to end our time in San Diego! -Mare