A few cuties

Jesse was having a hard time during FHE last night. He can put on some very sour faces!
Smiling Saul
I could enlarge this and put it on the wall. And, no, his ear is not pierced. He has a mole in just the right spot.
Our serious child, not!
Two cute little kids
Eva racing around on her new bike.
Saul racing around on his new bike.
One of the best pictures of the kids in a while.
One evening, I told Jesse he couldn't have his snack downstairs, so he stomped back upstairs. A few minutes later, I went to check on him and see if he was finished, and this is what I found.

Christmas Morning-Jesse style

Jesse was just so cute this year about everything. The kids informed us that they don't believe in Santa Claus so we just put all the presents under the tree.

Jesse was just a ham for the camera. Enjoy!







He loves his new Book of Mormon.

Christmas Morning

Christmas morning dawned early here. The kids were excited about what may lay under the tree. Here is a little peek into our morning.


Chad got a new robe.
Eva loves to write and draw.
Elias now has a little baby for his bigger lizard.
Saul was loving his LARGE iguana.
Eva's frog was much larger than I thought it would be.
More guns?
Little animals to play with.
M&M's can't be missed.

Christmas Eve fun

We all gather at Grandma and Grandpa Maple's house for Christmas Eve fun. The kids had a good time opening and watching others open presents, along with the food and play that was available.

Here are some pictures of the evening.


Saul sure is happy about his new PJ's.
Boy, she looks a little tired out!
Elias loves to yoyo.
Jesse opening his little fun!
Eva received new jammies as well.
Chad looking a little bored......
Most of the kids awaiting the handing out of presents.

The gingerbread house fiasco

Elias needed a gingerbread house for Scouts. I made him a great one, well, I baked the pieces and he put it together and decorated it. I made pieces for the other kids on another day, and they just didn't turn out as I would have liked. The pieces broke easily and wouldn't stand up. So, they just decorated them as cookies and had a great time doing it.

While they decorated, I read "The Nutcracker" to them. They enjoyed hearing the story and I enjoyed having their attention.

Here they are working and with their lovely creations.










Some of you may be wondering why there are so many suckers? Well, we used mostly leftover Halloween candy for the decorations. I only purchased two new things. I knew they would just make a mess of it all and didn't want to spend extra money on their mess.

A few cute pictures

Eva before church on Sunday. She was all dressed up for Christmas and quietly coloring.

Here she is later in the day....not so happy now!

Here are my happy dishwashers. For any of you children out there who think you are the only kids who wash dishes, well, you are not alone.

Saul took this picture. He is becoming quite the photographer, for a seven year old.

Christmas party!

Saul and Eva were invited to a Christmas party hosted by the local Moose Lodge. I took the kids planning to drop Saul and Eva off and get some errands done. Well, Saul didn't want to stay because none of his friends were there, so I offered to stay with him. The coordinators were very nice and had Elias and Jesse participate with all the other kids. They had a great time eating lunch, playing with other children and visiting with Santa.

Here is a very happy Jesse.

Elias was trying to be grown up, but he really liked the little gift from Santa.

Saul finally got over his shyness and had a good time.

Eva, my little socialite, didn't even look at me for a picture!

There was a bike drawing planned but the kids were not really interested, as they had forgotten about that little tidbit. But...............

The first name called was...........you guessed it! Eva Maple! She didn't even know why her name was called but she was a good sport and went forward. The woman in charge of the event gave her a big hug and congratulated her. She still didn't know why......she just smiled in her very cute way. Then they brought out the bike and said "This is yours". She said "What?" She was apparently clueless still. But after another person said the bike was hers now, she was all smiles. She hopped on that bike and took off. She nearly ran me down as I tried to get a picture of her. The picture says it all.

Then a few minutes later, yep, "SAUL MAPLE" was called. He knew what it was for now and ran up to receive his prize. He didn't hop right on his bike as it was a bit bigger that Eva's was for her. He was very excited about it!

Too bad the weather hasn't been as cooperative. It has been very cold and icy. They have been out on the bikes a little though. All in all, it was a very fun morning. All the kids got a little something from Santa and some of them got a little something big. Good thing we have a large vehicle to cart them home!

A little Family Home Evening Humor, maybe

Elias gave the lesson last night. He gave it on Christmas, out of the new nursery manual. He did a great job. However, he gets distracted easily.

He was looking at the Christmas tree and said, "when you go cross-eyed, there are two trees and the lights are, like, huge!"

Here is what we were graced with last night. He is simply hilarious. Everyone else tried it and no one can get the effect that he can!

Grandma Knutti

I just have to put down my thoughts and feelings this morning. Grandma Knutti passed away during the night last night. She had a stroke sometime Saturday night. I am thankful her suffering was short.

I love my grandma. Even though I didn't get to visit with her often, we corresponded through letters. I sent pictures and hoped that she got to know the kids and what we were doing here through those. I had the kids make her pictures which she said she enjoyed.

I am thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am picturing Grandpa having welcomed her as she passed to the other side. I am picturing them so happy to be together again. Though I am enjoying my time here on the earth, there is some anticipation for the joys I will experience when I am again reunited with family members who have passed. I try to live each day spending time with those I love and inviting others to share in the joy of the Gospel.


Life continues on and someday we will all be together again. We will be made whole through the love of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Elias' advancement

I thought I would have just one blog here for Elias. On Wednesday night, he received his Bear award in Cub Scouts. We are very proud of him. It took a lot of work, both his and mine! He is a joy to have around!

And here he is:

Eva's new hairdo

Eva before her haircut. Her hair was just out of hand and something had to be done. The next one is, of course, the after. It is neater looking and easier to manage.

These two are just growing up too fast!