Childcare! by Bill Houston – Jumbo (Wasgij Mystery) – 1000 pieces

As per my usual routine I don’t show the entire finished image for these puzzles that don’t have the solution on the box top (Wasgij, What If?, Puzzle Twist, etc.); so you’re only seeing the character shown on the box as one of the hints.

With this Wasgij, there is an image on the box showing the two adults taking care of the children in what looks to be a sort of playroom. The hints tell you that “Children can be so unpredictable and sometimes they can drive you mad! The two childcare assistants are doing their best to look after all these children, but what’s the worst that could happen?” That’s the scene you have to puzzle. You can see from the box image what clothes everyone is wearing, what the carpeting and walls looks like, etc. Starting with a shirt color, or any part of the image that stands out – you can get going on piecing together the finished image.

I’m always intrigued by what the finished artwork will look like and how greatly it does or doesn’t differ from the box image. They’re fun and entertaining, and always so colorful and interesting. (If you couldn’t tell already, I love these puzzles!)

After putting together the border and finding extra pieces I was worried that perhaps this puzzle might also be missing some pieces, but thankfully it was complete. In total there were four extra pieces; three in the border and one interior – all from the same section…

I always feel bad when this happens, because I know there’s someone out there missing four pieces of their puzzle. Missing pieces are such a disappointment with new puzzles, and although I had nothing to do with it I feel guilty because their pieces ended up with me. 🤷‍♀️

I thoroughly enjoyed this assembly, as usual, so I don’t know why it’s been so long since I’ve put together a Wasgij puzzle. According to my blog it’s been almost four years since I’ve done one! November of 2019 was the last Wasgij assembled – how is that possible?

There’s still a stack of Wasgij puzzles at least four feet high in my bedroom closet, the fact that they’re not in the puzzle room is probably why it’s been so long. Out of sight, out of mind perhaps?

Whatever the reason, I need to get to whittling down that pile of puzzles – they’re too much fun to be sitting un-assembled in my closet!