Puzzling – My Jigsaw Journal

It’s mom’s birthday this week, and I thought I’d re-post some of the puzzles that we did together, and some of the ones I’ve done that remind me of her. She’s pretty damned awesome for a little old lady and I love her to bits❣

She’s a black belt thrift store shopper who keeps us both extremely well stocked in puzzles, and there’s no one else I’d rather sit and puzzle with. She’s also quite an enabler; when I’m looking at puzzles to buy she’s right there telling me all the reasons why I SHOULD buy whatever it is I’m looking at. “What’s the sense in having money if you can’t spend it on things that you enjoy?” “Can you afford it? Yes? Then what’s the problem? Your husband doesn’t care, he wants you to be happy.” She’s excellent at enabling me!

Mom is truly my best friend and my puzzle posse all rolled into one, so today’s post is dedicated to her and just a few of the puzzles that make me think of her. (Click on any of the links to see my original posts for each puzzle) Enjoy the trip down puzzle memory lane – Happy Birthday Momma! 👵🎂🎉

Mom and I both assembled Birthday Party separately, and neither of us liked it much. This is before we became huge puzzle snobs and she became a little more choosy about the brands she bought at the thrift store. I thought it was a perfect puzzle for today’s post though. 🙂

TQON8736

Mom is the only member of my family who helped me with every single panel of Disney Memorable Moments. She always listened to me whenever I wanted to talk about it and never seemed bored or disinterested for the entire 6 months it took me to finish. My mom rocks!

Country Kitchen by Janet Kruskamp – White Mountain – 1000 pieces

This Country Kitchen reminds me of my mom, she used to have an almost identical stove that she got from her grandmother. She was always cooking and canning and this would have been close to her ideal kitchen.

Black Cat by Steinlen – Eurographics – 1000 pieces

Black Cat (Chat Noir)- ugh! Mom and I DESPISED this puzzle! It makes me laugh now to think of it, but it was so difficult and frustrating that we both would have gladly set it on fire if we weren’t so stubborn about finishing it. It’s the only puzzle I ever was glad that it had a piece missing – because it was extremely satisfying to put this bleeping thing in the garbage can. 😈

What TV Show Is That? – Buffalo – 252 pieces

We had the best time with this puzzle, What TV Show Is That?, it was so much fun! We also assembled What Word is That? which was more difficult, but still completely entertaining. She’s on the lookout for more puzzles in the same vein because they’re so great to work on together.

In Dreams by Geoffrey Gersten – Artifact Puzzles – 116 pieces

In Dreams was my birthday present from mom last year – a gorgeous wooden puzzle with such wonderfully interesting pieces. I think I’ve already assembled it 3 or 4 times, maybe more. 😉

I picked Canned Veggies to review because it reminds me of my youth and the time spent with mom in the kitchen helping her with the canning (mostly unwillingly). I look back on it fondly now, but at the time I was completely a bratty little kid about it. LOL

Mother and Daughter (1) – Falcon de luxe – 500 pieces

Mother and Daughter (1) was the first of two puzzles in one box that I bought specifically because the woman in the image reminds me of mom. The pictures of her from when I was young look amazingly similar to the lovely lady shown here. Beautiful puzzle!

Flower Still Life by Severin Roesen – Artifact Puzzles – 330 pieces

Flower Still Life was my Christmas present for mom last year, she picked it out herself. It’s a bit dark for my taste, but it’s a lovely image and the artistic cut of the pieces made for a challenging but extremely wonderful assembly.

Loose Change – White Mountain – 550 pieces

Since today is National Tax Day, I thought Loose Change would be an appropriate puzzle to share. Mom and I completed this on one of our puzzle/visit days and it was quite difficult! I was pretty proud of us for sticking with it and not letting all those pennies beat us.

Mother and Daughter (2) by F. Sands Bruner – Falcon de luxe – 500 pieces

Mother and Daughter (2) is my gift to mom for her birthday this year, along with a triple chocolate mess cake. It’s been glued and is waiting for us to find the perfect frame for display. She’s been knitting and crocheting my whole life, taught me how to as well, and this puzzle is perfect for her (looks just like her too!)

Enjoy your birthday this week mom, and I’m looking forward to another year of amazing thrift store finds, enabling, and many, many puzzle/visit days spending time together. Love you to puzzle pieces! ❤

https3a2f2fblueprint-api-production-s3-amazonaws-com2fuploads2fcard2fimage2f5843602f0f332264-9ecd-45fc-9e38-dd3ade7e996f — Satellite image of Hurricane Irma

My first thought looking at this picture is that the colors are beautiful and it would make a fun and challenging jigsaw puzzle. That’s only for a second or two though, then I think of how terrifying this hurricane is and that it’s on a collision course with several island countries, all of Florida, and much of the southeastern United States. Millions of lives are being threatened, and I’m praying that no more lives are lost to Irma’s rampage.

We are not under an evacuation order where I live in Florida, at least not yet. And I’m hoping it stays that way; from what I’ve seen on the news the traffic on most roads is a nightmare and I don’t know how in the world we’d be able to get anywhere if we needed to. My family is spending today “battening down the hatches” and preparing to hunker down to ride out the storm together. 8 adults (3 generations of my family) and 4 dogs together in my very small home – there are air mattresses, plenty of jigsaw puzzles to keep us busy, stacks of water bottles, plenty of canned goods and easy to prepare foods, coolers full of ice, and lots and lots of hope.

First and foremost we are hoping that everyone is able to weather this storm without loss of life. We can rebuild homes and get new things, but family and loved ones are irreplaceable. If I have my family with me, home is wherever we are – as long as we’re together.

Although we know that people are the most important thing, we are nonetheless also all hoping that our homes and possessions will not be destroyed by wind, water, or both. There’s plenty of anxiety and tension to go around as we worry about losing the “things” we own or losing a place to live. Worry won’t change a thing, but knowing that doesn’t stop us from worrying.

So my family will gather here to wait out the storm; we will watch the news while we wait, worry, and hope. Some of us here will work on jigsaw puzzles to pass the time, but the puzzles and puzzling isn’t that important. It’s just a way to pass the time and keep our minds from focusing only on the fear, anxiety or dread. I’m praying for all of us in her path, for those who have loved ones in harm’s way, and for everyone affected by hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

I love jigsaw puzzles – I love assembling them, talking about them, shopping for them, blogging about them, even reading about them. But right now, they’re just a way for me to try and keep my mind off of Irma – she is unwanted and unwelcome but she’s on her way. I hope to be back posting about puzzles again very soon.