Did you know this coming Monday (October 5) is World Animal Day? To honor this day and the world's animals I am going to be sharing several animal themed products over the next few days. Today we are going to start with a fun jigsaw puzzle I fell in love with because it is such an adorable picture. The Bambi Puzzle by Nathalie Lété’ is a great quality and the picture is beautiful.
Today I get to share with you a jigsaw puzzle of a beautiful zen garden in Japan. As I have mentioned before one of the many benefits of doing a puzzle is that it is relaxing. I find having a tranquil picture even more relaxing!! The puzzle is Tranquil Zen Garden in Kyoto, Japan 1,000-Piece Jigsaw Puzzle from Tuttle Publishing.
Have you been watching the Olympics? This year is the first time I have really watched in a long time. I love watching the women's gymnastics but always hated how it was shown so late. I love the live streaming videos that I can watch any time. With the Summer Games in Tokyo and where spectators are not allowed, I thought it was the perfect time to explore Tokyo and Japan. Today I'm going to share some cookbooks to bring home a bit of the Japanese culture with food and it is food your kids may enjoy! These books are also perfect for getting ready for school lunches, parties and more! We will start with Ultimate Bento by Marc Matsumoto and Maki Ogawa.
I haven't shared a puzzle in awhile. I have been holding onto this one because I was afraid it would take awhile. I brought it to our vacation house last week and actually finished it in two days. The puzzle is Classic Paperbacks 1,000-Piece Puzzle by Richard Baker.
I have been loving my puzzles but I am also loving learning about the picture on the puzzle. Today's puzzle is a woodblock print by Kuniteru Utagawa called Song of the Four Seasons: Summer created in 1853. It depicts a scene from the famous novel, The Tale of Genji written by Murasaki Shikibu. The Tale of Genji is considered to be the first novel in the world. It was written in the 11th century. You can learn more about the novel here. The picture on the puzzle is of Prince Genji with his companions in a Japanese garden on a summer's evening.
Last February we found an amazing school to switch Hazel to. They have a spring break in March that lasts for two weeks. Hazel was supposed to start right after the break, but the pandemic hit and our state closed down. Her school started after that break with remote learning for last year. This year however they went in person with the daily choice of a student going remote. Although it has been a strange year, it has been an amazing year. Hazel has so much more confidence. She is standing up straighter and just overall happier. Finding the right school makes so much difference and we didn't really realize it until this year. Today is her last day of school and summer begins! Now since she has been learning in person she is not one of the kids that has lost so much during the pandemic. However I know there are many kids who have. I see the posts and articles with the concerns of what kids lost this year, will they be behind, etc. I also know there are people who are looking for ways to help catch them up this summer. My advice is to find fun ways to help them catch up and learn something new. Today I am going to share some books that will do just this. The first book is Top Secret: Spies, Codes, Capers, Gadgets, and Classified Cases Revealed by Crispin Boyer and Suzanne Zimbler.
Today I am going to share another 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle. It is a beautiful photograph from Japan. It is the Samurai Castle and Cherry Blossoms 1,000-Piece Jigsaw Puzzle.
I have been very lucky to be able to get products to review from Tuttle Publishing. Since their company focuses on Eastern countries I always find their products perfect for sharing in May (though I share them all year long). Besides books they have other products including jigsaw puzzles. I thought it would be fun to share some of the puzzles I have from Tuttle this month. I have shared others previously. Plus since the puzzle is of the Borobudur Temple, I thought I would share some fun facts about the temple.
Yesterday I felt like I wanted to work on a puzzle. I went to my puzzle pile and decided to put together Dare to Dream 1,000-Piece Puzzle by Astrid van der Hulst, Irene Schmidt, and Editors of Flow Magazine. I chose this puzzle because I thought I could put it together pretty quickly and wanted to review it today.
March is National Craft Month. I have not had much time to craft but did start working on a quilt today, so I decided to share some of the quilt books I have been thinking about trying today as well as the one I did try. We will start with Sew Very Easy Quilt Favorites: 12 Skill-Building Projects from Laura Coia.
It has been a tough year for everyone. Our world shut down during Hazel's new school's spring break last year. It was such a strange time. We didn't know what was coming. Here in Massachusetts at least things are far from normal. Businesses are opening up again but masks are mandatory in public. We have been lucky. Hazel's school has been open this school year. We have the choice to keep her remote whenever we want to but can send her in most of the time. The school goes remote after vacation weeks so it enforces self quarantines for people who have traveled. It truly amazes me when I look on Facebook and see friends all across the country traveling and going out socially. The idea of stepping on an airplane right now or eating in a restaurant scares me. Yet I know there are people who do it all the time and I'm friends and/or related to some of them. We have not left Massachusetts since our trip to Disney in February 2020. We are very lucky though that my family has a house on Cape Cod and we have gotten away there including this spring break. Hazel has been off the past two weeks for spring break and this past week we headed to Cape Cod to spend time as a family, get a change of scenery and see my parents. Since Steve is working from home he needed a change of scenery as well as some time off. Have you traveled during this pandemic?
I love puzzles. I tend to get a bit engrossed in them. Hazel realized at a young age to have Steve do puzzles with her because I get too obsessed with them. Today's puzzle challenged me quite a bit. I love the picture of the beautiful flowers on it, but the border was so hard!! This puzzle is Cultivated 1000 Piece Puzzle by Christin Geall.
Today I am going to share with you a fun building kit. It involves some crafting, math, art and more and I always love when you can make learning fun. Mind-Blowing Paper Puzzles by Haruki Nakamura does just that.
This has been a crazy week. It is hard to believe what is going on in our country. I know I have not been myself since Wednesday. Watching the people storm the capitol was just awful. I felt like our country was truly divided and falling apart. I took a few days off from blogging because I just needed to care for me and my family and come back from all the emotions from the day. I have spent a lot of time praying and reflecting on my own life and what I want for our country as well as some crafts and puzzles. How are you doing?
I have to confess--between the pandemic and winter about to begin, I have not really been motivated to do anything. Yesterday as the snow fell my biggest achievement was going out to fill the bird feeders. They were busier than ever with the snow. They still are. I loved sitting and watching the snow and the birds. Today isn't much better. However I finished this puzzle quite a long time ago and have been meaning to write the review but just haven't gotten to it. So here it is. I have been writing reviews of 1,000-piece puzzles in my Mommy Time Reviews. I am going to include a round-up of them as well as the five puzzles on my to do shelf! I just need to make space to do one. Lately my puzzle space has been filled with diamond painting instead.
As I sit and think about Thanksgiving I remember the history we have been taught and much of the history I have learned. With my parents on Cape Cod I drive through Plymouth, Massachusetts every year on my way to and from Thanksgiving dinner. I think about the friendships that were made between the Wampanoag People and the Pilgrims and how the white colonists truly treated the Natives who helped them survive the first year. It saddens me that we are taught such a different story about what Thanksgiving means. To me this is a day to give thanks for the blessings we have and to gather with loved ones and be thankful for the time with them. This is especially true for my family this year since it may be one of the last ones that my father will be truly present as his Alzheimer's is getting much worse.
The weather has been beautiful here and I didn't get around to doing my Mommy Time Post on Friday. However I did finish my puzzle so I want to share it with you today instead. The puzzle is Let the Sun Shine In by Irene Smit, Astrid van der Hulst, and Editors of Flow magazine and illustrated by Anisa Makhoul and has 1,000 pieces.
