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Archive for 'jigsaw'



Saturday Puzzle-Contest: What world is inside your fantasy book?
Saturday, January 27th, 2024

UPDATE: The winner is…Mary Preston!
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It’s Saturday! I’m so ready for the week to be done! On Monday, we had one last “snow day” for the kids before the weather changed and the rains came. It rained long and hard for two days—long enough for us to discover our roof leaks. Long enough, we had roofers come out to give us estimates to fix the leak. Yay. Grrr…

Well, we do seem to move from one crisis to the next, but we are resilient! This too shall pass…until the next crisis.

In the meantime, I chose a fantasy image to make me happy. Solve the puzzle, then tell me what world you’d find inside your fantasy book for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card! Have fun!

Saturday Puzzle Contest — Random Bohemian Pirate Couple
Saturday, January 20th, 2024

UPDATE: The winner is…Roxie Jones!
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Most Saturdays, I have no idea what image I’m going to choose for the puzzle when I sit down to craft my blog. I go to my favorite photo site and take a look. The photos they suggested today, based on my recent searches, produced a feed called “Bohemian Pirate Couple.” Interesting, I said. So, I went with it.

I hope you love the puzzle. Solve it, then tell me what kind of story it inspires in you for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Snow-pocalypse!
Saturday, January 13th, 2024

UPDATE: The winner is…Tara Leavitt!
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Here in Central Arkansas, we’re getting ready for a snow-pocalypse! It could last well into Wednesday and maybe Thursday. We may get as much as seven inches of the fluffy stuff, which folks in the north would think is not such a big deal, but we’re not made for that kind of weather. Our roads crumble, our road crews aren’t equipped to service the rural areas, and folks here don’t know how to drive on snow or ice. We have to have all our prep complete by tomorrow around 3 PM, then hunker down and pray our power doesn’t go out.

Today, the Devlin household will be deep into preparations. We’ll do a last grocery shop and pick up feed for the horse and goats. Empty the ducks/geese/chickens wading pool. Throw straw into the goat’s little hutch and the horse’s walk-in lean-to attached to the barn. We’ll get two large containers of fuel filled for the generator—just in case. Not that it will do more than power the fridge and our phones/laptops. The kids are downloading movies to their phones.

We’ll be dripping water in our sinks. Refreshing batteries in our lanterns and flashlights. Have we forgotten anything? Thank goodness for the holiday on Monday. We won’t have to worry about school until Tuesday but expect the schools to close on Tuesday and likely Wednesday. It’s going to be so much fun! Or we’ll do our best to make it so.

Anyway, here’s hoping anyone else facing this arctic blast is ready for it. Stay warm and safe! I’ll have to remind the SIL to make sure there’s fuel in the tractor in case he wants to drag an innertube around the yard for the kids. 🙂

With all this on the horizon, of course, I have a snowy landscape puzzle for you to play with today. Solve the puzzle and give me ideas for keeping three younger ones (19, 15, 10-years-old) entertained while we’re snowed in for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card! 

Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Ice Crystals on Glass
Saturday, January 6th, 2024

UPDATE: The winner is…Jennifer Beyer!
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Winter has finally arrived in Central Arkansas. Our winters are generally mild compared to the rest of the country, but we do get cold weather. Last night was 23 degrees, so we dripped faucets and ran the pool pump to keep the pipes from freezing up. From here through mid-March-ish, we’ll be checking the weather nightly to take precautions, like making sure we have gas to run the generator when ice takes down a power line. When Spring comes, it’ll arrive quickly, and we’ll have a bit of Spring before full-on Summer arrives. If we can get the pool cleaned quickly, we could be (temperatures permitting) getting into the pool by the end of April. God, I hope so. I live for summers, which are muggy and intolerably hot, but I LOVE swimming and hanging in the pool with the kids. Yes, I talk a lot about the pool because I am obsessed. Water baby, here. I’m a Cancer, so yeah, I love any excuse to don a swimsuit. Right now, I’m dreaming about floating in the river, renting a pontoon for a lake party, and slicing up watermelon and cantaloupe to eat beside the pool… On and on. My daughter loves “sweater weather” but I love flip-flops, shorts, and pool time.

However, the winter does have its moments. We had snow falling yesterday, which didn’t stick because it turned to rain mid-morning. Still, I snapped some pictures because it was pretty. But I wasn’t sad when it melted. My dd was. She loves nothing better than when we get a couple of feet of snow, and my SIL ties an innertube to the tractor to pull the kids across the snow. They love building igloos (again, aided by the tractor to push up the snow high enough) and snowmen. Yes, we’re redneck as hell with our winter activities, but you use what you’ve got when you live in the South and want to enjoy the weather while you can. 🙂

In the meantime, I have a puzzle with ice crystals stuck to a windowpane. Solve the puzzle and tell me what you and your family like to do in the cold weather for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card! 

Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Undersea Fantasy (Contest)
Saturday, December 30th, 2023

UPDATE: The winner is…Pamela Reveal!
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All of the family is heading to the movie theater today—after we walk all the dogs, feed and water the chickens, geese, guineas, goats and horse. It’s rare we all head out very far away because of the animals and everyone’s schedules, but we’re heading to see the new Aquaman movie! And yes, I could care less about the middling reviews. It’s Jason Momoa!

So, while we’re heading to eat a quick meal at a pizza buffet, followed by the movie, I’ll leave you with a puzzle! Something to share my excitement.

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, and then tell me what movie you’d love to see on the big screen!

Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Christmas Morning
Saturday, December 23rd, 2023

UPDATE: The winner is…Mary Ann Clarkson!
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This is the last Christmas-themed puzzle before the big day! My daughter and I have everything wrapped. The groceries for our special meal have been bought! Last night, I finished the last bit of work I intend to do until the day after Christmas. (Yes, not much rest for the weary when you’re a writer!)  So, from here on out, I will be enjoying spending time with family.

The image I chose for the puzzle depicts the fun of Christmas morning. In our house, we do adult Christmas before Christmas morning because we don’t want anything getting in the way of enjoying watching them open their presents. We’ll have screwdrivers and scissors standing by to install batteries and take apart the packages (why do dolls always have so many wires attached to the packaging?!).

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, share your plans for Christmas morning!

Saturday Puzzle-Contest: When winter comes…
Saturday, December 9th, 2023

UPDATE: The winner is…Loretta C. Rogers!
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All but two gifts are bought. So, that stress is over. Now, the family and I are settling into the last days of school before the holiday begins. We haven’t started bingeing on Christmas movies. Hopefully, we’ll have time for one today.

In the meantime, the weather is dismal. Not nearly cold enough and rainy. So, the last leaves are still clinging to the trees, the grass is brown with patches of green. The horse and goats love that. The forecasts aren’t hopeful for a white Christmas.

So, the image I chose today is lovely, eerie, and wintery—just so I can get into the mood of the season. I think I need to stock up on hot chocolate and gingersnaps. Something to help fuel the holiday feel.

I love that so many of you seem to be enjoying my Christmas Advent giveaways on Facebook! We’ll keep it up until Christmas Eve!

In the meantime, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle then offer your suggestions for holiday movies to watch. My daughter leans toward Hallmark Christmas movies. She vetoed the Krampus movie—and I don’t dare mention my favorite, Die Hard. So, any other suggestions will be appreciated!