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The Day After Christmas

I had a nice, peaceful day on Christmas watching movies and doing puzzles. Today, I met Michael and his dad and stepmother at Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch. They treated me for my birthday, and we had a very nice time eating and chatting.

Michael’s dad gave me a couple of cross-stitched items that he found in his mother’s things. One was a Christmas stocking she made for me when Bob & I got married, and the other was a little angel I had made for her one year. I was so happy to get them as they bring back fond memories.

Michael and me
Bob and Kimberly

After lunch, Michael and I came home and opened stockings and exchanged gifts. I got myself a new mouse mat, a cross stitch kit, and some puzzles. Michael got me two puzzles – one for Christmas and one for birthday, and he also filled my stocking.

This has been such a nice Christmas. I am thankful for friends and family and for the ability to enjoy my hobbies.

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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate!

I will be spending Christmas (which is also my birthday) enjoying Christmas movies and my favorite foods and probably working on a puzzle as well. My son will come home from his dad’s on Friday, and then we will celebrate both occasions together.

I hope you have a wonderful day however you choose to spend it!

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Merry Christmas Eve/Michael Health Update

Merry Christmas Eve! Michael finished his Minecraft Lego advent calendar today. He really enjoyed discovering each new item as the month progressed.

Here is the finished display:

A little over three weeks ago, Michael had a manometry study to test the motility of his esophagus, in an ongoing effort to discover why he has trouble swallowing food. The results of the test were apparently normal, but they did make a note that there was “absence of contraction in the skeletal portion of the esophagus.”

Based on this finding, they have referred him to be assessed for possible neuromuscular disorders. Unfortunately, the first available appointment with that department isn’t until September 2026.

It is confusing to me why this is not considered a GI issue, but we are seeing the GI doc in January so hopefully can get a better explanation then. From some reading I have done, it may also explain his chronic constipation issues.

Thankfully, he is able to swallow as long as he has enough liquid to help get it down, so he is okay for now.

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Villager Traveling Puzzles

One of the puzzlers I follow on YouTube offered several bundles of traveling puzzles earlier this year, and I eagerly signed up for one. Not all of them filled up, so I got the chance to sign up for a second one, and that’s the one I received last week. Both puzzles in this bundle are from Villager Puzzles, which is a woman-owned Canadian brand that features Canadian women artists.

The first puzzle I did was Cottage Country, which is by Nicolle Lalonde and is 500 pieces. It was fairly easy. I love how the setting sun looks reflected on the water.

The second puzzle was Lupines Meadow by Diana Pinnell. It is 1000 pieces. This one was quite challenging, but it is so lovely.

Now it’s back to Christmas puzzles. 🎄🎅☃️

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Week in Review: December 21, 2025

L to R: Chris, Evan, Michael, Hans

I had a good week overall. I had a few moments when I felt overwhelmed by everything I needed to get done, but there were also some really good things. I had a couple of good doctor appointments, and Michael had some dental work done successfully with the help of a little sedation.

On Friday evening, my friend Suzanne came over for dinner. We usually work on a puzzle together, but this time she needed to get home to help her son with some renovations he is doing to her house so that he can move in with her.

Then on Sunday, my friend Renee, her boyfriend Chris, and her two sons Evan and Hans came over to celebrate Christmas with Michael and me. We had a really nice time. We ordered Chinese food, and I had made a couple of treats that I remembered from my childhood – sour cream cookies and a Heath-inspired dessert bar. We also exchanged gifts, and Renee gave me a puzzle that she picked up at a farmers’ market. ☺️

After dinner, Renee asked to play puzzle chess, and we played two rounds of that. We used a couple of the cereal puzzles I got earlier this year, and we each won one round. Here are the puzzles we did:

This week I only work Monday and Tuesday, and on Tuesday I will be off for a couple of hours to get my first Invisalign trays. Michael is going to stay at his dad’s Wednesday and Thursday night, so I will have a quiet Christmas/birthday and will celebrate with Michael on Friday.

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate!

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South West Series

I recently finished the South West series by Rebecca Paulinyi, which I started back in 2024 when I downloaded the first book for free during a stuff your Kindle event. I liked it enough to buy the second book and then recently decided to take advantage of a three month trial of Kindle Unlimited to finish the series (and read a few other books that I couldn’t get through the library.)

I find these books to be charming, quick reads. We start out in book one by meeting Lee Jones, who impulsively moves to a town in Devon after discovering her husband is cheating on her.  In book three, we meet her sister, Beth Davies, who moves to Devon to shake up her boring life. Lee and Beth continue to be the focus through book six, and then the last two books are about related characters.

The books in order:

  • The Worst Christmas Ever: Christmas in Devon
  • Lawyers & Lattes: Happily Ever After in Devon
  • Feeling the Fireworks: Starting Over in Devon
  • The Best Christmas Ever: A Wedding in Devon
  • Trouble in Tartan: True Love in Devon
  • Summer of Sunshine: Missing Devon
  • Healing the Heartbreak: Moving On in Devon
  • Dancing Till Dawn: First Love in Devon

I am glad I finally got the chance to read the rest of these books. They are fun, feel-good reads.

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My 500th Post!

This is my 500th post! I started posting on this blog on August 31, 2016 and am posting this on December 17, 2025, so it has been over 9 years since I began! I have taken some breaks along the way, so it is exciting to reach this milestone.

Looking back over my posts, over half of them (268) have been about jigsaw puzzles. I only started puzzling in 2021, but it quickly became an obsession of mine, and I have done a LOT of puzzles in that time.

The second largest category is books, with 165 posts. I have been a voracious reader my whole life but haven’t always written about the books I read. I have found lately that writing book reviews helps me remember the books more clearly, so I will keep doing it as long as I can.

Posts about other topics are more sporadic, but I have at times shared updates about my life and posted about pets, travel, or other fun things. I don’t have a lot of readers, but I still enjoy posting for myself and truly appreciate those who stop by and leave a like and/or a comment.

Here’s to many more posts to come!

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Paris Christmas

Paris Christmas is a 1000-piece puzzle from eeboo, and the artist is Jennifer Orkin Lewis. I love all of the great colors and details in this festive holiday image. My favorite part is the twinkle lights on the Eiffel Tower.

There were a few sections I was able to do in the beginning, but after that, it was mostly pick and place for the rest of the puzzle. It was still fun, though.

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Week in Review: December 14, 2025

Today, I finally finished decorating for Christmas. I kept it very simple this year, just my small tree and a couple other decorations. I just don’t have the energy to do more than that.

One of the things that has been on my mind a lot lately is my financial situation and the fact that retirement is getting closer than it used to be. I finally took a step towards facing things and met with a financial planner this week. We had a good initial meeting, and I am hopeful that she will be able to help me.

Death has also been on my mind recently. A friend who lives far away lost her husband to a sudden heart attack a couple of weeks ago. More recently another friend lost her 24 year old son to complications from a seizure. I have known her for about 20 years – we met because we both had children with autism and have been connected ever since. Michael and I went to his celebration of life on Saturday. It was a very moving service.

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The Seven Year Slip

The Seven Year Slip is my first Ashley Poston novel, and I was drawn to it for the magical realism aspect of the story. I have enjoyed several books in this genre over the last couple of years, and this was no exception.

Clementine is an overworked book publicist who has just moved into her deceased aunt’s apartment on New York’s upper east side. Her aunt had claimed that the apartment was magical, and, now that Clementine is living there, it is time for her to experience it for herself. She falls asleep on the couch one night only to awaken seven years in the past. Her aunt is still alive but is abroad for the summer, and the apartment has been sublet to a young man named Iwan.

What follows is an engaging story of love and loss across time. I thoroughly enjoyed the love story and was moved by how Clementine deals with the grief surrounding her aunt’s passing. I thought the supporting characters were very well done and liked the message about following your passion in life. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.