For you folks in the frozen north, all you have to do is look out your window to know winter is here. I’ve been told there’s quite a bit of snow on the ground in NW Wisconsin. For me, I’m here in sunny SW Florida where the view from my window is anything but snowy. But my routine remains the same . . . minus the boots and heavy coat.

There are Christmas cards to make and mail. Gifts to purchase and wrap. Cookies and holiday meals to plan. Decorations. Books to read and write . . . sitting by the pool, of course.

Unless I’m playing with my grandson. He just turned two and is very verbal about his day. Although, I have to admit I only understand about half of what he’s saying.

Winter is also the time of year I break out the jigsaw puzzles. Back home it’s because I don’t spend a lot of time out in the cold and puzzles make for a great toasty indoor activity. Nonetheless, I find my thoughts turning to those colorful boxes stacked expectantly on my shelf.

Top of this year’s list is a puzzle called “Writer’s Desk”. Last year’s birthday gift from my sister-in-law. I planned this one specifically for Florida as I will glue and frame it to hang by my desk once it’s finished. Next in line is a puzzle called “Vintage Bookstore”. It was this year’s birthday gift from the same sister-in-law. I will also glue and frame it for hanging.

Here’s a couple of questions for you:

When you open a new puzzle box and find some of the pieces already together, do you leave them that way and consider them a bonus, or do you break them apart? Personally, I break them apart and mix the pieces around. It feels like cheating if I don’t get to find and put them together myself.

Do you presort them by color and subject, or do you leave them in a great pile in the box to sift through? In my younger days, I laid them all out on a large table around the puzzle. I might semi-sort them, but mostly I just laid them where there was room. Now, I mostly sort into cookie sheets by color groups. Something I learned from the same sister-in-law. But so far with this puzzle, I’ve done some sorting for the framing pieces and certain interior pictures, but mostly I’m sifting through the pile in the box. It’s been working well, but soon I’m going to sort into the above-mentioned cookie sheets.

I’ve been doing all this while binging my Netflix list. What do you do while working on a puzzle? Watch television, listen to music, or just work in silence? Do you prefer to make your puzzle by yourself, or with someone else? I’ve done both.

No matter how you do your puzzle making, may you have no missing pieces, and may they all fit snugly together.