Portofino, Italy...

I am sorry if I mislead you with my title! Unfortunately this post is not about going to Italy and having a fun family vacation...

Isn't it a bit early for the flu season? My daughter recently came down with one nasty flu bug. After 3 days of dealing with a very unhappy kid I remembered the puzzle. We had bought it for Christmas thinking it would entertain the kids over the break time, but then it ended up in a back corner in the basement.

Not sure why I got to remembering it. It certainly came in as a total blessing when reading wasn't an option and the TV meter had run out... It also brought back memories of when the kids were little and loved puzzles so much.

Now I have to say you are never too old or too young to enjoy a good puzzle. The one we got for Christmas had 750 pieces (according the box) and showed a three feet wide panorama view of Portofino, Italy. Of course, we had to look it up on the map. So we got in a little geography lesson at the same time!

At first the job was very daunting and near impossible. How to start? The patient was only remotely interested. Once our 12-year-old son and I picked out all the border pieces and the project started taking shape, everybody wanted to help finish this hard puzzle.

Isn't it beautiful? I definitely want to go there now!

Even my husband - who mumbled something about the Germans and the French never getting along and how I enjoyed fighting crazy battles (did I hear the word maniac somewhere along the lines) - couldn't keep his hands of the pieces when we got near the end. After two days the task was finished!

As a child I did a lot of puzzles with my family. I guess I forgot how much fun it was since my kids are older now. I think this experience was a great because it helped us pass a difficult time while our daughter was sick and take our mind of the sickness. At the same time it was a fun way to teach about patience and teamwork. I am already on the lookout for another big puzzle for the family to do.