This is the weekend that the grandkids look forward to. As soon as Halloween is over and the temperatures begin to drop, your husband brings a card table up from the basement and you set out one of your favorite 2000 piece jigsaw puzzles. The grandkids love to hang around after Sunday dinner, and spend hours sorting pieces. First they sort the edges from the 2000 piece jigsaw puzzles that you tackle, and once the frame has been created the group starts pulling out pieces that are the same color. There are a few favorites among all of the 2000 piece jigsaw puzzles that you have done that get pulled out every year, but you always make sure that you add a new one to the mix as well.

Putting together big jigsaw puzzles is a fun activity, especially once cold temperatures arrive. Whether it is a Sunday tradition with the grandparents after church and dinner or it is a Thanksgiving weekend event, both easy puzzles and difficult puzzles are a great way to spend time with family.

Does Your Family Have a Tradition of Putting Jigsaw Puzzles Together?

Whether you are a fan of tough puzzles that take weeks to complete or you like to have easier versions so that everyone in the family can contribute, puzzle time that is far removed from screen time is just what today’s families need. In a time when many people fear that phone, computer, and television screens are taking over, it is nice to know that there are many families who still like to spend time together and enjoy working on jigsaw puzzles.

You do not have to wait for the winter holidays to get out a jigsaw puzzle for your family. In fact, any time is a great time to gather your family together for an afternoon or evening full of puzzle work. If you are looking for a way to encourage conversation with your children or grand children, game time is often pretty popular. With nothing to do but search for the missing piece, however, puzzle time allows for more talking between family members. In addition to facilitating conversations with younger family members, the latest research indicates that puzzle work is also good for the brain. In fact, studies show that puzzles activate our brains while relaxing us psychologically, pushing our brains into a meditative state.