Puzzled, part I

I never liked puzzles. Growing up I'd run fast and far if someone dumped a box of 1,000 itty bitty lookalike landscape pieces on the coffee table and said "here you go." That's not fun. Even now, knowing that every starter puzzle Buby owns is incomplete--missing just 1 piece--drives me berserk. He has several wood pegboard, lunchbox, and other open-faced configurations that are incredibly difficult to organize + store. Most don't work on carpet, can't be moved in progress, and won't stand up on a bookshelf or in a playroom basket without all the pieces tumbling out. Hence the missing pieces. But despite MY past resistance to puzzles, Buby has grown quite sweet on them. And recently, so have I. We discovered the beauty of puzzle books. Where have I been? These are made of board or foam with puzzles built right into the pages. Each piece teaches, tells a story, and--more important--fits snugly in its spot and stays there so you can file it on the shelf with all the other tomes. Buby and I grab one anytime we'll be in the car, my doctor's office, a restaurant. The Play & Learn Wild Animals foam puzzle book was his first, but it's still a big hit and we hope to snag more from the same collection.