Amy and puzzles

[pne]

When Amy was younger (about two or so), she was really good at simple puzzles—even ones she had never seen before.

However, she seems to have become lazy and to prefer ones she knows by heart, where she knows where every piece goes.

She got frustrated this morning while doing a new puzzle (6×8) after putting down ten or so pieces, because she didn’t know where a specific piece goes. I suggested that she put that piece back and look for pieces that will match the ones already laid out, rather than wanting to put down specific pieces she might have picked up, but she refused. She said she wanted to do “her old Winnie-the-Pooh puzzle”—a 4×5 one that Stella had already put away in the cellar because she feels Amy’s too old for that now since it’s no longer challenging in the least. So instead she got out another game.

Ah well. I wonder whether she’ll get back the curiosity, pattern-matching skills, and determination that let her solve puzzles earlier.