Maisy and Spot resources

 I have written before about E's enthusiasm for all things Spot, but I'm not sure if I have said anything about her devotion to Maisy. The lure of both of them somewhat baffles me - after all, in a book titled "Maisy Goes Shopping" you can be sure that Maisy is going to go shopping, but nothing else whatsoever is going to occur. I also find the style of the Maisy pictures pretty unappealing, but I assume that toddlers love both Maisy and Spot partly because the pictures are so simple and easily recognisable. That, presumably, is also the simultaneous attraction of the stories for children and their banality after one read for adults - everything about them is recognisable, understandable, part of every day life. 

Anyway, I digress. I thought I would mention the Spot and Maisy websites in case they are of interest to anyone else. The Maisy website is www.maisyfunclub.com. It has a list of all the books as well as a few free books that you can read in their entirety online. However the main thing we have been using it for are the free printable colouring-in sheets. E is just addicted them - over the last few days every time she has a spare moment she has been going to the study door (where the printer lives) and begging "Mummy get Maisy, Mummy get Maisy." It also has a few things we haven't used such as recipes for gingerbread and lemonade, and printable game sheets such as spot the difference and matching.

The Spot website is www.funwithspot.com. It likewise has a list of all the Spot books and a few interactive games, but the main thing we found useful as the birthday party resources. E's Spot cake and banner were courtesy of this website.

I realise it's all just commercialism intended to make us spend more money on their products, but both sites have provided some useful diversion. Besides, at the moment if I want to preserve my hearing and my sanity, my choice about whether we do more Maisy colouring is pretty minimal!