'Mom, what language is mousey?'

We were at the Little Gym recently, when Duncan's class had just ended but Sayer's had not yet begun. I was sitting in the lobby chatting with another mom from Duncan's class when Sayer walked up and asked 'what language is mousey?'

I thought she was being silly or cute and suggested that it must be the language that mice speak. She said no, it meant something for real. So I told her that mousey is sometimes used to describe someone who is maybe a little shy and hides away from being the center of attention. And she said no, that wasn't it. So I told her she knew more about the word and the language than I did if she knew that wasn't it.

The mom I'd been chatting with was listening and looking puzzled, like she was also trying to figure out what Sayer might be referring to.

Sayer was quiet for a few seconds, clearly thinking about it. Maybe trying to come up with some way to tell me where she'd heard it or in what context ...

Finally she exclaimed that it meant Thank You! And the lightbulb over my head flickered on, along with a huge smile on my face and on the face of the other mom.

'Ah, you mean merci! That's French for thank you! Sounds a bit like mousey, doesn't it?' :)

LOL. Shortly after that she was running around in class. And I was out in the lobby, still laughing.

Mousey.