In my library, I have one entire shelf devoted to . . . children’s books. Most of the books on this shelf are favorites from when my kids were young . . . Angelina Ballerina, Thomas the Tank Engine, Lily (with her purple purse!), Henry and Mudge, and so on . . . but some of the books were actually my own childhood favorites. Good fun. Good memories.

A couple of books on that shelf are more than just nice nostalgia-reads, though . . . as they are books that have wormed their way into our “family lexicon” — still referenced even now, all these years after reading them at bedtime.*

It is one of those two books that I pulled off the shelf over the weekend.

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond, came out in 1985 – a few years before Erin was born, and a very popular book in my family’s prime “storytime era.” The illustrations are charming and the story is the perfect cause-and-effect tale that makes kids – and their grown-ups – laugh out loud.

I’m sure most of you remember the story . . . of the mouse who wants a cookie, but then realizes he wants a glass of milk to go with it. Only to be reminded that he’d like to paint a new picture to go on the door of the refrigerator. Only to make a mess with the art supplies. And on and on. One thing leads to another . . . until, in the end, he realizes he is thirsty and wants a glass of milk. Which reminds him that he’d really like a cookie to go with it.

Silly fun. For kids. And for adults, too. Because this cause-and-effect chain reaction scenario still plays large in adult lives.

Or . . . at least . . . it does in mine!

In fact, I’ve got one going on right now.
Which is why I reached for this old family favorite in the first place.

You see . . . early last month, I decided it was time to finally change up the carpet on our main floor and the stairs/hallway upstairs. (I’ve been talking about doing this for years, but re-carpeting is such a hassle that I just kept delaying.) So I finally chose the carpets I wanted, and was set to order when . . .

I decided that as long as I was doing the recarpeting in the upstairs hallway, I really should do the carpeting in the small bedrooms upstairs at the same time. . .

And since one of those bedrooms is the room I now use for my art studio, I probably should do a hard-surface floor instead of carpeting . . .

And since I’ll have to clear everything out of those small rooms for the carpet/flooring, this would be a great time to have some painting done . . .

And, really, this would be the perfect time to shift around some furniture and donate things we don’t use anymore . . .

And maybe do a little . . . redecorating . . .

So, yeah.
I’ve got a real Give-a-Mouse-a-Cookie situation going on here, home-décor-style. (Complicated by a slowly-healing sprained ankle that I wasn’t planning on.) It’s a mess right now. Soon to be worse. But then better.

Like the little mouse from our story . . . I could use a drink!

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*The other children’s book that we all still reference in our family . . .  is Judith Viorst’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (illustrated by Ray Cruz). Maybe I’ll pull that one off the shelf and tell you about it some other Monday!