Where have you heard this ditty before?

Bretrick · Tuesday at 3:29 PM

"Oh, Mairzy Doates and Dozy Doats and liddle lamzy divey
A kiddley divey too, wouldn't you?
Now if the words sound queer and funny to your ear
A little bit jumbled and jivey
Say, Mares eat oats and Does eat oats
and little lambs eat ivy"

That Lady in PA · Tuesday at 3:32 PM

Where? On the radio of course!

IrishEyes · Tuesday at 3:32 PM

My favorite babysitter taught me that song when I was 4 yrs old
I even remember her name it was Vi short for Viola

Knight · Tuesday at 3:34 PM

That one in nice. Unlike the violent death this one projects.

"Rock-a-Bye Baby" is a traditional nursery rhyme that goes:
"Rock-a-bye baby, on the tree top,
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock.
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall,
And down will come baby, cradle and all."
The rhyme is believed to have first appeared in print in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765, and it has been a popular lullaby for generations.

oscash · Tuesday at 4:11 PM

Bretrick said:
"Oh, Mairzy Doates and Dozy Doats and liddle lamzy divey
A kiddley divey too, wouldn't you?
Now if the words sound queer and funny to your ear
A little bit jumbled and jivey
Say, Mares eat oats and Does eat oats
and little lambs eat ivy"

Oh yes, I remember that song from way back.

CallMeKate · Tuesday at 4:14 PM

I sang it to my daughter when she was little... always made both of us giggle.

oscash · Tuesday at 4:20 PM

Remember "The Teddy Bear's Picnic"? I used to sing it to our boys when they were little.

rbtvgo · Tuesday at 4:34 PM

“Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey”

When you separate it, it means:

“Mares eat oats and does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy.”

So the whole verse is basically talking about animals and what they eat.

The next line explains the joke:

“A kiddley divey too, wouldn’t you?”

Meaning:

“A kid’ll eat ivy too, wouldn’t you?”
Mairzy Doats. 1943

jujube · Tuesday at 7:01 PM

My mom sang that to me. I sang it to my daughter and my granddaughters and my great-granddaughters.

dobielvr · Tuesday at 7:30 PM

The elderly gent I used to cook for his nickname was 'Doats.' Apparently, his mother had given him that nickname when he was a child and it just stuck. That's what everyone called him.

gruntlabor · Tuesday at 8:43 PM

oscash said:
Remember "The Teddy Bear's Picnic"? I used to sing it to our boys when they were little.

horseless carriage · Tuesday at 9:31 PM

"Mairzy Doats," often referred to as: "Mares Eat Oats," is actually a popular American novelty songwritten in 1943 and popularised in 1944. While it is often considered a nursery rhyme due to its simplistic, nonsensical lyrics, it was specifically composed for Tin Pan Alley.

Been There · Wednesday at 5:39 AM

I vaguely remember my mom singing that song to me at bedtime. My mom was a schoolteacher and she would buy these little books with stories or nursery rhymes in them. At bedtime, we would read them together.

IrishEyes · Wednesday at 5:54 AM

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, was another one I remember strongly

hollydolly · Wednesday at 6:01 AM

We used to sing it when we were kids... Max Bygrave had a big hit with it in the uk in the 60's I believe....

hollydolly · Wednesday at 6:02 AM

Knight said:
That one in nice. Unlike the violent death this one projects.

"Rock-a-Bye Baby" is a traditional nursery rhyme that goes:
"Rock-a-bye baby, on the tree top,
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock.
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall,
And down will come baby, cradle and all."
The rhyme is believed to have first appeared in print in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765, and it has been a popular lullaby for generations.

yep I used to sing this to my daughter....

Bretrick · Wednesday at 6:07 AM

IrishEyes said:
There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, was another one I remember strongly

Poor lady, she's dead of course.

IrishEyes · Wednesday at 6:13 AM

Bretrick said:
Poor lady, she's dead of course.

Surprising that if we as kids heard someone had died we didn't ask if they swallowed a fly.

Della · Wednesday at 6:29 AM

My mother sang "Mares Eat Oats" around the house, but her bedtime song was, "Lullaby and Goodnight."

My son would have me read a story and then sing my entire repertoire every night:
Red River Valley
Ukulele Lady
Jug Band Music

Pappy · Wednesday at 6:45 AM

It was one of my favorite ones when I was little. Grandma played over and over for me on the piano. Other favorites were:
Pistol Packing Mama
Coming in on a wing and a prayer.
Yes, we have no bananas.

hollydolly · Wednesday at 6:51 AM

Pappy said:
It was one of my favorite ones when I was little. Grandma played over and over for me on the piano. Other favorites were:
Pistol Packing Mama
Coming in on a wing and a prayer.
Yes, we have no bananas.

yes all those too...now it's making me wonder with this new generation raising their kids via facebook, and all those apps, whether those old song will die out...

jujube · Wednesday at 7:47 AM

Mom used to sing this one, played here by the Glenn Miller Orchestra:

gruntlabor · Wednesday at 10:22 AM

Many of the children's duets are very beautiful. Here is INCHWORM.

Sunny · 2026-03-05T09:20:41-0700

Our theatre group performed a great show of funny songs last night. Here's one:

You ask me if I love you
And if my love is true
Well, if I were a rich man
Here is what I'd do
I'd buy you a diamond ring
And a new fur coat or two
If my nose was running money
I'd blow it all on you.

If my nose was running money
You'd have everything you please
Any time you wanted cash
All I'd have to do is sneeze
Honey, you'd win the lottery
When I have a cold or flu
If my nose was running money,
I'd blow it all on you.

Where have you heard this ditty before?

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