Do you ever wonder when babies start giggling? Do you have a little one and maybe, he or she hasn’t laughed or giggled yet? Well, you’ll be glad to know that babies start giggling at different ages. I remember my little sister started to giggle at a few days old but my mom said it wasn’t giggling; it was gas, so there you go!

I requested of my family stories of when their babies started to giggle. It surprised me to know that the first giggle was on the same level of the first smile, the first goo-goo, the first da-da or ma-ma and was remembered almost as clearly as the first step or the first potty success.

Image by Alicakes* via Flickr

Babies start giggling at the weirdest things

Per one of my relatives, her child was in a baby carrier, maybe three months old, when her father started to play with a laser type light, causing the dog to chase around in circles to catch an uncatchable red beam. The little girl began a funny chuckle but not quite then a little squeal and she then began to giggle so hard she lost her breath and as small as she was, it turned into a laughing that surprised them all. Then it was months before she ever giggled again and that was playing with her feet.

Another story. Barely able to sit up, my brother’s daughter was listening to a song, I think it was Tequila, She started to rhythm around and she started to giggle along with the music. As she got to be an older child, she still would sing that song and dance around giggling.

My nephew started to giggle at the dog licking his face when he was in his baby carrier. My sister wasn’t so pleased with the dog spit in his face but she was surprised at how he seemed to enjoy it. One of my nieces was watching the movie of the Three Stooges and we didn’t even notice she was looking at the TV. She was only about two months old when she began to ‘Ya, Ya’ watching the guys throw pies and do that funny noise Curly made and my niece began to giggle.

I remember my younger brother never did giggle. He was somewhat ahead of his time. Literally, he began to talk at eight months and sounded like a boy eight or so years old. People use to take his bottle away from him so that they could hear that voice coming from a baby. ‘Give me back my bottle’. Some people didn’t believe it until they heard it for themselves but he laughed out loud and never giggled.

I don’t know if there is some scientific cause or reason that determines when babies start giggling or if a baby is giggling. I don’t know if there is a factor where the baby is confused between a giggle and a cry, between what is funny and what is scary. I have seen a baby start to giggle and then in the next breath, start to cry. What causes that to happen? It seems that the baby gets its voluntary system mixed up and it can’t decide if it is happy or upset.

When babies start giggling during their sleep…

Watching a baby sleep can be a fascinating thing to do. I have seen very young babies smiling in their sleep and then even seen them giggle and wake themselves up. So was that really a giggle or back to my mom’s statement that it was gas?

Then there was my sister (I have seven sisters and two brothers all younger than me so I have lots of baby watching experience), who seemed to be giggling around three months old. She seemed to giggle at everything, even just looking at her crib rails. Come to find out she wasn’t really giggling, it was the onset of the whooping cough and that was one of the strangest non-giggle giggles I’d ever seen and even to this day.

Then my other sister, who as a baby found out she was a big fan of country music. We were in the living room and her bedroom door was open to the living room and we heard her making noise. We looked in and she was bouncing her hands and feet to the music of My Heart Skips a Beat and all of a sudden, looking through the rails, she just started to giggle. Her obsession continued until she was almost a year old and could stand up in the crib and hold on to the headboard and sing along. Well, at least jabber along.

My second niece also went from no jabbering, no ‘ya,ya’ or anything to full laughter. A giggle was never heard and neither was anything else, barely crying, until she was almost nine months old. We wondered if there was something wrong with her hearing or voice but the doctor said there was no problem. This niece also talked early and when she did begin to talk at around nine months, she did full TV commercials. So she had been hearing, she just decided when she wanted to react. She also had a deep voice. She was not as articulate as my brother but the words she did speak and the way she laughed sounded like an older person. She finally did giggle when she got her first kitten at around three.

I have seen first giggles from babies at all ages, even first giggles as toddlers so I am not sure that there can be an age of when babies giggle or should giggle. I’m not sure if a baby has to giggle to be a healthy baby. All the giggling sisters, nieces, nephews and friends babies seemed to grow into healthy articulate children whether they giggled or did not giggle as babies.

I know from my mom’s own memory, I never giggled but smiled a lot. I also did not talk or walk until I was almost two but today I laugh a lot, write for a living so don’t have to giggle or talk too much out loud. Sitting at my desk alone, giggling, might cause someone in hearing distance to think I’m abnormal.

So is it abnormal for babies not to giggle at a certain age? I think there is no certain age for a good giggle to bubble up. Babies start giggling when they have to – I don’t think there are rules for that.

Just for fun, why not share your story here? When did your babies start giggling?

There are several ways that a smartphone can be used as a baby video monitor or simply just baby monitor these days. Some include extra equipment, and there are also applications that you can download.

iBaby is an application created by Cyan Media. The software is only one dollar to download. When using this app, it stops your phone from going into sleep mode. This allows your phone to double as a night light, with a kid-friendly image. You set the sensitivity level and how you want to be alerted and on which device you want to be alerted. Basically, you can leave Daddy’s phone with the baby and be alerted on Mommy’s phone if there are any noises detected above your set sensitivity level.

iTunes has a Baby Monitory app for sale by CodeGoo. Their app costs $4.99, and functions the same way. Leave your phone with baby – it will illuminate a relaxing glow. You program which phone number you want to be alerted on, and if a loud noise is detected, a phone call will be placed to that number. You can then listen in to hear what is going on with your child.

Another application is called ‘Noise Alert’.  This application is available free of charge. Its functionality is the same as the other two. Also, the application allows you to set a sleep interval. Setting a sleep interval allows you to save some battery life. Noise Alert is created by the Android market.

An iPhone can be a used as a baby video monitor?

These programs are really handy when you are away from home and do not have access to typical monitors. The con is you have to leave your phone with the child, so you miss out on some quality angry-birds time, but you have peace of mind over how your child is doing. Also, if your child is old enough, they could possibly wake up and see your phone and be tempted to stay up late and play angry birds themselves!

There are also ways to use your iPhone as a baby monitor that involves extra equipment. Obviously, these cost more than the apps that you just download, but you get way more. These are high quality enough to be your full time baby video monitor. One example is from Seedonk. Seedonk makes a variety of wireless internet cameras that you can control from your smartphone. One camera they have is called the Bambino, which was designed as a baby video monitor system. The Bambino’s full retain price is $189.00, but can be purchased from their website for $114.01 (a savings of $74.99). The Bambino also comes with a 30-day refund or exchange, a one year warranty, and 12 months of Seedonk premium service. This is really neat because you can just pull up the camera on your smart phone and see live video of your baby, and even take pictures of them. If you wish, you can also share the camera with other members of the family too. So if you allow it, Grandma and Grandpa can even see live video of the sleeping baby. (Although, I don’t blame you if you wouldn’t want to share!)  The camera is completely wireless, so you can conveniently place the Bambino wherever works best for you, without worrying about cords draping everywhere.

Image by Witer via Flickr

There is also an iBaby system created by iBaby Labs, inc. that functions in a similar way to the Seedonk version. This one is not available yet, but should be on the market very soon (it was set to release Fall 2011, so keep your eyes open). Currently, price is set to be about $199.95.

Some concerns I am sure you might be having when thinking about whether this style of baby monitoring is for you or not. Do not worry.

Will I have to leave the lights on in order to see my baby on the baby video monitor system?

The camera systems come with infrared lights, so even in complete darkness, you will be able to see clear footage of your child.

Can anyone start watching my camera or hack into it?

The transmission channels are all securely encrypted. Your audio and video are completely safe and secure. Those who you choose to share it with, will be able to view it, and no one else.

How is the picture and audio quality when it comes through?

The picture and audio are always crisp and clear with their advanced digital wireless technology.

All in all, there are a ton of options out there on the market if you are looking to turn your smartphone into a baby video monitor. There are good options, both as a situational substitute, or as your baby video monitor for everyday use.