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In the book 97 Ways to Make a Baby Laugh by Jack Moore (Workman Publishing), "Have mother-in-law use a garden hose to spray Dad in his bathing suit" was suggestion 39. In that idea and others, the main reason the baby laughs is the adults are cracking up. I remember sitting around a table at a family gathering when one uncle told a decidedly adult humor joke. The one year old joined right in with the laughter, causing us to laugh even harder. These examples point out the most basic use of humor in our species - social bonding. There is something about laughing together that pulls us close to each other.

Let's think about the social smile that babies develop within the first three months of their life, some as early as six weeks. Burton White states in his book, The First Three Years of Life, "A defenseless baby needs ...