My baby is staring at me in shock. This may be something to do with the fact that I am hopping in a circle on one leg, shaking a ring of jingly bells in each hand and singing nonsensical sounds.

This is admittedly not normal behavior for me. But I have a good excuse for such a lapse in conduct: I am taking part in a particularly colorful parent-and-baby music class.

Babies are undoubtedly talented when it comes to anything noise-related — from stretching their vocal cords, through screaming, to enjoying the sound of bowls hitting the floor after hurling them from their high chairs.