Ahhhh goooo
This is kind of a public service announcement. I experienced something first hand and, additionally, I have witnessed this happening to others too. Considering how fast I got pulled in … well, I just felt I needed to write this.
A laughing baby will reduce adults to gurgling, babbling and giggling almost instantly. It’s like they suck the adulthood right out of you and revert to incoherent baby speak.
You sometimes see something similar with pets, but at least you stay in the “who is a good boy” phase of speech development.
Not so with baby laughter. You can’t even form words, you just get things like “ahhh goooo” and “dadadada”.
And it is so potent. One three month old baby can laugh for just a few seconds and an entire room of adults will instantly be reduced to gibberish in hopes of coaxing just one more baby laugh.
There is a scientific reason for this reaction. Adults, particularly those who are parents, who hear a baby’s laughter get a boost of oxytocin, a hormone given the nickname the “love hormone”. Oxytocin just feels good … it reduces anxiety, makes us feel safer and more connected. No wonder we “ahhhh goooo” to get one more laugh.
This response is an important reward for new parents. It is a motivator to keep them going even though they are sleep deprived and smell like spoiled milk. A little oxytocin is the body’s way of telling the brain, “alright, look, I know that last diaper was nuclear, but that laugh is so worth it, right?”
This effect, however, is even more pronounced on adults who are no longer parenting a child. For example, grandparents are especially susceptible to a baby’s laugh. An entire afternoon can be spent muttering baby speak in the hopes a baby laugh will emerge. And when it does … the reaction is like winning the super bowl and the lottery on the same day.
So, if there is a baby in the pre-speaking age nearby, the only advice I can give you is that “ahhhh goooo” seems to work the best.
Highlights this week
We are going to help you build out an easy menu so you can concentrate on your ahhhh goooos.
Breakfast is going to be eggs on arepas. Arepas are a staple food in South America, a kind of cornmeal bread/pancake. New View Farm has just began making them for us!
Let’s make a traditional breakfast with eggs, cowboy beans, avocado and cheese.
Since you need to keep your energy up we are going to slide in a mid morning snack.
Kitchen Repose is run by a registered dietician and she puts together meals and snacks for us that are balanced and healthy.
Let’s opt for her Ginger Sunrise smoothie to tide us over until lunch. Orange, peaches, mango, ginger, turmeric … all good stuff in there. Here is how she describes it: “A whole food smoothie pack that is perfect as a balanced breakfast or snack. Just thaw and blend!”
For lunch we are going to make a loaded baked potato. First, get some organic potatoes from our Danville farms. We are going to top them with some sloppy joe from Singing Tree Natural Foods. Add in a block of cheddar bacon cheese from Backroad Creamery. I like a little crunch with my meal, so I’d add in some sliced organic radishes from our Lancaster farms.
Two choices for dinner. For the carnivores out there, how about we try this Pork Chop with Apples and Garlic?
Bluebird Ridge has some loin chops that would be perfect. And if you want something different, mash some celeriac instead of potatoes.
Our second dinner choice is for those trying to eat more veggies and less meat.
Cook Mama is making us a vegan veggie burger that is just jammed with organic veggies. Embrace it with some vegan big mac sauce! And don’t forget the pickles! Did you know we have over a dozen pickled products on the store? I’m torn between the pickled jalapeños or the dilly beans!
Oxytocin is great, but if there are no babies around I’m betting you could get a similar result from a piece of Yorkshire Meadow’s carrot cake. Yeah, it is that good.
And look at that … a whole day and with a little help from our Delivered Fresh producers, you had to do very little actual cooking.
Just gives you that much more time for baby laughs!