Do babies like ukulele?

brokenwing

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here's why I ask...

friends are having twins:eek: and they've invited me to a baby shower (I thought that was strictly for women:confused:)

... anyway, I didn't want to get them a Diaper Genie, or an intercom, or a year's worth of Onesies, etc., and I thought how calming a uke might be to 2 howling babies. And although the parents don't play uke, they do love music and I could get them up and going with a cheapie and 3 chords.

dumb idea?

Anyone play to babies with any success?
 
My mom used to babysit for a family friend every once in a while. Every time she started crying my mom made me bust out my uke or my brother play the piano. The baby girl LOVED it.

Now it is a few years later and my mom babysits her every mon and wed and the baby (now toddler) carries a mini guitar all over the place.

I'd say it's a great gift, maybe get 2 cheap ukes; one for each kid.
 
This is a ukulele website. I don't think you'll find anyone who will disagree to a new generation of uke players, haha! I think it's a great gift.
 
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My kid (all of 19 weeks old) loves it when I play and sing to him. Then his short attention span wanders somewhere else. Then he loves it again. Rinse. Repeat.

More importantly, it gives me something to do that's interactive, and still challenging on an adult level (the learning new music bit). So I avoid the inane songs that would drive me mad -- Wheels on the bus, and the like -- and play and sing songs we both find interesting -- Jonathan Coulton is a mutual favorite right now. When he figures out his father has a terrible singing voice, I will switch to instrumentals.

Best of all, he's happy and I'm not holding him when I play the uke for him. Babies get heavy quickly...

On the other hand, new parents can never have too many onesies (in a variety of sizes), bibs, waterproof changing pads, butt paste, wipes, etc., even if they don't realize it when they get all that stuff.
 
I just remember the time I was playing a uke in an airport during a layover... and a little girl came up... probably 3 or 4 years old... and said something along the lines of 'that sure is a little guitar you have, mister' and then proceeded to listen for a few minutes before she went back to her parents when they called their seats...

That sure made my day....


But yeah... enough reminiscing... little kids absolutely love most anything musical... and the ukulele is, in my opinion, among the most kid friendly instruments, for playing and for listening.


I'd say go for it!
 
I played my nephew to sleep a few times and even created a lullaby for him.He loves the uke even more now but sad to say his lullaby is forgotten because I forgot the chords though I wrote down some of the lyrics. I believe babies love ukulele because it's so soothing and mellow. If the baby doesn't like it(which I doubt would ever happen), it would be calming for the parents when they're not taking ca re of the kid.
 
do babaies like the uke?

Well I cant say for sure. As i do not have any children, However I do have 3 Devon Rex cats. And guess what they love it...I ought to take a video of it as it is so funny. I will play my uke and they will sit and listen and get right up to the uke and sniff it while I play....Crazy huh? They never come near me when i play guitar....only the uke...hehe
 
Well I cant say for sure. As i do not have any children, However I do have 3 Devon Rex cats. And guess what they love it...I ought to take a video of it as it is so funny. I will play my uke and they will sit and listen and get right up to the uke and sniff it while I play....Crazy huh? They never come near me when i play guitar....only the uke...hehe

When I have my laptop out or am reading a book, our cat tries to butt them out of my hands-- he wants the attention all to himself. When I play the ukulele, though, he just chills.
 
MY 7 month old loves when I play for him. He also loves the little one that I gave him. I doesn't get it but he plucks it and then gets excited :)
 
my cousins 5 or 6 month old baby came over the other day, and i put the uke in front of her and kinda "showed" her how to "play" it and she kinda did it. it was so cool. she was infatuated with the uke for like half an hour. maybe she can be the next uke protege
 
I think it depends on the parents. If you're the parent and act like this is a super-neato thing, the baby migrates to the music as babies do and a good time is had by all, as some parents have already said.

If the baby is raised by super-uptight parents who fret and stress over the baby even more than normal, then the baby will take the queues it has picked up from the parents and will freak out about this noise-generating monster.

When I was a baby, I'm told that no one else but my parents could hold me, and that I was fussy and finicky and scared of all things new, especially new noises. And my parents were super-uptight. Being the only child you get both the very best and very worst ideas. As a toddler though I remember getting lots of toy instruments and thinking that it was really awesome. I would have loved a uke, and I would have loved it more if someone had shown me chords.
 
thank you all for the great replies. they say "it's the thought that counts" so I think I'll go for it. at least I know it will be the only gift of its kind at the shower.

and who knows what kind of far-reaching consequences the gift of a ukulele might one day bring?:nana:
 
My 5 week old son seems to enjoy my uke playing :D I played in front of his mum wile she was pregnant, so i guess he's used to the sound :D
 
My 2 year old toddler loves it when I play the ukulele. He gets super excited and refers to it as Mama's BIG guitar...
 
I actually bring my uke around with me to Church then after services I would just mess around, while my little nephews and their friends would just stare and listen. Of course I would let them have a shot at it, I just love seeing that glow in their face when I strum some random song.
 
My son is 7 1/2 month old, and he always gets excited when I play for him.
He likes the ukulele music alot better than classical music that all of the experts say is so good for him.
I think we have a future player here:music:

Aloha
Acabo'oe:cool:
 
I gotta try jammin for my 4 month old godson. =)

His 2 yr old sister's always trying to take my uke away. I better bring her one of my cheapo's to play! hehe

I say GOOD GIFT!!!
 
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