Scotland

Isle of Skye, off the west coast of Scotland

We currently live in Scotland (though we’re Texans by birth) and we recently traveled to the Scottish west coast through the Cairngorm Mountains and even across to the Isle of Skye.  First, it was a great trip and the view while driving was breathtaking.  I would highly recommend this trip if it’s feasible for anyone.

That said, we had interesting hotel situations.  It was the 4 of us (my husband, myself, and our 2 small children), as well as my mother.  My mom is a huge believer in white noise, too, in that she and my dad work from home and sometimes keep the grandkids.  They don’t want to hush their clients or not be able to make necessary phone calls juts because the babies are sleeping in the next room.  Therefore, they use white noise to cover such sounds in order to be productive and allow the children to sleep peacefully.  As a result, we packed 3 portable white noise generators, one for each room in the lodge we would be staying at.  Several humorous white noise misunderstandings took place that prompted me to write this post.

The truth about white noise

1. White noise covers most sounds, but not all.  If you were (hypothetically) coughing like a banshee right outside the door of your grandchild’s room, he or she will probably still hear it and possible start crying.  Hypothetically speaking, of course.
2. When you turn on a white noise generator in 1 room, it does not magically work for other rooms, too.  White noise treats the area immediately around it.  That’s why we brought 3 generators- 1 for each room.  Therefore, to say something like, “I’m sure they won’t hear me banging around in the kitchen or slamming doors because we have 3 white noise generators running” is ludicrous.

So, bottom line- white noise is awesome.  It covers the usual, run-of-the-mill noises and neutralizes many louder sounds so that they are not as intrusive.  This is particularly helpful when trying to focus at work.  However, when implementing white noise for sleep (and especially for children who are apt to feel like they are missing out on all the fun), it’s wise to pair it with less noise on your part, too.  Your goal is to minimize the racket in every way possible, including your own tinkering around. While you should be able to watch TV, have a conversation in a normal voice, or make a phone call, there’s no reason to cough out your lung or a slam a door when common sense says not to.