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01
Feb 2011

Using White Noise to Help Your Children Do Their Homework

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Children are susceptible to the same types of distractions that adults are. It’s hard to concentrate on your homework if you can hear the TV going, your siblings talking and playing, and the dog barking at something.  Getting your child to focus in and concentrate can be difficult. Fighting with them about doing their homework is that last thing that you want to do after working all day and then getting supper ready.

Tips for Getting Your Children to Do Their Homework

Here are some tips to help your child concentrate and buckle down so you can quit fighting with them about their homework.

  • Make an evening routine. This doesn’t have to be elaborate, but if your child knows that they need to work on their homework while you are making dinner, then that is just the routine. They know when they are supposed to do it and there is less room for arguing.
  • Use white noise to help your child concentrate. Like I mentioned above, its difficult to concentrate with all of the other household noises interrupting your child and tempting them to pay attention to something else. This is particularly true when they don’t want to be doing their homework in the first place! I know when I am doing a task I don’t want to do, I’ll usually find any thing else that has to be done before finally buckling down and doing it. This wouldn’t work as well if your child is at the kitchen table, but if there was an out of the way room where they could go to do homework, using a sound machine to add some white background noise would work nicely. (If you want to try it out, there is a free online white noise generator available.)
  • Make a homework station. This adds on to the above points. Make a place in your home where the homework is to be done. Perhaps that is in the child’s bedroom, an office, or another room (preferably one without a television.) You could supply some pencils, paper, a calculator, and some healthy snacks. Its easier to do your work if you  have everything you need already.
  • Be available for questions. You don’t want to do your child’s work for them, but you do want to be available if they need any help or have any questions. Make sure you let them know you aren’t too busy to stop and help them figure something out.

By implementing these techniques–making an evening routine, making a homework station, and utilizing white noise to reduce distractions, you can be well on your way to helping your child focus and concentrate on their learning.

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17
Dec 2010

The Sweet Sound of White Noise Machines

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One of my favorite times of the day is after the kids have gone to bed. I settle down on my couch with my (not-so) trusty laptop and hopefully a cup of (decaffeinated) tea. I bask in the freedom of being able to sit somewhere for a few minutes without someone climbing on top of me, asking me to do something for them, or having to break up an argument. The background noise of my most favorite time is always two white noise machines–one in my son’s room and one in my daughter’s room. When I hear that, I know that I have made it through another day and my children are now sleeping sweetly in their beds.

My kids find the sound of the sound machine comforting too. They’ve always slept with one and don’t know any other way. About a week ago we forgot to click the sound machine on before we left our daughter’s room. Her shouts quickly made us run back in there and we made her little sleep world right again. In fact, when my children pretend to sleep during their play time, they go and turn on their sound machines before they climb up in the bed to “sleep.”

The beauty of using a sound machine to sleep is that it frees my children up to get the sleep they need–not only so they are in a good mood the next day, but for proper development. They are not constantly being awoken by other noises. Using a sound machine also frees me up to be able to move around the house without having to constantly worry about waking them. I like staying up late, so I usually exercise, wash the dishes, straighten the house, and sometime get some cooking done. My daughter’s bedroom is directly across from the kitchen, so most of that stuff happens literally right outside her bedroom door and she sleeps through it.

I really do appreciate those white noise machines.

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09
Aug 2010

White Noise for Babysitting

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My History with White Noise

I imagine you already know that my 2 kids love white noise.  While they can sleep without it, they don’t sleep as well, and they usually ask for it!  Maybe they just enjoy turning the knobs, but the truth is, white noise has brought house-wide peace to our family.  I don’t have to worry about phone calls interrupting naps or one child awakening the other too soon.

White Noise for Babysitting

That said, I am also a lover of white noise for babysitting!  Why I occasionally take care of extra children is a discussion for another day, but there is something wonderful about feeling confident that adding in the noise of an extra child or two will not end the peace we have been enjoying, or make the added child uncomfortable.

In fact, there is one little girl in particular that I have kept 5 times over the course of 18 months.  The first time I kept her, she was a mere 6 weeks.  The second and third times she was just shy of a year, and this last two times, she was 18 months.  All 5 times, I had the responsibility of feeding her, playing with her, and putting her down for a nap that she wasn’t necessarily excited about.  Sweet as she is, this little girl is not known for her sleeping prowess.  All I can say is that our white noise generator encouraged some sweet sleep for little A.  When she was 6 weeks, I swaddled her, rocked her a bit, and put on some soothing sounds.  By a year and a year and a half, I transitioned her to waterfall sounds.  Either way, Baby A could sleep while my older kids were able to play without me “shhing” them all afternoon.

A Shocking Result

Her parents were shocked how well she slept!  As a matter of fact, they have been sharing their bedroom with her for the past 18 months, even though they have a spare bedroom!  Unfortunately, that spare room is directly off the living room, and rather than chance her awakening early, they’d rather put her in their more secluded bedroom.  Interestingly, we had the same set-up the last place we lived.  I was unwilling to co-sleep, though, which was why we invested in portable sound machines.  I couldn’t be happier with the result…because when baby sleeps well, we all benefit.

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14
Jul 2010

How to Room Your Kids Together {Tips!}

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Family visits

We moved to Scotland almost 2 years ago.  My husband was incredibly excited about starting his PhD program in the UK with a leading theologian, and I….well, I was surviving.  We left a house and community I loved and moved even farther away from our families.  I was happy to support my husband but devastated for myself.  In all honesty, this move has been amazing for our own family and sense of identity.  We depend on each other more than on our parents, and since we’re in our 30′s, that’s a good {healthy} thing.  However, we both really do miss having family nearby- whether it’s helping with the kids or sharing a meal, we feel rather alone in that area.  Fortunately, our families have made us a priority and both have chosen to visit us each year.  Their visits are the highlight of our time here sometimes because it just feels so natural.  Stuff that might normally be annoying just isn’t because we cherish our limited time together.

Having family visit for 3 weeks has been stretching, too.  I am not exactly flexible sleep-wise for the kids, and I have always been terrified of rooming them together.  We have usually managed to avoid that nightmare by sleeping Luke in his happy tent in odd spots, for example, but this time we decided to put the 2 kids together.  I dealt with my anxiety about the upcoming ordeal by not thinking about it.  {Yes, that’s called denial.}  But the first night did come and we survived.  Here’s what we did {keep in mind that they are 2 and almost 4}

  • Hey- at least I didn't pop noise canceling headphones on them...

    Moved the 2 year old’s crib to a spot the 4 year old wouldn’t have to walk past if she got up to go to the bathroom, etc.

  • Slept 2 year old in the crib in the new spot for nap, so it was not a surprise for bed.
  • Also had the air mattress positioned so both kids could see where everything would be.
  • Made sure they were really sleepy, but not overtired.
  • Talked about them “getting” {not having} to share a room and how fun that would be!  {Do you hear my happy tone?}
  • Got them ready for bed together.
  • Read their bedtimes stories and did their prayers together.
  • Plugged in2 white noise generators- 1 by each of them since it is a decently-sized room.  {Two may have been over-kill, but I don’t care.}
  • Practiced with 4 year old on how to get up and let herself out quietly.
  • Said good-night to both and shut the door.

Well, that’ what we did.  Here’s what I wish we would have done better.

  • Told the 4 yar old to ignore the 2 year old and sleep through his fussing.  {can you really do that, though?}
  • Not let the 2 year old bounce on the air mattress, adding to his growing belief that the air mattress is obviously where all the cool kids sleep.
  • Not used a night light.

Truth be told, they did great, though!  Each night it got easier and the younger one asked for the air mattress less.  The lack of extra light also helped keep them both asleep through the night.  Practising with the older one was definitely a good idea, and we praised her for being such a good {and quiet!} big sister!  Obviosuly, you know my love for white noise, so the generators were clutch in covering toddler sleeping sounds, as well as 2 extra adults going up an down the stairs, etc.

Now I am just wondering if they’ll want to go back to separate rooms?

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14
Jun 2010

Weird Ways to Use White Noise {unloading groceries}

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Last week, I shared our top two must-haves for traveling with friends and/or {extra} kids.  I also teased you with how we used white noise to unload groceries…random, I know, but it’s kind of a funny situation.

8 people, 4 bedrooms; 4 of the “people” are 3 and under.

So, it was the first day of our trip, and we quickly realized that 2 in a room wasn’t ideal, especially for the little boys (ages 2 and 1).  My son (2) loves sleeping in his KidCo PeaPod, which can go anywhere.  So, I decided he could go in the kitchen.  We would just need to make sure we got everything out of the kitchen before he went down.  What we didn’t count on was getting things in the kitchen after he went down.  It was kind of a comedy of errors…

  • Opening the fridge and unloading groceries is a loud (and bright) task!

    My son goes to sleep at 7pm, so we scrambled to get the dishes done and everything out of the kitchen we needed.  We also are in Scotland, where it’s only really dark from 11pm to 3am, so we covered the windows with dark towels and turned on nature sounds from our portable sound machine to ensure a sleep-conducive environment.

  • We also needed to go to the grocery store for essentials, such as milk, yogurt, meat, cheese etc. for the week.
  • We couldn ‘t go right after dinner because my friend has to nurse her son (1) before bed time.  So, we decided we’d go after dinner, but quickly before the grocery store closed at 8.  (not kidding)
  • This all sounded like a great plan until we realized that my son would be asleep in the very room that housed the refrigerator, and everything we were getting needed to be in it!

The plan of attack

Oh my word…so, I took one for the team and decided to be braver than I felt.  Before Luke was down for the night, I figured out when the kitchen door creaked and how to open it soundlessly.  I also checked the fridge to see if we could turn off the interior light.  We couldn’t.  Bummer.  Our last offensive move was to take the groceries out of the {loud} plastic sacks and put them in 1 large reusable, canvas bag.  So, we sneaked in the kitchen, silently opened the fridge door, and started unloading what felt like a million groceries.  All was going well except that the silly bagged lettuce was getting  crinkled every time we reached in to grab something!  We labored on, and I tell you what, I have never been more tankful for white noise!  That sweet boy stayed asleep and was oblivious to the whole thing!

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09
Jun 2010

Traveling with friends & kids {top 2 things you need!}

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Fort William {the west coast of Scotland}

This weekend we spent a couple nights on the west coast (of Scotland) with our dear friends and their 2 kids.  We had traveled to the West Coast before, but to Plockton and closer to the Isle of Skye.  This time we headed in a slightly different direction and enjoyed Fort William.  It was about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Aberdeen, which is situated on the northeast coast of Scotland.  Our friends rented a beautiful 4-bedroom lodge for a week, and we spent the first 2 nights with them.  It was an affordable, quick get-away for us, and also helped them pay for the trip as a whole since we split the shared nights.

Sleeping arrangements

However, the tricky part was that even though it was a gorgeous 4-bedroom “cottage” that literally overlooked Ben Nevis (the tallest mountain in the UK), we had 8 people to sleep in 4 rooms (we both have 2 kids)!  You might do the math and surmise that 2 per bedroom was the way to go.  Well, if our kids were a little older or more accustomed to sharing a room, the that would have been an excellent plan.  As it was, all 4 kids are 3 1/2 or under, and while they usually sleep through the night, they all go to bed at different times and might have random wake-ups at different times.

Top 2 Must-Haves for Traveling with Friends and Kids

So, looking back over the trip, there 2 things that made traveling with kids more bearable: portable DVD players and white noise machines.  I kid you not, if we could only take a few things with us, those will always my top two choices (plus diapers)- yes, higher than pajamas and tooth brushes.

  • A portable travel sound machine is ideal for trips because it is compact and has a variety of travel features.

    The portable DVD player allows us to take pleasant car trips.  We never use it in town or on a drive less than an hour because we want our kids to entertain themselves and not be too spoiled. However, for longer car (and plane) trips, DVD players are life-savers.  They also keep the child’s eyes on the screen and not out the window, thus avoiding possible car sickness.

  • White noise machines allowed us to maximize the rooms we had.  We were able to put the 2 older girls in bunk beds together, my son in the kitchen in a tent, and the youngest in a small room directly off the living room.  So, even though there were tons of potentially sleep-interrupting sounds (such as adults talking, movies playing, or the older kids not in bed yet), the white noise machines provided a gentle hum in each room so that everyone could sleep well.

So, if you’re traveling with friends and/or {extra} kids, I would highly recommend investing in both!  Plus, check back next week and see how we used white noise to unload groceries!!

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