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.
