Cheap White Noise

When Goose was a tiny baby, it became clear that sleep was going to be an uphill battle with her. To make matters worse, her bedroom opens right into our living room, so that even watching TV at low levels or holding a conversation at a normal tone sounds like it is happening in her bedroom.

I read in a number of places to try white noise. Some suggested sources were a fan - which was too cold in early spring for a baby even if it was not pointed at her, static from the radio - new radios seem to try to edge into the closest signal and thus don't stay on static, and it just wasn't practical to run the vacuum cleaner every time she needed to sleep! (Though my carpets could have used the vacuuming, I know.)



I can't remember exactly how or when I figured it out, but I set up my fish aquarium in her room and used the air pump as the white noise. As a bonus, I could use the light from the aquarium as a nightlight. Of course, once she started crawling, that idea had to go out the window. But the air pump itself did not.

I disconnected the tube that ran into the tank, and coiled up and bound the power cord so that there was just enough room to plug it in and set it on the floor. It has provided about two years of white noise in addition to perhaps two or three years of use in an aquarium, so it seems to be lasting well. I don't remember what the cost was initially - I'm certain I picked it up at Wal-Mart, though, and that it was not a "top of the line" model. I've considered taking it with us when we travel, but I wasn't sure if it would be too weird for her to wake up to a familiar sound in an unfamiliar place. Regardless, this idea has worked very well for us!

And here's just one of those little things that keeps me from listing Goose on ebay . . . yesterday, she gave a short shrill squeal, as two year olds do to voice their displeasure with something. Immediately after, she very seriously and in a normal tone, said "calm down?" Yes, little one, I do want you to calm down. Thanks. :>)

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