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Message |
    
greeneyes
Citizen
Username: Greeneyes
Post Number: 590
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 8:14 pm: |     |
Today I discovered quite by accident that if I run the vaccuum my son stops crying and falls asleep.
This is the same sweet 11 week old who wasn't sleeping worth a darn. When he became fussy, I tried the vaccuum again. I placed it in an adjacent room and turned it on. He stopped crying. He's asleep right now. Ah what a relief. |
tulip
Citizen
Username: Braveheart
Post Number: 2145
Registered: 3-2004
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 8:17 pm: | |
That reminds me of my two (long ago) "little boys" when having a rough day, loved nothing more than the sudden sound of the vacuum cleaner, and would run around giggling as I pretended to chase them, ages two and six, or three and seven, around the living room. Silly, but effective in making them laugh. |
algebra2
Supporter
Username: Algebra2
Post Number: 3106
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 8:36 pm: | |
I used to blow gently in my son's face, he'd shut his eyes and fall asleep. |
Meandtheboys
Citizen
Username: Meandtheboys
Post Number: 420
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 8:39 pm: | |
greeneyes: It's a proven fact that such "white noise" as vacuums soothes babies. When my first was small, I had a copy of a tape that I kept in my car of all manner of white noise (most of which I can't remember) which included a vacuum. I think some of the others are a running water faucet or the shower and a blow drier. A friend got it off the internet and made me a copy. Whenever my son started to fuss in the car, I turned it on and he quieted right down. The fussier he was, the louder the volume. Worked every time.
Another good one: the clothes drier. In fact if you put the baby in a bouncy seat on top of the drier, you have the combination of the white noise and the vibration to lull the baby. Especially helpful if you have a fussy baby and a ton of laundry to do!  |
monster
Supporter
Username: Monster
Post Number: 666
Registered: 7-2002
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 9:36 pm: | |
must be fun when that bouncy seat bounces to the floor, bet that baby wakes right up.... |
papayagirl
Citizen
Username: Papayagirl
Post Number: 339
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 9:49 pm: | |
This is one of the key points of the Happiest Baby on the Block book/dvd. Apparently inside the womb, it's even louder than a vacuum, and babies dig it. |
greeneyes
Citizen
Username: Greeneyes
Post Number: 591
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Monday, March 21, 2005 - 11:15 pm: | |
Meandtheboys:
I didn't need soothing methods with my daughter. She was so easy. I just learned about the whole white noise thing today after searching the web about the vaccuum. One of my online friends told me that using a blow dryer has the same effect as the vaccuum. I'm just so happy that I finally found a way to soothe and put my son to sleep without using my body in anyway. |
Meandtheboys
Citizen
Username: Meandtheboys
Post Number: 421
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 8:14 am: | |
greeneyes: I imagine it must be quite a shock to have an easy baby first, and then be confronted with a more challenging one.
My first was my fussiest by far. Colicky and everything. Each one after that (I have three) was easier and easier. In a way, I'm glad my first was the hardest. I'd hate to have had an easy baby first, and then been rudely awakened by a second child who was fussy and hard to soothe!
Than again, I guess you might say the second and third were easier because I had more experience and was more relaxed with each one. By the time the third came along, who is an absolute dream by the way, I would just laugh when he cried 'cuz he's just so darn cute.
(Before anybody has anything to say about me laughing at a crying baby--I absolutely was not laughing at him when I knew he had a real need.) |
wnb
Citizen
Username: Wnb
Post Number: 229
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 8:16 am: | |
We discovered the vaccuum early on... realized it was simply "white noise" and quickly moved on to static from a TV or radio. We are static connoiseurs. FM static is better than AM, especially if you stick to the far ends of the dial. TV static is generally quite good. I even downloaded a "white noise" file to my iPod in case of emergency! Never bothered with a white noise machine but I imagine if I spent money for such a thing specifically to do the job, it wouldn't work. This is just the way things go in life!
My biggest peeve with this is that many new electronics filter out static. For instance one of our TVs will just put up a blue screen and mute out the static. What a pain!
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Meandtheboys
Citizen
Username: Meandtheboys
Post Number: 422
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 8:20 am: | |
Ah yes, static. I've used that on occasion as well. Especially during nap time if things are getting loud in other parts of the house. I'll have to remember FM is better than AM. |
Tom Reingold
Supporter
Username: Noglider
Post Number: 5946
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 11:37 am: | |
Yes, I've heard about the vacuum and the drier, though I didn't try either. With my older daughter, I would actually take her out for a drive to get her to sleep. It was rather tedious for me, but it was not as bad as having her cry all day and night. She barely slept at all. When she was a month or two old, she was sleeping only 12 hours a day, total, and all in very short spurts. I asked the doctor, "is this NORMAL?!"
He said the coolest thing: "It's not normal, but it's OK." |
greeneyes
Citizen
Username: Greeneyes
Post Number: 592
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 12:44 pm: | |
Yes Me, I was shocked. My daughter only cried when she was hungry or had a soiled diaper and she didn't "need" to be held. That and the fact that there are 17 years between babies. It's been rough. Last night was unbelievable. The boy slept from 9pm to 4am. He had a bottle and diaper change. He "talked" to me for a while and was back to sleep by 5:30. Ahhh. Too bad I didn't sleep, but that's ok. He slept and that's what counts!
Tom,
My son is the same way. I kept a sleep diary of sorts because I was convinced that something was wrong because he wasn't sleeping more than 10 hours in a 24 hour period and he slept in short cycles. My pediatrician said the same thing. It's OK. I wanted to strangle her!
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gretchen
Citizen
Username: Gretchen
Post Number: 163
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 5:54 pm: | |
I caved in and bought a CD called Grandma's Fussbuster when my first was a baby. Our favorite was track 3--the vaccuum cleaner. Others are a hairdryer, washing machine, etc. Before that I was wasting water like you wouldn't believe because going into the dark bathroom and turning the water on full blast would give us a few minutes of silence during our fussy hours. Of course nothing lasted for long. The only thing that really worked was growing up! |
SoOrLady
Citizen
Username: Soorlady
Post Number: 1909
Registered: 9-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 6:26 pm: | |
First child was soothed by Crosby Stills Nash & Young's DeJaVu album
Second child was soothed by vacuum, dryer and Adele's Laughing Song from Der Fledermouse.
Third child was soothed by The BeeGees (saw Saturday Night Fever when I was 8 mos. pregnant) and later, Billy Joel.
You just have to keep at it 'til you find something that works.
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shoshannah
Citizen
Username: Shoshannah
Post Number: 801
Registered: 7-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - 7:05 pm: | |
In the city, we'd ride the elevator with the baby. |
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