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When she was real little, she could sleep through it.
But then, around 6 months or so, she became very afraid of the vacuum cleaner.
I would try prepping all the rooms so that I could zip through it very quickly... nope.
I tried prepping, vacuuming & putting everything back one room at a time... nope.
I tried placing her in one room... and then running into the the other and vacuuming as quickly as I could before she would come and get me... nope.
And she would come and get me. As scared as she was of the vacuum, she wanted me more. Even though I was right next to the thing, she would come over so that she could pull up on me and scream till I picked her up.
So vacuuming was done while holding Joey or when Mark was home to hold her.
I know that most kids go through this, and there are probably a 1000 different stories on how to fix this, but here is what worked for us.
- Leave the vacuum out. Don't put it away in some closet. Let her get used to seeing it, round up the courage to touch it, explore it... all while it is sitting all nice and quiet like. It won't seem so scary then.
- Hold the baby while you vacuum. She isn't going to learn anything when she is THAT frantic. If you hold her, she knows she is safe, and she can maybe start to see that the vacuum isn't eating Mommy and maybe it won't eat her.
- Have your husband sit with her on the floor while you vacuum. She is closer to it, not protected way up high in someone's arms, but still feels secure.
- When you turn off the vacuum, put her in your lap right next to it. Pet the vacuum and say "good vacuum." Smile and look happy. Turn it on for a 1/2 second so she hears the noise. Pet the vacuum again. Repeat until she feels comfortable enough to touch it. Stop if she is still freaking out.
Today, she chased it around the room while I vacuumed. She would sit in front it's path, just to see what it would do. She smiled and clapped.
The vacuum is now a toy to her, not a monster that will eat her.
10 points for Mom & Dad.
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