Well, we’re a month into summer vacation, and with each passing day, the decibel levels in my home are getting louder. I’ve begun to wonder if wearing earplugs to drown out the noise of bickering kids would be considered irresponsible parenting. Is it okay if my iPod and earphones become a permanent fixture?

At first, summer was flying by. My two kids were happy to be home taking a break from the daily routine of going to school. Yes, my house was still noisy with the sounds of my kids and their friends from the neighbourhood playing a lively game of Wii sports or running in the sprinkler in the front yard. But those were “happy” sounds; laughter, giggles and screams of delight as they blasted each other with super-soakers and water balloons. Sounds that parents relish, not choose to block with earplugs.

Now, as the weeks pass, they are becoming bored and grouchy. Even the large group of neighbourhood kids are beginning to behave like a big pack of squabbling siblings rather than a group of buddies. “He did this, she did that, blah, blah, blah…” Arghhh!! It’s enough to drive a parent insane, especially the one that stays home with the kids AND tries to run a business from her home office!

So, this is what has me pondering whether I could responsibly wear foam earplugs, and not just any foam earplugs but Moldex Spark Plug earplugs that block enough decibels to drown out a jack-hammer or jet taking off. My problem, of course, is the worry that I’ll miss something important, like “Mom, is it okay if I skateboard off the roof?” You laugh, but I actually had a teenage cousin who did this and broke his arm (darn lucky that’s all he broke!).

And what about the bickering? Now, it doesn’t make much sense to use foam earplugs that only block enough decibels to protect my ears yet allow ambient noise and conversation to be heard. I’d still have to hear them fighting, but if I can’t hear them and don’t run in to separate them, will they eventually clobber each other or begin tossing the room about? Something about “survival of the fittest” comes to mind.

Night time doesn’t seem to offer as much relief as it used to, either. The sun sets later and consequently, the kids are up later, leaving little time for my husband and I to enjoy each other’s company without managing children. My kids don’t seem to have that innate knowledge that my sister and I had when we were little. As long as you’re quiet and not causing trouble, the grown-ups in the house seem to ignore the bedtime clock!

No, my kids continue to run about, bicker and call for assistance every 5 minutes. And of course, summer is host to plenty of sleepovers for which parents have the sheer joy of being up most of the night keeping not only their kids, but other people’s kids out of mischief. And why is it I always get tagged with this duty while my husband snores away in the bedroom with his sleeping earplugs?

Well, I can’t really wear earplugs and ignore the noise, nor can I put my earphones on and play my favourite tunes because of course, I might miss something important. Speaking of which, I don’t hear anyone right now. Hmmm… that usually means they are up to something they ought not to be doing. Maybe I like the noise better!

Cheers!

Meghan

Tags: earphones, Earplugs, Foam Earplugs, Moldex, Sleeping Earplugs, Spark Plug Earplugs

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 30th, 2009 at 11:42 am and is filed under Noise Earplugs, earcare. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.