On Thursday, normally a solo day anyway, I dropped my daughter off at school and brought my son home via stroller. It was a nice, sunny morning and a great time for him to meander as we headed home. Once back, I worked on anchoring all of the furniture in the playroom. Shelves, bin storage, and now the play kitchen that I moved in from the dining room are all mildly tip proof.
My son has always been upset at sounds from drills and vacuums. During the process of drilling holes and driving screws, he became acclimated to the drill sound. Later in the day I used the vacuum to clean up the rug in our living room, and it was clear there was no transference. Tears poured down his face.
I am not sure I can vacuum for several hours and put him through the trauma in the hopes that he gets past his fear. Someday he will grow out of it, and in the mean time I will just rarely vacuum in his presence.