A Father's Night Sky Story - Creating a White Noise App for My Late-in-Life Child

 Hello, I'm a 53-year-old father to my two-year-old son, Junseo. I never imagined I'd become a father at my age. My wife and I had lived many years as a couple without children when we received this unexpected gift. At first, I was scared, but now Junseo has become our entire world.

The Sleepless Nights Begin

"Junseo, it's time to sleep..."

Every night, I repeated the same words, trying to put Junseo to sleep. But he wouldn't drift off easily. Tossing, crying, fussing—the nights seemed endless. Both my wife and I were becoming increasingly exhausted. Juggling work and childcare is challenging even for parents in their 20s or 30s, but at 50, it was an even greater challenge for me.

The hardest part was comforting Junseo when he woke up crying in the middle of the night. Despite working in IT for nearly 30 years, I was a complete novice when it came to getting a child to sleep.

An Accidental Discovery

One night, as usual, Junseo was restless and fussy. I was pacing around the living room holding him, giving my tired wife a break, when I noticed something: Junseo suddenly became quiet when he heard the sound of rain falling outside our window. Rain sounds... they were the magical sounds that calmed him down.

The next day, I learned about "white noise" on the internet. I read that natural sounds like rain or ocean waves can help soothe babies. I immediately searched for and installed white noise apps, but most were foreign apps that were either inconvenient to use or filled with premium features behind paywalls.

"What If I Create One Myself?"

During my morning commute one day, a thought struck me: "What if I create an app myself?" Though I wasn't familiar with the latest app development technologies, I had 30 years of programming experience. After work, I squeezed in time to teach myself. I watched YouTube tutorials, asked questions in development forums, and wrestled with code late into the night.

At first, it was incredibly difficult. Adapting to new languages and development environments was much harder than I had anticipated. I wanted to give up several times, but every time Junseo cried because he couldn't sleep, I found myself sitting in front of the computer again.

Three Months of Struggle

"Are you still working on that?" my wife would occasionally ask. The project I thought would take six months was now in its third month. I coded on weekends during Junseo's naps and continued development late into the evenings after work.

The most challenging part was optimizing the sound files. I personally recorded the sound of rain from our balcony on rainy days and captured wave sounds when we visited the beach. I even recorded our home fan and hair dryer sounds. Every sound was tested with Junseo .

Finally Complete: 'White Noise' App

At last, the app was finished. Called 'White Noise,' it was simple. There were no fancy designs or complex features—just ten sounds including rainfall, ocean waves, white noise, and a timer function.

But this app brought a miraculous change to our family. Junseo would quickly fall asleep listening to the app's sounds and stay in a deep sleep. My wife and I could finally get adequate rest.

Unexpected Popularity

Initially, it was just an app for our family. But when I told friends about it, they wanted to try it, so I uploaded it to the Play Store. I had no expectations, but surprisingly, the downloads began to grow steadily.

The comments section filled with messages of gratitude:

"My child finally sleeps well. Thank you!" "I downloaded this after hearing it was made by a dad in his 50s, and it's really good." "Simple but effective app. I appreciate that there are no ads."

These responses were an irreplaceable reward for me.

A New Beginning in Later Years

Now I'm continuing to update the app alongside my regular job. I add new sounds and improve features based on user feedback. Though I've received suggestions to create a paid version, I've decided to keep it free. This app wasn't made for profit but created in the hope that it would help other parents like myself.

I never imagined that becoming a father in my 50s would transform me into an app developer. But this change has brought new vitality to my life. I've realized that age is just a number, and it's never too late to take on new challenges.

I wonder what Junseo will think when he's old enough to hear this story? Perhaps he'll say, "My dad is an awesome dad," at least that's what I secretly hope.

Tonight, once again, Junseo and I will turn on the 'White Noise' app and journey into the dream world beneath a star-filled night sky.


https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.codedac.whitenoise&hl=ko