Mom Uses Doorbells as a Cheap and Easy Way to Get Kids' Attention

Sometimes technology seems kind of evil, like when Instagram filters make your teenager think influencers have never had so much as a single pimple or a hint of razor stubble. But sometimes, technology is sanity-saving for a parent or caregiver.

Take for instance one pretty scrappy mom on TikTok who shared how she avoids having to yell throughout the house for her four kids. The creator, who shares home organization and parenting tips under the handle @arinsolange, shared in her video how she bought four wireless doorbells, each of which she labeled with her kids' names. The doorbells are installed inside a cabinet door in the kitchen, while this innovative mom stationed coordinating chimes in the bedrooms.

"There has never been a better #momhack—these little $15 doorbells have made our house so much more pleasant!" the creator captioned the viral clip, in which she also explained that instead of calling for a kid to come downstairs, she'll ring their bell. When the kids hear the doorbell in the morning, they know it's time to make their way down for breakfast.

Commenters to the video were largely impressed with the hack, with one parent noting, "Omgosh this is amazing! I have 3 kids…too much yelling." Likewise, another parent commented, "I have one child & he never hears me! Love this!"

Of course, not everyone felt this would solve communication challenges in their households. "I wish you could talk through these. My kids wouldn't come unless they knew 'why,'" joked one TikTok user.

To that point, I use a different method for interacting with each of my five kids, so I'm not constantly losing my voice bellowing for them to turn down their music and come eat, or stop screaming and take the dog out. Or just stop screaming.

Each of our kids has an Amazon Alexa Echo Dot in their rooms. We gave each device a name on the app, like "Sarah's Dot." And now, I can use the "drop in" function to talk to each child. For the uninitiated, it's basically like having an intercom system and best of all, when you "drop in," the function overrides any music they might be blasting from their rooms. I also blast out announcements to all Echo Dots when it's dinnertime or if I want to beckon the whole crew to the main living area.

Of course, my kids use the devices to chat with one another and broadcast goofy announcements (or gross sound effects), but this use is mostly in good fun and hasn't created any real problems. What installing the Dots has done is kept me from going hoarse by 5:00 p.m.

Ultimately, whatever hack you pick to hunt down your brood sure beats calling out kids' names with increasing annoyance until they hear you, am I right? Unless you have that rarest of rare family who listens the first time you say anything at a normal volume. We didn't think so.