Ok I know this sounds ghetto, but it totally worked for me. I can't take credit for this idea, but I'm so glad I took the advice. For light blocking: Affix black poster board to your window behind your mini blinds. From the outside it just looks like your lights are off. You really can't tell there's poster board up. And if the blinds stay closed, you can't tell from the inside either. For sound: Nothing works better than a box fan. Look online for a good, loud white noise machine. My 2 and 4 yr old are home with my mom all day and I can't hear a thing if my fan is on. Good luck!