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Viv turned two today, and since I’ve learned so much during the past two years about good parenting, I gave her cupcakes for breakfast.

Then I ran her around the park for a couple of hours, hoping to burn off the sugar rush.

But she was still high as a kite when we got home.  No hope of napping.  Six hours til bedtime.  What’s a mommy to do?

1. DANCE PARTY

My first go-to nap substitute is cranking up the tunes and freestyling in the living room.  Viv used to let me DJ, but she’s gotten bossy lately.  Today she demanded three rounds of Gangnam Style (girlfriend, that song is so 2012) only she pronounces it Gingham Style, which PSY totally anticipated when he wore this jacket:

I tried to slip some classic Disco into our dance mix, cueing up Sylvester’s “Do You Wanna Funk?”  Total breakfast cupcake level error, as my daughter’s been talking about wanting to “funk” all day.  Funk me.

2. CARDBOARD BOX

Luckily it was Viv’s birthday, so we had boxes galore, and as every parent knows, boxes are way better than the toys that arrived inside them.   Viv made like a present, then leaped out to “surprise” me (lather, rinse, repeat) for over an hour.   Then we played “It’s raining packing peanuts (hallelujah!)”

I don’t even want to hear about packing peanuts and bubble wrap being choking hazards.  They are fantastic.  I’m thinking about filling her crib with them.

3. BABY ANIMALS

When I was all tapped out on physical activity, we climbed into bed with my iPad to look at pictures of baby animals.

Trust me, you can kill some serious time googling baby giraffe tongue baths, baby elephants playing soccer and meerkat family portraits.   It’s educational too–we discuss where the animals live, what they like to eat, and how they probably took an afternoon nap and let their mothers have a break.

Parents of little ones — what are your no-nap/slow day tricks for wiling away the hours?

 

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