One of the first things we learn as parents is the art of distraction. By the time our first child is one year old, we’re better at misdirection than most semi-professional magicians. Saying that, a helping hand never goes a miss, so the next time you find yourself wanting to distract your little one from something (ripping the pages from your favorite cookbook; giving the dog a trendy new “haircut”), try this. It’s very simple, but it may engage their brain just enough to help them forget about fido’s new bob.

“Let’s play a fun game called Five Blue Things. All you have to do is shout out a thing that you can see that’s blue. And if you can shout out five things, you’ll be the winner.”

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