We've found that there's just no way to stop Josh from "helping" so when we're trying to cook we set him up with two bowls, a wooden spoon to stir with, a measuring cup and a cup of cereal (Cheerios or Kix, usually). The cereal usually ends up on the floor where the dogs are only too happy to help clean up, but we get 30-40 minutes of relative calm to cook. Did you know cats like Kix cereal? Who knew?