i hear ya! my 11 month pup, Diva...is one big attention seeker! if i dont talk to her....or look at her for a few moments...she'll run and grab a peice of clothing or pull off a piece of toilet paper from the bathroom and run around the house to play tag....and i try the newspaper thing to scare her...and there r times that does not work either. When i want to calm her down and get her in bed for sleep time..i usually just turn off all the lights...coz she is scared of the dark, until she gets to bed then hold a rawhide bone so she can chew till she gets sleepy..or even massage behind the ears...it works all the time...then b4 u know it she's out!