There are cookies to bake, shopping to do and presents to wrap, but with Christmas vacation already underway, there might also be a house full of kids to keep busy.

Staying on Santa’s “Nice” list is not always easy and once the wrapping paper is crumpled up and holiday gatherings have come to a close, that incentive for good behavior will vanish.

If you need some boredom busters for the kids over the holiday season, there are plenty of activities throughout the Miami Valley or a short drive away to keep them busy over the next few weeks.

Holiday spirit

Colorful twinkling lights, festive holiday music and some steamy hot chocolate – you can keep the holiday feeling going strong even after Santa heads back to the North Pole as both the Cincinnati and Columbus zoo light displays will remain open through the new year.

Celebrating its 30th season, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden PNC Festival of Lights is held nightly, except Dec. 24 and 25, from 5-9 p.m. through Jan. 1. Visitors can enjoy the twinkle of more than 2 million LED lights, watch the new Wild Lights Show on Swan Lake and ride the North Polar Express Train.

Families in need of a post-holiday bargain can enjoy Penguin Days with half-price zoo admission daily from Jan. 2-Feb. 28. For information, visit http://cincinnatizoo.org.

In its 23rd season, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Wildlights activities start nightly at 5 p.m., ending at 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. Enjoy the holiday light show at Conservation Lake, listen to Rodney Reindeer and Wally Walrus read “Twas the Night Before Wildlights” and visit Santa’s Reindeer Corral. Diving Claus shows off his scuba skills in Discovery Reef nightly. The Regular zoo admission rates apply and the zoo is closed Dec. 24-25. Visit www.columbuszoo.org for more information.

Take it outside

Even if the snowflakes aren’t flying, there is plenty of fun to be had outside.

The MetroParks Ice Rink has extended hours through Jan. 4 and is even open on Christmas Eve (11 a.m.-5 p.m.), Christmas Day (1-8 p.m.) New Years’ Eve (11 a.m.-10 p.m.) and New Year’s Day (1-8 p.m.). Admission is free Monday through Thursday, excluding holidays, and skate rental is $5. Admission Friday through Sunday is $7, including skate rental. Children 3 and under are free. For more information, visit www.metroparks.org/icerink.

The MetroParks hiking trails are open year-round and are a good place for the kids to burn off some extra energy and for the parents to burn off some extra holiday calories. Events like Tike Hikes and Backpacking Babies are free and offered year-round at various parks. And bare trees make it even easier for the little hikers to spot winter wildlife.

Game time

Show your school spirit by taking in a high school or college basketball game as a family.

The University of Dayton men have home games on Dec. 22 (Murray State) and Jan. 5 (UAB). The women are on the road until Jan. 16.

The Raiders start a four-game home stand on Dec. 30 with games against Mount St. Joseph (Dec. 30), Green Bay (Jan. 3), Milwaukee (Jan. 5) and Cleveland State (Jan. 9). The Wright State women host Morehead State on Dec. 30.

The Harlem Globetrotters, known for both their athleticism and showmanship, will hoop it up at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Dec. 29, at the Wright State Nutter Center on Dec. 31 for their annual New Year’s Eve matinee performance. The Globetrotters also will visit Wittenberg University in Springfield at 7 p.m. Jan. 29.

If you’d rather be a participant than a spectator, you can take to the lanes in one of the area’s many holiday bowling tournaments like the Holiday No-Tap Tournament at Century Lanes or the Jingle Bell No-Tap Tournament at Beaver-Vu Bowl. Or rent a lane with family and friends for an afternoon of open bowling. Check with your local center for details.

Fun and learning

A break from school doesn’t have to mean a break from learning as Greene County Parks & Trails’ will hold its Winter Break Nature Camp Dec. 27-28 at the Narrows Reserve Nature Center in Beavercreek. Naturalists will lead participants as they track wildlife in the snow, learn animal winter survival techniques and participate in other hands-on activities.

“Just because school is out for winter break doesn’t mean there is nothing to do for children,” said Cris Barnett, Greene County Parks & Trails Chief Naturalist. “We’ll be having a good time and learning at the same time as we explore what’s going on outside in Greene County.”

For pricing and more information, call Greene County Parks & Trails at 562-6440.

Visitors to the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery have just a few weeks left to experience the Mystery of the Mayan Medallion exhibit, which ends on Jan. 4. The exhibit takes visitors through the lush rainforest of Palenque, Mexico to find a missing archaeological team and solve the mystery.

The MeadWestvaco Tree House, Science Central and Discovery Zoo provide hours of hand-on fun for kids of all ages. The museum is open Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sundays from noon-5 p.m. It is closed Dec. 24, 25, 31 and Jan. 1. For information, visit www.boonshoftmuseum.org.

Every day can be a fun day at the Newport Aquarium, which is open 365 days a year and is offering extended holiday hours from Dec. 26-31. While Santa will wrap up his work on Dec. 24, Scuba Santa will perform his dive show through Jan. 1. Then there’s the Penguin Palooza and Mighty Mike, a 14-foot, 800-pound alligator who is right at home in the new Gator Alley exhibit. For information, visit www.newportaquarium.com.

See a special holiday train exhibit, Holiday Junction, at the Cincinnati Museum Center through Jan. 6. For more information, visit www.cincymuseum.org.

Speaking of trains, EnterTRAINment Junction in West Chester, which offers a large indoor train display, will have special extended hours. The venue will be open until 9 p.m. through Dec. 23 and from Dec. 26-30. It will close at 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve and be closed Christmas Day. The museum opens at 10 a.m. Monday through Saturday and at noon on Sundays. For more information, visit www.entertrainmentjunction.com.

Energy to burn

If the kids are bouncing off the walls, you could head to Jumpy’s Fun Zone in Troy, Jump & Jack’s in Liberty Twp. or LeapFrogs Party & Play in Miamisburg — among other indoor inflatable playgrounds throughout the region — where they can bounce away on a variety of giant inflatables. There are open jump times as well as family nights.

Local recreation centers schedule open gym and open swim times during the holiday break. And the Kettering Recreation Center Ice Arena also has open skating sessions throughout the holiday season.

Scene 75 Entertainment Center has something for everyone with blacklight mini-golf, indoor go-karts, laser tag, a Chaos Room, Spin Zone bumper cars, 4-D motion theaters, inflatables and arcade games aplenty. The family entertainment center can bring out the kid in every member of the family. The Web Extreme Entertainment in West Chester also offers laser tag, bowling, an arcade, go-karts and mini-golf.

With a little planning, the kids’ Christmas vacation can be fun for the entire family.