Toddler won’t play alone

[Tocka]

Any tips on how to get a 21 month old to play alone? Whenever I leave the room my baby follows me or if I’m in the same room she says ‘mummy down play’. She’s not like this when with the grandparents - only me and her father! It’s tiring :-)

I had one of those! I found she'd leave me alone if I put out messy things for her.

So a plastic sheet down on the floor and then some dough (homemade) with food colouring added...a load of different utensils to stab the dough with (safe plastic obv) and different little pots and cups.

Another thing....I collected about 5 or 6 shoe boxes with lids and filled each one with interesting things.

One was natural so pinecones, pebbles and sticks etc...dry leaves...whatever. Another...loads of different oddments...plastic bits and bobs...things that toddlers naturally want like spare keys and empty makeup compacts.

I had loads of these boxes in the end. What was good about them is that I hid them away until I needed them so toddler thought it was a treat...then she'd forget what was in them or would remember some things and hunt her faves out...I'd also continuously add to them and take things which didn't interest her away.