any ideas for a day at home with a 14month old?

[mamaesi]

i have to be home this week and next for a lot of deliveries. when the weather is crap and i cant play in the garden... I am really struggling how to entertain my toddler. she cant stand if do chores and dont pay attention to her and she is running around with not enough to do... i am going crazy!

Pots and pans with a wooden spoon to bang
Rice in a plastic coke (or the like) bottle to shake
Boxes (cereal, paxo, oxo, nappy, tuppaware) for building
Crayons
Playdoh
Rolling a ball or catch
Asault course with cushions rolled up duvets chairs with sheet over it
Picnic on the floor
Puzzles
Singing with actions.... Happy and you know it, Row Row your boat, tickle round the garden, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, once I caught a fish, this little piggy
Peepo
Hide the object - 3 pots hide a small toy under and say 'where is it'

My DS2 is 15 months and loves all the above and most are free :)

Cbeebies

My DS loves that too Jareth :)

My 14 month old dd enjoys 'helping' me sort baskets of washing when it comes out of the dryer. She generally flings clothes around and climbs in and out of the baskets.

She also loves a plastic tube filled with coloured straws. For about 2 mins she will concentrate on putting them in and then spends ages flinging them about (notice a theme here!).

Pavement chalk is also a hit. And empty plastic tubs from butter, yogurts etc.

It gets hard doesn't it. I was saying the dh earlier that I really struggle when we have an afternoon at home and the weather is rubbish.

By 5pm we have usually resorted to In The Night Garden - funnily enough that's when she does concentrate on something!

A paddling pool full of those plastic balls. Hide a few toys in there too.

I sometimes run dc a really deep bath, give them several different sized bottles, containers with holes in etc. I can then clean the rest of the bathroom, while they play. They can sit in there for almost an hour sometimes!

Duplo or similar, building towers and knocking them down again.

A roll of lining paper on the floor, you could drive cars through paint, draw round each other, etc etc.

Make dens

Tip out the toy box - you find toys that they haven't seen for a few months!

Have fun

thanks. its strange though she wont watch tv or dvd for more than one minute. I tried that. I need to get more crayons and playdoh...note to self.