What do you do with your 18 month old?

[Tumtumtitum]

Just to share ideas really. I'm newly a SAHM and it sometimes feels a bit monotonous although we are busy.

I go to a group every morning after doing the school run for the older dcs. 3x toddler groups (one with a messy play focus), one soft play group, one Rhyme/story time.

Activities we do at home seem to be a constant loop of puzzles/shape sorters, play doh, drawing, singing songs, reading books, playing with lentils/pasta/rice (dd not keen on wet messy play). She loves pouring water but I tend to save that for the bath. She loves kicking a ball or pushing a pram around.

She likes helping me with the dishwasher and washing machine (although it drives me mad), also plays with all the baking stuff while I'm cooking. I get her to help with making cakes. She likes the dustpan and brush too.

We're getting her a kitchen for Christmas but most toys at the moment seem to get strewn around rather than played with. She'll push a toy car around for a minute then discard it. I can't wait until she has a longer attention span!

What else can I do with her?

For indoor activities, my DS favourite is having picnics with his toys. We have a tea set with cups plates etc and he'll spend ages going back and forth getting them (& me) tea, milk and sugar.

Outside activities are definitely preferred though, literally anything will entertain him outside, birds, stones, sticks, cars, planes...

Thank you. Dd1 used to love that too, I'm hoping dd2 will when she gets her kitchen and bits that go with it

Outside play works well for us too. My son is 20 months and can't entertain himself for very long inside. However when we are in the garden he is so much better. I just bought us both new, thick coats, waterproofs and wellies and am anticipating being cold and wet for over the winter!
Inside he has just got into dens/play tents and loves hiding and having me 'look' for him!

Wow that's a lot of playgroups! Sounds like you are doing a grand gob but would you both enjoy more outdoor stuff? Now is a lovely time for walks and the park. Also would you enjoy swimming to mix it up a bit?

My lo loves painting and baking around the house.

My son now at 24 months is just at a different aura when playing outside . His eyes would instantly glow and a smile to his face whenever he gets to play in our garden.

My daughter is 16 months...she loves.being outside, going to see the cows and the chickens, or when she sees dogs etc. She loves going to the park to play on the slide and taking her ball out, or going for a walk (her walking) or me carrying her. We have a little house in the garden which she loves playing in, and playing hide and seek and a little plastic rocking horse which i bought for a fiver second hand. She also likes scribbling on the.patio with chalks.

Inside she likes building towers from her blocks, reading books, and I have just bought her a big box of stickle bricks.whcih she likes. She also likes music, hammering on the piano, dancing etc. I also try and spend as much time with friends with kids of a similar age.

We love the local garden centre which also has tropical fish, hamsters etc in the pet section. Can spend hours wandering around looking at everything inside and out and unstacking and stacking the shelves!!

Also trips to the park, the local library, national trust parks once a week, museums etc etc. Just going out and taking a ride on a bus or train is an activity in itself.

Sounds like you do lots with her.

My dd is 22mths her favourite toy just now is a bloody big fire engine my mil bought her recently. That gets played with alot inside and also in the garden. My dd loves to dance so, when we are at home I'll put the music on and the two of us have a dance.
She does like being outside, she can spend hours in the garden.

Thanks for all the replies. I should have said we live by the beach so do spend quite a bit of time there, either just walking along the front or with a bucket and spade. Tend to save the park, swimming, and NT places for weekends when the older dc are around, sometimes go to the park after school if we're not in a rush for one of their activities. Weekends ds has football matches so we're also outside for those.

I find it easier to get out to a group with her than be at home. Her attention span is really short still so I do feel like the activities I do with her at home are on a constant loop!