Easy toddler activity ideas

[MumChats]

Wise mumsnetters, please give me your wisdom/help/experience... we are due our second baby soon and have a nearly-2 year old. I want to put together a small box of 'emergency activities' to have on hand to give the toddler if she ever needs a bit of entertainment at the same time as i need to do something with the baby.

Ideally they'd be cheap/free to make and not create any additional mess! When we went on a plane recently i put some old cards (Nectar card, Boots advantage card etc) in a plastic case and gave her them - she absolutely loved it and spent ages going through them all, putting them in and out of the case etc. A few more ideas like that would be golden!

My 3yo is obsessed with watching older girls play with their dolls on YouTube. She’ll happy sit and watch them for an hour. She also likes blending frozen vegetables, then sitting and feeding her dolls.

Another activity that keeps her busy are the wipe down style books regarding letters and numbers. She can’t trace the lines yet but will happily sit for ages scribbling over the books.

Loads of great ideas! Thank you so much 😁

No, I read it.

Why is it different?

Not something you can pack up into a box, but if I needed to be in the kitchen, toddler, sink half full of water, washing up liquid, egg whisk was always a good combo.

Painting with water. Best to do it outside eg paint the fence or just the concrete.

Sorting things. Eg socks. See if they can find the socks that match. From the clean washing.

Make sensory bottles, water, food dye, sequins, glitter, any small random things in a water bottle, glue it shut, then sellotape over it. If you have any tiny toy figures they're great too.
Thick piece of cardboard, cut holes in, lolly sticks, shoelaces, straws, these can be pushed through the holes. Or use a gift box, with the holes in the lid, so the bits can be tidied up easier.
Sensory bags- same as bottles but with zip lock bags with tape on.
A tupperware box with random plastic dishes and spoons- I use picnic type stuff. My dd won't play with toy dishes but likes the grown up ones.
Piece of cardboard, make a grid, each grid a different colour, each colour reaching the edges of card. Colour in wooden pegs. They can clip the pegs to the edge of the card. Also things like toys, bottle caps etc can be placed on the grid to colour match.
Magnet numbers/letters on fridge.

Sorry if these are too advanced, and obviously things like bottle caps may be swallowed if too small etc but you get the idea x