Rainy day/Indoor Activities for 18 Month Old?

Frugalfamilyblog.com has lots of good ideas (updated several times a week- I think daily exccept weekends).

Teachpreschoolonline.com also has TONS of great activities. She compiles good stuff from other blogs and also has original songs with audio so you can hear how it goes.

Put on a good lively CD... it can be children's music or good adult music... and dance with him. It will help him to be entertained and will be good exercise for both of you. When I say dance with him, don't pick him up and dance around with him in your arms. Instead, you dance around and get him to do his own dancing. Most kids love this type of movement, and he'll enjoy seeing Mom playing too.

We keep toys in different places of the house - many times a toy will get buried at the bottom and go untouched for a long time. We use rainy days to empty all the toy areas and refill them. My 20mo loves to see toys he's forgotten about. Tea parties for stuffed animals. 'Wrap' toys in towels and unwrap. Finger painting. Empty his drawers into mixed up piles, and have him help me re-sort them. Fashion shows. I'm sure others will give you good ideas!

Greetings J.,
I have found that blocks are always great entertainment but the biggest fun has been a large empty box that they can play in and even nap in.I often will put a large sheet over the table so that it becomes a fort and they will play under for hours. Nana Glenda

You can make a fort for him by putting a blanket over the kitchen table but leaving one side open and bring his favorite toys under there. They will stay under that fort for hours. Also indoor games are great and the see and say and simple puzzles are fun. Also, good ole fashion messy finger painting is also fun. You can make flour figures also with flour and water. Have fun.

Lots of great suggestions so far...especially building forts with furniture and blankets and making things with playdoh!
I remember my son at this age also liked to:
-make a zoo with blocks and toy animals
-play cooking in his toy kitchen
-play store with a toy register that had a scanner that beeped (this was a favorite of all my kids for years!)
Keep things interesting by keeping certain toys/games out of sight for a while, then rotate them out one at a time. When the toys come out it's like they're "new" again. Have fun :)

coloring, finger painting, water color paint books, puzzles, lego's the big ones for his age, build a fort, or just ask him what e would like to do. Good luck.

*My kids love to play with beans. I buy them in bulk, lay out a big sheet, and give them bowls, utensils, and cake pans. You could buy rice instead, if you're worried about choking.
*Get some of those bath crayons or paint, and put him in the tub.
*Play-Doh
*Make pictures with crayons/stickers for family members.
*I have big bins of toys and books in the garage that I bring out only when it's raining or super hot in the summer.
*Take a nap together.

I have 2 boys, so usually we just go out in the weather for a walk in the rain. They love it! I always put down an old sheet in the entryway and place some towels by the door before we go out. Then when we get back, the mess is limited, and everything gets hung up or put in the dryer.

Also, a great video for kids is Raffi in Concert. It's fun without being over the top, and the kids sing and dance along.

Good luck!

Hi J.!
I have a 22 month old and struggle with the same thing - what to do when it rains? I don't know that we have any enlightening ideas - but we do practice "sports" in the house - meaning learning to kick a ball, hop on one foot, jump, dance...
We also make cookies and frost them and my daughter adds the sprinkles (she is also actively involved with the mixing of the cookie dough and measuring of ingredients).
Please share any great ideas you get! Thanks and best of luck,
N.

When I was a kid, we always used to like to throw a sheet or blanket over the furniture in such a way that it made a tent and then we brought out our flashlights and played inside the tent.
It was a lot of funny. you can just pretend to be camping in the comfort of your own home. draw, sing or eat a meal under the tent. sounds simple, but I definitely remember those times because they were the best. of course, I also drew a lot as does my son , do you have a children's easel? we have always had it out in the open so that whenever my son felt the urge to draw, it was right there. To this day, he still uses it..
best of luck

Hi Jodi!

Yep! He's getting busier and trying to create himself.....just like a boy!

Fun things my boys never got tired of:

Making "forts" out of blankets and furniture
BIG lego plastic blocks for building
Regular wooden blocks for building
Geo Trax train track is very interactive, never boring
Playdough, or painting on paper plates
Interactive TV games (Leapfrog, etc...)

The forts were the most fun because I would allow certain snacks inside and even watching a movie on the portable DVD player inside :O) The forts are never-ending creativity for their young minds :O)

I hope something I've said can help "trigger" an idea that will help you!

~N. :O)