Keeping the kids busy when they cannot go outside

My son loves to finger paint, play with play dough, even though your little guy is a little younger, he can still enjoy this. Also, we sometimes take all the cushins off the couch and jump on them.. that's fun.. also.. we will play hide and seek, (he may not understand it fully, but may love you to jump out at him saying "I found you!"), another option is of course coloring, blocks, puzzles, setting up a "race" between his cars. You can let him help you make some cookies (my little one liked to add sprinkles at this age), or some no bake cookies. When all else fails, pack him in the car and take him to mcdonalds to play in the play yard! It'll be a break for you and fun for him. I have an article about it here... http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/152224/ten_things_for_a_bored_toddler_to_do.html

How about reading books to him? Or if you wnt something more interactive, how about an educational game? My 26 month old son loves Thomas the train and I've bought him trains, tracks and DVDs. He can spend HOURS --- literally!!!--- playing with Thomas! Actual playing time and watching his DVDs, we can now identify his trains, including teaching him the colors, how to count his trains, etc.

I scrapbook with my children. And yes, it does work. It keeps them busy for awhile. And we do it the cheapest way we can.. LOL.. We each just have an old hardcover book that we picked up at the thrift store. We cut up old magazines, flyers, newspapers whatever we get our hands on and then we create pages by just slathering a bunch of glue on the pictures and sticking them in the book.. wherever and however we want to. It's alot of fun and you can use up an entire afternoon very easily.

When we're stuck inside I read to my children, we do crafts, we dance. We also play board games. Sometimes we also bake.

Lots oc coloring and drawing, playing in the bathtub, fill plastic bowls with rice or beans and let him dig like a sandbox, spend lots of time reading to him, sing songs, learn clapping games and finger plays (like Itsy Bitsy Spider or If You're Happy and You Know It), dance, crawl around making animal noises. If you've cleaning invite hi to help, at 18 months he can wipe a table (sort of) with a wet rag, or put cloths in a basket, or get hi a tiny broom and let him pretend to sweep. Here's an article with more tips http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/108469/indoor_fun_for_your_younger_children.html