Seven low-energy ways to entertain small children

I first became chronically ill with endometriosis when my eldest had just turned two, , just 6 months after getting married. Read about my journey to diagnosis.

I was suddenly in pain 24/7 and in charge of a two year old on my own for two whole days a week. That was a very difficult time in my life, but over the next few years I learned a lot about living and parenting with chronic illness.

Whether you have chronic pain, chronic fatigue, mobility issues, postnatal mental health issues or are just plain knackered from the exhausting job of parenting, I bet you've had days where you just don't know how you're going to make it to bedtime. With chronic illness and mental illness often comes brain fog - and the idea of having to use your imagination to play role play games can seem like a huge task. When kids are bored they often get destructive or emotional, which makes it all the more exhausting.

Here are a few of the ways I learned to entertain a toddler/preschooler at home when you can't move/think much. 

1. Cars on the floor

We have a car mat and a big box of cars, which we use in a few different ways:

• Free play
• Lining up in size order
• Counting
• Zooming them across the floor and making little one fetch them 
• Grouping them by colour

2. Jigsaw puzzles

My eldest absolutely loved puzzles and would happily sit for an hour working his way through our collection. Thankfully it seems my youngest is following in her brother's footsteps.

3. Disco time

Both of my kids love music and dancing, so I'm often the DJ while sitting on the sofa. We play all sorts from nursery rhymes to pop, rock and dance music. 

4. Lego/Duplo

We're huge Lego fans in this house and we have a huge box of Duplo that is brought out in the living room almost daily. I know what you're thinking - the clean up! We empty the box onto the car mat and when it's time to tidy up we fold the mat up and tip the blocks back into the box. Obviously we get a few strays off the mat but clean-up doesn't take too long and the kids know they have to help.

5. Art

Drawing and colouring with crayons are great for toddlers, and for older ones crafts that need minimal input or clean up work really well. Aquadoodles or Crayola Mess-Free Colouring sets are perfect for little ones, too.

6. Reading

If you have a bookworm I recommend taking full advantage and having a stash of books within easy reach of the sofa so they can choose a few and bring them to you.

7. Screen time

There is no shame in this, especially if you are struggling to get through the day. Obviously it's better if it's not all day, every day. Often after the school run, particularly if it's bad weather, we'll grab snacks, a fluffy blanket and watch movies on the sofa. The little one LOVES Shrek and this is the only thing that will keep her still for half an hour. The bigger one now has tablet or games console time and loves watching cooking programmes, game shows, movies or cartoons.

I hope this is useful to some of you. Obviously children are all different and some are more content and willing to do a quiet activity than others, my own two taught me that. I'm just pleased the 'easy' one came first when my pain was at its worst!

If you have any more suggestions please let me know in the comments.