Any suggestions for a partly disabled grandma to provide activities for a 2 year old?

Playmobil and play doh.
That’s just for starters.

Have you tried baking or would that be difficult for you?
Yesterday DGD, who is two and a half, made a Father's Day card for her daddy. She had a great time sticking all sorts of junk from my craft stash.
The only thing is, as soon as daddy walked in the door, she told him about her "surprise" ? card
What about using old magazines and practising cutting skills.
My DGD has just discovered jigsaws, but mum forgot to bring them yesterday, so we did some interactive ones on my tablet. Great for hand, eye co- ordination.
Good luck.

If you have a tablet or iPad, there are lots of counting and matching games online ( limiting screen time , of course).
If you sit with your granddaughter, you can find lots of opportunities to develop her language skills.

My grandkids used to love a big piece of cardboard on the table and make a collage I ve still got an underwater one in the cupboard that we did when they were very little
What about making scent with flower petals ( you mention a garden)
Make her a tent from a tablecloth or sheet and a chair simple stuff

Does your daughter bring toys with her ? If not ask her to get some from the local charity shop then she can have her own drawer or cupboard at your house

Any mums/ grans nearby with toddlers you could invite round? Kids this age can amuse each other
Make a den under a table or use a clothes airer with a blanket over where she can take her teddies and “hide”.
Is this a possibility? - Get a roll of lining wallpaper and make hand/ footprints picture with poster paints or just a big drawing of each other.
Bowl of water on table wash dollies/ any plastic toys / cups etc use plenty of old towels - old shirt for apron etc
I’m sure loads of other ideas you will already have thought of.

Oh my goodness! Thank you all! I can't believe I haven't thought of any of these terrific things! Yes, we have lego, playdoh, jigsaws, books, but never thought of some of the things you have all suggested. Brilliant! Huge thank yous!!

The suggestions here have been good and I really don’t think you shoukdbe too worried, you are doing plenty.
If you go shopping and if she is well behaved a trip to the supermarket us interesting fir a 2 year old. I know we took our gd there sometimes and she lived sitting in the trollt with a good view of everything.
We used to take our grands out often but actually they enjoy spending time here at home, they know where everything is including their toys cobbled together via charity shops etc, am encouraging them to do a bit of gardening and a unforgettable day last autumn when they dug up the potatoes we had planted earlier. They were so excited.

Speaking to her in French will be really beneficial, children learn so quickly. Bon chance!

There are very simple board games you could play. My grandchildren used to love me drawing round their hand so they could put faces on the ‘fingers’. Picture dominos, snap. Buy some sewing kits (ready punched with holes). Painting and Play Do are always popular. My grandchildren just liked spending hours cuddling up being read to. Ask her mum to buy books from charity shops for you. They also enjoyed playing with a doctor’s set. Could she play shops with the contents of your kitchen cupboard? Oh, now I wish mine weren’t all at school!

Baking - if able
Puzzles
Board games
Doll's house/dolls/toys
Painting/printing with potatoes or leaves
Cutting out and sticking (old magazines) or collage
Crafts
Water play at sink (get lots of towels for this)
Nursery rhymes
Make up stories or songs

Pretend tea parties, my gd lived used my childhood Bakelite teaset and loved pouring out the ‘tea’ for us. Or just water in a bowl and a few small plastic bowls, spoons, cups to transfer water around. Bubbles.....

Loved using...

Some great suggestions here,and many little or very low cost. we used to play eye spy too, only using colours instead of words, that’s something which you could do in English and French. A small treasure hunt in the room you are in is also a good idea, little treats hidden around the room for her to find!
I suffered from hyperemesis in all 3 of my pregnancies and had to find ways to amuse the toddler from my bed.
Crafts are always a hit and you can order lots of things like glitter pens and poster paints online to compliment the stuff you can collect at home like old cereal boxes. Kids love to make collages and you could do themed ones, eg a day at the sea side with fish and waves and ice creams?
someone else suggested snap, and that’s a brilliant idea, and in my experience leads to fits of giggles from both parties. We also used to play games where you had to keep a straight face while the other person made silly faces, it didn’t last long with a toddler ?

Oh yes, hunt the peg, they love it. Hide a few around house or garden give clues, hot, warm, cold, they still live it despite being older.

Damn, love it!

these are all marvellous, and between you all you've opened my eyes. I can't believe I've been so dumb and unimaginative. I can't thank you enough. THANK YOU!!!!!

There is all the difference in the world between plonking a toddler in front of the TV and leaving them to it, and sitting, cuddled up together, watching, say, CBeebies, or a nature programme. With the former you can watch her favourites, act daft and get her to name all the characters for you and explain what is happening. With the latter you can learn something new together.

Another favourite with our wee ones was a treasure hunt, where they had to find big jigsaw pieces, or coloured pencils, semi hidden in the room and when all were found use them to make the jigsaw or colour in a picture.

Cross posts - 3 in a row for Treasure hunts

I've not read through all of the replies so I think you might get some repeat ideas here.
At 2 years of age my now 6 year old gs used to love to play...
*at the sink with water in it and plastic pots and pans and a few bubbles.
*a cheap plastic teaset I got in tesco was very well used
*a huge cardboard box became a shop. spaceship. computer.
*home made playdough and a kids baking set . Lasts a lot longer than shop bought playdough
*he loved baking thumbprint cakes. (Little cakes with a thumbprint hope filled with jam)
*spider hunt in the garden
*hiding a treat and having to find it
*helping nana do the dusting or use cobweb brush
*make a hideout with blankets and clothes airer

I bought my DGS a toy cooker and all the utensils etc and even now when my pain is bad I can sit with my feet up while he sets up his "restaurant" and feeds me.

Great ideas for all grandparents here.?. I think I’ll have to save them somehow.
I would have done lots of these with my own children, but had forgotten most until I read this thread.

Make /play musical instruments - if you can stand the racket
Garage with cars - the girls loved this as much as the boys
Making mazes out of building blocks
Pouring - water [if outside perhaps!] or rice & other pasta indoors through cardboard tubes, into toy lorries
All exhausting but never forgotten

massive thank yous everyone. In fact my 29 year old son recently complained to me that I never played with him. He was right, I never did. His father used to play lego with him all the time, but I was at a loss and we lived in almost complete isolation in France, - no internet in those days. He was sooooooooo happy to finally get to school! Don't want to repeat it with GD, so I am absolutely delighted with all your thoughts. A list of stuff well worth remembering and to pass on to others. Thank you. xxxx

Some of the games my DGD age 2.8 loves are play dough, washing up, duplo, tents, hide and seek the teddy, drawing round her hands, feet and body on large poster paper with crayons, painting, bubbles, cars and diggers, singing wind the bobbin, row row row the boat, in your windy spider, hickory dickory dock and wheels on the bus.