Sorry not to answer sooner. Things happened.

For your little darling--
18 months is young to work with, but not impossible.

Don't respond to tantrums, in any way, and they generally stop most of them. Just sit and calmly wait them out. We used to actually step over my son kicking and screaming on the floor and say "Oh look, Alex is having a tantrum" then sit down and read the newspaper or something. The full tantrum stage lasted a week, then he pretty much gave up. My daughter would get up and move herself to be directly in our line of sight again, then restart the tantrum, she was tougher but eventually resigned herself to the fact that they weren't going to work, also.

Set everything up to be workable without you having to pick her up. Get a sturdy little plastic kid table and chairs. Get a vinyl or plastic drop cloth to sit underneath it (if you don't have a fabric store that sells vinyl cloth by the yard, a giant tablecloth or heavy plastic shower curtain works). She can eat at this table. She can color, play blocks, duplos, dolls, whatever at the table. Place it so you can sit on the couch or a comfy chair and reach it and her. Since she is a "Big Girl", she can be so proud of sitting at a real table and eating nicely instead of in a high chair. Let her help you wipe up afterwards, little kids love to copy and help.

Get a long-handled dustpan and broom for cleaning up the floor afterwards so you don't have to bend over. Get a lightweight cordless stick-vac (like a dustbuster on a handle) for cleanups, avoids the heavy vacuum, does a good enough job until your husband or someone else can do the heavy cleaning later.

Set up all the stuff you need to take care of her in easy, accessible ways. Those drawer-carts on wheels, open plastic buckets/tubs, put a strap on the handle so you, or she, can drag it to where you need it, or roll it over, instead of carrying. Set up little caddies of crayons and gluesticks and stuff you cannot let her have free access to, so you can keep them up higher but get them quckly and easily when wanted, and take them away as well. Don't make them too big or heavy.

Get a "grabber", to pick up things from the floor, instead of bending over. Get yourself a good quality one, with rubber end (not plastic, they don't hold on well at all), and get her a toy one with a fun animal head (we've had lions and dogs and dinosaurs over the years) and she will help you pick things up also. Make it a game--"who's faster? Mr. Grabber, or your hands? Let's count..."

Create a special snuggle spot on your sofa or comfy chair. Pretty pillows, animal pillows, snuggly blankie, whatever will appeal to both of you. Teach her that this is where she and grandma have cuddle time--when feeling cuddly, when tired, when upset, when hurt--the two of you will snuggle in here. Make sure she can climb herself up, get some of those foam doggy steps if necessary, so if she slips while climbing, she won't get hurt, and she won't see a step stool that she might get the idea will give her access to other places she shouldn't go. Teach her to come with you and climb up to snuggle in and set pillows and blankie any way she likes. She will learn that even if she is crying, or goes boom and gets a bump, she and grandma can go to the snuggle place and she can climb into/next to your lap and you will hold her. She doesn't need to be carried there, she can do it herself. She can even take you by the hand and lead you there when she needs a cuddle.

If she naps in a crib or playyard, and you can't lift her in or out, time for a new nap arrangement. Get a toddler bed (with rails) or a sleeping mat or pillow. Get a little kid tent (some are more of a lean-to, one side open so you can easily see in) and sleeping bag. Make it pretty, make it fun. You can put a baby-gate across a doorway to keep her in the room if need be, or if she'll be sleeping in a room that isn't baby-proofable, get one of those large play-yard fences to surround it, decorate the fence with flowers and pretty things, and she naps in "the garden". You can also use this to keep her safe if need be, if you need to leave the room for a few, and can't take her with you. Get a baby monitor so you can hear the minute she gets up, before she can get herself into trouble. My son escaped his crib the day he turned 18 months, climbed out, landed on his feet running, we never put him back in because we knew there was no way to keep him from climbing out again, and next time he might land on his head. Put a mattress on the floor for him to sleep on, then gradually worked it up to a little bed, a low bed, a real bed, as he grew. Gated the room to keep him from getting out into the rest of the house unsupervised.

Get her bottles, sippy cups, little snack containers, lunch plate, whatever, all ready ahead of time, either when you're feeling good, or have your husband help you/do it. Then it's all ready for you to simply take out of the fridge or off the counter and hand to her in case you're not feeling good when she needs something. Hubby used to even leave me my lunch all ready to eat or pop in the microwave, so I didn't have to stand and make it on bad days.

If I think of anything else I've done in the past I'll write it, or you have any other things you can think of to ask for alternate ways to do, just ask. Been adapting life and childcare for a while now. More than willing to share ideas, wish I'd had someone helping me figure some of these out much sooner than I managed to.