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Friday 2 November 2012

Frugal Friday: Free Babysitting And Cheap Tuna



It's Frugal Friday and if you're a regular reader, you know that I do a frugal living themed post on the last Friday of every month. So, this should have actually been posted 7 days ago, but hey, I said I was frugal, not a mathematician. 

My greatest Frugal Feat of the month was getting a free night out complete with free babysitting. I give 100% credit to my very dear friend who had the brilliant idea of a doing a babysitting exchange where each couple got a night out, while one person from the other couple babysat. 

Perfect!

We put the baby to bed, and my husband and I got dressed up and attended a fancy shmancy charity benefit courtesy of his bosses who had extra tickets.  The night didn’t cost us a cent, and we got to eat, drink, and chat with grownups, with the knowledge that our daughter was in safe hands.

When it was my turn to babysit, it was like another night off. My husband was left at home with to do the dinner-clean-up/bath time/bedtime routine, and I got to go for a nice peaceful drive to my friends’ house. 

Alone.

What’s that sound coming from the back seat?

Oh wait. There is no sound coming from the back seat.

Weird. 

When I got to my friends’ house, their daughter was already in bed, and I got a few uninterrupted hours of peace and quiet, with nothing to but drink coffee and waste time on my computer. 

It was amazing. I should babysit more often.

Are you wondering about the tuna now? You know, the “cheap tuna” from the title? What does tuna have to do with babysitting?  Nothing, actually. I just thought it sounded cool.

But I really did get cheap tuna.

My local grocery store has “dollar days” every so often, where select items go on sale for a dollar. A couple months ago, when they had dollar days, the canned tuna that I normally buy was on sale for a dollar, and so I stocked up.

Unfortunately, we ran out of tuna last week, and so I grudgingly added it to the grocery list, disappointed that I had to buy it at full price. 

Then, as if answering my prayers, the Couponing Heavens opened up and rained grocery flyers. And those grocery flyers read “Dollar Days”, and because sometimes the stars just align like shiny stockpiles of canned goods, tuna was on sale. For a dollar. Ooooooh yeah.

So there you have it folks. The recipe for frugal living- one part awesome friends, one part free tickets, and as much $1 tuna as you can stuff into your grocery cart.

14 comments:

  1. I wish there had been such a thing as a "babysitter exchange when our son was a baby." We could have used it.

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    1. Well, I don't know if there is such thing as a "babysitter exchange", but my friend just came up with it and it worked out great! :)

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  2. Yay for those Couponing Heavens! Loving every bit of this three-part post and go you for being so frugal and smart!

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    1. Thanks, Meredith! I can't take credit for being smart though because the babysitting thing was my friend's idea, and the tuna thing was the grocery store's idea. I just reaped the benefits.

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  3. wow! You definitely got the better end of the deal in the babysitting exchange!!

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    1. I know! Although I think we all benefited which was awesome.

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  4. I wish we were neighbors. I have boatloads of tuna in my pantry and I need a babysitter. Congrats on your fancy and FREE night out.

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    1. I'd love it if we were neighbours. I would babysit for you, and you could pay me back in hilarious jokes. You always make me laugh.

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  5. Awesome! I was spoiled briefly while my parents were here for the entire month of October. It was so weird not even having car seats in the backseat but what a much needed break. I'm glad you got the all-important tuna--and on sale to boot :). I've started couponing (that is a word right?)and I'm saving a ton.

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    1. I definitely think couponing is a word (although my spell check doesn't agree). Unfortunately, there aren't very many good coupons in Canada, so I don't get to use them too often (or I forget them at home), but I have fantasies of becoming an extreme couponer. Good for you for saving so much!

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  6. You know, your little set-up with your friends with kids sounds amazing. I need to get me some friends like that! I'd be offering to babysit ALL THE TIME if I could get a night off from dinner. I don't mind bath and bed. But not having to do dinner would be so, so nice.

    I'm so glad you got a night out! We have yet to use a babysitter. When my mother is in town, she lets us have a night out - we put our daughter to bed and then my Mom stays here while we go out for dinner. But one of these days, we're going to have to trust someone else to babysit as one night out every 3 months isn't always enough. :)

    Awesome post!

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    1. Yes, the babysitting exchange worked really well...I'm with you on the whole dinner thing. Although that night I did make my daughter dinner, but my husband had to clean up, which is the part I hate the most so it was perfect.

      We've never used a babysitter either. I don't trust anyone. Besides, on the off chance that my daughter woke up when we were out, I think it wouldn't be right for her to wake up to a stranger.

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  7. I love the idea of doing a babysitter exchange. We have good friends right around the corner and I think they would be up for it. My husband and I go out a fair bit (for people with children) and our children are older (3 and 6 and LOVE getting babysat), but we end up paying a lot for a night out, so this would be a nice alternative every so often. Thanks for the post!

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    1. Glad you liked the idea! And good for you for managing to get out for dates!

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