In this week’s baby bargainista column, I’d like to welcome the newest Bullough into Jenny’s family - a baby girl born last week - Congratulations Jenny! This week, in the second of a two-part series, Jenny reflects on her best purchases in 2008...
Along with the best buys of last year, I also discovered some fabulous freebies and bargains in 2008. The best of these are related to keeping our 4-year-old busy, engaged, and creatively fulfilled (with bonus points for activities that tire her out so she’ll fall asleep promptly at bedtime).The first freebie is a simple thing, something available to everyone who lives or works in Toronto, and a benefit that I haven’t taken personal advantage of for years: a library card for the Toronto Public Library. As a child I used to practically live at our local branch, and now I can share that enjoyment with our daughter as she discovers the amazing array of books and DVDs available to her!
Needless to say, you can’t beat the price ($0); and giving our girl the opportunity to browse a multitude of books and movies for free certainly cuts down on the cost of buying new reading material and renting movies at the video store.
Another great bargain we found last year is the kindergym and ballet classes offered by the City of Toronto Parks & Recreation department. At just $29 for 8 weeks, the classes are a perfect way to test the waters of her budding interest in gymnastics and dance without shelling out the big bucks for a full-year program at a privately-run studio.
And best of all, the weekly classes offer enough activity and exercise that by the end of the day she’s exhausted and falls asleep right at bedtime with nary a murmur of complaint, leaving the bulk of the evening free for us to enjoy our few remaining quiet times before the arrival of #2.
What was your best freebie, bargain, or find of 2008?
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The Thornhill School of Ballet offers $2 Tuesdays, a drop-in Ballet class for preschoolers.
ReplyDeleteYou can actually also find lots of coupons for programs at www.kidsaroundcanada.com/programs/toronto, as well as for shopping, parties etc.
There are coupons for other cities in Canada as well.
What a great tip! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteCompletely unrelated... I saw a comment on Marie's blog and saw your name... that's what I want to name this next baby (if it's a girl) and never knew anyone with that name so just have to ask... do you love your name?
ReplyDeleteHi Christy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and sorry for taking a while to reply. Now I love my name. As a kid, not so much but times are different and kids are used to a wide variety of names these days. When I was a kid, there were 10 names for each gender - you had one of those or you were an outcast. ;-)
I'd love to know what you decide. Good luck!
Eden