Date-Night Babysitting in Saskatoon
Most couples with young children do not stop going out because they do not want to. They stop because arranging it is the hard part - finding someone, trusting them, and doing it again from scratch the next time.
This service exists to remove that. One meet-and-greet, then the same sitter whenever you want an evening, booked with a text.
How an evening runs
Your sitter arrives fifteen minutes before you need to leave, so there is no handover in the doorway with your coat on. They already know the routine because it was written down at the meet-and-greet.
Dinner if it is that kind of evening, or a snack. Play, a bath if it is in the routine, then bedtime exactly as you do it - same order, same songs, same book, the same stuffed animal in the same position. Bedtime works because it is identical every night; a sitter who improvises with it gives you a child awake at ten.
Then the kitchen gets tidied, the toys go away and the living room is reset. You come home to a quiet house that looks the way you left it, which is a large part of the point.
What it actually costs
A worked example, because "from $28" is not a useful number for planning an evening.
Saturday, two children, 6pm to 11pm. Base $28 plus $4 for the second child is $32 an hour. Three hours at $32 is $96. The two hours after 9pm are $35 an hour, so $70. Total $166, quoted before you book and unchanged afterwards.
Two-hour minimum. Statutory holidays are 1.5 times and want a week's notice. Full breakdown on the rates page.
The two weeks of the year to book early
December and the weekend nearest Valentine's Day. Work Christmas parties concentrate into about ten days in Saskatoon and every couple in the city wants the same Saturday. A fortnight ahead is not too early for either; a few days ahead is usually fine for the rest of the year.
The meet-and-greet is free and it is the point
Twenty minutes in your home, no charge, no obligation to book anything afterwards. You meet the sitter, the children meet the sitter, you ask whatever you want and you see the certificates - CPR including infant and child technique, Standard First Aid, Food Safe, and the Criminal Record Check with Vulnerable Sector screening.
You should not have to pay to find out whether you trust someone with your children. If the fit is not right, say so and we will try someone else.
While you are out
You get one message when the children are down, and nothing else unless something needs you. No running commentary, no photographs every twenty minutes. The idea is that you stop thinking about it, which is difficult to do if your phone keeps lighting up.
Other evenings this covers
It is not only date nights. The same booking shape covers a work event, a concert, a wedding, a hospital appointment that runs into the evening, or a night when you simply need three hours of quiet. Nobody needs to explain the reason.
For travel or night shifts see overnight babysitting; for a regular weekly pattern see nanny care.
Book an evening
Call or text 306-700-6576 with the date, the hours and your children's ages. First booking needs about a week so we can fit the meet-and-greet in; after that a text is enough.
All Saskatoon neighbourhoods, plus Warman and Martensville at a flat $12. Full service details on our babysitting page.
Common questions
How far ahead should I book a date-night sitter?
For a first booking, about a week, so we can fit in the free meet-and-greet. After that, a few days is usually enough, and same-day is sometimes possible for a $15 fee. December and Valentine's weekend are the two times of year when a fortnight is not too early.
What does an evening out with a sitter cost in Saskatoon?
A typical Saturday 6pm to 11pm with two children works out around $166: $28 base plus $4 for the second child is $32 an hour, with hours after 9pm adding $3. The exact figure is quoted before you book and does not change afterwards.
Will the children be asleep when we get home?
That is the intention. Your bedtime routine is written down at the meet-and-greet and followed exactly - same order, same songs, same book, same stuffed animal. Consistency is the whole reason bedtime works, so we do not improvise with it.
Is there a minimum booking?
Two hours. In practice most date-night bookings run four to five, because dinner and getting home takes longer than people plan for.