There are, of course, downfalls. First of all, babysitting doesn’t pay as much as some other side hustles. I charge $12/hr, but I know I could make more doing something else. Also, it’s unpredictable. Sometimes, I don’t babysit for the full week, sometimes it’s four nights a week. And then, of course, there are the diapers. Yuck. Luckily, I came in when only one was still in diapers, but it’s still an unpleasant task.

But it’s worth it, because it’s a pretty awesome gig. Here’s why:

Free Food

Who doesn’t love free food? The parents usually make something the night before and put it in the fridge for heat up for the kids. I have only had to make them something once, and it was a grilled cheese, so it’s easy.

Plus, that’s an extra night a week that you don’t have to pay for groceries or food.

It’s a Spending Deterrent

These kids have a pretty solid and unshakeable routine, which means that I don’t take them out much except for a short jaunt to the park.

Therefore, I don’t spend money while I’m babysitting. At all. I don’t have time to go through even a drive thru between work and babysitting, and while I’m watching the kids, we don’t go anywhere that would dictate that I would spend money.

When I used to work in a mall, I used to go to the food court all the time for Orange Julius, or pop into my favourite store on my break to see what I could buy.

Kids are Fun

Besides the tantrums which happen every once and awhile, kids are hilarious. I have a lot of fun with them. Playing with kids is much  more fun than talking to grumpy customers, so that’s a huge bonus. They’re always making up games or playing tag or dancing, which always makes me smile.

Of course, there are some people out there that don’t like kids, so this gig wouldn’t be for you.

Exercise

Kids are active, and so they should be. Even toddlers need exercise (and quite a lot of it by the governments standards). So chasing after tots, playing tag, giving piggy backs and even just holding a baby is all good for the body

Getting Other Stuff Done

The kids I watch go to bed around 8:30-9:00, which leaves me a couple of hours to blog, go on social media, do homework, answer email, or even just hang out and watch TV.

This is a huge reason why I love babysitting, actually.

Even before the kids go to bed, it’s not hard to get stuff done. When they are watching their nightly half an hour of cartoons, I get myself organized with my laptop; the other day, I updated my resume while they were zoning out on Toopy and Binoo.

Would you ever babysit for extra cash? 

Why Babysitting is an Awesome Side Hustle is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.