A Great Date for $5.53

Last night, Devin and I went on an incredibly fun date. We laughed and ate some yummy food and saw a show and had an all-around blast. And it only cost us $5.53. How in the world did you do this?, you may be wondering. Well, like many things in life, it is all about perspective and being content with what you have to work with.

We wanted to get out of the apartment and enjoy an evening together, but we didn't want to spend a lot of money. So, Devin started digging through our "date box" (where we keeps coupons, restaurant gift cards and books with fun date ideas) and found a Bed, Bath and Beyond gift card with $7.66 left on it and a buy-one-get-one-free pretzel coupon from Auntie Anne's. Thus began one great evening together.

First stop-  the lovely, but more-often-than-not over-priced Bed, Bath and Beyond. We entered armed only with a $7.66 gift card, a joyful heart and a determination to find the most bang for our buck. After forty-five minutes of scouting (and receiving many quizzical glances from the employees), we proudly presented our purchases to the clerk. Our findings consisted of a Twix candy bar, an "invigorating" scalp massager and a blue jar candle that measured only two inches tall.

(Devin took this picture of our candle for his blog)

(Enjoying our new purchases)

The best (i.e. most entertaining) part was, we were able to "cash out" the remaining gift card money - a grand total of 22 cents! The clerk, who seemed genuinely amused by our adventure, had to call the manager over and take down our name and address in order to bestow upon us our break-the-bank 22 cents.

Gathering our purchases, we left Bed, Bath and Beyond 22 cents richer and headed to the Chandler Fashion Square Mall for our buy-one-get-one-free pretzels. We arrived with only fifteen minutes until the mall closed and speed-walked our way to Auntie Anne's Pretzels. Gasping for breath - from laughter as much as from our quick jaunt through the mall - we placed our pretzel order. By this time, we only had about two minutes to get out of the mall before it was locked up. After rushing back through the mall, we sat down by the outdoor fountains to savor our delicious pretzels.

We got there just in time to enjoy the music-timed fountain show that plays at the top of every hour. Picture a mall version of Vegas's Bellagio:

 (Bellagio)                            (Chandler Mall)

I was delighted when the soundtrack from The Sound of Music (one of my "favorite things")  began to play in time with the fountain. I adore musicals and had to suppress my urge to sing along with gusto (for which Devin was very grateful). Even though the fountain doesn't look that impressive when compared to something like the Bellagio, it was a very well-done show and completed our $5.53 date perfectly.

Date Cost Breakdown:
BB&B purchases: free with gift card
Two Pretzels: $5.75 minus $0.22 (from gift card cash out) = $5.53

Q4U- What is your favorite way to have a great date on a small budget?