We are the Beavers…literally. My name is Shanna Beavers. My husband, Randy Beavers and I have our daughter, Lilly Beavers. Having a Baby Beavers was a dream of ours for at least six years before we were finally blessed with Lilly. My pregnancy was challenging. I had to leave my job due to extreme morning sickness that lasted through my fifth month. While everyone else struggled with the failing economy, we struggled. I had to figure out very quickly how to cut our budget. Of course, I started with the groceries. Just by paying attention to prices and sales I was able to save a decent amount on our weekly grocery budget. We didn’t always get healthy food, as you know processed foods are much cheaper. BUt, I was happy to be able to eat…period.
Soon we started learning how to “live without”. In fact, we lived without gas for heat (despite it being winter) and cooking (I used the one burner on my grill because propane was much cheaper, cooking outside in the cold sucked, though). We lived without cable, phone and internet. I lived without buying maternity clothes as my belly grew. And we lived without two working vehicles. We shared one car for some time when the other broke down. At one point I even stood in line every Tuesday to receive free food. That will humble you.
As time went on, things got better. My husband starting making more money at his job. I found a better suited home for less money per month, so we moved when I was eight months pregnant. Our family and friends really went above and beyond helping us get what we needed for the baby. And despite the death of one of our beloved dogs, things were looking up. Once Lilly arrived and I held her I knew there was no way I was going to go back to work a “9-5 job”. My daughter needed me to be with her and that was exactly what I was determined to do. Her health and happiness became my priority. Since we still needed help with the bottom line, I started looking for ways to save more money. That’s when I found COUPONS. After a couple classes and some trial and error I started to see that saving money was something I could easily do. My husband speaks in terms of money and when I showed him the receipts, the proof of savings, he jumped on board. But I didn’t stop with coupons. I do much more to save my family money, to earn money and ensure my family will always be frugal and healthy.
I’ve started this site for two reasons. 1) I want to share my experiences with others hopefully to inspire positive thinking and change. 2) I want to encourage you to take a look at your budget and your health. Believe it or not, they go hand-in-hand. Money problems cause stress, leading to emotional eating and bad food choices causing obesity and disease. Getting both under control can create a whole new reality. We’ve learned to be frugal, healthy and happy. You can, too. We’ll help you. We’re The Beavers, and now we’re Frugal!
(Update 4/10/2012)
It’s been 1 year since I started this site. I have accomplished a lot in that year. We now have a very successful newspaper delivery business and I am a Direct Distributor with Juice Plus. I fully believe that my positive attitude has greatly impacted my success. When I started this site I really wanted to make a difference in people’s lives, locally. I worked many hours on coupon match-ups, local deals, freebies and internet deals. Soon, I realized I was trying to reinvent the wheel! There are so many sites that do all of this and do an excellent job. I can’t compete with them, nor do I want to. So, I’ve reorganized my thoughts, priorities and needs. I’ve made some changes to the site and the direction I will be taking it.
I also edited the closing paragraph above the photo. While coupons have been a true miracle in my life, I realized that I was buying things I didn’t need or wouldn’t normally buy just because it was an awesome deal. That lead to eating more processed foods. When I should have been losing weight (having just had a baby) I was gaining it! Now, let me be clear, I still save a TON of money even buying things I didn’t buy before, I dramatically decreased our grocery budget. But, I started thinking, “If I didn’t buy those things I would have even more money for fruits, veggies and healthier foods.”
I’ve done a great job of feeding my daughter healthy foods despite Grandparents that want to feed her McDonald’s, criticizing friends and nation full of poisoned convenience foods. Recently, she has insisted that she eat some of what we are eating. I knew the day would come when we would have to give up the burgers and fries!!! I put my foot down, no more eating crap food in front of her. My husband can eat it at lunch, but Lilly and I are done! I just can’t put that terribly prepared food in her little body. It’s about time I consider my own body as important, huh?
So my next journey begins, incorporating healthy food and eating habits into our frugal life. I know, gibberish, right? I don’t think so. With Walmart’s Price Matching, I’ve really saved a lot of money on produce lately. I’ve been losing weight and changing my eating habits… (Thank You, Juice Plus). I’m considering this the next step in learning to be frugal and healthy. You must learn to crawl before you walk, right. Now that I can “coupon” with the best of them I am going to work on reorganizing my efforts. This will leave me with more time to work on something else that is near and dear to my heart, changing the health of our children.
Join me, take that step or any step towards frugality, health and happiness. We’re still frugal, but now we’re healthy!