The Beginning...

My journey to living a more natural life started when I met my dh. I had spent my entire 21 years, until that point, with stomach aches, tums, and a bottle of pepto. It took my husband 2 dates and one look in my fridge to diagnose me with lactose intolerance. A doctor recommended that I take two weeks off dairy and see what happened...I never went back.

It was hard to give up dairy, I thoroughly loved cheese, milk, pizza, cottage cheese....but I loved feeling good even more. So thus began my quest to live a dairy free life. My journey for dairy alternatives took me into a realm of natural foods that I had never even heard of. Tofu? Soymilk? Organics?? And the more I read about natural foods, the more I started to incorporate them into my life.

Last year I gave birth to my son and my natural living took on a whole new meaning. My dh and I had always planned on me staying home with our children, so we started living on a budget even before ds came along. But as a I went through the pregnancy, childbirth, and first year with my son I began to realize just how important a natural way of life was to me. The only problem with living natural, though, was the money. Natural and organic foods and products can be really expensive. So I started to research ways to save money and I came across some great resources. The problem was they were about saving money, but not necessarily eating organically, etc. Sure, getting a great deal on cereal or crackers is nice, but not if their filled with hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup.

So I began to figure out ways to save money, but still live naturally and here I am.