craftgrrl | Question

For Valentine's Day, I'm stealing the pattern from a Ty Beanie (here) since my husband collects that set of pattern and I'm making him one of my own design and I want to make sure I get the "beanie" part in there too.

I'm pretty cheap when it comes to spending money, even on something I love.
I like to recycle things found around the house or in the closet, etc... for my craft purposes.

So I'm wondering if there's anything I can use as the bean pouches that are in each paw and the butt.

I've read about the possibility of pebbles or gravel in general but I don't have any small gravel around that I've noticed (I'm still going to look just in case I don't get the help I need).
I've also read online that using uncooked rice is an interesting method, especially when you roll it in essential oil, but I want to be able to wash the animal every once in a while since germs are icky.

I know the beans/pellets that are used for stuffing an animal can't possibly be too expensive, but I want to weigh my options before driving 30 minutes to 'town' and back... especially just for less than a cup full of stuffing beans.

Any suggestions?

Thanks for any help you can give.