Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂
This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.
Most of June was spent away from “our room above the garage”. After six weeks of sheltering in place in this tiny, uninspiring, yet relatively comfortable setting in Massachusetts, Mark, Maya, and I loaded up our campervan with belongings and groceries and traveled north.
We self-isolated for two weeks in Lincolnville, Maine, where we helped out with renovations in a house recently purchased by our brother-in-law and his wife. We didn’t spend any money during those weeks as we didn’t do anything and didn’t go anywhere. The numbers of Covid cases in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont have always been low, but we quarantined for 14 days nevertheless.
(Captions appear when you click on or hover over the photos. I have posted more visuals of last month’s experiences in previous blog posts here and here.)
That visit concluded with a couple of hikes and a quick stop in the cute seaside town of Belfast on day 15 and 16, before we moved on to Kingfield, Maine, to hang out with friends for a couple of days.
Next up, more relaxing with another set of friends at a lake house in Island Pond, Vermont. That was a VERY enjoyable weekend, despite the 90-degree weather. We concluded our “grand tour” with a quick “hello and goodbye” to one more set of friends met on the road last year. Again, it was extremely hot and there was no shade for Zesty. We cooled off in the woods on their property and in a swimming hole by Troy Falls. Other than the last three nights of camping in our van, we stayed inside houses.
Some of the June categories were higher than usual: groceries because we stopped at a Trader Joe’s (which means splurging on goodies like dumplings, goat cheese, and snacks) and shared special home-cooked dinners, alcohol because we are social drinkers and we socialized a lot, and the dog section because of Maya’s new flea & tick collar and heartworm medicine.
All things considered, June was a decent spending month for us and the numbers underneath are accurate. But… a Covid-related action made us spend much less in real life. Let me explain. With our Chase credit card, Mark and I have been collecting points over the years, accumulating to $1,500 in cash last month. Usually, we save the points and use them for flights to Boston or Belgium. Well, that isn’t happening anytime soon, so we considered alternative benefits. At the same time, Chase announced that customers could redeem points during the pandemic for 1.5 times their value when paying for groceries and dining out, retroactive for 90 days. Our $1,500 instantaneously turned into $2,250!
Mark and I jumped on the offer, waving grocery and restaurant expenses from the previous three months and using points for all our current grocery shopping and take-out meals. To put things in perspective, a $30 food order, for example, costs us $20 as only that equivalent of points is redeemed. It’s a bit of an accounting nightmare, so I’m keeping the spending numbers in my reports equal to what we paid, not incorporating the “free money”. But, based on this fortunate turn of events, we only spent $410 of real money last month and a few hundred dollars less than recorded in February, March , and April as well.
Sorry for the confusion, but I added this explanation to provide total transparency about our expenses. At the end of the year, I will have to post two sets of numbers because of the generosity of our credit card company during these challenging times. Thank you, Chase!
To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the expense blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.
I hope my American friends and family are enjoying their Independence Day Weekend. The three of us had a mellow social-distanced BBQ with my brother-in-law and his family yesterday.
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July 5, 2020 at 13:38
Not a bad place to self-isolate! Your brother- and sister-in-law were lucky to “hire” such talented help!
July 5, 2020 at 15:24
It was a beautiful location, Janis. We gladly “gave back” for all the help and hospitality they have provided us over the years. Besides, Mark and I (especially me) are really good at working for free. 🙂
July 5, 2020 at 13:46
I read a lot of Westerns, about life back when people didn’t really live in towns, did as much as possible without whatever they had, and got by fine. I’m sure their world is seen through rose colored glasses but there’s something appealing about not wasting resources. I enjoy following your life.
July 5, 2020 at 15:28
Thanks, Jacqui. That’s an interesting realization that I fully agree with. Just like people in less developed countries who have less in terms of gadgets, but more in terms of connections, family dynamics, and understanding of their environment are happy with what they have, our ancestors made their lives work to their advantage and happiness as well. I enjoy going “back to the basics” for some aspects in our lifestyle. 🙂
July 5, 2020 at 16:15
Looks like you enjoyed cranking out some house projects for Mark’s brother. We never mind helping out with projects around the property when we stay with Al’s sister and her husband in northern Wisconsin. We’re grateful to have a place (free) to stay for the summer. Due to Covid, we’ve decided not to do any out and back explorations this summer. 2020 sure is an interesting year and not in a good way. I don’t think it’ll get better anytime soon making nomadic life more challenging ????
July 6, 2020 at 10:11
Hi Ingrid! First, I was not looking forward to these house projects – hey, it’s one of the reasons why we don’t have a house – but once we got started and progress was being made, the jobs were satisfying. I even thought I might be able to do this in our own house one day. 🙂 Exchanging labor for a free place to stay is similar to the WorkCamping jobs. We wouldn’t mind it for family or friends either if the area is attractive enough for a long stay and the work is flexible. Like in your situation.
It makes sense you don’t have any long excursions planned. Everything is up in the air, as you mention. In our case, we can’t stay at our current location too much longer, as it’s not that comfortable and very restricting. But, if we have to, we could make it work. As long as the weather is warm enough! We will see what happens.
July 5, 2020 at 17:03
It’s hard not to splurge at Trader Joe’s. I love that store! Nice job on your shoestring budget, Liesbet. How nice you were able to help out your brother-in-law. We’re getting a new roof tomorrow…if you’re in the area! 🙂
July 6, 2020 at 10:15
We really like Trade Joe’s as well and almost see a visit there as an “excursion” in itself, one that promises goodies. Unfortunately, they didn’t have the jars of mayonnaise we usually get there. Nowhere else can I find affordable mayonnaise that has canola oil instead of soybean oils or other “bad” oils… The prices for items aren’t bad either, if you are selective enough and know how to compare.
Roofing is not one of our specialties, Jill, so I’m sorry to let you down on that. Hope all goes well with that giant project!
July 5, 2020 at 19:58
Liesbet, It is fun to actually see rapid results renovating. And, a great help to your brother-in-law and his wife. I believe splurges are important when possible, especially when you are both usually very frugal. Interesting about the credit card company. Yet, I believe a key component is still the choices you made over the years. Nice to hear all is okay.xx
July 6, 2020 at 10:18
Hi Erica! We picked the “deck project” because we figured we could make a difference and finish at least one project during our two weeks on the property. We succeeded, but ended up doing so much more than we initially “signed up” for. You phrase it so well, mentioning choices as a reason for the lifestyle, or anything in life. I truly believe a lot is up to us and depends on our choices. This counts for everyone! All okay here and I hope the same is true for you over there. xx
July 5, 2020 at 22:25
Sounds like you had an interesting month, Liesbet. Always interested in following along on your journey.
July 6, 2020 at 10:18
Hi JH! Welcome back. 🙂 Thank you for following along. I greatly enjoy your company!
July 5, 2020 at 23:48
Wow, that credit card deal is fantastic! We have a Chase card, but hadn’t heard of it. On the other hand, we usually assume most mail from credit card companies is junk. Whoops. I’ll have to look into this.
Sounds like you had a pretty good month. I’m sure you were raring to go after all the isolating. And what better place to spend time during the summer than in New England?
Enjoy!
July 6, 2020 at 10:24
Hi guys!
I think you can find more info about these deals on Chase’s website. It’s retroactive, so it might come in handy still. Our card is the “fancy” one, the Sapphire Reserve. It’s expensive at $450 a year with $300 money back on travel expenses (or this year on fuel and groceries as well), so really $150 a year, but we feel we get that back with all the benefits. That being said, the price is supposed to go up next year, so we will more than likely change cards; another reason to use up all the points/credits this year.
New England in the summer is quite nice, but without the chance of exploring a bit, it doesn’t really matter where we are at the moment as long as it is somewhat comfortable. Without Covid, we’d be elsewhere. Probably closer to where you are as we really prefer to be out west any time of the year and still have to visit Glacier NP!! Hopefully, we can hit the road indefinitely again soon. Have fun!!
July 6, 2020 at 00:16
Hi, Liesbet – Once again this is very impressive. I love how you took advantage of ‘free money’. That made an incredible difference!
July 6, 2020 at 10:27
Hi Donna! I’m still surprised how we can spend that much money (over $800) by not doing much, except drinking and taking care of Maya, apparently. 🙂 The “free money” thing is hard to account for, since it is money we “made”, spending money, haha. It is almost the same as income from jobs, except we didn’t work for it. So, should I mention it or not? Should we calculate it in or not? Where to draw the line… But, since free money is quite awesome, it definitely deserves a mention. 🙂
July 6, 2020 at 08:14
Liesbet, you and Mark did a fantastic job at your brother-in-law’s house! I love all the wood and big veranda at his property and also looks like a really nice region. Maya was blending in very well indeed among the vegetation in beautiful Island Pond. Such a lovely picture of her 🙂 Great result to be able to use all the points collected with your Chase credit card in such a efficient manner. Keep enjoying New England 🙂
July 6, 2020 at 10:29
Hi Gilda! The deck turned out nicely and the views are incredible and very special. Nice place for a visit, but I would never want to live there. Maine is way too cold outside summer and there are quite a few nasty bugs in that area. I hope to post a more photos of camouflaged Maya on Instagram one of these days. We will keep enjoying the climate in New England, but I don’t think there will be any more sightseeing. I hope you are doing well, too!!!
July 7, 2020 at 14:30
The housework and deck building must have been such a weird normal for you while you were staying sheltered. I see you came to love it eventually, but is it something you would consider doing in the long-term as part of your travels? Hope you are doing well.
July 8, 2020 at 11:38
Mark and I are doing well, thank you! Hopefully all is great with you on the other side of the country as well.
Living in this house for two weeks was good and bad. We enjoyed the views, being settled for a bit, and having the use of a real kitchen, but it was also a construction site with a contractor showing up daily at 8am and therefore, we never felt comfortable, at ease, or alone.
Great question, but, no, we would never consider working for others doing projects like these. This two-week stint was to help out family; we didn’t get paid and only enjoyed parts of it. 🙂
July 7, 2020 at 20:47
You have to splurge once in a while, and now that you’re feeding three…well, some costs have to rise. However, you’re doing a masterful job of keeping those expenses down. Love the location for your remodel. That has to be a real treat for someone loving the outdoors.
July 8, 2020 at 11:42
Hi C. Lee! The location of this little stint had what is called “a million dollar view”. 🙂 Yes, loving the outdoors, this wasn’t too shabby, except for the heaps of ticks and rash-causing caterpillars… We used to have two dogs before, but I seem to have forgotten how much that cost us, haha. For Maya, it’s mainly her medicine to prevent the itchiness. Other than that, we didn’t have to go to the vet yet. Fingers crossed! 🙂
July 8, 2020 at 16:19
Glad you got to get out and about for a while and visit some friends. We are actually visiting an old sailing friend in Montana right now and Greg has been helping him stain his deck and work on a few other projects on the house he is building. I would help but I’m trying not to get too far behind on the blog.
And as always – great report even with the higher grocery expense (we splurged a little at Trader Joe’s in Idaho – I knew it was going to be the last TJ We see for a while – no TJs in Montana) and alcohol expense (you almost made it to our level of alcohol spending!).
July 9, 2020 at 10:16
Good for Greg! Maybe he misses the lack of manual labor in his nomadic life right now? Nice you guys are helping out. It feels great to “give back”. And you are doing a fantastic job with the blog, cranking them out. I am behind, but I have decided not to write about everything we do all the time. I’m not even taking photos right now, which feels liberating for a change. Plus, life is not too exciting right now. That being said, I still have hundreds of ideas for blog topics. Unfortunately, there are other projects and jobs that require time and effort…
Duwan, we felt so bad about buying (and especially drinking) all that alcohol last month (nevertheless a fun side-effect of meeting friends) that we haven’t touched a drop yet – or bought any – this month. So far… Our cabinet has been void of booze – no hard liquor, beer, or wine! It does feel weird, but, mostly for health reasons, we are taking a little break. We didn’t even have a drink on our 13th wedding anniversary Monday. I know, that was really awkward and unceremonial. Such a blah day that was. But, we will celebrate that event with a dinner out (or take-out) one of these days, when we actually feel for it!
July 8, 2020 at 23:11
Wow, what a windfall of “points money”! It’s always nice when you have an unexpectedly low-expense month – it makes up for those “uh-oh” months when you get hit with unexpected expenses. 🙂
July 9, 2020 at 10:33
True, Diane. Better to get “ahead of the game” and keep the expenses low whenever it is in our control, as – you are so right – many months have a surprise expense. In our case, usually the camper or the dog. This month it’s a heater part that needs replacing. Plus, we are holding off on new tires ($600 – $700). And, one of these months, I’ll get the hefty bill from my editor!
July 11, 2020 at 14:30
Looks like you did a great job on sanding that deck. Hard and very dusty work no doubt. Nice view from Zesty, and looks like a lot of greenery and tranquility. I was in Maine many years ago and remember it as being very beautiful. Love the shots of Maya and Moose and of Mark and Maya cooling off in the lake. Looks like you had some lake and waterfall filled days after all your hard work you certainly earned that.
Sounds like a win win from Chase. That’s great.
Peta
July 12, 2020 at 11:50
What a great way to use the points! We need to look at some of our assorted points and decide what we should use them for since travel seems out of the question for the foreseeable future.
July 12, 2020 at 13:03
How I hate that realization that travel seems out of the question for the foreseeable future, Sue. We were saving our points for a visit to my friends and family in Belgium, so initially I felt bummed using them for something else. Yet, when Mark pointed out (no pun intended) that this Covid adaptation by Chase basically gave us the same value in a different way, I realized that it didn’t matter whether we’d use the balance now (instead of pay for groceries) or later for the flights (instead of pay for those flights in the future). I’m curious to see how you can use your points. Hotel stays within the country, probably? Maybe fuel?
August 13, 2020 at 12:59
Liesbet, great photos of the renovations in progress. I’ll bet it felt good to get out of your little room and travel elsewhere for awhile, even though it was to work on the house rather than for pure enjoyment. And, how nice that the weather allowed outdoor visits with various friends.
Jude
August 13, 2020 at 15:40
Hi Jude! Welcome to these last Roaming About episodes. 🙂 Yes, we enjoyed the change of scenery and hanging out with friends. It feels like a lifetime ago by now. Sigh! Some physical work gave us purpose as well and it was good timing, as these months a visit like this would never have worked out. Busy, busy!!