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 the two of us. 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. Since June 2019 – we adopted Maya on June 4th – we have a dog section as well. 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.
For most of October, Mark, Maya, and I were based at my in-laws in Newburyport, Massachusetts; the first week with my parents. From the moment they returned to Belgium, Mark and I got busy with camper projects. They were many and they were expensive. Some of you might remember the ordeal we had with our windshield in Santa Fe in the spring of 2018. Well, that nightmare lasted for over a year, as we soon noticed new and reoccurring rust spots as a result of a job poorly done by Extreme Twist.
We tried everything short of a lawsuit to get our money back – emails, photos, Better Business Bureau, Attorney General of New Mexico. After heaps of time, frustration, and determination (and the issue becoming even worse), the company finally reimbursed us the US$1,100. Unfortunately, that was not enough to get the body work redone and the windshield replaced in Massachusetts. Without the new windshield, which was covered by our insurance, the body work there cost U$1,500, so we spent an extra $400.
Another biggie was the side window project. The purchase of a new window was already accounted for in a previous month (the people at Extreme Twist were responsible for damaging the old window – and other things on our camper) and we planned to install it ourselves, like everything else… But, the project proved much more difficult than expected, making this our first failure. I’ll spare you the details, but it was a stressful time, especially as a rain storm was to arrive that night and we had a huge hole in the side of Zesty! It took the window specialists three hours and three bulky men to accomplish the job. $165 well spent!
Mark did all the rest of the maintenance himself: replace the brake fluid, another oil change, remove and clean the RV heater, and replace a glow plug and a few other things in the engine.
Our other costly “item” last month was Maya. After continued itchiness and trying whatever we could to determine the cause, we took her to the vet, who prescribed antibiotics for her healing wounds and Apoquel, a wonder drug for itchy dog skin. It did a great job for two weeks, but is now wearing off. A big bummer. We also compared and tested two GPS tracker systems for her and decided to keep the Whistle. We’ve had a lot going on and our expenses reflect it.
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November 10, 2019 at 22:02
Well, I’m happy you got some reimbursement, Liesbet. Sorry to hear about Maya…poor little thing. There is nothing worse than being itchy. Safe travels!
November 11, 2019 at 20:38
Hi Jill! The one thing that’s worse about being itchy, is not knowing where the itchiness comes from! We hope the Kentucky cold spells bring us some answers in regards to her being allergic to the environment or to food or to whatever else…
November 10, 2019 at 22:15
Hi, LIesbet – You’ve definitely had a lot going on. Sending warm thoughts to you, Mark and Maya. Hoping that Maya will have relief from her itching.
November 11, 2019 at 20:44
Thank you for the warm thoughts, Donna. We will certainly be able to use them the coming week as it will be freezing big time, day and night. We keep trying our best to take care of her itchiness!
November 10, 2019 at 23:10
It’s always hard to deal with unexpected expenses but I know you two watch your pennies carefully. I imagine that things will be back to normal soon. Good luck getting Maya’s itching under control. That must be hard for her… and you also.
November 11, 2019 at 20:47
Hi Janis! It’s put a huge damper on our lives and travels – ever since we adopted Maya in June – that she is so itchy and uncomfortable. One of the biggest impacts is that we can’t leave her alone, as she chews and itches ferociously (until she bleeds) workout supervision… The last two months of the year should be back to “normal” (or better) as far as expenses go. 🙂
November 11, 2019 at 02:17
Some good friends have a small van, not unlike Zesty, but they don’t live in it other than for short periods. We were up in the hills with them yesterday and it felt quite precarious winding along some of the roads. We were going to a very out of the way restaurant. Too full to do much afterwards. 🙂 🙂 Hope you’ve turned the corner with problems.
November 11, 2019 at 20:49
We’ve had a challenging couple of years with our van when it comes to maintenance and issues, Jo. So, I hope you’re right about us having turned the corner. What we may not forget is that our van/camper is almost fifteen years old. I expect the one from your friends might be a tad newer? And yes, it can be precarious to drive in the mountains, especially when there is a lot of wind! Or, there is a row of cars behind us.
November 11, 2019 at 08:55
In spite of the window project snafu and other irritations, I suspect you and Mark are happier than most people with more zeros after their monthly incomes. Not sure about Maya though. :-/
May the rest of November roll by s m o o t h l y!
November 11, 2019 at 20:54
I wish you were right about those zeros in our income, Marian. I assume you meant before the decimal point…
Unfortunately, it’s quite the opposite. Mark has been unemployed for over a year and I only have sporadic translations come in. In case you’re curious, we will make less than US$ 10,000 this year and that’s including my current – very decent – translation project and Mark working for Amazon for two months. So, we will make most of that these two last months of the year. Hence, we have to (and are) careful with what we spend. This is all by choice, though. If we wanted to make a decent income, we’d have to settle somewhere and find “real” jobs. 🙂
November 11, 2019 at 09:51
Better days now, I hope. Vet charges are outrageous these days, almost worse than human medical bills. Doesn’t seem right to me.
November 11, 2019 at 15:56
So True!
November 11, 2019 at 20:56
Hi Leslie! The vet bills are certainly something we didn’t totally account for when adopting Maya. But, so far, she’s worth it! 🙂 And, yes, their fees are outrageous. One more reason to leave the country and travel elsewhere. Next time, we will try to get the medicines online at least. Much cheaper there, as long as we can get a prescription from a vet.
November 11, 2019 at 11:59
Hi Liesbet,
So glad you were reimbursed and got at least some of the $$ necessary to complete Zesty’s repair the right way! Thanks for being so open about what you are spending…life is expensive, even if you are living in a van! Hope Maya’s itch is improving – she’s lucky to have such responsible pet parents. Vet care is sooo expensive. Cali is having back issues; a common problem with dachshunds. Medication, vet visits, and a physical therapy consult were big expenses this summer for us in NH.
November 11, 2019 at 21:01
Hi Nancy! I hope with that windshield and body work repair, six times is the charm! 🙂
I don’t have many qualms or taboos when it comes to money, income, spending, and whatever. Maybe it’s my Belgian roots. Finances are part of life, just like health, politics, education, faith, and many other topics. The good thing when living in a van is that there are no utility costs.
Sorry to hear about Cali’s issues. All those combined visits and remedies must have cost a fortune. Sometimes, I feel like I’m complaining about nothing when I hear other people’s stories about what they (have to) spend. Hopefully – for both our sakes – vets are cheaper in Florida! 🙂
November 11, 2019 at 12:39
So sorry about all the trouble you went through with your windshield. I hope the windshield will be the end of your window problems and leaks! It’s just not right to be leaked on in a van!
I am always so impressed by all the work you and Mark do on the van yourselves. When we got the estimate for our new torque converter I thought Mark would have found a deal on a replacement on the internet and installed it himself. Unfortunately we are not as industrious When it comes to mechanical stuff so we spent the big money at the garage.
I hope you find some relief for Maya and have a good November!
PS – love your heater. We need one in our next rig.
November 11, 2019 at 21:06
Hi Duwan! If it wasn’t for Mark (and me as his assistant :-)) to be able to do almost all the work, projects, and maintenance ourselves, we would never have been able to own two sailboats and this camper. Sometimes it works out – most of the time, luckily – and sometimes it doesn’t. And then that comes as a massive surprise and disappointment.
We bought a little electric heater for our time in Kentucky, as we have free electricity hook-ups here. $30. So we don’t have to use our camper heater and diesel. But, the next few days, I don’t think it will be able to keep up, so we will have to start the industrious Zesty heater as well.
November 11, 2019 at 14:28
I am always amazed by how expensive vets and their services are in the U.S. We know many people whose bills have gone into thousands of dollars.. It’s almost as though they know that people will do anything for their pets and the costs are often just outrageous.
Also amazed at how little you guys manage to spend on groceries and eating out! Maybe when one keeps close tabs on expenditure like you do, it helps to curb the spending somewhat.
Your post certainly does prove that one can lead a comfortable exciting and adventurous life without break the bank! Great role modelling.
Peta
November 11, 2019 at 21:12
Vet costs in the US are outrageous, Peta. It’s crazy and ridiculous. We looked into pet insurance, but that is very expensive as well, so we will deal with it. As I mentioned before in an other comment, it’s time for us to travel outside the US again, since vet and medical bills are way more affordable…
Maya is still relatively young, though, but this itchy problem is a tough one! Anything where the source of the problem is hard to detect (which is something we experienced a lot with camper and boat issues in the past as well), makes fixing it difficult.
The “trick” to keeping expenses for food and eating out low – for us – is to be extremely careful with it, especially when other categories (usually camper and dog) are super high. We usually realize by the middle of the month what’s going on and restrict ourselves, especially with luxuries like eating or drinking out. I’m not saying it’s a fun life… 🙂
November 11, 2019 at 15:33
What a headache with the windshield! Sorry to hear you’ve been juggling that challenge. On the flipside, WOW about how impressed I am with your monthly food spending. Do you break this down somewhere else on your site? I am intrigued about how you manage to get your costs so low for two people!
Elise
November 11, 2019 at 23:52
Hi Elise!
In general, we try/expect to stay under $400 a month for groceries and usually hover around $300. October was extremely low (just like in May, our most expensive month of the year), because of three reasons 1) we knew about some upcoming car and dog expenses, so we purposefully tried to only buy the basics and not stock up on anything, 2) we alternated grocery shopping with my in-laws, which might have had some effect, and 3) the main grocery store we shopped at in October (which we could do as we were in the same location) has really good prices.
We eat a plant-based diet and cook all our meals at home, buy generic brands, and really watch the prices. For example, we wouldn’t buy certain vegetables because we love them, but because they are affordable. We don’t break down our food expenses anywhere else, as it goes into our accounting as “groceries”.
November 11, 2019 at 15:59
We had a dog that was wonderful but had many ailments. We got Vet Pet insurance. Best thing we ever did! We used Embrace Pet Insurance for over 10 years. They were great! Good luck!
November 11, 2019 at 23:57
Thanks for the insight and recommendation of Vet Pet insurance! We looked into getting insurance for Maya when we first adopted her, but couldn’t face the monthly expense. We might change our minds if she becomes a “vet happy” dog! Worth looking into for sure. I’m glad it worked for you guys!
November 11, 2019 at 17:40
Expensive, but hopefully finally fixed!
November 11, 2019 at 23:57
No leaks and no new rust yet, Anabel! 🙂
November 11, 2019 at 17:46
Hi Liesbet – I’m glad you got the reimbursement to cover some of the necessary repairs. I’m hoping Maya will have complete relief from her itching.
November 12, 2019 at 00:00
Hi Natalie! It’s been a long road with that windshield, and a lot of aggravation and money, but we are happy that project is finally off our shoulders. We will just have to work a little bit harder to get ahead! 🙂 As for Maya, thank you for the well wishes. One day, we will figure out the source of her itchiness and then we can come up with a plan!
November 11, 2019 at 20:43
Well I’m happy to hear for all your grief and efforts they at least reimbursed you for that windshield fiasco! I hope you can find some relief for Maya. Keep us posted <3
November 12, 2019 at 00:06
Hi Debby! Of all the people, you know what it’s like to fight many battles (and big ones) with “service providers” not delivering. I guess this one can finally be called (mostly) a win! It’s so infuriating how businesses get away with what they get away with!
November 12, 2019 at 10:51
It never ends – corporate greed is a beast!
November 13, 2019 at 21:13
The worst thing is that they often get away with it, Debby. We try our best to fight it (yes, it takes a lot of time and energy and often frustrations), but it drives me crazy to see how people like our parents take the easy way out. Don’t get me wrong, I understand it’s not worth their time and energy to fight battles like these, but I cringe to know how these companies get away with taking money and taking advantage of so many people and getting away with their scams and such… 🙁
November 14, 2019 at 11:34
Liesbet, that’s why it’s important that people like you and I keep these companies in line and call them out for their wrongs because like you said, so many don’t take action. 🙂
November 14, 2019 at 23:18
Ouch! That was an expensive month for you. I’m glad you were able to get your window professionally replaced – sometimes paying professionals to do the job ends up saving you a lot of money. (And certainly a lot of stress and anxiety.) It’s too bad you had such a bad experience with Extreme Twist, but hopefully your window installers left you with a better feeling.
Fingers crossed that you find something (affordable) that eases Maya’s itch!
November 16, 2019 at 19:37
Hi Diane!
So far we are happy with the work performed by that last company we visited in Massachusetts for both window projects. Phew! A big weight off our shoulders; it’s just too bad that labor rates on the east coast of the US are so much higher than in the Midwest. But, they know how to deal with rust here. The problem is often that we are small fish and in many cases, nobody even wants to do the work, as they are used to big projects/claims and overcharging insurance companies. What I never mentioned is that Mark has been calling people and obtaining quotes in every state we drove through for a year in regards to this project!
Still waiting out the freezing weather to see how it affects Maya’s itchiness. It would be awesome to figure out what causes it as a start! Thank you for your visit here, as always.
December 26, 2019 at 18:24
Liesbet, do you think Maya’s problem could be due to a food sensitivity? Both our pets have food sensitivities. Kate (dog) used to get itchy. We now feed her Hill’s Science diet for dogs with sensitive stomach and skin, and that seems to have worked. Oliver (cat) has a sensitive stomach so we have to be very careful what we feed him too.
Jude
December 26, 2019 at 21:05
Possibly, Jude. We initially thought her allergies were environmental, but after a couple of deep frosts in Kentucky (where we remained in the same location), she is still itchy. In the beginning of having her, we cut out wheat for a while and then poultry. Those changes didn’t matter; she remained itchy. Since a few months, we give her fish oil as a supplement, which didn’t help either. But, it’s good for other reasons, so we still give it to her. The drug Apoquel does a good job, but it’s expensive and we don’t want to keep her on meds for the rest of her life.
So, about the potential of a food allergy. To get to the bottom of this, we’d need to get expensive and non-conclusive tests done (we’re talking about at least $500 – which a yearly dose of Apoquel would exceed at $2 a pill/day!) and potentially having to give her shots and meds as well.
Another option is to put her on the Science Diet to see what happens. This, we are happy to try, but… she is not allowed to eat ANYTHING else while on that diet. We have some of that under control (treats), but… she is a scrounger and eats stuff off the ground every day, which we can’t control. So, we will see what’s next. At the moment, we are trying CBD oil… Baby steps with this issue.
Thanks for weighing in about this!