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.
Mark, Maya, and I spent most of December on the road in Arizona and the last few days in California (warmer weather). We changed campsites every few days in our camper van Zesty. Our expenses were above average, because of the holidays. ‘t Was the season to buy gifts – for family members (my coveted annual calendars with a photo of our household in a different location on every page) and a few friends. We also bought special food and extra alcohol (for margaritas) for Christmas and New Year’s Eve, hence the higher numbers in the grocery and alcohol categories.
(Click on photos to enlarge or hover over them to read the captions.)
I just realized there is no dog category. We must have bought an extra bag of food for Maya in November. Also, her treats go under our groceries. Hmmm. Maybe that’s why that category was so high…
We had help from a mechanic changing Zesty’s transmission fluid in Tucson and had a scare in Bisbee, when there was no way around low-hanging tree branches leaving the tight town. We hoped they would be “soft” limbs. The screeching sound of wood against metal made our hearts – and later our van – stop. Luckily, Mark managed to buff the new scratches out of the acrylic window and the top side panel.
We splurged on entertainment, a category that’s usually non-existent. Traveling with friends encourages us to have fun once in a while. We visited the Titan Missile Museum in Tucson with Duwan and Greg and the two of us signed up for the Queen Mine Tour in Bisbee. Our bubble of six friends also took a daytrip to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument over the holidays. Giving Duwan and Greg a ride allowed us to enter for free because their National Park pass includes four adults. I’ll report on that excursion – and others – in a future blog post.
I’m happy to report that my writing expenses are dwindling. I shipped a few books to sailing magazines in the hopes of seeing their review of Plunge in print one day. The proof copy I ordered from IngramSpark was a disaster and I asked for a refund. Their customer support team should get back to me between three to five weeks! Oh well…
As usual, we boondocked (camping without amenities) on public lands and therefore didn’t spend any money on accommodation. Keep an eye out for our yearly expense report later this month!
December 2020 Overview:
Groceries:
Gifts:
Camper (diesel: $151, maintenance: $152):
Alcohol:
Entertainment (museum and tour):
Utilities (phone: $35):
Drinking out:
Writing (postage; $13; proof copy: $12):
Laundry:
Accommodation:
TOTAL:
$447
$441
$303
$149
$58
$35
$28
$25
$8
$0
———
$ 1,494
Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.