Table of Contents
Heading into our van life adventure at the beginning of 2019, one thing that we were hyper-focused on was our van life costs. We had some money saved from working full time, and did not have a ton of money coming in each month. What did that mean? It meant that the more we spent, the shorter our adventure would be! So we HAD to minimize costs, because we wanted to adventure as long as possible! We are going to give you a 100% transparent view into our expenses we had in our third month on the road. Here we go!
In March, we spent a TON of time with family! The whole month in fact. We started the month in Minnesota staying with Zach’s parents, took a Wisconsin trip to see Julie’s parents, and capped off the Midwestern excursion with a wedding in Stillwater, MN in mid-March!
We had an absolute BLAST seeing so much family and friends for the first time since we started our adventure! After the wedding (and Julie passing her nursing boards YAY!!) we took off from Minnesota heading South!
We stopped in Oklahoma City, Dallas, and Waco on our way towards Houston. We had so much fun seeing our new nephew JP in February that we had to go back in March to see him again! We stayed in Houston with our Texas family until the end of March, exploring everything we could while we were there.
Photos from Month 3’s Adventure
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Wedding in Minnesota! -
Wedding in Minnesota! -
Wedding in Minnesota -
Grassy Knoll in Dallas -
JFK Memorial in Dallas -
Grassy Knoll in Dallas -
Magnolia in Waco! -
Magnolia in Waco! -
Magnolia in Waco! -
Hanging with our Nephew JP in Houston! -
Hanging with our Nephew JP in Houston!
Our budget for March was smaller than our January and February budgets because we were spending so much time with Family. We knew we would probably have higher entertainment expenses, but fewer gas and grocery trips, so those expenses would probably be lower. Here’s what we came up with for the budget:
February Budget
| Expense | Budget |
| Gas | $300 |
| Groceries | $100 |
| Lodging | $0 |
| Auto Maintenance | $100 |
| Other / Entertainment | $300 |
| Total | $800 |
Now, let’s see how we did!
Gas
Budget: $300 || Actual: $147.93
| Exxon (1 fill up) | $28.37 |
| Super America (1) | $38.78 |
| Cenex (1) | $40.89 |
| Holiday (1) | $32.11 |
| Other (1) | $7.78 |
| Total | $147.93 |
We did WAY better than expected on gas in March. That was mainly due to a few reasons:
- We traveled much less than we thought we would while in MN and WI
- We split gas by carpooling from MN back to Houston
On the trip from MN to Houston, we had the pleasure of riding with some of Zach’s family! It made the road trip SO fun, and also it helped because the gas cost for us was much much lower.
Our Gas Search Strategy
Once we were under 1/4 tank, Julie opens up Get Upside and Google Maps, and searches for gas places on our route in the next 50 miles. We’d find and stop at the cheapest one, whether it was 2 miles away or 48!
If you decide to download Get Upside, use code ‘2GZ28A’ for an extra $.15/gal cash back on your first gas purchase!
Groceries
Budget: $100 || Actual: $116.20
| Wal Mart (2 times) | $109.51 |
| Gas Station Coffee (3) | $8.86 |
| Total | $116.20 |
We were SO close on our grocery budget for March. Close enough that I’m going to give us the benefit of the doubt and say we basically hit our goal.
If only a few more things were on sale at the right time, we could have snuck in right under budget for March. Either way, se la vie, life goes on.
One of our Favorite Recipes
Lodging
Budget: $0 || Actual: $0
| Living in our van at Harvest Hosts, National Forests, and Wal Mart parking lots |
$0 |
| Total | $0 |
Just like February, we hit our budget DEAD ON for lodging… ZERO! Nada! Zip!
To be honest, finding lodging has become one of the most fun portions of our adventure! Also, to be honest, it has gotten MUCH easier the further West we’ve traveled.
Out West, there is MUCH more public property (National Forests, Bureau of Land Management, Wildlife Areas, etc) that offer opportunities for free camping! What’s more? The land is BETTER!
We have found b-e-a-utiful places to spend the night almost each and every night!
If you are interested in exploring Harvest Hosts, use this link for 15% off a membership:
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Bayou Teche – Harvest Hosts -
Everything is Beachy Here! -
Golden Acres Ranch – Harvest Hosts -
Buffalo National River
Auto Maintenance
Budget: $100 || Actual: $94.69
| One oil change and general tune-up | $94.69 |
| Total | $94.69 |
In March, Winnie continued to be an absolute CHAMPION on the road! Absolutely no issues to deal with except our regular oil change and tune up.
We try to stay ahead of schedule with these to keep Winnie in as tip top of shape as we can. So far our strategy seems to be working well! Knock on wood…
Other / Entertainment
Budget: $300 || Actual: $660.99
| Drinking Out (7 times) | $171.65 |
| Eating Out (4) | $60.31 |
| Van Improvements | $269.73 |
| Subscriptions (Canva, Adobe, Spotify, Planet Fitness) | $62.90 |
| Other | $96.40 |
| Cash Expenses | $0 |
| Total | $660.99 |
Once again we are over budget in our other/entertainment category! I guess you can say we cave in to peer pressure pretty easily.
Being back home with friends we found ourselves going out a lot more. How can you say no to a damn good time?? We have no idea!
Also while we were back in Minnesota, we made some van improvements. Our first two months on the road were a great test drive for what van-life would be like and we learned a ton!
For example, we learned having our kitchen pull out of the back was a huge pain, especially with our bikes on the back. Brushing your teeth/washing your face isn’t very fun using water bottles either.
Therefore, while we were home we rearranged some things in the van and put our kitchen with running water inside! We also added a deck to our roof, which has been by far our favorite improvement! We’ve loved reading, sunbathing, and star gazing on our roof all over the country.
Even though our van improvements took us over budget, they were totally worth it. Having running water in the van and a rooftop deck have been extreme life improvements for us!
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We Added a Sink to the Inside of the Van! -
Rooftop Deck after Construction -
Rooftop Deck after Construction
Total
| Expense | Budget | Actual |
| Gas | $300 | $147.93 |
| Groceries | $100 | $16.20 |
| Lodging | $0 | $0 |
| Auto Maintenance | $100 | $94.69 |
| Other / Entertainment | $300 | $660.99 |
| Total | $800 | $1019.81 |
So close, but yet so far. Again and again, it is the other/entertainment category that absolutely CRUSHES us month after month.
We REALLY need to improve our self-control, but we just have so much rootin’ tootin’ FUN when we see friends and family! So sue us. Actually please don’t, we don’t have a lot of money, so you won’t win a lot anyways…
Month 4 Budget
| Expense | Budget |
| Gas | $400 |
| Groceries | $300 |
| Lodging | $0 |
| Auto Maintenance | $100 |
| Other / Entertainment | $200 |
| Total | $1000 |
For April, we will be back on the road FULL TIME! That means our budget is back to what it was in February: $1000, broken down just as it is in the table above.
Will we hit it? Will April be the first time this year that we actually HIT our budget? You’ll have to check back to find out!
If you liked this article, use the below image to Pin it and save for later!
If you want to hear more about our budget, here is our budget and spending from February and January!
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Main definitions recommend that depressive conditions, likewise recognized informally as anxiety, are characterized by: abrupt anxiety of a person’s mood, in the adverse instructions, of moderate to strong intensity of the intensity of the knowledgeable modifications, for more than a couple of weeks. There might be one or more reasons for the incident of adjustments. It additionally takes place that it is difficult to determine any type of unequivocal factor. We extremely often found the declaration that it is a world illness of the 21st century – it impacts both older and younger individuals. Our education is not important for clinical depression, let alone our earnings – it can affect any individual. Therapy of anxiety boils down to: pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy and also psychoeducation, photo-therapy, electroconvulsive therapy as well as more all-natural tasks connected to the surge of exercise and also the intro of significant modifications in the day-to-day diet plan. It is as part of all-natural methods of fighting and also neutralizing anxiety that the incorporation of marijuana prep work with cannabinoids normally taking place in the plant in the daily diet plan is getting increasingly more popularity in the world. Cannabidiol CBD, discovered in e.g. CBD oil or full-spectrum hemp oil, shows up in numerous scientific research studies as a possibly reliable cannabinoid in the therapy of depression. Notably, it is a 100 natural chemical compound of plant beginning. Surprisingly, anxiety is among the three most usual mental disorders in which individuals consider CBD hemp prep work such as CBD oil, complete range hemp oil with CBD or CBD capsules. Reports from customers and also their positive viewpoints on the performance of e.g. CBD oil or complete range hemp oil with natural CBD are expanding at an unmatched speed. 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Its manufacturing is stimulated by e.g. physical activity, and to a lesser level by the supposed collaborate with the body (massage!). Its sources are “made use of” to keep the proper performance of the body, consisting of in the field of mental health and wellness. As received this research study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23580381 high levels of anandamide are related to a lowered danger of developing psychotic signs and symptoms. A high degree of anandamide is additionally associated with a favorable impact on the decrease of clinical depression and also anxiousness signs and symptoms. This device is still not completely comprehended, however it appears rational that a strongly depressed mood in a specific time period for a certain instance, as well as with the synchronised lack of activities focused on its improvement, causes an aggravation of the influx of negative thoughts. As depressive conditions establish, they can develop into even more harmful types of problems, e.g. psychosis, deceptions or schizophrenia. Slowing down this procedure as rapidly as feasible may become vital in the reliable therapy of mental illness of human functioning.
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CBD for Stress And Anxiety and Depression: Visualize that it is possible to introduce one all-natural preparation right into your everyday diet plan, which might verify to be the key to winning the fight for a calmer life for people with depressive problems. What if the addition of this prep work, produced on the basis of an increasingly popular and also checked chemical substance of plant origin, is not just possibly extremely effective, however is not associated with the threat of side effects typical of medicinal medicines? Is it even possible? Where’s the catch? Do you want to know even more? Read this post In this short article we will cover: What is clinical depression? THC distinctions Anxiety and the endocannabinoid system What is depression? Official definitions recommend that depressive disorders, likewise understood informally as depression, are characterized by: unexpected clinical depression of an individual’s mood, in the negative instructions, of modest to strong intensity of the strength of the seasoned adjustments, for greater than a few weeks. There may be several reasons for the occurrence of changes. It also occurs that it is hard to identify any indisputable reason. We very usually discovered the declaration that it is a civilization illness of the 21st century – it impacts both older and also younger people. Our education is trivial for depression, let alone our incomes – it can impact any person. Therapy of anxiety boils down to: pharmacotherapy, psychiatric therapy and psychoeducation, photo-therapy, electroconvulsive therapy and more all-natural tasks associated with the rise of physical activity as well as the intro of significant changes in the everyday diet. It is as part of natural techniques of battling and counteracting clinical depression that the inclusion of cannabis preparations with cannabinoids normally taking place in the plant in the day-to-day diet plan is gaining an increasing number of popularity worldwide. Cannabidiol CBD, located in e.g. CBD oil or full-spectrum hemp oil, shows up in many clinical researches as a potentially effective cannabinoid in the therapy of depression. Importantly, it is a 100 all-natural chemical substance of plant beginning. Interestingly, clinical depression is among the three most typical mental disorders in which people resort to CBD hemp prep work such as CBD oil, full range hemp oil with CBD or CBD capsules. Records from customers and their favorable opinions on the efficiency of e.g. CBD oil or complete range hemp oil with natural CBD are growing at an extraordinary pace. THC and also CBD cannabinoids – differences The key cannabinoids in the marijuana plant are THC (Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol). They show antagonistic effects, which means that CBD minimizes the impacts of THC. What are these results? THC has an envigorating result, triggers a sensation of bliss, impacts cognitive features, however also loosens up. Big, on a regular basis eaten doses of THC are thought about damaging to the human mind. Extreme intake of THC can cause psychosis, absence of inspiration, and also also irreversible adverse changes in cognitive function. Both THC as well as CBD impact the endocannabinoid system in the body. Their activity, as currently pointed out, is contradictory. Cbd-a-thc-in-the-endocannabinoid-1 system When composing images, CBD reduces the deficiency of anandamide resources, as well as THC quicken this procedure. However, this does not mean that THC is just a hazardous cannabinoid and also must not be in the prep work at all. On the contrary. Its tiny visibility in hemp preparations is also required in order to get the supposed effect. harmony. THC completely range hemp oil is present in such a minimal and also, importantly, legal quantity. This amount is so little (less than 0.2) that it does not trigger intoxication. Collaborating, THC and also CBD have higher potential than either particle performing alone. What is anandamide (AEA)? What is its importance for people struggling with anxiety? Continue reading! CBD, Clinical depression and also the endocannabinoid system The endocannabinoid system is a key system responsible for the policy of fundamental human physiological procedures, such as power monitoring, neurohormonal and also neuroimmune links, motor task, mood and also inspiration, and fat metabolism. The endocannabinoid system consists of a neurotransmitter called anandamide (AEA). Anandamide is a neurotransmitter that is normally produced in the human mind. Its production is boosted by e.g. physical activity, and also to a lesser level by the so-called work with the body (massage!). Its sources are “used” to keep the correct performance of the body, consisting of in the field of psychological wellness. As displayed in this research study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23580381 high degrees of anandamide are associated with a decreased risk of developing psychotic signs. A high degree of anandamide is also related to a favorable impact on the reduction of depression and stress and anxiety signs. This device is still not fully comprehended, yet it seems logical that a highly clinically depressed state of mind in a private amount of time for a certain instance, and with the simultaneous lack of actions aimed at its renovation, causes an increase of the influx of negative thoughts. As depressive conditions develop, they can turn into even more dangerous types of conditions, e.g. psychosis, deceptions or schizophrenia. Slowing down this process as promptly as possible may become critical in the effective treatment of mental disorders of human performance.