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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This system is still not fully recognized, yet it seems logical that a strongly depressed state of mind in a private amount of time for a details instance, as well as with the simultaneous lack of activities targeted at its improvement, causes a climax of the increase of adverse ideas. As depressive disorders create, they can turn into even more unsafe types of problems, e.g. psychosis, delusions or schizophrenia. Decreasing this procedure as quickly as feasible might turn out to be crucial in the reliable therapy of mental disorders of human performance.
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CBD for Stress And Anxiety and Depression: Visualize that it is feasible to introduce one all-natural prep work into your day-to-day diet plan, which might verify to be the secret to winning the defend a calmer life for individuals with depressive conditions. What if the incorporation of this prep work, developed on the basis of an increasingly popular and evaluated chemical compound of plant origin, is not only possibly really effective, but is not related to the danger of side effects common of medicinal medications? Is it even possible? Where’s the catch? Do you want to know even more? Read this article In this post we will certainly cover: What is depression? THC as well as CBD cannabinoids – differences Clinical depression as well as the endocannabinoid system What is clinical depression? Main definitions recommend that depressive problems, likewise understood informally as clinical depression, are defined by: abrupt anxiety of an individual’s mood, in the adverse instructions, of moderate to solid intensity of the intensity of the experienced changes, for greater than a few weeks. There might be several reasons for the incident of modifications. It additionally happens that it is hard to recognize any absolute reason. We really frequently discovered the declaration that it is a civilization illness of the 21st century – it affects both older and also younger individuals. Our education is not important for clinical depression, let alone our revenues – it can impact any individual. Treatment of anxiety comes down to: pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy as well as psychoeducation, photo-therapy, electroconvulsive therapy and more all-natural activities related to the aggravation of exercise and the intro of significant modifications in the daily diet regimen. It is as part of all-natural techniques of dealing with and counteracting depression that the addition of marijuana prep work with cannabinoids normally taking place in the plant in the daily diet plan is gaining more and more popularity on the planet. Cannabidiol CBD, found in e.g. CBD oil or full-spectrum hemp oil, shows up in many scientific studies as a potentially reliable cannabinoid in the treatment of anxiety. Importantly, it is a 100 natural chemical compound of plant origin. Surprisingly, depression is amongst the 3 most typical mental illness in which individuals turn to CBD hemp prep work such as CBD oil, complete range hemp oil with CBD or CBD capsules. Records from customers and also their positive viewpoints on the efficiency of e.g. CBD oil or full spectrum hemp oil with all-natural CBD are growing at an unmatched pace. THC and also CBD cannabinoids – distinctions The key cannabinoids in the cannabis plant are THC (Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and also CBD (cannabidiol). They show hostile effects, which implies that CBD decreases the effects of THC. What are these results? THC has an intoxicating impact, triggers a sensation of ecstasy, impacts cognitive features, yet likewise loosens up. Huge, consistently eaten dosages of THC are taken into consideration damaging to the human brain. Excessive consumption of THC can bring about psychosis, lack of inspiration, and also also long-term adverse modifications in cognitive feature. Both THC and CBD influence the endocannabinoid system in the human body. Their activity, as already pointed out, is inconsistent. Cbd-a-thc-in-the-endocannabinoid-1 system When writing pictures, CBD reduces the exhaustion of anandamide sources, as well as THC quicken this process. Nevertheless, this does not suggest that THC is just a harmful cannabinoid as well as ought to not remain in the prep work whatsoever. On the other hand. Its small visibility in hemp prep work is even needed in order to obtain the so-called effect. harmony. THC in full spectrum hemp oil exists in such a marginal and also, notably, legal amount. This quantity is so little (less than 0.2) that it does not cause drunkenness. Working together, THC and also CBD have better capacity than either particle performing alone. What is anandamide (AEA)? What is its value for individuals struggling with anxiety? Keep reading! CBD, Depression and the endocannabinoid system The endocannabinoid system is a vital system in charge of the law of standard human physiological processes, such as energy monitoring, neurohormonal as well as neuroimmune links, motor activity, mood and inspiration, and fat metabolism. The endocannabinoid system includes a neurotransmitter called anandamide (AEA). Anandamide is a natural chemical that is normally generated in the human brain. Its production is boosted by e.g. exercise, as well as to a lower extent by the so-called collaborate with the body (massage!). Its sources are “used” to maintain the correct functioning of the body, consisting of in the field of psychological health and wellness. As displayed in this research study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23580381 high levels of anandamide are connected with a reduced risk of creating psychotic symptoms. A high level of anandamide is likewise associated with a favorable effect on the decrease of anxiety and also anxiety signs and symptoms. This mechanism is still not totally recognized, yet it seems sensible that a highly depressed state of mind in a specific time period for a certain instance, and with the synchronised lack of actions focused on its renovation, brings about a climax of the increase of adverse thoughts. As depressive disorders create, they can become even more harmful kinds of problems, e.g. psychosis, delusions or schizophrenia. Slowing down this procedure as quickly as possible may end up being critical in the reliable treatment of mental disorders of human performance.
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