We began December in Austin, Texas, celebrating Caspian’s 7th birthday with his grandparents! Then we jogged down to Corpus Christi for a few days, the city where I (Brittany) did most of my growing up. We expected to spend those days going through storage, organizing and downsizing what we could. Unexpectedly–since my Grandpa just passed away–my parents decided to get a small apartment there. The dates ended up coinciding, so we could help them move into their new place and out of the storage unit. It was a lot of work, but gratifying to see them getting settled.
Then on to California! We spent a few days at our daughter’s house with our grandbabies. For the first time since May 2021, we briefly had all five kids together under one roof. We snuck the time in right before our eldest went underway with the Coast Guard again.
Just south of there in the Los Angeles area, we celebrated Christmas with my whole side of the family. Now we’ve closed our three-month loop of the United States and are back in Denver. In a few days, we’ll park and cover our Jeep Wrangler, and fly back to Lima.
December 2023 Monthly Expense Report
Dates: December 1-31, 2023
Location: U.S.
Currency: U.S. dollar
Transportation Expenses
Gas: $1,174 USD
This was a painfully expensive month for gas, since we had the long drive from Texas to California, had to pay California gas prices, then drove from California to Colorado. Our most expensive tank was $100–can you believe that?!
Toll: $50
During our week or so in Austin, we used an express lane several times to avoid rush hour. We didn’t know it would be this expensive, or we probably wouldn’t have used it!
Service/parts: $440 USD
Our gear sponsor, REDARC Electronics, has been working tirelessly to help with our solar panel issue. In case you missed the news, we found out in Lima that our two roof solar panels had failed. They were prototypes from another company we had agreed to test. We think the two+ years of intense travel, and huge swings in temperature and humidity, were too much for them.
Now we are going to try REDARC’s panels on the roof. They are graciously provided the panels at no cost. We just needed to pitch in 50% of the shipping cost to Peru.
Transportation Total: $1,664 USD
Accommodation Expenses
| Location | Type | # of Nights | Cost/night | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin, TX | Airbnb | 3 | $149 | With g’parents for Caspian’s 7th birthday |
| Corpus Christi, TX | Airbnb | 5 | $108 | |
| Junction, TX | Hotel | 1 | $132 | Best Western |
| El Paso, TX | Hotel | 1 | $161 | Fairfield Inn |
| Tucson, AZ | Hotel | 1 | $135 | Townplace Suites |
| Blythe, CA | Hotel | 1 | $132 | Best Western |
| San Bernardino, CA | Hotel | 1 | $151 | Springhill Suites |
| Los Banos, CA | Family | 4 | Free | Our daughter’s house |
| Sunland, CA | Friends’ | 8 | Free | Christmas with family |
| St. George, UT | Hotel | 1 | $120 | Courtyard |
| Grand Junction, CO | Hotel | 1 | $134 | Residence Inn |
| Denver, CO | Family | 4 | Free | B’s brother’s house |
Accommodation Total: $1,952 USD
Nightly average: $63 USD
In the spring when we were first back in the states, we realized our need for hotel rooms from time to time, especially when we’re doing long hauls across the country between family members or the weather is freezing cold. We experimented with several rewards programs and settled on one to invest in. We achieved Marriott Gold status this month, which we’ll have until February 2025 at least.
The above photo was taken at a dinner to celebrate my parents’ 42nd wedding anniversary. They got to have all their kids and grandkids with them for the special day.
Food Expenses
Groceries: $647 USD
Half December’s groceries were purchased in California, where prices are so high I can’t believe anyone can afford to live there. On the bright side, it was a joy to help our daughter with groceries and buy food to share with family over Christmas. Our family definitely knows how to love through food. <3
Restaurants/eating out: $1,901 USD
We treated my parents to a few meals in Texas, so our restaurant expenses are artificially higher by a tad. But mostly we just enjoyed our final month of eating in the states. We had our favorite pizza in the country at Via 313 (Austin), some of our favorite Texas BBQ at Terry Black’s (Austin), and our favorite breakfast tacos at Southside Barbacoa (Corpus Christi).
A new discovery was Swaylos Tiki Restaurant and Bar, north of Denver. It’s one of my brother’s favorites, so we went the night before his birthday. The decor was Pacific Island gorgeous and the food was incredible. I got a plate of Kahlua pork, with sides of baby bok choy and ginger-basil slaw. We will go back!
Food Total: $2,548 USD
This puts our daily food average at $82 USD or $27/person.
Activities and Entertainment Expenses
- San Bernardino County Museum: $15 – Caspian and I spent an afternoon at this large county museum in California and had an amazing time. Highlights were the microscopes we used to look at gems, bugs, and plants. There’s also an unbelievable taxidermy hall and a hands-on exhibit where kids get to play at being citrus farmers.
- Eureka! McConnell Science Museum: $15 – Wow, another museum gift to our family. This is a small museum, but the best hands-on science center I’ve ever seen. I shared a little bit on Marco Polo, if you want to see.
- Streaming services: $27
Total: $57 USD
Miscellaneous Expenses
Phone: $92 – We use Google Fi for phone service when we’re in the states. It’s less expensive and more flexible than a phone plan with a major carrier like AT&T, and we’re almost always satisfied with the service. We can cancel anytime we want.
Caspian: $157 USD – Christmas gifts and stocking, Tynker app (annual subscription) to learn coding
Other: $1,653 USD – Legal and mailing expenses related to passing of Eric’s mom, Leatherman for Eric (less the cost of one he bought in October and ended up returning), clothing for the three of us, Jeep straps to replace some we lost, Christmas gifts for kids and grandkids, mailing children’s books to a friend in Zambia, donations to Boy Scouts and Meals on Wheels, anniversary gift for my parents, mailing book to friend, gift wrap, Patreon we support, Washington Post subscription, Logos Bible software, RCI annual membership, tip, micro SD card, Eric haircut
Misc. Total: $2,151 USD
Missing Expenses
You may notice some missing line items. Some of our phone and Internet costs are currently covered by our business, Hourless Life. And we have a small handful of automatic withdrawals, like my life insurance policy and insurance for Guardian, our Jeep Wrangler parked back in Colorado, that aren’t noted here. But what you see here is a comprehensive look at what it costs to live on the road in the United States.
Grand Total: $8,372 USD
It’s been a beautiful month. We’ve spent so much time with family, celebrating Caspian’s birthday, an engagement, my parents’ 42nd wedding anniversary, Christmas, my youngest brother’s birthday, and now New Year’s. My heart is full of gratitude at the close of the year, with anticipation for what’s to come as we continue to the southern tip of the world in 2024.
Thanks for joining us on this journey.
-B
November 2023 expense report – U.S.
October 2023 – Peru/U.S./Canada
September 2023 – Peru
August 2023 – Ecuador/U.S./Peru
July 2023 – Ecuador
June 2023 – Ecuador
May 2023 – USA
April 2023 – Ecuador, USA
March 2023 – Colombia, Ecuador
February 2023 – Colombia
January 2023 – Colombia
December 2022 – Colombia
November 2022 – Panamá, Colombia
October 2022 – Panamá
September 2022 – Panamá
August 2022 – Costa Rica, Panamá
July 2022 – Costa Rica
June 2022 – Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica
May 2022 – Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras
April 2022 – Belize, Guatemala
March 2022 – Mexico, Belize
February 2022 – Mexico
January 2022 – Mexico
December 2021 – Mexico
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