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Food Stamp Challenge Days 28 & 29: A Real Thanksgiving

This is Day 28 & 29 of a month long food stamp challenge. If this is your first visit, please check out this link to see all of the posts and get a better understanding of what is going on.

Early on Day 28 John had back surgery. For that reason he did not eat breakfast, and the remainder of his meals on that day consisted of hospital food. Michael brought coffee creamer, cinnamon rolls and a leftover lunch but nothing more as the surgeon assured us that John would most likely be ready to go home later that day.  He was not.

Complications led to an overnight stay and I (Michael) was not leaving John alone in the hospital when he was still fuzzy from anesthesia and in severe pain to boot. I had nothing else to eat and was ready to go without to make good on my promise to stay the course through the remaining days of this challenge. After debating with John for nearly three hours about me eating dinner, I asked the Facebook readers what they would suggest that I do about a meal. I provided them my options and the near-unanimous decision was that I should get a sandwich. 

I’m being completely up front when I tell you that I don’t think I have ever had a more emotional meal in my life. It took 10 minutes before I could eat the first bite and I cried through most of it. If you ever doubted my commitment to this challenge, you wouldn’t have if you’d have been there last night, that’s all I can tell you.

To be as fair as I know how, I’ve deducted the amount of my meal from the budget.

MEALS

DAY 28 BREAKFAST: $0.20
creamer
(hospital-provided coffee)
cinnamon rolls

LUNCH: $0.00
leftover chicken & mashed potatoes

DINNER: $5.72
SUBWAY tuna sandwich

DAY 29 BREAKFAST: $0.97
coffee
sugar
creamer
cereal

LUNCH: $0.00
soup made on Day 26

day29dinner

DINNER: $4.55
meatballs in V8 veggie sauce
sweet peas

  • Consumed Days 28 & 29 : 11.44 [+6.56 for 2 days]
  • Consumed To Date (month): 131.94 [+120.15 for the month]
  • Spent To Date: 235.15
  • Remaining Balance: $44.03

PROLOGUE: We are very happy to be home, though John’s medical issues are not over yet. I have a new appreciation for our perpetually messy kitchen after not having one to cook in, and I will not complain again about my pillows that are never quite perfect after sleeping in a cramped and unforgiving hospital room chair last night. There are two days left of this challenge but something tells me that we’ve been through the biggest challenges we could have faced already.

No Question of the Day.  Just please, please take 5 minutes right now to be thankful for what you have. However much or little, be thankful.

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