Day 1

For my husband and me, the challenge started in the grocery store. He wanted celery, for the tuna salad we planned on eating most lunches. I thought it was a luxury we couldn't afford. I wanted more fruit instead, or maybe a small jar of peanut butter.

"Stop it," he hissed, as we debated the cost in the produce aisles. "You're embarrassing me."

Point taken. I let him buy the celery and we moved on. But it was an early telling moment -- of just how hard it is to survive on $21 worth of food a week per person, and of the compromises and choices families have to make.

We decided to take the Food Stamp Challenge together this week because we know how easy it is to take our good luck for granted. (Our son, who is 6, will eat his regular breakfast and lunch, but will share some of our challenge dinners.) Like many others, we spend money on food somewhat thoughtlessly. We wanted to take time to fully realize what we're eating, and how much it costs.

We realized, as we scanned the store, how much more work it will take to eat this way. Convenience foods like spaghetti sauce or frozen pizzas were out; they cost too much. We bought dry beans rather than canned, and a whole chicken rather than skinless boneless breasts, to save money. After carefully planning what we thought would get us through 7 lunches and dinners apiece, we ended up spending $38. (The picture above shows our week's worth of food.) It's not the healthiest menu. We didn't buy as many vegetables as we would have liked; organics, as Karolyn noted, were out of the question.

And there weren't many extras. We didn't buy anything to drink; tap water is going to be our beverage of choice. No desserts, except for six bananas (chosen because they were the cheapest fresh fruit.) No snacks, except for the much-debated celery. No cheese, no sugar, and, hardest for me, no coffee.

I think it's going to be an eye-opening week.