10 Day Pledge

Tomorrow, I begin a 10 Day Pledge.  It's the beginner's version of the 100 Days of Real Food Challenge.  In short, I'm making a personal commitment to eat and serve our family meals that are only whole/non-processed foods.  Everyone else will still be making their own snack (there's plenty of processed stuff in our pantry, unfortunately) and outside-the-home food choices, but they're all mostly on board.  Cassie, especially, has some semi-chronic stomach problems, so we're eager to determine whether this change will provide a simple cure for her.

Here are the rules ~
What you CAN eat:

• Whole foods that are more a product of nature than a product of industry
• Lots of fruits and vegetables
• Dairy products like milk, unsweetened yogurt, eggs, and cheese
• 100% whole-wheat and whole-grains
• Seafood (wild caught is the optimal choice over farm-raised)
• Only locally raised meats such as pork, beef, and chicken (preferably in moderation)
• Beverages limited to water, milk, all natural juices, naturally sweetened coffee & tea, and, to help the adults keep their sanity, wine and beer!
• Snacks like dried fruit, seeds, nuts and popcorn
• All natural sweeteners including honey, 100% maple syrup, and fruit juice concentrates are acceptable in moderation

What you CANNOT eat:

• No refined grains such as white flour or white rice
• No refined sweeteners such as sugar, any form of corn syrup, cane juice, or the artificial stuff like Splenda
• Nothing out of a box, can, bag, bottle or package that has more than 5 ingredients listed on the label
• No deep fried foods
• No “fast foods”

The only rule I think will be a problem is the locally raised meats.  Until I'm able to determine what local options there are or are not, I'm going to include organic meats (even if not local).  Costco and Henry's have some offerings - Costco having the more economical, but less varied ones.  Tomorrow a friend and I are taking a field trip to Ramona Family Naturals to check out their store and raw milk products.

For the next 10 days, you can track with me on my blog.  There will be a daily list of foods consumed/prepared, along with possible struggles and/or complaints therein.  Afterwards, I'll wrap up the pledge with a personal evaluation and any differences worth noting.