As expected: there are some bumps in the road on the way to no-sugar nirvana. Last night after reading my post my husband Steve took issue with the “fruit juice rationale” that I had so carefully worked out, and I got a little emotional. Maybe more than a little. (“You just don’t care about this project do you? Sniff!”) I was tired, cranky, sweet-deprived, and worst of all he had a good point. I couldn’t even have a piece of chocolate to console myself about how hard this all is. It doesn’t help when I remind myself that this is only day ten, with 355 more to go.

Have I mentioned this is hard? Like, “sugar-is-out-to-get-me-and-lurks-around-every-corner-waiting-to-pounce” hard? True confessions time: in addition to still trying to throw-out/give away/finish eating the sugar-ingredient-ed items in our pantry- Pepperidge Farm goldfish, Late July crackers, the now-infamous organic chicken broth, and so on- Steve and I have each faltered and had a bite (okay three) of desserts put in front of us at various events (Steve’s downfall: bread pudding, mine: homemade chocolate birthday-party cake). Okay, okay, I know it’s only been a week, but this “working out the parameters” period is killing me!

Nevertheless, so far we have managed to establish the following guidelines:

1. No sugar. Which means no:white sugarbrown sugar

   cane sugar

   molasses

   maple syrup

   honey

   evaporated cane syrup

   agave

   brown rice syrup

   dextrose (check your french fries!)

   artificial sweeteners of all stripes

   and yes… fruit juice

    

2. The exception: as a family we’ll pick one dessert to have every month which can contain sugar. If it is your birthday that month, you get to pick the dessert.
3. Eve’s “fruit juice rationale” –ie: the idea that fruit juice is okay if there is actual fruit present- is to be used only in the event of a food-emergency. As in: “we need to eat dinner tonight and it’s either this or toast.” (see also: Murphy’s Law of Hats and Sausages.) Translation: no more Polaner All-Fruit jam, no more fruit gummis. Darn.

Next hurdle: our youngest daughter’s sixth birthday is this week, but her party is this weekend. It’s already been decided that we’ll have cupcakes at the kid party (she wants chocolate with strawberry icing)- but then, how do we have a family birthday party- for a six-year-old- without a dessert? That’s the $64,000 question.

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Information About The No Sugar Project