There is no better time than the present than to start thinking of ways to change your life, especially with the energy of the new year upon us. That’s right, with the turn of the year comes limitless possibilities, dreams within reach, and the sensation that anything is possible. We encourage you to go with that feeling and not let it pass you by. What do you want to do differently or change in the upcoming year so that you can further embrace your holistic and wellness journey? Nothing is too big or too small to be acknowledged. Do you want to eat better? Exercise more? Eat more raw foods? You can do it, and we at Raw Food Nation are committed to helping!

Reply to this post with your health-based new years resolutions (one entry per person) for a chance to WIN a most fabulous Raw Food Nation grab bag featuring the following items:

• Our Raw Food Nation Canvas Tote Bag: Our 100% cotton canvas tote bags have plenty of room to carry everything you need when you are on the go. They include a bottom gusset and extra long handles for easy carrying.
• Two “Some Like It Raw” Bracelets: One for you, one for a friend. Stylish, sleek, and just the right color to get attention (our signature color, of course: orange). An easy way to let the world know that you like it raw. This item is currently featured in our online store for $3/each.
• A 4-Piece Set of Raw Flare: Our RFN assorted 1 inch button series look great on clothes, hand bags, and everything in between. Each set comes with 4 buttons total (one of each design featured in the picture above). This item is also featured in our online store for $6/set.
• And a Raw Food book of our choice (it’s a surprise!)

Five runner-ups will receive a set of RFN Flare or a “Some Like It Raw” Bracelet.

How To Enter/Contest Rules:

It’s simple, reply to this post (1 entry per person) with your new years resolution of what you are planning to do to be healthier in 2010. For example “Hi Raw Food Nation, in 2010 I will take up yoga so that I can be more flexible in the new year,” or “Hi RFN, my new year’s resolution is to try one new raw dish a week.”

BE SURE TO FILL OUT THE REPLY FORM COMPLETELY, including your email address so we can contact you!

And that’s it! We will use a random number generator to pick the winners. Then, we will notify you by email if you are one of them.

CONTEST DEADLINE: Friday, January 1, 2010, 12:00AM EST.

Here’s to your health and some exciting fun to kick off our new year!

RFN Flare Button Series: $6 (set of four buttons) – Add To Cart
Looking for a way to further emphasize your raw glow? Our RFN assorted 1 inch button series look great on clothes, hand bags, and everything inbetween. Each set comes with 4 buttons total (one of each design featured). Be seen. Be heard. Be raw. Non-returnable. All sales final.

RFN Some Like It Raw Bracelet: $3/each – Add to Cart
Stylish, sleek, and just the right color to get attention (our signature color, of course: orange). An easy way to let the world know that you like it raw. Standard Size: Medium Non-returnable. All sales final.

Why We Are Promoting Our Store: Raw Food Nation is an amazing site. We hired a designer to create the fabulous visual display that you see before you. The imagery, the color palette, the textures, they were all a well thought out plan and we are immensely satisfied with the design. Then we hired a code developer online with experience taking a design and turning it into a WordPress theme. He did a great job setting this site up, aside from some minor tweaks. Well it seems as if our code developer has pretty much skipped town on us, without fixing our store to show our products. We apologize for this inconvenience and just wanted to bring to your attention that although you cannot see the physical images of the product in our store, you can still purchase them through the “Add to Cart” buttons in the store and in this post.

These items were intended as a fun way for you to show off your raw goodness! They are perfect for stocking stuffers and small gifts. And the purchase of these items helps to fund this site and the realm of free valuable information that we offer to our fabulous readers.

Thank you for your support!

Finally! After much anticipation and a lesson in patience, our fabulous website, Raw Food Nation, is officially live! Let’s celebrate! WHOO HOO!!! Are you excited? We sure are! We have a feeling this is going to be a great experience and look forward to sharing in your journey of health and wellness.

Moving forward, we will be updating this site with new articles about what matters to you in your raw food journey, including what you eat, taking care of yourself, and giving back to mother earth. Have a look around and see what we’ve got planned for you! Thanks to everyone who has been a part of our journey thus far. We appreciate all the positive feedback we’ve received along the way. Stay with us through Twitter, our newsletter and RSS, we’ve got some great things coming!

Hello Fabulous Raw Food Enthusiasts! Whether you are a newbie or a veteran to the tribe, you are important to us and we want to hear from you. We are not one person, we are every person. In order to keep our blog bountiful with content, we need your help. We would love to feature your raw experiences in between our posts on raw foods, health, wellness, and everything in between. So we are doing an open call for submissions in the categories outlined below. If you feel your story is the right fit, see the submission guidelines for the appropriate category and send it our way.

Note: We cannot guarantee that your story will be featured and may not be able to personally respond to all submissions. If we decide to publish your content on our blog, we will notify you via email. All submissions are subject to editing for content. No SPAM or advertisements/promotion for personal products will be accepted. NO SOLICITING.

Raw Inspirational Stories:

Do you have a unique story of how you came to the raw food lifestyle or how raw food has changed your life? If so, type up a story of 750 words or less and email it to rawfoodnation@gmail.com. Follow the guidelines below:

• In the subject line of your email type “Raw Inspirational Story”
• In the body of the email, type your name, your location (city and state or country), email address, your blog/website address (if you would like the opportunity for us to link back to you), and your favorite thing about raw foods
• Then copy and paste your story into the email.
• Photographs are not required. But, if you have photographs, feel free to submit them because depending on space we may be able use them. Photographs should have a simple background and be of good quality.

Raw Food Gone Very Wrong!:

Going raw can be quite a challenge sometimes! No worries, sharing these experiences helps us to grow and laugh together. Did your blender top fly off while you were mixing up a delicious green smoothie? Did you completely botch an easy raw recipe?  If so, type up a story of 750 words or less and email it to rawfoodnation@gmail.com. Follow the guidelines below:

• In the subject line of your email type “Raw Food Gone Very Wrong!”
• In the body of the email, type your name, your location (city and state or country), email address, your blog/website address (if you would like the opportunity for us to link back to you), and your favorite thing about raw foods
• Then copy and paste your story into the email.
• Photographs are not required. But, if you have photographs, feel free to submit them because depending on space we may be able use them. Photographs should have a simple background and be of good quality.

Super Easy Raw Recipes:

Do you have a super easy recipe that you would like to share? We are looking for recipes that require no equipment or at most a blender and/or food processor. If this sounds like you, type it up and email it to rawfoodnation@gmail.com. Follow the guidelines below:

• In the subject line of your email type “Super Easy Raw Recipe”
• In the body of the email, type your name, your location (city and state or country),  email address, your blog/website address (if you would like the opportunity for us to link back to you), and your favorite thing about raw foods
• Then copy and paste your recipe. Make sure you include measurements (example: 1 cup, 2 tsp) and that your directions are easy to follow!
• Photographs are required for all recipes. At the very least a finished recipe picture (but also feel free to take pictures in between steps or of your ingredients line up). Photographs should have a simple background and be of good quality. So if you are taking pictures in your kitchen, clear of a clean space where there is no clutter. Use your counter top or cutting board as a backdrop, or a white poster board so the focus is off the background and on the raw goodness. If possible, when naming your photographs, also include numbers (example: rawsalad_1.jpg, rawsalad_2.jpg) so they remain in sequential order.

Remember, NO SOLICITING.

Thanks for your support! Feel free to also drop us a line by commenting on this blog post with any questions you may have! We look forward to hearing from you and can’t wait to find out what you’ve been up to with raw foods!