query_posts with date custom field

I have to present posts in order according to a custom field that is a date.

Currently, I have the custom field (named ‘Event Date’) as a simple text (eg: “12/31/2010”, “1/4/2011” – quotes not-withstanding).
My special page uses this code to get the posts:

$pageNumber = (get_query_var('paged')) ? get_query_var('paged') : 1;
	query_posts(array(
		'posts_per_page'	=> 2,
		'orderby'		=> 'meta_value',
		'order'			=> 'ASC',
		'meta_key'		=> 'Event Date',
		'paged'			=> $pageNumber,
		'category_name'		=> 'Events'
	));

Of course (as the Codex points out) “the sorting will be alphabetical which is fine for strings (i.e. words), but can be unexpected for numbers”

Been reading around and found a few pointers on alternatives, but they all seem to either go for a more complex solution than I’d like to have.

So… what’s the easiest option for me to get the proper order (by date, earliest date first) ?

A) This option uses the Flutter plugin to handle the cusom field, then uses the code from this post (adding 5 filters)

B) This option uses a single filter (on ‘posts_where‘)

C) This one uses the date() cast on the meta_value argument – but also hooks into the ‘save_post‘ action to use the same casting on the way in.

D) Those that worked on this thread are building the proper query_string – but then I’d have to abandon the use of query_posts…

Suggestions? Thanks in advance