Building Strong Families: Twitter Party with Anita Renfroe
Join us this Monday for an especially entertaining Sitewarming sponsored by #GotMilk.
Comedian and family expert Anita Renfroe will be tweeting from @MilkMustache sharing her tips on how to build a strong family – while making a few good jokes – while I answer questions and give away prizes as @ResourcefulMom.
To enter to win:
Follow @MilkMustache and answer a question during the event on Monday for a chance to win fabulous prizes such as a luxury blanket, a luxury robe, picture frames, milk body wash, t-shirts and more! View complete rules here No purchase necessary.
Let us know you’ll be joining us! RSVP here:
Milk: Building Strong Families
Comedian and family expert understands the importance of working hard to build strong families. Where do you start? By building strong family members. Anita writes, “Building a strong family is a continual process – one that can change as the dynamics of your family change. But, like nutrients, there are some fundamental daily requirements that help create a healthy, strong and nurturing environment.”
Anita goes on to say…
“1. Seek balance in your family life… and in your family’s diet:Please note that the advice here is to “seek balance,” since no family has actually ever really found it. The notion that you can somehow “achieve balance” is mythological and should be treated with the likelihood of a unicorn sighting.
That said, seeking nutritional balance is a little bit easier, particularly when milk is on the table. Milk is one of those things that make our jobs as moms a tad easier because it’s full of so many nutrients that are important to help grow strong, healthy kids. Pouring it at every meal makes each meal a little more nutritionally rich and balanced – and it takes some of the stress of making healthy meals away.
2. Manage Stress: Speaking of stress, motherhood is the toughest, most rewarding, job out there – the definition of which is “responsibility without control.” The ability to deal positively with stress is one of our most difficult challenges, but also how we teach our families to deal with theirs. In the middle of it all, it’s good to do a quick inventory of what will matter in 10 minutes, 10 days, 10 months or 10 years. Maybe that’s why I love yoga – because it involves stretching! And breathing! So, relax. Take a Pilates class, where the first instruction is “lay down.”
3. Help your family set individual and group goals:Goals help kids know that we can set a desired outcome and move toward it. They help to create a sense of expectancy, motivation, achievement, persistence and measureable success. A family goal can also create an environment of cooperation toward a common cause – and they don’t have to be lofty “create-world-peace”-type family goals (that one seems to already be taken by the Jolie/Pitt household, anyway).
To start, try making a fitness goal with your family, like taking a walk after dinner every night. Making physical activity part of your family time – and your shared goals – will also make for stronger family.
4. Create lasting memories: We all would love to create the beautiful, hazy, slo-mo kind of memories with our families, but real life is rarely like that. The picnic in the freshly mown field normally involves mosquitoes and ants. Making “together time” a daily ritual (say, around family dinner) is an easy way to make room for memories to emerge. Even when your family has less-than-stellar moments, you’ll still be providing your kids something to joke with one another about down the road.
5. Know your family strengths: All families are unique. It’s up to us to recognize that, although we can encourage our kids to be involved in a variety of activities, our families have unique characteristics. If you’re an outdoorsy family – be it! If your family is basically a Geek Squad, embrace that! Know your family strengths and milk it.” 
The Great Gallon Give
To help build strong families, the milk processor education program will be giving away 200,000 gallons of milk at locations around the nation and online. To learn more WhyMilk.com or Click here for more details on grassroots events. Additionally, in an effort to help make sure every family gets the nutrients they need, people are being encouraged to pass a virtual gallon of milk at Facebook.com/MilkMustache. For each gallon passed, $1 will go to Feeding America.