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Strong families are made of strong family members
by Anita Renfroe

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.

1. Seek balance in your family life... and in your family's diet:

Please note the advice here is to "seek balance," since no family has actually ever really found it. "Achieving balance" is a myth and should be treated with the likelihood of a unicorn sighting. But, seeking nutritional balance is a little easier, particularly when milk is on the table. Milk is a simple way to add balance with nutrients that are important to help grow strong, healthy kids.

2. Manage Stress:

Speaking of stress, motherhood is the toughest, most rewarding, job out there - the definition of which is "responsibility without control." Dealing with stress is one of our most difficult challenges, but it's also how we teach our families to deal with theirs. Remember to regularly 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 we can set a desired outcome and move toward it. They create a sense of expectancy, motivation, achievement and persistence. 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. 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, over a glass of milk at family dinner) is an easy way to make room for memories to emerge.

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.

Anita Renfroe
When comedian and author Anita Renfroe took "momisms" and turned them into a three-minute You Tube video (set to the tune of "The William Tell Overture"), she became an overnight Internet sensation, viewed by millions.

After writing her hit song, she became a regular contributor for Good Morning America and was featured in The New York Times, Readers Digest, Women's Day and The Washington Post. She is wife to her life-long love, John, and is mother to three (semi-grown) children. She and her husband reside in suburban Atlanta, where milk is always available.