I've never really spent a lot of time thinking about the 8 monthly gallons of milk I buy every month for my kids. (Other than it costs about $32 dollars a month to pour milk into my three growing almost adult boys; maybe I think more about it than I thought).

THE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

I learned some interesting facts about milk jugs today. Did you know that the circle you see on the side of the jug isn't just a design? And it's not put there to reduce the amount of milk that goes into your gallon.

EXPANSION

The feature of this circular indentation? To let the jug expand. That's right. Expansion is necessary for a couple different reasons; one of which you might find incredibly useful.

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First of all, we all know how fun it is to bring groceries into the house. If you are like me, I grab as many bags as I can and typically hook a jug on my thumb and another on my finger; all of this to avoid making second unnecessary trips to my vehicle.

Then....oops...You drop it. Luckily, my milk jugs rarely break open. The reason? That little circular indentation! It's purpose is to let the jug expand if you happen to drop it, press it too hard, or hit it on something.

EXPIRED MILK

Another pretty cool feature, is that if milk is bad, that little circular indentation will disappear! As milk gets older, the bacteria inside the jug causes it to expand. So if the circular indentation is expanding, you might want to double check the expiration date on your milk jug.

Now you are IN the know. Aren't you glad I told you? I know that there is an expiration date on the jug, but if you go to the fridge in the middle of the night for a cookie and glass of milk, you aren't going to check the expiration date. You WILL, however, notice if that big circle is missing; as long as you know it's there. And if you've ever had a mouth full of curdled milk...it's something you never forget.

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Stacker compiled a list of the best places to live in Minnesota using data from Niche. Niche ranks places to live based on a variety of factors including cost of living, schools, health care, recreation, and weather. Cities, suburbs, and towns were included. Listings and images are from realtor.com.

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