I began putting together the pieces of the puzzle: new toys broken -- no, decimated -- in under 60 seconds; clothing cut up with scissors; unfinished food smashed with a toy "hammer"-- my children had been displaying destructive behaviour. Here are some steps I put in place to get my house back, which I call SCABS for short: Supervision, Consequences, Activities, Boredom and Segregation.

It's a short week for most moms with the long weekend, so I'll be brief. There is a lot to report and reflect on -- drinking and driving, an app that tells you when to take a pee break, home organizing solutions and restaurants promoting well-behaved kids. What is the world coming to?

We had always imagined a family with two children... until the baby blues hit. And then postpartum. I'm sad my daughter won't have a sibling, but when it comes to having a second child, we've decided to let that ship sail. I know my capabilities, and I would rather be a great mom to Maddie than a stressed-out and exhausted mom to two.

They say it can take a few weeks, even months, for new a mother to bond with her baby. For me, it took three and a half years. It's not that I didn't love him before. But maybe I didn't completely like him. Now, at age three-and-a-half, he is absolutely perfect.

If you're a parent, you know that your little darlings may not always be telling you the absolute truth. Yes, it's hard to believe, but kids lie. A lot. Just because you've been lied to by your child doesn't mean that it has to continue. It's you against them when it comes to the truth. You're their parent, so you should win.

In a nutshell: life is chaos, it's all my fault, but I just can't help it so bite me. I'm a busy woman who is chewing what she has bitten off as fast as she can. I'm a hot mess, always in a rush to get where I'm going, dragging my poor son behind me. But damn it, I'm doing it. I'm getting there. There is room for improvement for sure. But at this dawn of a new calendar year, I'm not going to make a grand pledge to change.

I am learning, slowly, but surely, that life is not about taking the perfect picture. It is about the big picture. And the smaller ones that define and describe who and what we are. Husband turned and said to me, after the snowman fell and we were rebuilding a second, "He's just like all of us. Falling apart and getting re-built bigger and better again."

Gone are the days when you waited for New Year's Eve with anticipation. No, you are in a different stage of your life now. You are a parent of children. Young children. Though it may seem this way as you approach December 31 with the family, all hope is not lost. There are things that you can do with the kids where you and the little ones can enjoy the celebration.

I am of the mind that parenting, when done correctly, involves delicately hopping over the line between imaginative play and outright deception. But man, does this time of year challenge even me. I'm not saying parents shouldn't indulge in the Yuletide traditions, old and new. But at this point, I'm not sure about how to handle the Santa thing once the hard questions come.

Christmas. The birth of Jesus. And the crucifixion of your credit card. In spite of these uncertain economic times, we're spending more than ever on crap for our little crappers. You give your youngster a big, expensive gift only to watch him toss it aside to play with the wrapping paper. This year, save yourself money with homemade gifts...

When it comes to discipline, many parents have taken a large step backwards, and technology is to blame. In this day and age of smart phone journalism, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook shares, parents have become wary and hesitant of punishing their children in case their actions at any moment are recorded and uploaded to a willing audience in a matter of seconds.

Play is not only an easy, accessible and affordable way to get children more physically active, but it has the potential to improve a child's physical, emotional, social and cognitive well-being. It's not a frill or a waste of time. According to the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card, play has been shown to improve and foster motor function, creativity, decision-making, problem solving and the ability to control emotions.

We've all heard them. Those annoying phrases that our parents said to us growing up and now that we're parents ourselves, we've decided to inflict them our own kids. The reality is that the true meanings behind these messages that parents tell their kids are often not as straightforward as they appear to be. Following are the top 10 phrases that parents use on their kids, and what they really mean.