I was unconsciously humming a pleasant little tune when a woman in the next line started humming a line of harmony. We laughed. We couldn't figure out where it was from, but a young man who was bagging groceries knew immediately -- it was the theme to "Sonic The Hedgehog."

My daughter was surfing the Internet and asked me why Britney Spears shaved her head a few years back. "She was having a nervous breakdown," I explained. My daughter looked at me thoughtfully. "Isn't that what you have sometimes?" she asked. GULP.

It is at this point that the toddler transformed from the sweet child I once played Peek-a-Boo and rocked to sleep to what I can only imagine mirrors a meth addict detoxing...

Note: This post is excerpted from my latest parenting book, Your Children are Listening: Nine Messages They Need to Hear from You. Though my focus in...