My newest obsession Caitlin Moran, author of How To Be A Woman, says that the Spice Girls ruined feminism. 

And I totally agree.

Pregnancy can be joyous, confusing, emotional, and for some, an extremely sickening time; the hormones, the anxiety, and the unknowns can weigh heavily on the mind of even the happiest pregnant woman.

But what happens when there are deeper, darker thoughts? What happens when the mixture of hormones becomes toxic and causes an expectant mother to become depressed?

How many time outs have you successfully given in your parenting career? Honestly. Ones that resulted in the child sitting quietly and then returning to the scene composed, apologetic and ready to play?

I would honestly say in my 12 years of parenting that I have done that a handful of times. That's not to say that I haven't yelled haphazardly "time out!!!" but it never really works out very well.

There is no question that parenting has changed dramatically in the new millennium. This generation of parents is marked by our overthinking, our love of products, and the need to do everything perfectly.

Our expensive strollers, Sophie the Giraffe, and octopus-like babywearing apprati are just some of the signs of modern parenting. Bunch Family put together a list of 25 Signs You're a 21st Century parent which contains a hilariously true list of signs of this parenting age including:

Number one: You spent more time selecting a stroller than some people do buying a car.

Do you 'mommy' your partner?

Do you nag them to empty the dishwasher? Put their socks in the hamper? Close the fridge door?

A new book, "How Can I Be Your Lover When I'm too Busy Being Your Mother?, says that dynamic can cost you your marriage or, at least, your sex life. 

According to the Globe and Mail, the book by therapist Sara Dimerman and J.M. Kearns says that "house proud" wives are nagging their husbands who are not keeping up their end of the household chores. The stereotypical nagging wife and the slothful husband are reminiscent of old social values that need to be updated by both genders.

In the Globe article, Dimerman says that wives accuse husbands of ignoring messes, making sharper distinctions of work and play so they don't want to work on their time off. Men say their wives nag, criticize them when they don't do their chores to perfection, and are over-protective of their children. All this adds up to women mothering their husbands which decreases sexual attraction on both sides.

I know that is true in many homes, but not in mine. 

I don't consider myself extreme, but according to this post in the Daily Beast I am an extreme breastfeeder.

I took drugs to increase my milk, I pumped in the middle of the night, and I took weird herbs. If the writer only knew that I also fed my son with a tube at my breast for FIVE months, I think she might self combust. 

Call me fanatical, extreme, crazy or sane. I don't care. I did what felt right. I hope you did too, whatever form that took.

My husband and I always knew we wanted our house to be "the house". You know, the one where all the kids congregate after school. The one where the front door is always open and the kids feel comfortable inviting their friends over to hang out.

And, except a brief period when the boys were obsessed with war games that we don't allow, we are that house. We welcome sleepovers and kids staying for dinner; our yard and basement are usually filled with many ages of kids.

We run out of cookies quickly, but the bonus is that I get to see my kids' friends -- who they are, how they interact and which ones I want around, and which ones I don't. In fact, having my kids' friends around has let me see that sometimes the ones I like at first are the most troublesome (aka Eddie Haskall-like). Conversely, sometimes the kids who I don't like at first grow on me and I can see that I missed something at first (aka Fonzies).

Here are my tips for being the most popular house on the block:

My 9-year-old son wants to be an actor. He tells everyone. He told me that he got up in front of the entire camp and said: I may be small, but on stage I am big.

That broke my heart. He is slight for his age and a middle child so it's no surprise that he wants to do something where he can claim the limelight. I, of course, don't want him to be an actor. I don't want him to be subjected to so much scrutiny and hardship. I want his life to be easier than that.

But his life is not mine to decide. And now I have to repeat that statement to myself 1,000 times daily until I believe it.

Just in time for the most gender-inclusive Olympics in history, Harrod's has unveiled a new gender-neutral design for its London toy store.

Hurray.

And now, let's move on.

If I could freeze my kids at their current ages, I probably would. Scratch that. I would have frozen them last year, or maybe even the year before.

Because if I had a choice, I would want to make sure that I had a four- or five-year-old in the house. I love that age. They are so much who they are at that age: fearless and smart; articulate but still say funny things; interested and interesting. They are full of personality and they still need their Mama.