The last few weeks, news of the wild youth has been gracing the front pages of the country's media.

Some may say the inter-generational gap between parent and teens widens as the holidays approach when many families face family vacations, reunions and headache of how much freedom they should be giving their teens during the upcoming break.

"Despite common belief that Christmas is a stressful time for parents with uncontrolled parties and unpredictable consequences, this is the truly best time of the year to connect with your teenager and resolve any conflicts without pressures of everyday life," says young bestselling author and parenting teenagers expert Eva-Maria. Her books You Shut Up! and Shush, You prove that conflict resolution is possible, even in as little as five minutes a day.

Finally during the Christmas break many parents get a chance to spend a lot more quality time with their teenagers. "Don't be fooled by 'the look' your teenager is giving you. Simply start a conversation, ask for help or give feedback", suggests Eva-Maria.

There are some small things you can do to help encourage maximum interaction and condone responsibility and freedom as described in You Shut Up!, which she wrote when she was just a 17 year old teenager herself, picking up on patterns of conflict resolution from case studies of her peers at the time, that still ring true, 4 years onwards.

A few tips for parents with teens and pre-teens during the holiday period:

1. Get your teens to help you plan the family vacation - this takes the stress off parents, and ensures that the family can all enjoy themselves during the time away.

2. Set aside some time for some good old-fashioned bonding - you don't need a dreaded family game night to do this - how about taking them out for a plain, simple walk, just to talk.

3. Kill conflict on the spot - ask your teen about their side of the story in a disagreement - the fact that you're interested in their viewpoint may be enough for them to open up completely.

Written by a 21st century teenager, 'You Shut Up!' explores the twisted teenage mind, giving parents an insider's view into the world of today's teenagers. The guessing game of what teenagers really think is over -this book will give you valuable never-before-published information to help you build a better relationship with your teen! With the help of this book be one of the first to get ahead, and find out how to handle your teenager to both your and their advantage!

And to help parents navigate through the rocky times, Wellington's young parenting teens author and social media consultant Eva-Maria is taking the online game to the next level.

In hope to help parents build better relationships with their teens by showing the 'teen side', she has started a weekly draw for a signed copy of her bestselling book 'You Shut Up!' on her social media networks, as a countdown to Christmas when most relationships between parents and teens starts to go sour, leading up to the family season.