Every family needs some structure.
Set limits that work for you. The first step in setting down realistic rules in your family is to understand your child's ages and stages of development. Before your child is 2 years old, it's much easier to simply redirect his undesirable behavior rather than to try to stop it with a set of rigid rules. For example, if your child has a tendency to scribble on the walls, tell him that this is wrong and give him some large sheets of paper instead. You will find that being positive rather than negative usually results in a better chance of cooperation.