Parenthood started out with a bang this week... in the form of a bird smashing into the plate glass door at Julia's; Drew deciding to sneak his friends into the barn at Zeek's for a few beers; Hadie lying and sneaking off to see Alex; Crosby and Jasmine arguing over how to parent; and Sarah swearing off men in the new year.

On "Damage Control," Julia and Joel spent their morning trying to nurse the fallen bird back to health after its run-in with their beautiful streak-free door.  They struggled with the decision to tell Sydney that the bird is involved in some afterlife activity.

Julia felt using the concept of heaven would soften the blow, while Joel was adamantly against it. In the end, they went with Joel's idea of the honest approach. Of course, Julia then went all alpha and pulled out the heaven card anyway, as Sydney seemed to accept her explanation. 

I actually loved this scene. As a parent of young children, this is something I struggle with daily.  It was also nice to see Joel attempt to assert his will.

Adam, after hearing from Kristina about Hadie's secret relationship with Alex, headed down to the soup kitchen and invited Alex to the house for dinner. 

While Adam and Kristina liked Alex, they were conflicted by their concern for Hadie once they learned he is a recovering alcoholic, and decided they are not going to allow the relationship to continue.  When they broke the news to Hadie, she took it like any other sixteen-year-old on the planet would: via tears and anger. 

We saw what was coming next a mile away, right?  Hadie headed down to the homeless shelter and told Alex that her parents loved him.

Elsewhere, Crosby was forced to discipline Jabar. The latter consequently threw a tantrum on par with a three-year old.  This is really the first time we've seen Crosby deal with Jabar on an authoritative level, and let me tell you something: that kid has issues.  I have four-year-old twins who have never thrown a fit like that.  

Jabar was screaming that he hated Crosby. I thought that kind of hatred only happened when they turned into teenagers.  I guess I have a lot to learn!

Surprisingly, the Tearjerker Moment of the Week came from ... drumroll ... Joel!

While Julia was explaining the concept of heaven to Sydney, she employed the example of Joel's dead mother.  Later, Joel was watching Sydney play in the yard when Julia came up behind him and found him crying.  He misses his mother, turns out, and wishes she was there to watch Sydney grow up.   It was heart-wrenching.

Teardrop Scale: 4.5 out of 5.  This one hit home.