The worldwide pandemic situation due to COVID-19 had diverse implications in the lives of families. In Portugal, after the first general confinement that was decreed in March 2020, the daily interactions and experiences of adults and children dominated the living space. Thus, the exercise of parenting also faced new dynamics and demands. This study aims to understand how the experience of confinement was associated with changes in which family functioning depends to a large extent on the way parenting is exercised. The participants were 1384 parents or caregivers (89.9% mothers) living with at least one child under the age of 18, which participated voluntarily and consented by responding to the invitation shared on social media (e.g., Facebook, WhatsApp). They responded in the online survey, formed by 5 scales regarding daily routines, co-parenting, communication and emotional regulation, social support networks and mood, indicating the degree of changes in family functioning associated with the exercise of parenting during the time in confinement. By controlling for the effect of the variables life cycle stage and employment status, the results (Two-Way Manova) show changes in parenting. The stage of the cycle and the teleworking condition seem to have effects on positive discipline, family involvement, parental role, parental alliance and agreement between spouses, emotional tension and sensitivity, and the perception of support from the informal network. The role of parenting skills and positive parenting as protective resources necessary for the stability and adjustment of the child and the well-being of the family is highlighted.