Any parent who has ever grounded their child knows what havoc a grounding can cause to their schedule.  Especially when you ground a teenager who cannot be left at home alone as most likely or in this case the reason for the grounding was their actions which led you to mistrust them so how could you trust them at home alone with the option or ability to utilize the things that you have grounded them from.  I don’t much like grounding but I have been known to do it a time or two.  How else do you punish someone who’s a foot taller then you and has access to the outside world through thirty-four different venues?  Certainly you can’t bend them over your knee and spank them.  You can’t send them to bed with no dinner.  You can’t take away their favorite toy…or can you.  In this particular case of grounding (offense will remain unmentioned – blog or no blog I have my limits) I have removed all objects of pleasure and fun to the teenage boy.

Removal of Ipod- check.
Removal of cell phone- check.
Removal of free roaming the city- check.
Removal of all-night sleepovers with buddies- check.
Removal of stupid game in which teenager is referred to as a hero after practicing guitar licks on a red plastic instrument- check.
Removal of access to one hundred thirty two channels- check.

Along with removals, you have to have some additions.

Addition of playtime with younger brother- check
Addition of usefulness around household- check
Addition of Algebra worksheets- check (ok so maybe I’m giving away a fraction of the original sin however that is only a fraction- more incidents will go unmentioned.)
Addition of strictly abided by bedtime- check.

After you add and subtract and come up with your checks and minuses your positive and your negative- you have a balance of – one relatively pleasant, engaging, productive, social, hardworking teenager.  I’m thinking this grounding might just go on until freshman year of college.  All of a sudden my teenager doesn’t mind hanging out with me- heck it’s better then Algebra problems or spot cleaning the fridge.

The caveat is this- it’s not real life.  Kids have to learn how to do all those positive things in addition to balancing the things that they want to do even if it does involve a toddler size guitar and typing at fifty miles per hour on a key pad the size of a credit card.  And to Beau’s credit he takes his grounding like a man.  There’s no whining or fussing or tantrum throwing.  Which is a good thing because they don’t call me the Drill Sergeant for nothing.