So after my birthday post for my mom when I said,

“A) I can no longer be grounded”

…my mom actually found an old e-mail saved back in the AOL days… from a time when I was grounded. This post speaks for itself. Here is my very mature e-mail.

And a very mature selfie photo, taken of myself, around the same time. My WORD.

One more photo of sixteen year old Melinda, just for kicks. (also- Meredith never did anything bad enough to be grounded…)

 

Date: July 17, 2006

Subject: mel’s letter

During this week of grounding, I have learned a lot about myself and about this family. I know that what I did was wrong, and I do not intend on doing it again. I know that I have to let you two teach me lessons, but the only way I can learn from my mistakes is to teach myself. This week of grounding was not bad at all, so in a way I guess you didn’t do your job… Just kidding! But what I mean is that, it wasn’t bad staying at home and if I had been out doing other things dad and I may have not found the time to go out to the shooting range, or maybe mom and I wouldn’t have had the talks that we did. I want to say that I am sorry and I know that I will have a fun and safe senior year as long as I make good choices. You have been there for all of my really really bad ones! But I promise that you will be there for my next year of good choices. Having a beer will solve nothing as far as my problems are concerned, but being at home and giving myself time for MYSELF will. Thanks for making this the best week of punishment I have ever received. And I don’t think that many more weeks of this will occur, even though it might be nice every once in a while! (just kidding, again)

love you!!! <3 melinda 

There you have it.

I especially like the line “having a beer will solve nothing as far as my problems are concerned.” I was so wise.

Really, though, what IS wise, is how my parents went about “grounding.” Obviously, I hung out with my family and my dad even took me to the shooting range. I wasn’t grounded as in “stay in your room for a week,” I was just grounded from the people I was getting into trouble with. I’ll definitely be implementing family time into grounding for my own kids, too.

Genius, mom and dad, genius!

(And one more selfie, because I went to all the effort and signed into my old MySpace account in order to find these. Yes. MySpace!!! It’s weird(er) now.)

Love,

No Longer Grounded Lou