Cheerleading

[tiki]

Do you think it's a real sport?

 

Or do you think it catches a lot of crap?

 

Would you let your six year old child cheerlead? And would you drive all over the state to watch her cheer competitively?

 

My step-daughter wants to cheer, supposedly. She tried out last year and HATED it. She's six. Her mom pushes cheerleading because she was a cheerleader herself and wants her to be 'popular'. My H asked her about cheerleading two months ago and she said "no way". Now she wants to cheer, she's trying out next month. I realize that kids do change their minds often.

 

My H and I were talking last night. She's almost done with her softball season, she's got two games left. We go to every game and every practice. She enjoys playing and we enjoy watching her play.

 

H admitted to me that he had no intentions on driving around the state to watch her cheer for pee-wee football. I told him that the decision was his. He asked me how I felt. I told him that she may hate it again this year, as she did only one year ago. I told him not to put the carriage before the horse, and that we'll deal with it when the time comes.

 

Thoughts? Thoughts on cheerleading?

[MWC_LifeBeginsAt40]

How about offering some alternatives such as jazz dancing or gymnastics? Explain to her that she would be cheering for .. ewwww...boys!!!!

[blind_otter]

I heard one politician wanted to make some laws about it because of the suggestive dancing.

 

"I'm beginning to doubt your committment to Sparkle Motion!!!"

 

I did ballet, jazz, tap, modern dance, and various folk dancing for about 17 years. Man did I see a lot of eating disorders.

[tiki]

OMG her mom would die. Her mom says that basketball is for dykes. She had an interest in soccer, but her mom would never let her.

 

I bet she would be interested in some type of jazz or something. Gymnastics...yeah, definitely.

 

So when you have a kid that cheers, do you think both sets of parents should be there to watch? I just cannot imagine driving hours to watch cheerleading, either can my husband.

 

She says her mom has been teaching her cheers. All week at disney, she was doing the cheerleader's clap (no, not that kind ) with her hands all cupped up clapping and cheering the whole time.

[Naive]

I did cheerleading when I was 10-15 and I personally do not think it was a sport but it sure kept me in shape,plus, it was so freekin' fun!!! Definitely not a sport though.

[MWC_LifeBeginsAt40]

Originally posted by tiki

 

So when you have a kid that cheers, do you think both sets of parents should be there to watch? I just cannot imagine driving hours to watch cheerleading, either can my husband.

 

QUOTE]

 

I would go. If it's important to the child for both sets of parents to be there, then it's worth the effort to go see her. Isn't that what us parents do, make sacrifices for our children's happiness no matter how ugh painful it is?

[tiki]

Yeah, it'll be interesting to see how this all pans out. Hopefully she'll hate it like she did last year. I hope she rebels and plays soccor or basketball. Or karate.

[Mr Spock]

Once again I think you need to keep your nose out of it. She'll find a way to express herself against her mother in time, without help from you.

 

 

I think you should be supportive of HER. If you and your husband showed some enthusiasm and said you'd come to watch her it would encourage her to try it out. After all, it may not be as noble as basketball or soccor but it's something for kids to do, and isn't quite as bad as snorting crank.

 

There are lots of times kids don't like something until they get kind of good at it. Her mother obviously wants her to try cheerleading because it's something she can relate to. Kind of like kids and piano lessons....you know??

[Naive]

Originally posted by Mr Spock

but it's something for kids to do, and isn't quite as bad as snorting crank.

 

True!

[Giselle]

I was on dance team myself in high school. Even though I was already 16 and 17, it was still nice to see my parents drive long distances to see and videotape my competitions. Since they would come to the competitions though, that let them off the hook for driving long distances just to see us perform at half-time for my high school's football team.

 

You might want to be careful though--my mom did become the "team mom," and would end up bringing snacks and stuff for the team.

 

It was cool, cuz I was popular :-) but sometimes I didn't like sharing my mom! I did feel bad for the other girls whose parents were never there, tho. Competitions were a pretty big deal for us.

[tiki]

Originally posted by Mr Spock

Once again I think you need to keep your nose out of it. She'll find a way to express herself against her mother in time, without help from you.

 

Ya know, I can try to keep my nose out of it as much as I can. But my husband is telling me that he won't go and watch her cheer. He says it's stupid and it's not a sport. Like, let's go watch her cheer for the other sport....um, no. And that's his opinion and he's entitled to it.

 

I think it's funny how I always wind up being the bad guy here. Pay attention. I told you in the first post that the father didn't want to do it. And as much as anyone can tell me to try to stay out of it, it's my life, and it affects my life. So don't tell me to stay out of it. It's not fun nor a priveledge to be a step-parent, and it's no easy job.

 

I spoke with my husband last night about what happens on the weekends when she's with us and she has cheerleading. He said "Oh well, guess we'll have other plans". As you can see, he feels that this whole thing is stupid.

 

As his wife, I have to play a part. It affect my life AND my schedule too, my son's schedule even. So quit telling me to keep my nose out of it. Damn.

[MWC_LifeBeginsAt40]

That's too bad that just because your husband thinks it's stupid, he's not considering his daughter's feelings. She is going to make all kinds of choices in her life, and yes, lots of them will be influenced by her mother. He's not going to like all of them but doesn't mean he shouldn't support his own daughter.

 

Has he always put his own feelings ahead of everyone else's?

[tiki]

No. He's a fair father. I've posted about him before. He's not grand, by any means. And he knows this. He wants to work on it, but he says there's no way he's driving for hours to see her cheer for a sport, and that playing a sport would be different. We are finishing up her softball season now.

 

He can be dingy sometimes. I have to remind him of things. I constantly remind him to send out his CS check (almost $800.00 a month). I decided I'm not going to remind him anymore. He's a big boy and can figure it out on his own. He paid his CS before me, it's his job to remember it, not mine.

 

I love him, he's a great person. I know he could brush up on his parenting skills. But I don't feel like I should be the one to make the decisions when it comes to his daughter and his parenting tactics. He always asks what I recommend, he loves hearing my input, even if I don't want to give it. But I told him it's ultimately his choice, and that I don't want to intrude on that. He tells me he wants me sooo involved, and begs for my input and begs me to play a part. I may give him my input, but he makes his decisions and usually does a decent job at it.

 

I'm the one reminding him that his daughter has a game. Or practice. Or this, or that. He just flows like it's nothing. Like not a care in the world. Sometimes it's like having three kids. I deal with it though. I love him too much, he can just be a dork.

 

I'm tired of forcing/pushing him to be the good parent. He can make it through this and make his own decisions. And not just rely solely on mine.

[IhavenoFREAKINclue]

I think its absolutely a sport. I did cheerleading for 12 years until I broke my knee. I would be doing it in college right now if that didn't happen.

 

What qualifies a sport as a sport? Cheerleaders compete, practice, train just as much as football players do. I would say its more dangerous than any other sport. Try falling 25 feet on your butt. Or, like me, landing on your knee wrong and watching it pop out of the socket. I have had a broken nose, sprained wrist, fractured collar bone and a bruised ego. (falling on your face in front of 1000 people is not fun) We went to nationals in Florida and got 6th in the nation out of all HS cheerleading squads. HS cheerleading is some serious s***

[tiki]

Good points, IHNFC. She'll be cheering for Pee-Wee football as far as I know.

[IhavenoFREAKINclue]

That's how I started. Pop Warner. When I was 5. Get her started early and if she likes it and gets good, your going to have a "Cheer Mom" bumper sticker in no time!

[tiki]

She's shy and reserved. I can't imagine her being loud and agressive.

 

Bumper sticker? Oh noooooo.

 

What is pop warner?

[magda]

I think that since she is only 6 years old it is probably important to attend as often as is practical, no matter what sport she chooses. And if you can't make it a lot or if your husband doesn't, make kind of a big deal about it at home, like ask her to show you all the cheers and such. At this age, she probably cares most about making everyone proud of her, but it sounds like this is the only acceptable sport for her. I hope your husband comes around and at least pretends to be a little enthusiastic.

[IhavenoFREAKINclue]

Originally posted by tiki

What is pop warner?

 

Pop Warner is like the town team organization. Every kid in the town can pay to go on the team. Either Football or Cheerleading. You really don't need skill, just 300 bucks. Like we had Springfield Pop Warner playing Smithfield Pop Warner. Maybe its only in Jersey, but every town has it.

[Merin]

Hmm.. well my niece did cheerleading for awhile when she was 6, she also did karate... she decided she preferred karate to cheerleading and since my sister wasn't all about shelling out mo money for both LOL she gave her the option to choose one or the other..

 

I did all sorts of crap when I was growing up and never failed to piss my parents the hell off when I lost interest but I guess as long as you guys are giving her opportunities to try some new things that interest her then it's good to go...

[Treasa]

My friend, who was a college varsity cheerleader, said it was a LOT of work. You could tell by just looking at her. Cheerleading requires a lot of athleticism. However, I'm also referring to college-level cheering. I didn't think they even HAD six-year-olds doing it. And I think it's retarded. Are we going to start brainwashing little girls to sit on the sidelines and fawn over boys by the time they come out of the womb?? Geez.

 

Do the girl a favor and get her into tae kwon do or something. Now THAT will have some benefits.

[tiki]

Originally posted by magda

And if you can't make it a lot or if your husband doesn't, make kind of a big deal about it at home, like ask her to show you all the cheers and such.

 

Yeah, I think he's disenheartened with it all. And she may wind up hating it, and quitting.

 

 

Originally posted by IhavenoFREAKINclue

 

 

Pop Warner is like the town team organization. Every kid in the town can pay to go on the team. Either Football or Cheerleading. You really don't need skill, just 300 bucks. Like we had Springfield Pop Warner playing Smithfield Pop Warner. Maybe its only in Jersey, but every town has it.

 

Cool....I've never heard of it.

 

 

Originally posted by Merin

I did all sorts of crap when I was growing up and never failed to piss my parents the hell off when I lost interest but I guess as long as you guys are giving her opportunities to try some new things that interest her then it's good to go...

 

I sucked at everything. I quit ballet. I hope she decides to take up Karate, that would be a trip to see. My H has interest in AKIDO or some crap (???) and he wants her to get involved if possible, atleast in Karate. But her mom would sh*t a brick. But her mom didn't care when he sh*t a brock about the Cheerleading. So I guess all is fair in love and war.

[tiki]

Originally posted by Treasa

My friend, who was a college varsity cheerleader, said it was a LOT of work. You could tell by just looking at her. Cheerleading requires a lot of athleticism. However, I'm also referring to college-level cheering. I didn't think they even HAD six-year-olds doing it. And I think it's retarded. Are we going to start brainwashing little girls to sit on the sidelines and fawn over boys by the time they come out of the womb?? Geez.

 

Do the girl a favor and get her into tae kwon do or something. Now THAT will have some benefits.

 

My mom LOATHES cheerleading. And she's always made fun of it since I was a child. She says, "Why cheer for the sport, when you can play the sport?!" She taught me that cheerleaders were bimbos. My best friend in HS was captain of the cheerleading team.

 

But she's not happy about her cheerleading either. She's told me to tell her to play a real sport and not just to cheer for boys playing a sport. I told her I couldn't say that and she said she'd say it, and that way her mom could hate her til no end and not be able to do a thing about it.

 

It's sad that the 'sport' catches a lot of crap, and that people are categorical about it all, but some cheerleaders have done it to themselves.

[Illusion24]

Tiki...

 

Let me start by saying I did it for 11 years and it was the best time of my life. I was in an All-Star team, cheered for College and University...I received a shcolarship (not much) but I did.

 

YES IT'S A REAL SPORT!!! I loved it and it taught me how to be a team sport. It was exciting and fun and I traveled all around the world.

 

The rush you get right before you go on a competition floor is an experience in it's own. The cheerleading world is a whole different part of life and it's great. I wish I can still do it but I have to many injuries.

 

I learned how to stunt but I only stunted coed, tumble, dance ...everything you can jam into a 3 min. routine we did it...I'm not sure if anyone here has ever heard of Miami Elite...But that's the All-star team I was on...I also cheered for my middle school for 4 years...

 

The uniform, the makeup, the traveling , the friends you make....I wouldn't have wanted to do any other sport..I've even consdiered coaching but it takes a lot of time.

 

Tiki...I will tell you this, it's a lot of money...My mom had to pay for everything..Gym feels, all the trips, uniforms, outfits...It was very expensive...My mom easily spent about $15,000 to $25,000 a year...And I did it for 11 years..Do the math

 

But then again I was on an All-star team which is different than a school team...University you get sponsors so you don't pay that much...

 

I hope you give her the opportunity to try it out and see if she likes it's...Cheerleading isn't for everyone and it's hard and it's a lot of dedication...I would put my kids in it in a heart beat...

t

t

[IhavenoFREAKINclue]

Originally posted by NeverSayNever

Tiki...

 

Let me start by saying I did it for 11 years and it was the best time of my life. I was in an All-Star team, cheered for College and University...I received a shcolarship (not much) but I did.

 

YES IT'S A REAL SPORT!!! I loved it and it taught me how to be a team sport. It was exciting and fun and I traveled all around the world.

 

The rush you get right before you go on a competition floor is an experience in it's own. The cheerleading world is a whole different part of life and it's great. I wish I can still do it but I have to many injuries.

 

I learned how to stunt but I only stunted coed, tumble, dance ...everything you can jam into a 3 min. routine we did it...I'm not sure if anyone here has ever heard of Miami Elite...But that's the All-star team I was on...I also cheered for my middle school for 4 years...

 

The uniform, the makeup, the traveling , the friends you make....I wouldn't have wanted to do any other sport..I've even consdiered coaching but it takes a lot of time.

 

Tiki...I will tell you this, it's a lot of money...My mom had to pay for everything..Gym feels, all the trips, uniforms, outfits...It was very expensive...My mom easily spent about $15,000 to $25,000 a year...And I did it for 11 years..Do the math

 

But then again I was on an All-star team which is different than a school team...University you get sponsors so you don't pay that much...

 

I hope you give her the opportunity to try it out and see if she likes it's...Cheerleading isn't for everyone and it's hard and it's a lot of dedication...I would put my kids in it in a heart beat...

t

t

 

Word Up! If was def the best time I ever had in my life. I made so many friends, some of which I still am friends with.