The Shane and Danielle Matheson Family: Cheerleading

This year we have something new happening! We have NEVER had a cheerleader, nor has anyone been a cheerleader before. So, let me back up. . .

Tacey had been an avid Basketball Player, and enjoyed the sport. Her Freshman year she played and was Captain of her team. However, last year as the competition had been stiff, she didn't make the team. She was disappointed: very disappointed at first. But I think the hardest part was that the coaches told her she was good enough for the team, but that she would spend a lot of time on the bench and didn't want to waste her time that way. They told her what she needed to work on, encouraged her to do that work and try out the next year. She had a rough night that night. We were worried about her.

Disappointment is difficult, but I think it is more difficult to watch your children then go through it yourself.

I give her credit though. She came upstairs the next morning with a new list of goals that included a re-dedication to her academics, a change in social groups and the decision to try something new. She realized that while she likes Basketball, it wasn't something she wanted to work for the way the other girls did.

The new thing is Cheerleading.

Funny how things go. I had always wondered if Tacey could work for anything. She has pretty much been good at everything she has tried the first time she tried it. She has never really come across anything HARD. I didn't figure Cheerleading would be all that hard, since she has been dancing since she was two, but she has never done any tumbling or gymnastics, so that could be a problem.

Among the things she did was re-add the dance classes she had dropped in anticipation of Basketball, and then she added a gymnastics class to prepare for Cheerleading tryouts.

Then this spring, we had the fateful week. She learned cheers and dances for a full week before spring break, then had tryouts on Friday.
Honestly, I have never seen her work so hard in my life.
In addition, she did it with no support from her friends. Not only was she the only one in her circle of friends that tried out, she was the only one in her entire GRADE that tried out. Pretty amazing that she can stand on her own like that when she wants to do something.
I went and sat with her for the results.

At least she knows her mom always has her back.

Oh, was I ever so glad to see her name. Truth be told, I wasn't overly worried. But still, it had been a long year of lots of disappointment. She had started in Show Choir but had to quit because of the environment in there. Basketball had been disappointing. She had briefly dated a nice young man that was too nice to tell her he was dating someone else. This resulted in a heart break on Valentines Day. Her classes had been hard. She did get a part in the school musical, which was more than 43 other girls could say.

But this, this she did on her own. She worked for it and earned it.

With Cheerleading comes a whole bunch of new stuff:

Cheer Camp

Summer Practices - 3 times a week

Money, lots and lots of money

6 Uniforms

matching shoes

2 sets of spandex

one middriff shirt with her name embroidered on it

Pom poms

Special Varsity Cheer Sweatshirt

Sweat Suit - with her name Embroidered on it

Cheer Duffle Bag - with her name printed on it

Pay-to-play fee since it is a SPORT

Activity card so she can get INTO the games to cheer

Schedule change to make sure she doesn't miss heavy academics when she has to leave early for games

Big hair bows

Freaked out Grandmas when they find out she is a flyer.

(That means she is the one the hold up or toss up in the sir)

Bruises

Sore Muscles

Scratches from when she is a base instead of a flyer and the girl freaks out in the air

and much more that I am sure we haven't even discovered yet.

Cheer Camp was the end of July.

They performed for us the last day. They were tired and sore, but she loved every minute of it.

**Warning to Grandparents with weak stomachs**

Tacey gets thrown around at the beginning of the video.

She lives, so you can relax.

Okay, we had a hard time with that last pyramid. Lets try it again a little slower.

The two professionals that came in to run the cheer camp were those cute ones in black. Tacey said they came in and told them they had been cheerleading since they were 7, they cheered for Dixie State College and now had 7 competition teams as well as classes for people who wanted to be on their teams. I think the girls were skeptical until one of them showed her 'skills' which included doing a jump where she basically kicked herself in the face.

I guess that is one way to get street cred.