two of my beautiful daughters (not in the picture) are signed up for cheerleading this season- my 3rd daughter soon to follow in their footsteps. it seems i've been designated as a cheerleader raising camp. recently they did a 4th of july parade where they chanted cheers while sitting on a float. i won't mention that the girls didn't get to go the bathroom for a few hours & were ready to explode when i picked them up. okay- let me get on track here. my older daughter (bird) seems to have been made to cheerlead. she absolutely loves the routines, the outfits, the hairdos, the other girls, & jumping around the house reciting cheers like a poodle on crack. some of you know me & the whole cheerleading thing escapes me. the only value I can attach to cheerleading is from my days as a footballer & looking @ the pretty girls. enough on that....
do you know what i'm really concerned about here? i'm very happy that my girls have found something that makes them very happy. still wanna know what i'm concerned about? i don't know about you, but i've seen how cheerleaders "move" as they move up in the cheerleading years/ranks. i don't want my girls shaking their "groove things/booties" in front of anyone. @ what age do they start this horrid thing? are my girls going to get so involved in this thing, just to find out that their dad won't let them shake their booties on the dance floor? i don't know, maybe it's just a problem that i have. i'm thinkin' about my babies moving their bodies around & it bothers me quite a bit. are there appropriate booty movements in public?
what do you blog geeks think about this cheerleading thing? am i being too concerned or do i pray for the most boring cheerleading squad known to man- for them? any cheerleaders out there? any guys that have seen cheerleaders out there? any parents that have come across this dilemma yet?
i don't even know how to spell booty!
10 comments:
What you said kind of reminds me of something I saw in a movie once where there were these old-time (like 1930's) cheerleaders and they were wearing skirts that came to their ankles and sweaters. It's a funny picture. I can understand why you would be concerned and I agree with that concern. If they decide that they really would like to continue once they hit, say the high school level, but you don't want them to at that point, rather than just putting the foot down you could always find alternatives. If they love the moves, then perhaps encouraging them to take dance would be a good idea. At the same time, I think it may not really be something to worry about at this moment because their interests could easily change and maybe they'd decide they like volleyball or theatre. Then you would have worried for nothing. :)
jay, you know i love you so let me hit you with one of those doses of unpleasant reality. putting your foot down when it comes to high school age is at worst unrealistic (i.e. not going to happen) and at best counterproductive (you know how the whole forbidden fruit thing works) to what you're attempting to do. the best thing you can do is begin teaching them why you find certain things to be immodest/inappropriate and pray that they are on board by the time they are 14-16 and begin making their own decisions.
letting go is hard to do, especially knowing that there will be mistakes along the way, but it helps to look at God as your example. He loves us and is never remiss in telling us what to do, but will rarely intervene to prevent you from making the wrong decision. even harder to model is the forgiveness thing when you do exactly what God tells you not to and it blows up in your face.
take it from someone who is there right now, the difference between 8-11 is so different from 14-15 that it's hard to imagine how little control you really have without becoming an unreasonable tyrant. i'm still struggling with taking my own advice.
so glad you are back.
i was never a cheerleader, my daughter has no disire to be a cheerleader (would prefer to play football), so i have little experience in the matter. as a mother, i would be concerned as they get older, but not all squads get into that booty thing. i remember going to games in loyalton, the cheerleaders there were very tame.
you & min can pray that the girls will have their own convictions about such things. when they see it, it is so much better. then you don't have to be the mean, over protective, boring parent.
yeah... brent and debi just totally said what I was thinking so much more eloquently... Good call guys! :)
i never said i was worried. i said i was concerned. concerned that they'd put their heart into something & get a coach that thinks that showing bellies & shaking booties is okay. i'm not "worrying", I'm looking ahead & considering our avenues of approach. what do ya got to say to that? huh? punks! just kiddin...
As scary as it sounds I think I'd have to agree with Brent. A kid is going to do what a kid is going to do. Granted you could force them to stop cheerleading and they, in most cases, would not be able to do that any more; however, they wouldn't understand why if you spend the time explaining it to them. Kid's aren't stupid, they just don't know much about life.
Thinking back to my high school years what got me through safely was that my parents had taught me about right and wrong. This included things from cigarettes to sex. I'm thinking if you explain to them at the right time what guys are thinking when certain hip/body movements are made that they will get the picture and make a decision for themselves.
Pray hard and dilegently for your girls. Teach them the ways of Christ...teach them to follow His spirit and ways. If you continue to do a good job as a parent now, you will reap the benefits later when your daughters make decisions that please God - and you :)
looks like i'm seeing a trend here. this is becoming a tad lop-sided. mindy had a very similar response like yours. what's wrong w/ you people. :-) don't you know that a 9 & 7 year old still need guidance? do you really think a 9 year old is going to have a thought process that contradicts her strong desire to cheer, have friends, & fit in? Maybe, when she gets older, but I don't see it happening now. i think i'm fighting a losing battle....
dude what a popular topic! i'm saying that you are on the right track thinking and talking about it with your girls now. i'm involved in such a struggle right now that i'm positive no amount of talking will prepare you for what lies ahead. good luck!
share the knowledge b-dog. maybe, you should throw up a post on your site that gives some helpful advice to fathers w/ daughters approaching the teen years. you could at least give me some helpful hints.
kind of off the subject here- what does a father do w/ 3 girls that don't stop talking & usually do it @ the same time? i've tried numerous things & the same results happens: me standing in the middle of them w/ this look of frustration & resignation. :-)
Just nod and smile...
: )
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