All-Star Cost? Uniforms? Are We Crazy?

[Just-a-Mom]

I don't know if it's just me, but do people look at you like you're crazy as they find out more about cheer? I've tried to "recruit" a few of my friends to sign their daughters up for cheer, but once they took a look at the costs, they turned and ran. But apparently that was not enough...now they feel obligated to point out to EVERYONE we know how much cheer costs. Which of course prompts such rude comments as "Geez...how do you afford that?" and "Wow. No wonder you're always broke."

The second one I get all the time is "Oh wow. Isn't that a little provocative???" or "OMG...I would NEVER let my child wear that." Gee, thanks.

Obviously, I'm not afraid to speak my mind (as evidenced on here ) but I'm not always in the mood to have an hour long debate on the merits of cheerleading.

Are we crazy? I feel like if my daughters love cheering, and I can keep them in it, it's worth the sacrifices. Aside from the fact that they LOVE it, it keeps them soooo busy that all they have time for is school, cheer, eat, sleep. Which in my mind is a good thing! And is cheer reeeeally that much more expensive than other sports? I mean, I know you can do rec sports and those are usually less expensive, but really, aren't all "club" sports costly? And lastly...I guess I was just raised differently. I was brought up that it's not actually acceptable to ask someone how much something costs and then ask how they're paying for it "on what you make!"

Am I the only one whose family and friends think this is insane? What do ya'll say to these people to get them off your back? It's driving me mad!!!

 

[Mom2K]

We don't get a lot of that kind of reaction anymore. I think once these people see what your cp actually does it can alleviate some of the criticisms. I'm not sure if anyone has actually asked me how we paid for it, but if they did I would just point out how you don't pay for everything all at once, most gyms have all the extra fees divided up. There are also a lot of kids around here in select baseball or soccer, or that play golf or hockey which can be just as expensive (or more) than cheer, so everyone is paying for something.

Funny, the biggest reaction I can think of came from my own son. He has always played sports, first rec, then through school, so the expense was pretty minimal. He was shocked to find out that we had to pay tuition EVERY month for his sister's cheer. If he only knew............

 

[amanda]

i agree!
It upsets me when people say those things about money and the uniforms. i tell them this "where else would i spend the money" "do you want me to go get my nails done" hahha
It seems as though no matter where your spending the money its an issue. I could go buy a new car, take vacations, go out with my friends on a Friday night, get a new living room set, etc. But i choose to put my niece (i have guardianship) in a sport and spend all my spear money on that sport. She is also in gymnastics which is $120 every 8 weeks. I think as long as im not having to borrow money off people than it shouldn't be an issue and they should get off my back. I have found that all star cheerleading is very expensive and the most expensive sport we have ever done. My boyfriends daughter did swimming lessons, ballet, soccer, sports class, and gymnastics. cheerleading was the most expensive. But i do know that competitive gymnastics maybe a little more than cheerleading. I know at our gymnastics gym they charge by the hour. for instance a level 10 gymnast is there 18 hours a week that would be 312 dollars a month. not including comp fees, practice leotards, comp leotards, grips etc. its crazy

But yes its very annoying when people complain about the price. Its for your child....its worth it!!!!!

 

[simplymom]

I think part of the problem is that "cheer civilians" don't really understand what these kids do. I've heard "You pay HOW much for cheerleading?" Once people started watching my daughter's teams' videos on my Facebook page, they were stunned! Granted, it is an expensive sport, but I would guess the cost is comparable to travel hockey, Irish dance (those costumes cost a fortune) among others. How my family chooses to spend our money is our business!

 

[newcheerdad]

I remember having a conversation once with the parent of one my daughter's friends, and we were talking about activities our kids did. When we mentioned she did all-star cheer, this parent (without skipping a beat) said "wow, you must be rich."

 

[KeepUp]

Yes, we're a little crazy...but that's ok we understand eachother...and there are thousands of us!

 

[Just-a-Mom]

i agree!
It upsets me when people say those things about money and the uniforms. i tell them this "where else would i spend the money" "do you want me to go get my nails done" hahha
It seems as though no matter where your spending the money its an issue. I could go buy a new car, take vacations, go out with my friends on a Friday night, get a new living room set, etc. But i choose to put my niece (i have guardianship) in a sport and spend all my spear money on that sport. She is also in gymnastics which is $120 every 8 weeks. I think as long as im not having to borrow money off people than it shouldn't be an issue and they should get off my back. I have found that all star cheerleading is very expensive and the most expensive sport we have ever done. My boyfriends daughter did swimming lessons, ballet, soccer, sports class, and gymnastics. cheerleading was the most expensive. But i do know that competitive gymnastics maybe a little more than cheerleading. I know at our gymnastics gym they charge by the hour. for instance a level 10 gymnast is there 18 hours a week that would be 312 dollars a month. not including comp fees, practice leotards, comp leotards, grips etc. its crazy

But yes its very annoying when people complain about the price. Its for your child....its worth it!!!!!

I love the nail thing--I'm totally saying that next time someone says something!

And you are so right--no matter how I spend money someone always has something to say. The only person I don't mind it from is my sister--and that's because I'm living in her house, rent free (she is out of the country for a year for work, so she let me have her place <3)...and she says the least. She really does not like cheerleading (I think there may be some deep rooted high school drama left over... LOL), but she is very supportive of my girls doing it. She hated it when we first started but now that my girls have actually talked to her about it she's slowly giving in. She is even flying here tonight to go to their last competition tomorrow! It'll be her first cheer competition ever...and it's a big one. My boss is even coming--because he adores my kids, and he's always picking on cheerleading. We told him he wasn't allowed to say another word until he comes to a competition and actually watches what they do.

I just get so aggravated...some of my friends are just so over the line in the stuff they say. I texted one that uniforms were in and I had to go pick it up, and she wrote back "Oh...another cheap hooker outfit?" I was stunned...I just wrote back "Well, first off they sure aren't CHEAP! And second off, would you like it if I used the phrase 'cheap hooker' in the same sentence as your daughter's name???" This is supposed to be my best friend...

I think I'm slowly getting them all past it as the years go on...they are starting to see how much work actually goes into it--and that the girls are actually serious about it so it may be worth the money. But I really am stunned at least once a week by the stuff that people say.

My daughter is so funny with it. She always says "OK, first of all...RUDE. Second of all...RUDE. And last of all? RUDE." when her friends try to "mock" cheer.

 

[alliebby33]

I cheer and I've played ice hockey since I was 5. There are only 2 girls hockey teams in northern Ohio and our league is based in New York. 2-3 weekends a month between September and march, we have games in buffalo, Rochester, or Syracuse. I miss some for cheer. But no one questions the amount of money that my parents have spent to put my brother and I through hockey, and I don't understand why people have to question it for cheer. It's rude and none of their business!

 

[KRECCheer]

We know a lot of people whose kids play "real" sports and they just cant understand why parents would want to pay that much for an "activity" such as cheerleading. Like @Just-a-Mom says, if your child loves it and it keeps them out of the trouble they could be getting into, why the heck not?!!

 

[KRECCheer]

P.S: I am not a cheer parent, just a co-owner/coach, but you parents are nuts!

In the best way possible of course..... sort of.

 

[fullinitup]

I think its funny to see much people spend on either drinks cigarettes or fast food for a month...I'm sure if they collected their receipts and stashed them away and at the end of a month added them up more than likely could pay for a good chunk of what it costs to participate. it's all about cost and worth and that's always gonna vary from person to person

 

[Just-a-Mom]

I think its funny to see much people spend on either drinks cigarettes or fast food for a month...I'm sure if they collected their receipts and stashed them away and at the end of a month added them up more than likely could pay for a good chunk of what it costs to participate. it's all about cost and worth and that's always gonna vary from person to person

So funny you posted this! I was just thinking--the girl who gives me the most "poo" about it is my friend who smokes a pack a day, tans, gets her nails done every week, and goes to Starbucks at least once a day (sometimes twice, and no, I'm not exaggerating). I figure her 6-year-old could be on TWO teams for that amount of money!!!

I mean...do we have "extra" money? No. We don't eat out often, we never go to the movies, we have to cut out a lot of things--no Starbucks for me! But each year before the new season starts I ask my kids if they want to quit--and I even say "We would have a LOT more money, so you could do all the extra things you're always bugging me about," and every year they shout "NO WAY!!!!" They love it, and I think it's worth every penny.

I've often see people on here and my other cheer mom friends say that they spend way more time with their kids than "regular moms". I think that's so true. What other 16-year-olds are hopping in the car on Friday evening for an hour long drive with their MOM and baby sister to head over to the gym?

 

[simplymom]

@Just-a-Mom...I'm sooo with you! I spend a lot of quality time with my daughter because of cheer! The drives to and from the gym, the drives to and from competitions and let's not forget the time we spend together at out of town competitions! That quality time with her is worth every single cent we pay!

 

[Cheer Dad]

I remember having a conversation once with the parent of one my daughter's friends, and we were talking about activities our kids did. When we mentioned she did all-star cheer, this parent (without skipping a beat) said "wow, you must be rich."

Sadly we are not rich, our kids do all star cheer. hahahahaha

 

[ohhh lindss]

I'm obviously not a mother, but when I cheered, I know I got all sorts of reactions towards my uniform. Not just from adults, but from people that I went to school with. They would use words like "skanky" or "provocative." I guess that's just an outsiders opinion and we don't see things that way because we've been surrounded by it for years and years. And also, what would they LIKE us to cheer in...? Long pants and baggy sweaters? Sorry this isn't the 80's. Hahaha!

People also like to make comments about the make up that I've had to wear. Which is ridiculous to me.

Lately I've been going to the gym to work out (since I can't cheer to stay in shape anymore...) and sometimes I go with a friend or two. When they see what I wear to the gym, they are shocked! I wear my nike pros or my velvet GK spankies with a t shirt or a loose tank top. People would look at me and be like, "ARE YOU REALLY GOING TO WORK OUT IN THOSE?!?!" like it was a bad thing.. And with that I would follow with, "This is a lot of clothes.. Would you like me to wear what I used wear to cheerleading practice? A sports bra and my spankies?"