All-Star Cost? Uniforms? Are We Crazy?

[Emily Jane]

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. :mad:

And I'm guessing that said parents let their children wear bikinis and the like whenever the weather is hot? It's always the hypocritical ones who are the first to complain.

 

[cheerdaddy]

My family thinks I'm crazy, and I guess I am a little because I have two daughters in cheer so my total annual expenses for cheer are about $8000.00 but, it is so worth it when I see the excitement on their faces when they talk about cheer and when they go out on the floor to perform!

 

[TheVipersMom]

Y'all have pretty much covered it all. I get it so much because of my age (I just turned 23). My daughter is 6 and she cheers and I love to watch her grow up right in front of my eyes and seeing her smile so big when she accomplishes a skill she has been working on. I'm not glorifying me having my daughter at 16 in any way nor am I supporting the idea people should do that.

However, my friends who are also around my age talk so much crap when they find out how much it cost. Like you shouldn't be doing that she can cheer on a rec team for what you pay in 1 month for all-stars. I understand what they are saying but I want to give my daughter everything I didn't have. Yes I cheered recreation wise for years but only being able to throw my back handspring by myself like once ever didn't give me enough edge in high school to make the cheer team over all the girls who did all-stars. I want my daughter to be trained with the necessary skills that if she wanted it she could achieve it. If my daughter didn't want to try out for cheer this time and wanted to play ball well I guess I would be out there spending all my little money on that. I see it as if the kids are happy with what they do and if we can find a way to make it work then by all means they deserve that!

I don't make very much but I'd do anything to continue to allow my daughter to cheer. I feel like I don't have 1 friend who supports what I do. I have lost friends over it. They say I'm stupid. My dad sees I don't have money for it and tells me I should pull her out but I can't bring myself to do it. I think my daughter would hate me if I did it, and I would hate myself. I knew I couldn't give her everything when I got pregnant but I knew I was going to try. She didn't ask to be brought here and I made the decision. Now I have to make the choices to show her it's all about making your dreams come true. Growing up I was never really happy with myself only when I played sports (while I was younger). Not having anything in high school I felt so alone and did my own thing. I didn't feel like I had the ability to succeed at anything. Seeing that my daughter is really good at what she does and that she is happy is my cue too let her live her life to the fullest.

I'm also sure you all are wonderful parents willing to pay the money to watch your cp excel! No one should fault any parent for what they do; especially for something they are not willing to try.

 

[aggie1983]

@Just-a-Mom and Simply Mom As our season ended this year, I thought about that very thing. The drives to comps and the out 0f town comps gave my younger daughter and I so much "just us" time that we never would have had otherwise. I have also seen a different side of her since competitive cheer that I may never have known or appreciated. How do I put a price tag on that?

 

[aggie1983]

@Kris10boo it sounds like you have had to make some very difficult decisions at a young age. Kudos to you for striving to do your best by your little girl.

 

[TheVipersMom]

@Kris10boo it sounds like you have had to make some very difficult decisions at a young age. Kudos to you for striving to do your best by your little girl.

I try really hard! I have friends who make way more then I do and they wouldn't dream about spending that much money on their kid. However they get their hair, nails, and new outfit every week and although i'd love to do that I'm not faulting them it's just thats a material thing and what we are showing our kids are like skills. I feel that this one thing deserves my money! I love being on here because although y'all are not all like me and didn't make the same poor decisions I did, you all do understand me and what it takes to have a child (or several) in this sport and what must go into it to make it happen! So thank you!!!! :)

 

[ctgatormom]

Yes....we are crazy!!! Crazy about our kids:p I have heard these same arguments many times over the years from non-cheer parents. I get the money one alot but whatever..I feel like I am investing in my daughter and her happiness. What could be more important than that?!? But the one I get the most is "how do you handle that kind of time commitment...with comps, and travel, all that practice?" and what I have to say to that is that I really enjoy all the time spent with my daughter. We have great time on the way to practice..talking about her day,listening to new cheer mixes(lol) and just being together! As far as all memories we have made over the years at comps and traveling, they are PRICELESS:)

 

[cheeromgbre]

My mom would do ANYTHING for me to cheer, and honestly, unless they are involved in the sport, people will not understand. We sacrifice a lot to do what we love and never in my life will I regret what I've spent over half of my life doing. I know how expensive it is and how hard my parents work and I am grateful every day for it. Some people don't and never will understand, but I think most of us in this sport know that.

 

[jcheermom]

I will admit that all star cheer is expensive, but it can be done on a budget. My cp cheers with other athletes whose mothers don't pay for their cheer fees and expenses, but their other relatives pay for their monthly tuition and expenses i.e. aunts, grandparents, or biological fathers, and so these athletes don't need to worry about the expenses of the all star cheer world. My cp doesn't expect tees from every competition, or ask for the little extras, so when she does ask for something, I can usually get it for her. But my point is that it is possible to travel and compete and watch your spending, while teaching your cp some life lessons about doing something that you love doing and while watching your budget and spending some good quality mother/daughter bonding time-which has been priceless for us. I will always cherish the memories of the times we have had together from all star cheerleading-it is worth all the money in the world!!

 

[iwatchcheer]

We actually have more friends who have joined cheer since we've been in it than people who make negative comments about it. It is expensive, but I also have a lot of friends who have kids on other competitive sports teams and the costs seem quite similar for any team that travels competitively. We've been fortunate not to get the negative comments about the costs, and those that know what we're involved in seem to be able to 'sympathize' about how much competitive sports cost - regardless of the sport.

 

[SheCheers]

Some of my favorite comments:

"The bow is supposed to accentuate the hair, not the hair accentuating the bow"
"why is your husband wearing a 'do rag? OMG THAT'S PART OF HER UNIFORM!!!"
"must be nice to be able to afford all that"
"does she even appreciate it?"

Insert a million other comments about the cost.

 

[armycheermom]

At one time my daughter did gymnastic, cheer, dance and pageants. You can imagine the looks and comments we received. But my answer to them was always, "It keeps her fit, it keeps her out of trouble and she loves doing it! Why wouldn't I keep paying for her to do it? " And my husband's favorite line is "the money is going to get spent one way or another, I'm just glad that it's going to making my daughter happy and healthy." I always feel like if I'm not asking you to pay for it, then don't worry about what I chose to spend my money on...and my daughter and I have an amazing relationship because of her activities! During the week, we were at the gym or the studio and on the weekends, we were in a car traveling to a pageant, a competition, a meet or some type of clinic. To this day, my daughter and I have no secrets and she will randomly hop on my bed and have hour or 2 long conversations. How many moms of teenagers can say that?!

 

[MomOf2ThatsMe]

I do get a lot of snide comments. Just like a previous poster, I am younger (28) and a lot of my friends don't understand how I afford this stuff on our income (I'm a front desk manager at a doctors office, fiance is a non-union electrician). My response is always "You just do it". I certainly sacrifice a lot for myself so I can provide these opportunities for my daughters. I quit highlighting my hair- it's a lot healthier now too! Our cars are both paid for, and since we bought a house with my parents (they have the in-law apartment) our mortgage is cheap. When my kids grow up they aren't going to remember that mom had natural hair, or her car was a couple years older than everyone else's, but the cheer memories will last forever. I didn't have these opportunities as a kid, and it makes me proud to be able to provide my daughters with these experiences.

 

[jcheermom]

I will admit that all star cheer is expensive, but it can be done on a budget. My cp cheers with other athletes whose mothers don't pay for their cheer fees and expenses, but their other relatives pay for their monthly tuition and expenses i.e. aunts, grandparents, or biological fathers, and so these athletes don't need to worry about the expenses of the all star cheer world. My cp doesn't expect tees from every competition, or ask for the little extras, so when she does ask for something, I can usually get it for her. But my point is that it is possible to travel and compete and watch your spending, while teaching your cp some life lessons about doing something that you love doing and while watching your budget and spending some good quality mother/daughter bonding time-which has been priceless for us. I will always cherish the memories of the times we have had together from all star cheerleading-it is worth all the money in the world!!

I also want to add that I have 2 boys who play lacrosse, one who plays in college, and we make every possible attempt to travel to see his lacrosse games. Lacrosse is also a very expensive sport from the equipment to the fees to play, but what we do for our cp, we also do for our boys, including sending the boys to lacrosse clinics and camps. And yes I do wonder what we are going to do with all of our money when all of our kids are out on their own and we no longer have to fork out the money that we do for their extracurricular activities, and I think I will reminisce about how much we enjoyed watching our children grow up and be involved in allstar cheer or their sports and remind ourselves that it was all worth the sacrifices that we made, both financial and our time commitments because all of the memories and experiences will always be remembered and cherished.

 

[Deleted member 8658]

people may judge but once they join it they wont ever want to leave! :)