Cheers!!

Miss Bailey participated in a cheer leading camp this year.  If I understand it correctly, Oldham County High School has the camp as a fund raiser each year.  There is one day that little girls come for a small fee and the cheerleaders teach them some cheers and send them home with a sheet with the words to the cheers typed on it.  The little girls practice the words and the moves.  Then, the football game held the week of fall break the little girls come and cheer with the cheerleaders for the first half of the football game.  This includes being on the field when the players enter the field.  This is heady stuff for a little girl...and of course her family and grandparents.

Claude and I left Friday, October 24th, in the afternoon to get to LaGrange so we could watch Miss Bailey be a cheerleader for the Oldham County Colonels.

Each little girl was given a t-shirt and checked in at table on the track around the football field.  Then a cheer leader walked them down the track about halfway down the field. 

Once all the little girls showed up, they got them in a circle and did some little cheer where they ran each girls around the circle and focused on each one of those little girls.

The girls then started some cheers to build enthusiasm in the crowd before the game began.

When it was time for the football players to come onto the field, the cheerleaders took the little girls by the hand and lead them onto the field so they could form two lines for the players to run through. Bailey is the sixth person from the right in the front line.  

The game began.  Cheers ensued. At one point it was clear Bailey wanted something.  She talked to the cheerleader on her right. Nothing happened.  Bailey waited just a bit than she talked to her again.  This time that cheer leader went to the head cheerleader and said something to her.  The head cheerleader went to the sidelines where their sponsors were and said something to them.  Then she went back and started a cheer.  We believe Bailey remembered one of the cheers, it had not been performed yet, so she made her little voice known that it needed to be done.  It was.  Amazing.

The other cute thing occurred when the referees made what the Oldham County fans thought was a very bad call.  Lots of negative talk and yelling from the fans against the referees.  Bailey was stunned and not happy with their negative participation.  She looked at the crowd and yelled, "That is not nice.  You are not supposed to do that."  Of course, there was so much happening it really made no difference to the crowd. But it did our hearts good that Bailey knows what is good behavior and what is not and is willing to make a stand for what is right even if there are lots more people than you and they are older than you.  Good things to see and know from a little child.

At one point I looked down where we first sat and where the guys were still standing.  It was so cute watching Michael, who loves all things sports, explaining everything to Hayden. 

Each little girls was given several opportunities to be lifted up by the cheerleaders.  Andie is in the green coat taking Bailey's picture. 

This is the group photo. Bailey is on the front row to the right of center.  She is the one with a white pom beside her legs and she sits in front of the white line with a grin on her face.

Bailey did a great job.  She knew most of the words and lots of the moves.  Not bad for only one rehearsal.  She totally enjoyed herself and we totally enjoyed watching her have fun.  It was great to see the confidence with which she approached something new.  Cheers!!