Episode 287: Lessons Learned From Cheerleading

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No need to whine and whine. Welcome to the Whiny Palooza podcast. I'm your host, Rebecca Greene. I'm a wife, mother of 3, and licensed clinical social worker. I also have 3 fur babies at home too. My passion has always been to help children and their families. I always dreamed of being a wife and a mother. Parents are always learning through their struggles, failures, and and joys. I am no stranger to this wild ride of parenting, and I know behind every great parent lies a team of supportive friends and family. I want to be part of your support system. I want you to know that you are not alone. We are in this parenting world together. Join me every week for insightful discussions with experts on parenting and marriage, as well as other parents who have found the secret to successes in parenthood. You'll learn tips and tricks to make life with your family family better than ever. I hope you will follow along with me while we dive into what it takes to achieve a happy family. Hello everyone, happy Whiny Floozy Wednesday! How are you? How are you holding up? It's hump day. Do you know what hump day means? It means it's— we're at the hump and we're going down into Thursday and Friday. My daughter Lily is sitting next to me. She's gonna share too because this is about her, and I have been seeing her work her buns off at cheerleading. I am so proud of her. Do you know that I'm so proud of you?

Yeah, I do.

Oh, did you? You read my blog?

Well, I read—

no, I read it. What did you think of my blog?

It was very inspiring.

So I wrote this blog partly for Lily. You can go read it at whinypluza.com. So every week— hi, Randy! Every week I write about a topic and then I talk about it. It at night. So here we are to talk about it. And what my topic is, is what my daughter is learning from cheerleading, because cheerleading is a lot of our life right now. Like, a lot of our life right now. This weekend she has 2 competitions. Are you excited? I'm sorry you can't see her. There she is. She is absolutely exhausted from a very, very long practice. She worked her buns off. Like I said, she keeps— the team is working so hard and it's paying off. And let's start right there with she is learning that hard work pays off. Would you agree?

Yes.

Yes. Okay. What do you think you're learning from cheerleading before I share?

I think I'm learning how to control myself. I think I'm learning— Oh my gosh. I think I'm learning what's the word? What's— Wait, can you come back to me?

I'm gonna come back. Think about it. I'm gonna come back to you. I am seeing that all the stuff that she is learning at cheerleading is overflowing into the rest of the stuff in her life, like her homework, like her self-control when she's fighting with her sister. I see that she's learning more self-control, she's learning to be stronger, okay? So when you're at a competition and somebody screws up, you have to keep a straight face and you have to keep going. If you are in practice and somebody lands on you, you got you gotta get up and you gotta keep going, right? Yeah, they are a team. They do stunts and they all have a formation, and when one girl's missing, it's really not good. You have to have everybody to perform, so they need to have pretty perfect attendance. And even if they're not feeling their best, they need to get their buns to practice. And Lily is getting herself to practice even when she's exhausted, even when she has a ton of homework. Which brings me to one of the most important things that I think our kids learn from being involved in sports and activities. She is learning how to balance her life. If she has homework that's due a certain day, hopefully— hi Rachel, I'm talking about cheerleading. Uh, Rachel, you did so good at practice, by the way. I saw you, strong lady. Rachel lifts a girl up all by herself, and it is super impressive. Hey Rachel! And I would never be able to do that, so you are super strong. They are strong girls and they are getting to work out. Let's talk about the obvious. They're working out, they're getting stronger, they're learning cheers and stunts and tumbling and dances, and they're getting better at all of the stuff that they're practicing all the time, right? Is there anything you want to add? Did you think of it?

I can think of the words. Because I can't think of the word.

She wants to share something, but she can't think of the word.

I can say it though.

Okay, we're gonna go to Lily.

So I think for cheer, what I've like learned the most is like you're like self-controlled. Like sometimes like I would go to a practice and then I would like during practice I would be stressed out, and there's times where I've gone to practice and then come, come home and like start crying because I have so much homework. And like, you have to like persevere.

That's the word. You have to persevere, and you have to do it anyway. When you're tired, you still have to do it. When you're tired, you still have to go to practice. When you're tired, you still have to do your homework.

And I just think like not everything is going to be good enough. Like, if you have— like, I had to write about my reading today, and most So this one girl does like 5 pages and I did 1. You don't have to compare yourself.

Okay, I love that. And what Lily is talking about is there are kids at school who aren't involved in activities. This was our conversation today, and what she was explaining to me was that they have more time to do their homework. So getting back to the balance conversation that I didn't finish, so if she knows that her homework is due a certain day where she knows that she has a test a certain day, she has to adjust based on when does she have cheerleading and when is she going to be home to actually do her homework and study for her test. So you're learning balance, right? Which is a super important skill. If your kids are involved in an activity or a sport, I would love to hear what you notice them learning from it because they learn so many things. They don't just learn baseball, they learn all the things that goes into it— the commitment, the perseverance, the strength, and they get physically stronger and they also get mentally stronger. Do you know what I'm saying?

Yeah.

So I also noticed something. This taught her more than I could ever teach her this, and I've tried to tell Lily and my other two kids that they don't have to be perfect, but they just had a competition. It was not perfect. They made mistakes that I missed, by the way, but they did make mistakes. We watched it back on the video, and despite the mistakes, they still won. So Lily and her team are seeing that. Sure, did they practice hard today? Did they practice hard on Monday? Do they want to go into the competitions and do even better this weekend? Absolutely. But they also learned that in life we're not going to be perfect, and it's still going to be okay. And then you can't cry afterwards because you don't want to show the judges the judges might not have noticed, or it's gonna score better for you if you go off with a strong face, right? So even if you mess up, you learn to keep going and to be strong. And, um, I want to talk about your coach. So one of the things I love is I want my kids to have other adults, meaningful adults in their life to teach them things. And Lily's coach is teaching her so much, and, and you're welcome to join in. I see that she's teaching Lily that she can be strict, but she can also be warm. She's teaching Lily and the team that you work hard and then you can play hard, right? So she's teaching you to put the hard work in and also take some time off and play together. I love that she does team bonding with the, with the girls because I think that making— she knows this, she's been a coach forever. Making them a stronger team then helps them to compete better. I'm trying to think of the word. When you become a family and you become friends and you come together and you have a bond, then your whole routine comes together better. Do you agree?

Yeah.

Yes. Anything you're learning from your coach that you want to share?

Um, I think another thing that I'm learning is to— well, you just kind of know this— like, to never judge a book by its cover. Because like my mom said, when like she can be strict at times, but she can be like kind and playful. Like she always says, "Hate me now, love me later." So like, she can like say— if I saw my mom, you would think she is— she's like the nicest person. When you see her, like, there's times and she's like, "Lily, you gotta get this done." Like, she can be strict at times.

So you're saying that I'm like your coach and I can be strict when I need to be strict and I can be warm and supportive and loving also?

You're always warm, but like, when you gotta get something done, you gotta do it.

Okay, so Lily is learning that adults in her life are sometimes gonna be strict and we're gonna expect— we have expectations. We have expectations, and we are also showing her that there's time to play and there's time to be, you know, warm and huggy, and there's times to be strict and to tell Lily, you have to study. I've asked you to study. Go sit down and study, right? Okay, so I also wanted to bring up that you are learning to be part of a team in such a wonderful way. Do you know that? I saw her when I walked into practice today. I saw her being supportive of her friend, and I didn't know this, but her friend had gotten hurt and she was talking to her friend. And I see that Lily really wants to be supportive of her team, and that means so much to me. I love that you're supportive. She wants— we've talked about this— she wants her team to be strong so that they can get things done and so that they don't show anything to the judges in the competition. But she also knows that part of being a team is when your teammate is crying or hurt, you go over and you hug them and you see if they're okay and you talk to them. And I love that you do that. Got it from me. You got it— she got it from me. Oh my God, sometimes your kids make you want to go to sleep, and sometimes your kids warm your heart, right? So I know that your kids are involved in football and baseball and wrestling and lacrosse and theater and music. I know that your kids are involved in so many things, and I think it's so good for them, and I think that they are learning so much more than the actual talent. She may be becoming a better cheerleader, she may be becoming a better dancer. You are killing it with the lifts, Oh my God, she's gotten to be such a good base, do you know that? I wish I could put us both on the frame. Forgive me, my husband is not home and he is technical support, so bear with me and what I am able to do. You can come sit with me so that they can see you. This is about you. Do you like that I wrote a blog about you? I was sitting on the couch typing and she's peering over and she's watching And she's watching Seth read it and she's like, I see my name and I see my name again. Do you like that I wrote about you?

Yeah, I like when you wrote me.

Oh, that's so sweet. What do you think your favorite part of my blog was? Do you remember?

Probably when you talked about getting stuff done, like matters, like the most important thing you gotta get done, you gotta get it done.

When you got to get it done, you got to get it done. When you got to practice, you got to practice. Yeah, I love your attendance. I love your commitment. I love your perseverance. I love your consistency. I love your friendship. Um, let's see, what did I write? I wrote working out, cheering, dancing, stunting, tumbling, working hard, commitment, attendance— attendance is necessary— uh, encouragement, support, strength. What else do I have? Balance, discipline, determination. Oh my God, you are so much more determined. Do you see that? Do you see that you're determined at cheerleading and then that leads to you being determined with your homework? Oh yeah, do you see that it's bubbling over? Yeah, if you're generalizing your cheerleading skills to other areas of your life. Yeah, yes, um I said that your coach is strict, warm, and fun. It's like the perfect balance. And in November, when you go to your cheer banquet, I think that you're all going to sit there and be so proud of yourselves. Yeah.

Yes. I'm also gonna be sad because my team this year is awesome.

Oh, you don't want it to end.

I don't want it to end.

I know that you don't want it to end. I love that you're having so much fun. What is amazing to me is that you're working so freaking hard, but you're still having fun.

Yeah.

Yeah.

You have to find the enjoyment in the hard stuff.

Oh, can you tell me more about that? Find the enjoyment in the hard work.

So you call it like pace yourself. Like if you're like, there's times where like we would be conditioning And like, I'd be like stressed out and like, this is hard. But then like, I'd be like, oh, this is gonna make me stronger. The more I do this, the more stronger I'll get. Like, hate this now, I'll love it later.

I am super emotional because I'm so freaking proud of you.

What the heck?

I'm sorry, sometimes I just cry. It just happens. You get it from me. So I'm gonna pick a word and then you're gonna pick a word. Are you ready?

Yeah.

The word that I would use to summarize what I'm most proud of with you and cheerleading is perseverance.

Okay.

So you're not allowed to use that word. So now I want you to pick a word of what you have learned so far from cheerleading this year. It could be a sentence, it could be a word. Tell us what you think.

Oh, the harder you work— I'm trying to think.

The harder you work, the more it pays off.

Yeah, like the harder work, the more you get done.

So, so you ladies are working your, your little buns off, and do you see it paying off? Hello? Yeah, yes, yes, yes. Are you proud of yourself?

Yes.

Are you proud of your team? Mm-hmm. Are you proud of your coaches?

Mm-hmm.

Well, and what I'm gonna tell you is that it's wonderful when we're proud of them, but it's even more wonderful when they're proud of themselves. And you should be. You should be. So keep going. It's not over. You still have a few weeks left, I think. I have to look at the schedule.

3 left, it says. 2 more.

What? No, you have more than that.

3 practices left.

Oh my gosh, it's crazy. I know, she's gonna cry when it's over. That's, that's a good sign when you're gonna cry when it's over.

Yeah, I'm like preparing myself.

Oh honey, can they do a winter session?

No, we were gonna keep our group chat and like blow each other's phones up. We made a deal.

I love that. Well, anything else you want to add before we wrap up?

Can I say two quick things?

Yeah.

Okay, um, when you're like thinking about like, um, one of my friends Ella, she does gymnastics and it's like very like commitmentful.

Commitment, a big commitment.

And like when I would look at her, I would be like, whoa, that's like a lot that you do. But like if you're like looking at other people and they do like sports, don't like, don't be nervous. If you want to do the sport that they're doing, do it, go for it. Like, who's that one friend? I have a friend, I don't remember her name, I totally just forgot it, but she does cheer, elite cheer, and she like does it all the time. And I was always like, I love cheer, I would love to do it, but that looks like way too hard. And I do, and I'm doing it, and I'm like, I like this, like it's so fun.

Well, and I'm gonna be completely honest with you, are you ready for this? And don't get mad at me. When they put you on the team that they put you on, I was like, all right, it's hard.

You have to have like a big commitment.

Okay, so I was like, are you sure you don't want to put her on JV? But I trusted them. I trusted where they put you, and they put you in the right spot. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, um, yeah, I'm proud of all of you, and I'm proud of all this stuff that you've learned from cheerleading. I wrote a lot. I wrote a lot, right? Okay, well, we're gonna wrap this up because I still have to go to South. It's the never-ending day at the greenhouse. So this Friday, I want to tell you who the guest is.

Who's the guest?

It's Maria Leonard Olsen, and she— well, and I'm going to tell you who she is in a minute, and she's going to teach us to be the best version of ourselves. Oh, Karen says way to go, Lily. Karen, I'm so proud of her, and your girls are working so hard, and I'm sure they're learning a ton from field hockey. They learn so much from these awesome sports that they get involved in, and it's not a small commitment, it's a huge commitment, and our girls are doing it. So I want to tell you who Maria is. Do you want to know who her son is?

Sure.

Um, oh my God, who's the really famous— Meghan Trainor, you know? No, no, you know Meghan Trainor. Do you know Meghan Trainor's best friend Chris? Who's in—

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, that's her son.

What? Yes! Wait, yes, you're joking! I'm not joking. She's like, my son has a huge TikTok following and blah blah blah blah blah, and he's best friends with Meghan Trainor. And I'm like, who's your son? And she told me during the podcast who her son was. And I looked him up during the podcast and I was like, that's your son?

I watch that kid, I mean that person's TikToks all the time.

I know, he's hysterical. Okay, so thank you for joining us. Thank you for learning about cheerleading with us. Tell us what your kids are learning from their sports and activities. We would love to hear from you. And I gotta go to South. I gotta go to high school. My day is not over yet. But on to Thursday.

Yes.

And have a wonderful week.

And whatever you want to do, if you set your mind to it, you can always achieve it.

You tell them. Can you say thank you for watching?

Thank you for watching Whiny Palooza Wednesday with the Green Family.

Thanks, babe. Thank you for tuning in to the Whiny Palooza podcast. If you like what you heard, please be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. While you are there, leave a review. I love to hear your feedback. Thank you so much for listening. Until next time. This show has been produced by Market Domination LLC. To discover how you can have your own show completely done for you and turn it into a real published book and become the authority in your marketplace, go to www.marketdominationllc.com/podcastoffer.

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