I'm a cheer mom. I absolutely love it. You've heard of soccer moms, baseball moms, and even dance moms, but I'm a cheer mom. My kids spend 5 hours at the gym every week working on cartweels, roundoffs, back-handsprings, and they're even being introduced to back tucks. It's amazing at age 6 and 8 that they are capable of the discipline necessary for this sport. Yes, I called cheerleading a sport. No longer does cheerleading amount to a few "rah rahs" on the sidelines while looking cute. Now it requires intense gymnastics skills paired with dance and rhythm. Today my kids are competing in their first regional competition of the year. I wish I could be there, but part of the "problem" with competitions is that they frequently occur on Sundays, my day of work. I've come to accept it and to cheer them on from home. I'm including a picture of their whole team on the blog today. If you know my kids you'll find them on there. If you don't, just enjoy all of the cuties. I can proudly say that I made all of the bows for the gym (and now have to make all of the backup cheerbows) and the girls were really proud of their mommy. (my mom helped with the ironing so I'm really proud of MY mom). I also made the braided headband for the junior coach in the back. You never knew I was that talented, did you? I'm most impressed by the progress my kids are making. My youngest pulls her foot over her head in a stunt without even a flinch. My oldest is so close to sticking a back handspring on her own. And both of them give it all their best. OK, I'm rattling on. I'm just proud of my kids.