Summer Cheer Camp

After Kaitlynn's evening of fun with her junior high cheer squad, her 7th grade year of cheerleading was officially underway with a week-long summer camp hosted by the Katy school district for all of the district-wide junior high cheerleaders. Being new to the world of school cheer, we weren't aware of what a big deal this week of cheer camp would be, but it wasn't long before we found out!

First off, we quickly discovered that cheerleading is ALL about the coordinating outfits and monograms. Kaitlynn was given strict instructions for exactly how to dress and fix her hair for the 4-day week of camp. It felt a little overwhelming, but she sure did look the part in her daily camp outfits throughout the week!

On her first day of camp, the first order of business was to hand out all of the numerous items that the girls had ordered for their cheer gear. I honestly don't know if I've ever seen so many different monograms in my life! Of course, the most exciting gear they received was their long-awaited cheer uniform with, yes, another monogram. Kaitlynn texted us these photos when she tried it on for the first time and she was so excited to see how it looked! I, on the other hand, was excited that it actually fit her since I had been absent from the team fitting. Thank goodness the size was right, ha!

After the girls received their gear on their first day of camp, they officially began practices with cheer and dance prep for the week ahead. A few of the Moms arranged carpools for the squad to get some lunch at CiCi's pizza in between their morning practice at school and their afternoon practice at a local cheer gym. These girls were quite the sight in their coordinated outfits and sky-high hair bows!

When practice ended on the first day, many of the girls continued the fun with extra reps at home. Kaitlynn was becoming fast friends with another cheerleader, Maddie, and it was so cute to hear their stories about how the first day of camp had gone.

The next morning came early for Day 2 of camp. All of the area junior high squads met up at the nearby convention center to enjoy the district-wide camp where they learned new cheers, dances, and all about the role of being a cheerleader. After a full morning, there was another lunch carpool for the girls, this time to Chick-fil-A, followed by a long afternoon of more work. 

Day 3 of cheer camp was yet another coordinated outfit and another extremely long day of hard work. The girls started their day at 8:00am and didn't get home from their stunt practices until 9:30pm at night. Wow! During the camp activities, the girls earned great recognition with blue ribbons from their camp leaders. But the highlight of Day 3 for Kaitlynn was their lunchtime stop at Freddy's, her absolute favorite!

By the time Day 4 arrived, Kaitlynn was EXHAUSTED! She had been working 10-12 hours a day on group cheers and dances in addition to her tumbling and stunts. She was having a blast with her teammates but more than ready for the end of the week. Day 4 would be another hard day of work, and then the girls would be able to show off everything they had learned throughout their time together during cheer camp. We were ready and excited!