Rah Rah Ree

Kick em in the knee, Rah Rah Ras kick em in the other knee. :) I hope you really didn't think I would say that other word.

Every time I look at these picture, I say that "cheer" in my head. I also start remembering my elementary school days when we all wanted to be cheerleaders. On the playground we used to pretend to be cheerleaders. My favorite cheer was.....

U-G-L-Y

You ain't got no alibi

You UGLY, hey hey You UGLY

Yes You are !

C-U-T-E

We got personality

Were CUTE, hey hey Were CUTE

Yes We are !

This may be the reason I was never a cheerleader. You could consider me a goofball, not a cheerleader. Probably still can. ;P

Deta and Lisa were cheerleaders. I can't remember if Jan was one. Robin followed in the steps of here big sister (me) and was not a cheerleader either.

Here are some early photos of Lisa wanting to be a cheerleader.

Notice I am trying to do the splits like her.

Don't you love here saddle oxfords! :)

Now do you want proof that I was a goofball at an early age? Lets take a closer look at this picture.

Yes that would be me hamming for the camera and sticking my tongue out. :)

I think she was trying to choke me in this picture.

Notice the evil grin on her face.

Notice my hands look like they are about to try and lift up toward her hands perched around my neck. She had probably just started applying the pressure.

Now I wanted to be a cheerleader. I worked on my splits (which I can still do by the way) and cartwheels. I worked on not having spaghetti arms. I worked on my wrist, so they would not have a bend in them. I worked on my SMARKLE (Smile and Sparkle). It was to no avail. I had two things that stopped the dream.

Deta and Lisa

They were just to good. It was hard for me to follow them. You see I would have had the same cheerleading sponsor as both of them. I tried out, I didn't make it. I tried out, I didn't make it. Then the sponsor said these words that have haunted me to this day (not really, just going for the dramatic affect). Valarie you will never be as good as your sisters Deta and Lisa. ~sigh~ (More dramatic affect) :(

Its all good though. If I had been a cheerleader, then I would not have had time to hone in on my goofball skills like this....

This....

And This.....

So see it all worked out!

******(People! make sure you read my sister Lisa's comment! I think she is a goofball also. :) Just sayin!)******

WORD FROM LISA: Hey all you Bloggy Friends out there! I just wanted to drop in for a minute and tell y'all that I was NOT the perfect cheerleader. You can read my comments here:

Valarie Lea!!! You have totally misrepresented me in this post!!!! I was a TERRIBLE cheerleader!!!!

I was only a cheerleader one year! That was the year they consolidated schools and let EVERYONE that tried out be on the "squad." We had 37 cheerleaders that year for goodness sake! Here are some memories that I have. I could NEVER keep my hands straight. The harder I tried, the more they would dip in the middle with my fingers pointing to the sky. Look at that picture you posted! I couldn't (still can't) do the splits.I tried out at Highland Rim one time and didn't make it. Ms. McGrath (yes, Ms.) told me it was because I had a broken arm and she thought I was just trying out to prove I could do it. What?!?!? Whateva! Shouldn't that have showed her that I had spunk and personality????? I guess not! Oh...and the time Ms. Webb came down from out of the stands when I was cheering a football game. The cheer was "FIRE UP!" She said I had everybody in the stands looking up in the sky because I was down there hollering with my southern accent, "FAR up!" Heee heee. I thought that one was pretty funny. There was the time I wanted my bee bop socks to be as white as everyone else's, so I soaked them all night in bleach. About the time I got to school, they started literally crumbling apart. I had to go the rest of the day and ballgame without any socks!!!!! And then! (you don't think I have issues do you?) There was the time I put "Sun In" on my hair and turned it COMPLETELY orange. AND!!!! I had also put fake tan on my legs and my legs were VERY streaky orange. I looked like a punkin, punkin on a punkin night. :) (sorry y'all. family joke.) So you see? I was not the perfect cheerleader. I was a cheerleading flub.

I loved those BeeBop shoes in the post thought. I wish I had some now. LOL! I probably WAS trying to choke you. I probably wanted to be in the camera spotlight all by myself and you wouldn't get out of the way being a camera hog and all.

Now talk about Deta. She was the perfect cheerleader.....Love, Lisa

Since typing this comment, I have thought of a couple of other flub ups I had as a cheerleader.

There was the time I wanted my hair to be as shiny as the other girls (I never could quite measusre up to them). Someone told me if I washed my hair with eggs, it would be good for my hair and make it shiny. What they forgot to tell me was this....don't rinse your hair with hot water. I had scrambled eggs in my hair for the longest. It was attached to every single strand of hair. You don't think anyone got me to do that on purpose do you? Hmmmm. I'll have to think about that for a minute.

One last thing....one time I had a basketball game to cheer at and had mama or daddy drop me off. Once inside, I realized I had come on the wrong night (we had 3 squads and took turns cheering). I had on the wrong cheering outfit and stood out like a sore thumb. Ms. Webb and everybody else laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed. I was so embarrassed and didn't have a cell phone to call anyone to pick me up. I had to grin and bear it.

I think its safe to say that I have successfully given you a better portrayal of my cheerleading year than the way Valarie made it look. :) You see...she obviously isn't the ONLY goofball in our family. LOL!

Now back to your regularly scheduled Valarieness.....

For more random memories from some awesome people, go over to

Kristen's at We are THAT Family.