Former Cheerleader is going to be a BRIDE!!

I feel so lucky! I just had one of my former cheerleaders contact me about photographing her wedding!

 For those of you who do not know, I was a high school Cheerleading Coach for 5 years. I started at Buffalo high school as a Co-Coach with my neighbor. When I found out I was pregnant with the twins I decided to quit coaching at Buffalo, only to be asked to coach at my Alumni High School at Rockford. It was always my dream to come back to my old high school to coach cheerleading so I could not say "no, I am pregnant"... I just made it work, but was so not what I imagined it would be. I came to Rockford about 5 months pregnant. So I was Co-Coaching with the coach who was on her way out. The next year I was the head coach and boy oh boy was it a LOT of work. I loved being able to teach cheerleading to these kids, but at the same time I looked at them as equals where that's where I goofed & realized should not have done that & should have things different. They need more of an "Authoritative" figure which I was not, I was more of a friend. Perhaps things had been different if my own kids were older... not sure, but it was hard for me to look down at the kids AS kids, and get on them for kissing in the hallways... really? I was not a teacher... I was more looked at from these girls as a "big sister"... probably because I HAVE a brother their age, plus my brother-in-law was the same age as many of these girls, and they knew him as well... so the "big sister" hat is what seemed the best fit. Sometimes I'd even chat with them as if they were close friends.
Well last year I decided with all the things I had to prepare myself for, for my surgery, that I had to give coaching up. I did not even realize how much I was missing by being away from my own kids too. So I did like coaching overall... the DRAMA of high school girls I just was tired of playing... perhaps one day I will get back into it... however KNOWING what I know about cheerleading, I think my own girls will be playing girls hockey lol!
Anyway... I was recently contacted by a former Buffalo Cheerleader who asked me for information about photographing her wedding. I HOPE she books me. One thing on my "bucket list" is to photograph the wedding of one of my former cheerleaders! To me... I am proud to know I had a part of those girls' cheerleading memories (hopefully they are all good memories). I still have a couple of my former cheerleaders who I talk to so it is great to know they thought enough of me as their Coach to still be a small part of their lives a few years later! So this now BRIDE-To-Be will be attending the wedding showcase on Feb 20th. I am excited to see her, besides show her my wedding 'stuff'!!