American Ninja Warrior

So you've seen the show, right? American Ninja Warrior? Where they do stuff like this-

And this-

Yah, well I did too, and I was so obsessed with it. And then, they opened up a Junior Ninja Warrior facility in Chicago, and I just had to sign up.

So a few weeks ago was my first one and I'm absolutely in love with it. Climbing walls, trampolines into rope climbs, and that was just the beginning.

Then there's Wall Run. They have three levels of wall heights and you have to literally run UP the wall, grab the bar on top and pull yourself up. The first bar was easy. The second bar was a little harder. After several tries of not getting it I finally grabbed the bar and pulled myself up. Dad didn't get that video but check this one out to get the feel for it.

And then there's my favorite - Jumping Spider. Basically you run and jump off a trampoline and then you have to stick your arms and feet out and stick yourself to the walls on each side. Then you spider crawl through the chamber but at the same time you have to climb up it. When you get to the top you jump from your spider crawl to the bar and grab on. I missed the bar here but read below for the real news on this one.

So not bragging but I was the only one who made it all the way through the chamber. However, a couple tries later, after the one in the above video, I went for the bar and got it (no one in any classes in my age group had done it) but that's when the whole thing went south. My momentum carried my feet way out in front of me, like way out, and then my hands slipped. I dropped 10-12 feet right onto the top of my back. BOOM! My feet, by the time I made impact, were actually directly above me and my knees just crunched me into a ball. Wind completely knocked out of me, the whole room stopped, Dad hopped over the wall and came over, and I laid there for 10-12 minutes trying to get my breath.

Net net is I'm okay, but boy did that hurt. It's three days later and I'm still really sore in my ribcage. So next week we are off of Ninja due to Halloween but the following week I'll be back at it because I am... NINJA WARRIOR!

October!

Well, I haven't written in a while but if your'e wondering what I've been up to this month, here goes (deep breath in):

Mom and Dad went to Oregon on a wine tasting tour for a few days, so while they were doing their thing...

I was doing mine. I went with my bestie Shea and her mom and dad and brother to a really fun hotel in Wisconsin and had myself a hoot of a time.

Meanwhile, Pax and Mae were at Nana's and they were having a pretty good time themselves. If you can't make this out it's Pax, Mae and Sophie doing some neon glow-in-the-dark indoor mini golf.

And then, after a long weekend away from those two, a nice little reunion took place outside of school.

Next came Grandparents' Day at school with Nana...

And Sid's birthday bowling party, where Pax had his first-ever chance to hit the lanes

Juliana took us out to the pumpkin patch by Nana's.

Dad and I hit up our first Hawks game of the year.

A blast from the past! Ms. Matus, my kindergarten teacher, came by one night to babysit.

And I've had some snuggle time with Hutch.

Mae made up this outstanding song about mom and dad's friends Andy and Erin.

And lastly, we started taking Hutch on the ride to school just about every day. He gets the way-back seat and, as you can see, enjoys being part of the crowd.

Pax

Saw this and it really epitomizes what I think of when I think of Pax. He just really enjoys taking his bathroom breaks outside.