Nov. 22, 2006

Get behind the scenes of Illinois Gymnastics with Illini Ink - the weekly women's gymnastics journal. This week, freshman Lori Hamilton talks about hanging out with her teammates, giving back to the community and Thanksgiving dinner at Coach Bob's.

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Wow! I can't believe it is November already and that it is almost time to go home for Thanksgiving break! I remember coming here in August and thinking how far away it was until I got to go back home, but the time has really flown by.

It has been awesome being part of such a close-knit team. They have really made my adjustment to college so much easier. The girls have all been so welcoming and helpful - showing us freshman where our classes are, giving us rides, inviting us to dinner, etc. We've done lots of things together too - going to soccer games, volleyball games and football games, bowling, camping and hanging out. We always have such a good time! It has been especially comforting to have the three other freshmen to go through all of these new experiences with. It's amazing because we are all very different but we each bring something unique to the team and get along so well! I feel like I have known these girls for years!

Inside the gym everyone has been working hard putting together routines and doing harder landings, and working on consistency and cleaning everything up. A couple of us are recovering from some injuries, but are working hard at our rehab and staying positive. I've been really impressed with each and every girl on the team. A lot of girls have learned new skills that are awesome! I can't wait for season to begin because I know we are going to be great and impress everyone with how much we have improved.

Outside the gym we have been staying busy as well. On Thursday night a lot of us went to the Robeson Family Reading Night at a local elementary school where we enjoyed reading books to the kids. I had forgotten how many great children's books are out there - I loved reading Dr. Seuss again! One of the little boys was adamant on having a handstand competition with Krystal. While he put up a good fight, I am happy to report that Krystal won!

All in all, it was a great night and I know we were all happy to give something back to the community that supports us so much. Saturday night the whole team and our coaches and their families went to Bob's house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was lovely! Each of the girls on the team brought an appetizer or dessert, and they were delicious! Who knew we had such great cooks/bakers on our team! A couple of my personal favorites were Danye's chili dip and Laura and Sarah's "Puppy Chow". One of the funniest moments of the night was when a game of "Scenarios" broke out around the dinner table. Basically, one person calls out a "scenario" (like "You just won a million dollars!") and then the group poses. The pictures are hilarious! Check them out here. The night was definitely a wonderful time and we all had a lot of fun talking, laughing and eating.

I know were all looking forward to our little Thanksgiving break and for a chance to go home and see our families. I can't wait to go home and see all of my friends, family and dogs (including my new puppy)! Even though it is not Canadian Thanksgiving, I'm going to try and convince my mom to make me a Thanksgiving dinner. I know that we will all come back nice and rested and ready to get back to work in our final preparations for season!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Thanks for reading and GO ILLINI!

-Lori