The One at Mt. Rushmore

I had always wanted to see Mount Rushmore. And when our parents told us we'd be able to go, we were pretty excited. But Shaina and I had NO idea how much we'd love it.

I remember driving through the black hills... up to the mountain. (Well, *I* wasn't driving, my parents were, but still... I was looking out the window.) And Shaina and I were beside ourselves... each twist and turn we took up the mountain, gave us a just a peek of the four faces. And it was like Christmas morning.

We finally arrived, and it was the most breathtaking sight we had ever seen. 

Every time I look at this photo, I remember what a wondrous and beautiful site it is. It really is one of the most amazing things on this earth. And it makes it even more special (at least, in my eyes) that it was created by men. :) 

To this day, I love this photo, and it's still one of my favorite handstand photos to date.

The One on Saw Horses

So this is my favorite handstand picture to date.

It wasn't planned. The "props" weren't positioned perfectly by an art director. Shaina and I were just wandering outside our friend's house (in South Dakota during that big road trip), and she had the brilliant idea of me doing a handstand on saw horses.

At first I replied, "No way! I'll fall and get hurt. Mom and Dad will be mad!" I know them well enough to know they would be upset to have to drive me to an emergency room in The Middle of Nowhere, South Dakota.

But Shaina... you see... she lives vicariously through me. Much to her dismay, she wasn't a gymnast. She got the artistic (she can DRAW! WELL!) gene. I got the gymnast gene, I guess. She was always like, "Do an aerial! Do a back-handspring! Do a back tuck! Do a handstand three feet off the ground on these very un-sturdy, rusty, non-sanded saw horses!" And I complied.

So along with this being my favorite photo, it also ranks as Numero Uno on the "Scared Out of My Mind" Handstand List. :D

I stood on the saw horses in a straddle (legs apart), with my hands in front of me. I pressed my legs up slowly, and to my surprise... I was able to hold it there: straight and not fall over. I mean, I usually am straight and don't fall over. But I guess the only reason I was surprised was because I was three feet off the ground and balancing on two pieces of 2x4. Must admit, while I was up there, I was thinking, "Gosh, this is pretty darn cool."

So up in that handstand I said, "Shaina, did you get it yet?" And she replied, "YES!! And it's perfect!" I pressed back down to straddle and heaved a big sigh of relief. I seriously thought I was going to have to flip over the side. No idea I'd actually come down to my feet like I had wanted. Phew.

I shook off the butterflies, and we went back inside the house. Then we were back on the road... to visit the coolest place on earth... (another handstand photo to follow).

The One at Big Lake

This was probably the 3rd scariest handstand I've ever done (I know you're sitting at the edges of your computer chairs waiting for the 1st and 2nd). And the fact that I have some handstands ranked as "scariest" is just downright... well, you know... scary.

So... we were driving from Colorado to Minnesota... I'm sure it was to visit family, as my mother grew up just west of the Cities. (And for all those non-Minnesotan readers... "the Cities" refers to Minneapolis-St. Paul. Avoid looking like a dork in front of a Minnesotan and just say "the Cities." You'll probably impress the beer right out of 'em.)

Moving on...

So we arrived in Big Lake, Minnesota. My grandmother grew up on this lake. My Great Aunt Sue still lives in the house, and this is their dock. I've spent many a summer hanging out here with family and friends... catching little fish and throwing them back. Swinging on the rope swing into the lake. (Well, *I* didn't swing into the lake, but you know... my brother and the older, braver kids did.)

We thought it would be really cool to get a photo of me on this dock. All was fun and games until I walked over there and realized that it's a lot smaller when you're getting ready to stand on your hands, and the thought of *if* I fell, I'd be wet... and probably injured and humiliated. But hey, we'd have it all on camera for your viewing pleasure! Tee hee hee.

Too bad for you (lucky for me), you do *not* get to see me sopping wet, crying and crawling out of the water. I've never fallen out of a handstand, after 12 years of prolonged handstand holding (okay, there was that ONE time in my friend's living room, but really... when you have two toddlers running toward you and parents screaming that you're going to fall onto their VCR, you'd fall too! And that VCR... very unforgiving. I'm still claiming that I did not *actually* fall. I was walking on my hands, and I ran into their entertainment center. I don't have eyes on my feet, you know!

Anywho, what you *do* get to see is a pretty awesome handstand that even shows a smidgen of a calf muscle on my left leg. I wasn't blessed with muscles in the leg area. Arm muscles? Now, those... you'd be surprised at the guns on this petite frame. But legs? Notsomuch. So this picture boosts my self-esteem like I just won the Olympics!

The One at a Rest Stop in Ames, Iowa

So my family went on a road trip my senior year of high school. I'm pretty sure we drove from Colorado to Minnesota. And I'm also pretty sure that we took a detour to South Dakota (to be shown later). Things are a bit hazy, as this *was* nine years ago.

One thing I *do* know... This picture was taken in Ames, Iowa. Tee hee.

I had already done a few handstand photos, so by this time, I had firmly decided I would take them wherever I went. And *try* to get something in the background that could give a little hint as to where I was. Or in this case, not a hint, but a big sign literally saying, "You are in Ames, Iowa!"

I'm guessing there used to be a map there. It would have looked cooler than white tape. Perhaps I'll PhotoShop a map into there! HA! That could be done...

I ended up getting quite a few handstand pictures on that trip in 1998, so more to come. :)

The One with the Jets

I'm pretty sure this was an impromptu trip to the Air Show in Durango, Colorado in September 1998. This boy I liked... his dad invited my dad and I to join them. Planes and a cute boy? Umm... yes, please!

I've always LOVED the air show. We were in route to my first one in November 1986 (in California) when we were in a bad car accident. I broke both my legs, and obviously... wasn't able to make it there that year. The *following* year, however, my dad took us for the first time, and I remember it being amazing!

I saw the Blue Angels. My sister and I brought our Radio Flyer red wagon. We took lots of pictures. It became a family tradition after that, and we went every year. And it's always been one of my very favorite memories from my childhood.

So yeah, I love planes. Even my 8th grade science project was done on paper airplanes, but I got TONS of cool correspondence stuff from Boeing, Lockheed, etc. Through that project, I officially named the F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-117 Stealth Fighter my favorite planes (jets). So of course, when the Durango Air Show had BOTH of them, I had to get pictures.

The military dudes (with guns) thought it was cooler than cool that I was doing handstands, so they let me go UNDER the ropes to take these photos. Celebrity treatment? I think yes!

So here they are for your enjoyment. Much to the dismay of the US Air Force, I'm sure... here are my handstands in front of two of the coolest jets ever!

The One at Disneyland

And it all began with this photo... I think. ;)

It was spring 1997. We were visiting California, so my sister could go to prom with a guy-friend of hers. Disneyland has always been one of our very favorite places, so we just had to go!

I'm not sure what even prompted me at this moment to start the handstand thing. But I do remember that 1997 was when I started getting good at them. LOL.

The Partners statue is one of my favorite things at Disneyland. I love that the castle is in the back, and the bronze character sculptures surround it. One of my very favorite places to hang out. :)

The First One

Have you ever noticed when you go on vacation to a cool place and when taking a picture, you just sit there and smile?

So a few years later you're sitting there looking in photo albums (or scrapbooks...) thinking, "Here's me standing in front of this place. And here's me standing in front of this place. I'm boring." Well, I was tired of looking back at pictures of myself in front of cool places... just standing there.

So... I decided (being the crazy gymnast I am) in 1997 that I would do away with 'just standing there' and instead I would do handstands in front of cool places. This phenomenon has now turned into what I like to call my "Handstand Portfolio."

And my name? So kindly bestowed upon me by my gymnastics coach, Jen. Handstand Queen. A bit egotistical, I think... and *so* not me to call myself a queen (too low maintenance to have that title). And for some reason, I always think of Diva and Queen being in the same category, both of which I'm not. But I can hold a handstand, so if I had to be Queen of something, I'm glad it's that!