EFY Music CD

This just in from yourldsneighborhood.com It sounds like a great deal :

yourLDSneighborhood.com wins distribution rights to 2008 Especially for Youth™ music CD; The disc will be available for sale starting August 23; Popular artists include Jessie Clark Funk, Dan Beck and Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band

Salt Lake City, Utah (August 5, 2008) The 2008 Especially for Youth™ CD, featuring the songs of local recording artists such as Jessie Clark Funk, Daniel Beck and Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band, will be available for commercial sale beginning August 16.

yourLDSneighborhood, which was awarded distribution rights to the popular CD, announced that the disc will be sold through its web site and at retail music stores along the Wasatch Front. The CD is a compilation of songs chosen to support the theme and focus of this year’s program “Steady and Sure” and has become a vital part of the EFY™ tradition. EFY™ is a summer program sponsored by the Church Educational System of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and held in locations through the U.S. and Canada.

Gaylen Rust, president and founder of yourLDSneighborhood.com, said the commercial release edition will contain an additional track not available on the CD distributed to EFY™ participants and feature more robust instrumental accompaniments. “Music is an integral part of a young person’s life and the songs on this CD really speak to the everyday challenges and exhilarating experiences that youth encounter. It’s uplifting and inspiring but also the kind of music that’s fun to listen to anytime. It’s also a way for teens unable to attend EFY™ to catch the spirit and joy of the whole EFY™ event.”

The “Steady and Sure” CD features 12 tracks including “Steady and Sure” – the title track on the disc by Jessie Clark Funk, as well as “Amazing Grace,” by Daniel Beck, “A Woman’s Heart,” by Felicia Wolf, “Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee,” by Mindy Gledhill and “Dream Big,” by Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band. Other artists include Ben Truman, Megan Flinders, Greg Simpson, Hilary Weeks, Terry White, Tim Gates, and a group song “Hurrah for Israel,” by Daniel Beck, Megan Flinders, Jessie Clark Funk and Dan Kartchner.

yourLDSneighborhood.com is a new virtual neighborhood launched in November, 2007 where a wide variety of goods and services are sold from clothing and jewelry to sports, scrapbooking, travel, and things of interest to home and family. Visitors can stroll through the neighborhood, stop and browse at retail stores, purchase merchandise, or stop at newsstands to chat with more than a dozen bloggers, read timely articles or listen to audio interviews with newsmakers and hometown heroes. At Jukebox, a new music feature in the neighborhood, visitors can listen to hundreds of new tunes and download them. A music directory lists dozens of musicians who are available for family reunions, concerts, weddings and other occasions. Besides the virtual neighborhood, yourLDSneighborhood.com produces an informative lifestyle newsletter four times a week delivering thought-provoking and inspiring ideas, and offers special marketing opportunities for artists, musicians and authors – as well as those interested in buying artistic works.

A Fairly Good Time =)

I love this time of year. We're beginning to see the fruits of our labor in the garden patch and my flowers are finally all in bloom. Girls' camp will soon be behind me.(We leave tomorrow for that adventure.)The huckleberries are almost ripe and ready for picking. And next week is the traditional county fair!

I love this tradition, a delightful aspect of our rural culture. I love wandering through the buildings full of produce and seeing all of the 4-H projects. I like observing the animals in the barns and patting a furry nose here and there. My favorite thing to look at would be the artwork and photography exhibits. Sometimes I even enter a photo or two of my own.

I enjoy meandering through the craft booths, and each year I savor the infamous "Hansen Hoagie," filled with freshly grilled onions. True, I have heartburn for a week after this event, but it is so worth it.

Carameled apples, live bands, rodeos, demolitions derbies, magic acts, and the annual talent competition all spring to mind when I think about going to the fair.

The carnival rides have never appealed to me---I tend to have a bit of motion sickness. Here's an interesting story. On one of the first dates with my future husband, we drove through a local canyon to enjoy Preston's county fair. It was a double-date; one of Kennon's friends had asked a sweet young thing to accompany him, and we were set. We arrived, ate the traditional fair burgers, and the boys showed off with a couple of the carnival games. When they didn't win any prizes, we girls sympathized, stressing that we were certain the games had been rigged. Then we enjoyed the rodeo.

Luckily, we ended up sitting across the arena from where one of the bulls jumped into the audience. I had never seen anything like that before in my life. Kind of scary, but the only injury was a broken arm as I recall. I think that's the fastest I've ever seen an audience scatter. ;)

After the rodeo excitement, we decided to enjoy some of the carnival rides. We tried a couple of the tamer rides, then decided to experience one similar to a "Tilt-a-Whirl." When Kennon and I sat in one of the compartments, the carnival worker grinned and spun us around, telling us it would make for a better ride. I did not concur. It made it far worse. By the end of that ride, I could barely walk a straight line. Kennon was in the same shape, but since we didn't know each other very well, we didn't want to let on that we were suffering . . . a lot. But when it became apparent that we were both staggering, Kennon led me to a nearby grassy spot and we sat down, trying to get our heads to quit spinning.

Already nauseated, we weren't looking forward to the ride home. Kennon's friend had driven us down to Preston and he liked speed. Picture if you will, Kennon and I, slightly green in color, sitting in the backseat of a sports car as it was driven at breakneck speeds on a winding mountain road. Not a good match. =)By the time we arrived in Montpelier, we were both in rough shape. But somehow, we refrained from losing the contents of our stomach in front of each other. Uncool dating etiquette. ;)

I'm looking forward to the fair next week. It will be a welcome adventure. And through it all, the following set of lyrics will probably be going through my mind:

"A Veritable Smorgasbord"

(From the original Charlotte's Web Movie)

Lyrics & Music by: Robert Sherman & Richard Sherman

A fair is a veritable smorgasbord orgasbord orgasbord
After the crowds have ceased
Each night when the lights go out
It can be found on the ground all around
Oh, what a ratly feast!

Melon rinds and bits of hotdogs
Cookie crumbs and rotton cotton candy
Melted ice cream, mustard dripplings
Moldy goodies everywhere
Lots of popcorn, apple cores
Bananna peels and soggy sandwiches
And gobs of gorgeous gook to gobble at the fair

A fair is a veritable smorgasbord orgasbord orgasbord
After the gates are shut
Each night when the lights go out
It can be found on the ground all around
That's where a rat can glut, glut, glut, glut!

What are some of your favorite fair time memories?

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A Fun Contest Sponsored by Anne Bradshaw

Anne Bradshaw is sponsoring a contest on her blog. The winner will receive a free copy of the book, "Caught in the Headlights," by Barry K. Phillips. Click here for details. =)

San Diego was Stupendous =)

A few years ago, we had a chance to travel to San Diego, California. That trip is still a family favorite---even if I suffered a bit of a glitch just before we left. Since that's an interesting story in and of itself, I thought I would share it with you today. =)

We had been planning this trip for several weeks. Our sons were thrilled with the idea of exploring Sea World. As was mentioned in a previous blog, I love the ocean and I was excited to see it for what would be the second time in my life. We also thought since we were that close, it would be great to see Tijuana, Mexico, which is just across the border from San Diego.

As we continued to make plans, we decided to invite my mother. She had never seen the ocean and she had always wanted to fly, so we made additional plans to include her in this adventure.

Two nights before we were to fly out of the Salt Lake Airport, I made the mistake of participating in a city league volleyball tournament. Actually, that wasn't my mistake. I had played with this particular volleyball team for years. It was a lot of fun. We called ourselves the Bennington Beauties, and we were. =) During the night in question, as we played in our first game of the evening, I twisted my ankle. It wasn't too bad, just a slight sprain. I figured I would be fine (not one of my better decisions) and I continued to play. As I went after a ball that came flying my direction, I slipped on that weakened ankle, and tore up the ligaments on both sides of my right ankle.

From the way the thing swelled up, everyone thought it was broken. I was taken to the emergency room of the local hospital for x-rays. Long story short, the ankle wasn't broken, but I had sustained a really nasty sprain. It was so bad, my doctor wanted us to cancel our trip. We had a little discussion and I proved to be more stubborn than he was. He got even. I had to spend the first couple of days in California in a wheelchair. Nice. My ankle was placed in a walking boot and I was given a pair of crutches to take along on our trip.

It wasn't bad flying to San Diego. And we found our motel without too much difficulty. We had rented a mini-van during our stay in California and my husband did a great job of driving us around.

Visiting Sea World while in a wheelchair was not my idea of a fun time, but we tried to make the best of it. My mother pushed me around for a bit as my husband and sons rode a couple of the rides located in the park. =) Then it was off to see Shamu. I was excited to see this show. And it did live up to my expectations. There was only one problem---the wheelchair. I was pushed to a special booth that provided a great view of the show for wheelchair bound individuals . . . until about 8 kids crowded in front of me. Then I couldn't see a thing. I asked them politely if they could please move somewhere else, and they ignored me. I learned during this experience that there are a lot of people in this world who show great disrespect to people in wheelchairs. Not cool. My husband, who was sitting nearby, caught on to what was happening, and he took care of things for me. ;) After the kids moved, I snapped the picture of Shamu that you can see at the beginning of this blog. The rest of the show was great, even if we did look like drowned rats at the end, as you can see in the picture below. Not only did we get splashed on by the stars of the Shamu Show, but it rained on us a bit, too.



We had one other adventure involving the lovely wheelchair----after seeing Shamu's show, everyone was starved. So we set off to find a place to eat in Sea World. It didn't take my boys long to find a small restaurant that served hamburgers. Son # 2 was pushing me around at the time. He pushed me up the hill toward the hamburger joint and then, caught up in the excitement of eating, he left me, forgetting to lock the brakes on the wheelchair. I found myself living a moment seen in comedies---my wheelchair began rolling backwards down the hill. Luckily, Derek caught on before we had a tragedy. He ran as fast as he could and caught me before I tipped over. =) Good times.

We loved the weather in San Diego. It was around 70 degrees the entire time we were there. Since it was still winter back in Bear Lake, my entire family loved the warmer temperatures. The ocean was awesome. We visited it the next day, when I no longer had to use a wheelchair---just crutches.




Old Town San Diego was fascinating. There are a lot of craft stores, including a glass-blowing business that sells all kinds of vases, glass animals, etc. My mother and I watched, intrigued as the owner of the shop made a glass vase utilizing a metal pipe and molten glass. Naturally, we each had to purchase something from this great shop. =) A souvenir of a wonderful afternoon. Later, we met up with my husband and sons for an old-fashioned milkshake made with real ice cream.

We didn't have time to see everything that San Diego offered. We spent one afternoon in Tijuana, which I'll talk about in a future blog. We spent another exploring San Diego itself. We ate delicious fresh seafood one night in a fancy restaurant called The San Diego Pier Cafe. It's part of a fun area near the ocean called Seaport Village. Seaport Village contains a ton of little shops that are full of neat souvenirs. Again, we ran out of time before we saw everything it had to offer.

I would love to go back to San Diego again sometime, minus the crutches and wheelchair. ;) But I'm not sure we would have any more fun than we did during those few days when we experienced San Diego under "entertaining conditions." ;)



Incidentally, my book, "Moment of Truth," features several scenes that take place in San Diego. The adventures described are fiction, but the settings and descriptions are based on what I saw while visiting this beautiful city.

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The Tradition of Girls' Camp, or Why YW Leaders Turn Grey

Ah, the bliss of girls' camp. ;) I suppose I'm pondering this subject because next week our ward will be participating in the annual stake girls' camp adventure. I've lost count of how many years I've attended girls' camp. It began when I was the ripe age of 12. I was a naive Beehive who sponged for things like the ever popular snipe hunt. I won't reveal how long I sat under a tree waiting for the infamous snipes to make an appearance that night, but long enough to gain an appreciation for this fine endeavor.

Girls' camp was a magical time. Leaders let their hair down---literally. Some of them looked quite interesting by the time camp was over. Actually we all did. It was part of the fun. Along the way, we girls learned the importance of tying knots, not getting lost during hikes, cooking over a fire, how to live without makeup or curling irons, and how to light a fire without matches. Always there were fun crafts, hilarious skits, and spiritual boosts like testimony meetings around a campfire.

I only caught myself on fire once during my years as a girl camper. It happened during my fourth year of camp. There we were, diligently learning to light a fire using only flint and steel. I had a slight handicap---I had broken a finger the week before during a softball tournament. (I had caught the fly ball that won the game---just with the wrong hand. The one without a glove. Story of my life, but I digress.) My broken finger was wrapped with gauze and taped to a small splint. It proved to be a nuisance during that entire camping adventure. But on the day that we were building fires, it really made things exciting fun.

I was thrilled when I saw smoke---after I had scraped the flint and steel together for what had seemed like hours. All of a sudden I heard one of our leaders scream, "She's on fire!" I was immediately thrown into a nearby creek---as my leader landed on top of me. Not one of my finer moments. ;) In the process of lighting a fire, I had caught the gauze on fire. Good times. On the bright side, I was given full credit for lighting a fire.

The years passed and along the way I found myself called to serve in the YW. This time I would be attending girls' camp as an adult. It was awesome, despite entertaining moments like the day some rambunctious girls smeared Icy Hot on the toilet paper. The girls' camp director later commented that camp that year had left her with a warm feeling. (She was the only one who was affected by that prank. She warned the rest of us as she ran screaming toward a creek.)

Then there was the time when a "Koala Bear" invaded our camp. The girls ran screaming down the hillside, flattening their leaders in the process. All we heard was "BEAR!!!" "IT'S A BEAR!" Then one girl screamed out: "IT'S A KOALA BEAR!" Highly unlikely in Idaho, but worth a look. When I took a flashlight up to investigate, I found that a raccoon had crawled inside of their tent and he or she was enjoying a handful of crackers from a box that had been left open in the tent. We still tease this young lady about the time she found a Koala Bear at girls' camp. =)


After serving in YW for nearly 5 years and attending girls' camp almost every summer, I was released from YW and found myself shanghaiied into Primary right off the bat. That next spring I was called to be the girls' camp director. Our bishop at the time wrote my name in magic marker on the ward calling roster, stressing that this was a permanent thing. I didn't mind. I'll admit, we had a lot of fun. I love working with the youth and each year we made a lot of fun memories. I think we were all disappointed when I was eventually called to serve in the stake R.S., and had to be released from the joy of girls' camp.


About a year and a half ago (2 weeks after being released from my stake position) I was called to serve as the YW president for our ward. More girls' camp adventures. =) Last summer, our stake had the opportunity to attend the Heber Valley Girls' Camp facility in Utah. It was a wonderful week. By far one of the most spiritual girls' camp adventures I've ever experienced. If any of you ever get the chance to attend camp in this location, go for it. It's very much worth the expense and adventure getting there.

Here's my take on why the tradition of girls' camp is important. Girls' Camp provides a setting where the YW and their leaders can get to know each other a little better. It's a chance to show the YW what you're made of, and vice versa. The YW learn important survival skills that they may or may not need in the years to come. I can honestly state that as a YW leader, I have used everything I ever learned during my youthful girls' camp days. I've also used these skills as the mother of all sons who loved to camp, hike, and fish.

The best part of camp I think, is the night some dread, the night when girls and leaders are given a chance to share what's in their hearts around a warm campfire. There's a special feeling in a forest setting, not found anywhere else.


I'm looking forward to this year's camp. In an ironic twist, one of the girls (pictured above) that went with us years ago to Camp "Koala Bear", is now serving as the secretary in my YW presidency. She will be going to camp with the girls this year and she is so excited. She is seeing for herself that life is a circle. I have no doubt that she will have the time of her life as the baton is passed to another generation of girls' camp leaders. I will have to share one bit of wisdom with her before she heads up---always take along your own supply of toilet paper. This alleviates a lot of potential problems. =)

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Loved New Orleans

What comes to mind when you think about New Orleans? The Saints football team? Mardi Gras? Wild parties on Bourbon Street? Hurricane Katrina?

I watched, horrified when Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc during the latter part of August 2005. Lives were lost, homes were destroyed, and the world seemed turned upside down as we all wondered what we could do to help. Images of those stranded at the Saints Superdome haunted me for a long time.

After what I saw Hurricane Katrina do to New Orleans via televised news stories, I wondered why anyone would ever want to live in this location. A little over a year later, I was given an opportunity to find that out for myself. During a business trip, I fell in love with New Orleans, and when my husband and I were given a chance to live there permanently, we seriously considered the offer.

My husband embarked on a business trip to New Orleans in October of 2006. He works for Monsanto and one of their plants is located outside of New Orleans. He had been asked to help with a special project for his company, and he had invited me to tag along with him. It was explained that we would be staying for about two weeks and I was delighted. I love to travel and this was a place I had never seen in person. I did wonder if there would be anything to see after all of the damage Katrina had inflicted. I was also bit uneasy about spending time in the Big Easy, after hearing about the rising crime statistics. Both of those fears proved to be unfounded.

I can state without hesitation that this was one of my favorite trips of all time. I loved the food: luscious fresh seafood; Cajun and Creole delights; as well as culinary treats like pralines, Muffalettas, and German sausage.

I loved learning the story of this Louisianna port town. Because of its access to the Mississippi River, New Orleans was settled by a myriad of cultures and it is a city with a rich historical background. It will be next to impossible to list everything I loved about New Orleans in one blog, so I will do so in a series of blogs. Today, I just want to whet your appetite. =) The one thing we were told to do repeatedly while we were there was to spread the word that New Orleans still exists, and is still tourist friendly. And there is a plethora of things to do in this location. Everything from sampling the wonderful food I mentioned above, to touring southern mansion houses from the Civil War era (none of these were damaged by "Katrina.") There are numerous bayous to explore, alligators to observe, and historical graveyards to wander. Rhythmic jazz to enjoy, and the French Quarter to savor.

As for the crime concern, we were never in any danger during our entire trip. True, we didn't venture anywhere alone, and we stayed in brightly lit areas at night, but I felt safe during most of our stay there. (We did have one scary adventure that I will probably share eventually.) Despite that one moment, I would visit again in a heart beat.

From time to time, I will share some of the adventures we experienced, as well as pictures that I took of the area. The picture I've included with this blog is of a jazz band playing in colorful Jackson Square in the heart of the French Quarter of New Orleans. To me, it captures what this city is all about, joi de vivre, or joy of life. The people who remain in New Orleans have taken this creed to heart. They are determined to rebuild, to survive, and to enjoy each day as it comes. We would go far by following their courageous example.

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One More Salute to the Pioneers

Since this post will be featured on Thursday, July 24th at www.yourldsneighborhood.com, I decided to do one more tribute to the courageous pioneers. =) I figure it's a timely thing. One could call this pioneer culture week. ;)

During the trip to Nauvoo that our family made in 1997, I wrote the following poem. It's a comparison between their time and ours:

Along the Mormon Trail

Air conditioning
Padded seats
Snacks for pleasure
Riding in comfort
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

“Are we there yet?”
“How much further?”
“When’s lunch?”
“Is there a rest stop soon?”
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Driving on paved roads
Stopping whenever desired
Sleeping at nights
In rooms with soft beds
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Historical sites beckon
Clutching cameras
We record worn ruts
Where ancestors toiled
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

In quiet reflection
I see another time
An era of
Weariness, sacrifice, & pain
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Rough wooden boards
Thin, worn clothes
Boots and shoes with holes
Dust, heat, hunger & cold
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Muscles straining
As hills challenged
Those already carrying burdens
Yet smiles persisted
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Songs were sung---spirits soared
Compassion was freely rendered
When heavy hearts mourned
A deserted grave
Along the Mormon Trail . . .

Gratitude for perseverance
Empathy for grieving hearts
Past dedication inspires
A determination to follow a similar path
Along the Mormon Trail.

Cheri J. Crane June 5, 1997

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