Mo*Bee's Blog #14: Seeking Relief For Hand Pain

Like most people, I rather enjoy this time of year, autumn.  The trees give one last hurrah with a vibrant color display.  Gradually, cooler weather is ushered in.

The Mo*Bee-mobile in the beautiful fall foliage in Western NC.

So, surrounded by beauty and crisp temperatures, I looked over my yard to survey the neglect from the hot summer.  I was overtly inspired to tackle the job at hand.  (Pun intended and more to come!)  I was now ready!  It was time to get my hands dirty.

I have spent hours at a time blowing leaves, raking leaves, fertilizing plants, spreading mulch, digging up dead bushes, gathering downed branches and even small trees.  I have gotten a lot done, but there is certainly more to do.  I have my hands full!  For one, those leaves are not done falling.

With all this work to do and just a few short optimal weeks to do it in, “take a break” does not readily come to my mind.  I know that I should take a break, but time is of the essence.  The problem is you see, these middle aged hands are starting to complain.  Chalk it up to another case of the mind is willing but the body is weak.  

Rather than throw my hands up in the air, I made good use of Mo*Bee’s Class Finder.  I found a free class about caring for the painful hand at St. Luke’s Hospital.  Dr. Karol Young, an occupational therapist and certified hand therapist, is an old hand in these matters.   

St. Luke's Hospital Rehabilitation 

Gripping device to help open jars.

Let me share a little of what I learned.  While I have never been diagnosed, odds are that I have some hand arthritis.  Fifty million Americans are affected by some form of arthritis with osteoarthritis being the most common followed by rheumatoid arthritis.  Both conditions result in degeneration of the cartilage (cushioning in the joint) and underlying bone.  This allows the bones to rub against each other and not move smoothly.  Common symptoms can include:  Pain, stiffness, swelling, weakness, deformity and limits in function.  Consequently, hand arthritis can make it difficult to perform tasks that require gripping and pinching.  And that certainly includes my yard work!

What can you do about it?  The good news is there are several treatment options, but it begins with respecting the pain in your hand!  Because the hand is comprised of many little joints, one should be wary of the stresses applied to them.  Just 1 pound of pinch pressure through the tip of thumb translates to 7-9 pounds of pressure at the CMC (carpometacarpal) joint which is at the base of the thumb.  This is a prime reason this joint commonly develops arthritis.  Pain is the body’s way of warning you something is not quite right.  Ignoring the pain and proceeding with activity can cause further damage to occur.  Quite simply, listen to your body, pace yourself and take that break when you need it.  Perhaps ask a friend or neighbor to lend you a hand. 

Until your hands hurt, one might take for granted how frequently they are used in normal day to day activities.  

















This is yet another reason why the hand joints are prone to degenerative changes.  Fortunately, there are many hand friendly tools readily available online or in your local retail store.  Generally speaking, larger handles permit the hand to work effectively but require less grip strength.  Therefore, there is less wear and tear on the joints in your hand. Pictured below are a few examples. 

Fiskars spring loaded scissors

Pen with large grip

Garden trowel with enlarged grip

Arthritic joints tend to respond well to the old standby, heat.  This can be in the form of a warm water soak, heating pad or even paraffin bath which is now available to the general public for purchase.  Thermal modalities help decrease joint stiffness and pain.

If after trying the above suggestions you still require a hands-off approach to life, you might should seek the help of a professional. Occupational therapists have a variety of tools on hand to get you going again.  Once you have been evaluated, a treatment plan will be specifically designed for you.  Let he or she know what activities you find difficult to perform with your hands.  Therapists can instruct you in joint protection techniques such as using 2 hands to lift something heavy.  The larger wrist joints can withstand the pressure much better.  For example, people typically use one hand to lift a gallon of milk out of the refrigerator.  Look at your index finger supporting all this weight!  According to Karol, this position is termed a posture of deformity.  In other words, this causes undue wear and tear on the joint. 

Once the occupational therapist is familiar with your needs, he or she can also suggest adaptive equipment to make the task at hand easier.  For instance, if you are having trouble writing, there are several helpful options to try.  Look for a pen with a larger grip or modified writing instrument.  Also, gel pens do not require as much downward pressure to apply the ink to paper. 

Pen Again

There are many treatment options available in the clinic to help alleviate your hand pain.  While you can apply heat at home, your therapist may use other thermal modalities such as fluidotherapy, moist heat packs, paraffin baths or ultrasound to decrease pain and stiffness.  Manual therapy techniques such as soft tissue massage, mobilization and stretching may be used to improve your function by decreasing pain and edema as well as improving range of motion. You likely will be required to perform a home exercise program to ensure hand mobility and strength.  “No pain.  No gain.” is not the adage to follow here.  After all, if you are like me, following this mantra likely got you into this predicament.  

Try these home techniques and modifications to gain the upper hand on your particular situation.  If you still need some help, individualized care from an occupational therapist might be necessary to address your specific needs.  Let Karol from St. Luke’s Hospital give you a hand with some therapy or a splint to rest and protect your joints.  Rest assured, you will be in good hands!

Don’t live near Polk County North Carolina.  No worries.  Visit the American Society of Hand Therapists website or call 856-380-6856 to locate a hand therapist in your area.  

Until next time...

Kelly & Dee (a.k.a. Mo*Bee)

Mo*Bee’s Class Finder.Com can help you find the class you want or need to take.  It’s so easy, we practically hand it to 

you on a silver platter!

Mo*Bee's Blog #13: Understanding Man's Best Friend

Mo*Bee's Blog #13:  Understanding Man's Best Friend

One of the great benefits of starting Mo*Bee’s Class Finder.com is that we get to meet all sorts of gifted instructors and educators.  In the blogs to follow, we hope to share a little of what we have learned with you!   Maybe you will decide to pick up a new hobby, be able to answer the next Jeopardy Challenge question or in this case, we hope you will volunteer your time with a shelter dog.

We have been volunteering at Foothills Humane Society to help train shelter dogs.  Kayla Parrish, owner of 2 Lead with Love, is our fearless instructor for an hour twice a week.  Don’t let her small stature fool you.  These dogs know she is the boss and not by being mean or an incredibly strict disciplinarian.  In fact, our dogs in training absolutely LOVE to sit by Kayla to get her affection and verbal praise.

Kayla teaching, "Walk with me."

Kayla has a different approach.  But before I spill the Scooby Snacks, let me just say we treated our animals the wrong way too.  This is not to say that we neglected or abused our pets, but we treated our canine clan like little humans.  We comforted and loved our dogs how WE thought they would want to be treated.

So, as silly as it sounds, here is the magic,…dogs don’t think like humans despite our best efforts.  We can dress up our furry friends in rain slickers and galoshes or tell them (in our best baby talk) they are the cutest little canines ever, but dogs still don’t think like humans.  Dogs are instinctively pack animals.  And actually, most dogs don’t want to be the pack leader.  They are seeking your leadership.  When you establish yourself as the leader, your dog is at peace and can find calm within your household.

Dee with Honey

With the dogs at the shelter, our goal is to teach them how to trust and interact with us humans using positive reinforcement (i.e. lots of treats).  We volunteers come from varied backgrounds and dog training skill levels, but we all have a desire to help find homes for these animals.  Obviously, a dog that is better behaved and socialized is more likely to be adopted.  You might be surprised to learn that the “average mutt” at the pound is incredibly intelligent and would make an excellent addition to a family.

With Kayla’s guidance, we have had the pleasure of helping several shelter dogs find their forever home.  It is not at all that we are superb trainers, but that Kayla expertly matches us with the dog best suited for our personality and skill level.  And what an awesome feeling it is to help our furry friends find a loving forever home. 

Gwen

Queenie

We hope you will consider making a difference in your local community animal shelter or join us at Foothills Humane Society!  As a bonus, you will learn how to train your own family pet and all it will cost you is some time!  

No worries if dog training is not for you.  There are plenty of other volunteer opportunities to match your talents and interests such as photography, video creation, transporters, landscaping, event planning / promoting and for the cat lovers out there, cat snugglers.  Yes, cats need socialization too. 

Until next time...

Kelly & Dee (a.k.a Mo*Bee)

Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost.  Find your next class on Mo*Bee's Class Finder.com!

Mo*Bee's Blog #12: Using Classes As A Marketing Opportunity For Your Business

Mo*Bee's Blog #12:  Using Classes As A Marketing Opportunity For Your Business

Hi everyone! I know it's been a minute since I have blogged, but it's been crazy busy. At last check, we had over 800 classes available on Mo*Bee's Class Finder. Each day we work very hard to promote these classes and build brand awareness. When you list your class on Mo*Bee's, that's just the beginning. Our goal is to help fill your class to capacity.

For instance, we have recently had the opportunity to attend a few classes and film several great tips. We edit this footage then share it on Facebook, YouTube, Google+ and Twitter. Instructors not only get the chance to promote their products or services, but also can establish themselves as an expert in their field. We do everything in our power to get the word out about your class.

As Mo*Bee's Class Finder has developed, I realize that conducting a class, even if under normal circumstances your business wouldn't hold classes, is is an outstanding way to market your business.

Let me give you some examples. Let's say that you are a dentist. As a promotion of your business, you could offer a class for parents to bring their small children in for a lesson on the proper way to brush their teeth. This is a great way for you to attract new patients. By having this class, this gives you an opportunity to build a relationship with these parents. The next time they need a dentist, odds are, you are the one that is going to come to mind.

As another example, if you owned a pool and spa company. You could offer a class on how to prepare your pool for the summer as well as a demonstration of some of the latest pool cleaning supplies and equipment. This class shows your potential customer how keeping a pool clean and ready for use is easier than it ever has been. This is a great way to get people into your business, meet them and make a connection.

The person contemplating buying a pool will more than likely think of you when he or she decides to make that purchase. You have taken the time to provide a class with helpful information that your customers feel is useful. Someone who comes to the class that already has a pool may come to learn about the new equipment. As a result of attending the class, they may purchase equipment from you, buy cleaning supplies from you or they may decide after watching your class that they would rather just hire you, the expert, to come clean their pool. Either way, you've obtained a new client.

So, as you can see offering a class in your place of business may be just the marketing strategy you need. If you decide to offer a class, we at Mo*Bee's Class Finder will be happy to help you promote that class.

I'll try not to be so long the next time before I blog again.

Until then...

Dee
a.k.a. Mo*Bee

We are happy to help promote your next class.  List your classes today!

Mo*Bee's Blog #11: Ten Dollars



Mo*Bee's Blog # 11:  Ten Dollars

Great thing happened to me today. Being a mom is always a super hard job. Sometimes your kids do things that make you want to crawl under a rock and hide. But sometimes, they do things that make you so proud that you just want to scream to the world ” Hey, did you see that, that's my kid!” I would like to take a moment, in keeping with Mo*Bee's mission statement where it says "make a difference," to talk about what happened to my daughter Candice today.

First, I have to start back when she was just starting high school. Candice, like most kids do, was going through a phase. She thought wearing black, baggy clothes, and having her hair dyed neon pink was a cool look to have. It was the kind of look that made even her dad ask me," Why do you let her dress like that? It makes her look like a kid that's going to cause trouble." To which I replied," Hey, she don't drink, she don't do drugs, she's not pregnant nor has she been pregnant, and she gets A's and B's, so if that is how she wants to rebel, or if this is her way of looking cool, then I say we let her do it. Besides, if we approve of it, she may start to think, 'Hey, if my parents are okay with this, then it can't be cool.' "

Candice in High School

Before she started high school, I told her,"People judge you by the way you look. If this is how you are going to start high school, you need to know that teachers are going to think you are a troublemaker." She said, " No they won't, I'm not changing it! I like it, and this is how I want to look." So off she went to high school with her baggy, black clothes and bright bright pink hair, in a fauxhawk no less. When she got home that first day she said," Mom, one of my teachers hates me." I said, "No, she doesn't, she just met you today, she doesn't even know you yet."  She said, “No, she really does! She told me we are like oil and water, and we are not going to mix.” I said, "If she said that then... maybe she does hate you." Then I laughed! Candice got mad and said “it's not funny, mom! She hates me.” I asked her what she had done to make this teacher hate her. She told me she didn't do anything. It was almost time for the class to be over, and people were just sitting talking to each other all quietly. The teacher just walked over and said that to her. I told Candice, “You're going to have to give her some time to get over the way you look. Once she gets to know you, you'll be fine.”
Two weeks later she came home, all happy and taking two pieces of hard candy out of her front pocket. She showed them to me proudly, as if she had won an award. She said, " Guess who gave me these? She said my teacher Ms (Blank) gave them to me!" I said, " I thought she hates you." Candice said, " I know, the more she gets to know me,  the nicer she has been to me."
I told Candice then that this was a good example for her to see that she should try hard not to judge people by the way they look. Try to always be open and friendly to everyone you meet no matter what they look like. The world would be a much better place if we judge people solely by the way they treat us. Crazy thing is that people will go out of their way to avoid a strange looking person walking down the street. They'll even lock their car doors if they see someone coming toward their car who they feel looks untrustworthy. Yet they'll drive that car home to a place where they know that there is a good chance that once again, they will be beaten or verbally abused. They will stay in that relationship even though they know their fate could be death this time. Like I said, it's a crazy world.

This teacher, who happened to be nearing retirement age, was taught something herself. The girl she had met on that first day of school, the same girl who she had said something hurtful to, was the same girl who she later chose as a student of the month and after that, to be her personal assistant throughout her time in high school. It was the same kid whom she gave flowers to and a gift to on graduation day! It was the same girl who even to this day, she runs over and gives her a great big hug and tells her how much she misses her when she sees her in town.

While this teacher may have learned not to judge a book by its cover, Candice has not learned to tone down her look. As I suspected, the black, baggy pants and pink hair lost its coolness, and she toned that down. For a while, she looked like an ordinary teenager. I don't know what happened... while I was perfectly okay with the wild look back then,  I must say I am not at all fond of the new look. It could be because piercings and tattoos tend to be permanent. I've always liked that look on other people, but for some reason, I just don't feel the same seeing it on her. Anyway, to finally get around to what happened, my tattooed and pierced-up daughter called me on the phone. It went something like this..." Mom, I just went to the grocery store with a friend of mine, and when we were coming out of the store, in the parking lot, I saw a man drop some money out of his pocket. I went and picked it up, then ran up to the man (which made him jump and look suspiciously at me) and said,' hey you dropped this money.' He looked at me, at first startled, and as I handed it to him, I saw that it was a $10 bill. He took it, and then said thanks. He started to walk away but then stopped and asked me if I liked tomatoes. I told him I did, and he said that he sells produce at a produce stand and he has some leftover tomatoes if I would like some. We all walked over to his car, where he gave me some tomatoes. Then, he took the $10 bill back out of his pocket and held it out to me. He said,' Here, you take this. You deserve this for being so honest. It makes me happy to see a young person like you be so honest.' " She said, " I told him no, it was okay, it was his money, and I gave it back to him because it belonged to him." She said he then insisted she take it for doing such a deed.

She was so happy about getting that $10.00, not to mention those tomatoes. This whole incident made me really proud, because while Candice forgets about how she looks to strangers, I know that at first, all that man saw was a young, tattooed, pierced-up kid running towards him. But then he saw past all that, to who she truly is. I wish I could have been in the parking lot that day.  I wish I could have screamed, “Hey Mr.... that's my kid!! ”

My hope is that by sharing these stories we can all start to make a difference. Let's all try harder to wait and see how people treat us before we decide how we in turn should treat them. I'm going to go find my kid now, give her a great big hug and tell her how much I love her and how proud I am to be her mom.

Until next time
Dee
a.k.a. Mo*Bee

Share your knowledge!  List your next class on Mo*Bee's Class Finder.com!

Mo*Bee's Blog #10: Job Well Done

Blog #10:  Job Well Done

In a world where sometimes it seems harder and harder to find businesses or individuals, for that matter, who still take pride in their work and deliver exceptional customer service, let me shine a spotlight on some that still do.

I order little plastic bags to put my business cards in, along with bird seed, dog treats, or smiley rocks. This is just one of the things we do in order to stay in line with the part of our mission statement that says, "Make it easy.  Make it fun.  Make a difference." These bags are part of our “Make it fun.” Gifts International delivers these bags and as trivial as it may seem, they get it right.

The bags from Gifts International

It's not that Gifts International does anything that I'm not expecting; it's just the fact that they consistently do exactly what I'm expecting. I order my bags from them online and the mere fact that I can order them online without any assistance from someone else shows that placing an order with them is easy. Next, I consistently receive in the mail, within the time frame that they gave me, exactly what I ordered. That's it folks!  I'm impressed with this company for the very fact that they consistently do a good job. So to the folks at Gifts International, don't think that it goes unnoticed when you're only doing what you're supposed to be doing.

Next up is Trivette Images. I hired Trivette Images to make my business two videos, one to show instructors about Mo*Bee's Class Finder and the other to show prospective students about Mo*Bee's Class Finder. I chose Trivette Images over all the other production companies that I looked at because of their compassion. That's not to say that I didn't also think that they did an outstanding job producing videos. All the places I looked at did outstanding jobs producing videos. If you'll take just a second to visit Trivette's website and watch a few of their videos, you'll see exactly what I'm talking about.



Trivette Images

I chose to do these videos with a very small budget because, for the most part, I was having them made to show one man who was going to give me some guidance about promoting my website. Because we had not yet launched, I needed a video to show him from each perspective, why someone would want to use Mo*Bee's Class Finder.

I worked with Dylan Trivette who was kind and gracious and a pleasure to work with, just as I had suspected because of the compassion shown through the subjects of his videos. If you ever find yourself in need of hiring a production company, I highly recommend Trivette Images. You will not be disappointed with them or their work.

Instructor video.

Student video.



Okay here's the last one I'm going to talk about today. I hope you don't mind me taking time to give these businesses and people a plug. I know I like my friends to tell me where they get good service so I don't have to waste time trying to find good places on my own. That being said, there's no way I could not think to tell you about Kia of Greer. I've been going to Kia of Greer for a couple of years now.

Kelly bought her Kia Sorento from them a few years back. (Just in case you were wondering, yes, that is the vehicle that I was driving when I got that ticket in Virginia. The one I talked about in blog #2.)  Anyway, I was with her the day she bought it and couldn't help but be impressed at how easy they made that much dreaded ordeal that women have to go through.

I have always hated having to buy a new car. I hated going to car dealerships; I hated car salesmen; I hated being treated like I am stupid; or that I could be easily tricked into paying way more for a vehicle than my male counterparts would have, just because I'm female. I had even told Kelly before we went, “I'll go with you, but they're probably going to make me so mad that I'll have to walk out.” That's what I said out loud to her, but in my head I was really thinking, “I'm probably going to end up in jail today for punching some car salesman in the face. All this because Kelly didn't want to sit in a car dealership all day by herself.”  Lucky for me and her car salesman, the purchase of her Kia Sorento was incredibly smooth.

Kelly had done months of research for not only what kind of SUV she wanted, but also for what was a fair price to pay for one. Armed with this information and before we ever got out of the car, Kelly said, "This is what I want blah blah blah blah and I will not pay a penny over X amount. I don't care what their salesperson says. So, if I can't get this price, we're leaving."

I said okay and we both got out of the car the way warrior ninjas would arrive fully prepared for battle. We walked into the dealership and were introduced to a salesman who asked what exactly we were looking for. Kelly told him what all she wanted and he said we've got that right here on the lot. What color do you want? Okay we've got that; come with me and I'll show you exactly the one you're looking for. He walked us over to where the SUV she had previously described inside was sitting and said,”Here you go.” By now I'm thinking okay great, half the battle is won. They have exactly what she's looking for right here on the lot, so we're not going to have to fight about either having to upgrade something or downgrade something.

Knowing that the biggest battle was yet to come, the battle over price, I finished off a bottle of water to make sure I was fully hydrated.  I was also trying to slow my heart rate which had begun to slowly rise from the moment we had pulled onto the car lot in anticipation of the pending arrest and subsequent stint in jail. Kelly fired the first shot and asked, "How much is it?"  He answered with something that went somewhat like this, "Well, the suggested retail price is blah blah blah but we can get you in it for X amount."  Kelly and I turned and looked at each other dumbfounded. My brain raced frantically trying to figure out what's the trick? What's going on here? The amount he had quoted her was about a hundred dollars or so under the price she had quoted me before getting out of the car when we had first arrived. For a split second I thought, maybe Kelly doesn't know what a really good price for this SUV is. But, then I snapped back into reality and remembered that this is Kelly that were talking about. She, as I mentioned before, had done months of research on not only the vehicle she wanted but what would also be a fair price according to what everybody else all over the United States is actually paying for this particular vehicle. You know the end of the story. You know she bought it, because like I said it's the one I got a ticket in. Anyway the people at Kia of Greer were super nice. It does, however, still take a long time to type up all that paperwork but, that aside, I can't complain. I ate a pile of popcorn which they provided and then we were off.


Kia of Greer









Since then I have returned to Kia of Greer a number of times in order for Kelly to get her oil changed. Me being me, I spend this time talking to everyone who gets within 5 feet of me. One day that happened to be Tony Sellers, the sales manager. Tony is great fun to talk to, so now I'm always eager to go with Kelly when she needs to have any maintenance work done. I've even taken her Kia down there for her on days when she had to work, but her oil change was due.  If you had told me five years ago that one day you're going to go to a car dealership just because you enjoy talking to the employees there, I would've said you've lost your mind and probably would've punched you in the face.

Tony Sellers.

Now comes time for me to buy a car to use for my Mo*Bee's business. Hey, it was a no-brainer!  So, off I headed to Kia of Greer. I knew exactly what I wanted. ..a Kia Soul.  I wanted a Kia Soul for two reasons. One, because I thought it was an ugly little car and if you want to draw attention to a car it needs to be either breathtakingly gorgeous or ugly. Breathtakingly gorgeous usually comes with a really big price tag. However, ugly is affordable to all. The other reason I wanted a Kia Soul was because it had nice, big flat places to advertise Mo*Bee's Class Finder on.

So not to bore you, I'll give you the short version of buying my Kia soul. I told Tony the sales manager and Sam the sales consultant what I wanted. They found it and I bought it!  It was so easy and Sam ate popcorn during the whole process. (Ha ha!  Just kidding Sam.) 

I'm also happy to tell you that while I bought this car solely for the purpose of advertising Mo*Bee's on it, I must say I love this little car. Surprisingly, it's very roomy whether carrying passengers or cargo.  (Ha ha!  Cargo… that means I went shopping!)  It gets great gas mileage and it's fun to drive. 

So, the next time you're in the market for a new car head on over to Kia of Greer. Ask for Tony Sellers and tell him Mo*Bee's sent you. Grab some popcorn and relax; I think you'll agree there's no need to feel like you may have to punch the salesman in the face. 

Okay, I have to wrap it up now. It's time for me to go to meet my sister Dawn and fill my Soul with cargo!

Until next time.

Dee
a.k.a.  Mo*Bee

Let others find you by listing your next class on Mo*Bee's Class Finder.com!

Mo*Bee's Blog #9: 25 Years of Matchmaking!



Mo*Bee's Blog #9:  25 Years of Matchmaking!

Mo*Bee's helped Foothills Humane Society celebrate 25 of years matchmaking!

We were honored to help celebrate the Foothills Humane Society 25 year anniversary. Despite the snow on the mountain tops and the early morning high winds, with a few minor adjustments (we moved from outside tables to inside one of their storage buildings) the games went on as if nothing had happened.



Always fun to beat Dad in a game.





Volunteers arrived in droves to help the dogs be introduced & mingle with the crowd. The people who braved the cold were treated to such things as pony rides; free hot dogs, baked beans, chips, drinks and the best potato salad to ever grace a paper plate!  There were also some dog shows such as a demonstration from the Columbus Sheriff's Department and K-9 unit.

Mo*Bee's was happy to provide the "cardboard carnival" where anyone with mad gaming skills could try their luck and win a prize. Prizewinners were awarded animal treats (just in case your pets are not already happy to see when you get home), candy for the young and young at heart, and raffle tickets.  So, if winning once wasn't good enough, you could be given another chance to win again.



Boys being Boys



Once again I brought a knife to a gun fight.

Hearing of the fun and festivities, even crazy Ann stopped by on the way home from a relaxing 12 hour shift at work. Kelly came to help and so did my friend little Peggy. We played games like Pop & Win, where every (lolli)pop picked could be a bigger winner than the last one.

                                   Crazy Ann and Little Peggy

Match & Win, where contestants were given the names of 3 classes that can be found on Mo*Bee's Class Finder and they had to pick the correct school or facility where these classes are taught. We had to help a lot of contestants out with this game, which we were glad to do.  That's our job to help people find where they can take the class they are looking for.



YES! WNC Edutech does teach that class!



Next up was Coin Hole where people were challenged to roll, slide or ricochet a coin down a wooden slide and into one of the 4 brightly colored holes at the bottom. We liked this game a lot because it covered the 3 things we at Mo*Bee's aim to do according to our mission statement, "Make it easy. Make it fun. Make a difference.". It made a difference because all the change collected was donated to the Foothills Humane Society. It was fun and easy to play all while allowing people to rid themselves of that heavy change in their pockets in exchange for great pet treats and candy.

The only sad thing about the day was that the pony, who had come to give all the kids a ride, had gone home before I could get a photo of little Peg riding it. Maybe it heard that Crazy Ann was coming and it got scared that she might try to turn it into a work horse.

Before leaving, Ann did jump right in and help us do some work that the shelter needed even though like I said earlier she had already put in a long day at work. All of us there were not the least bit surprised, that's just another example of why we call her Crazy Ann.

People pick their friends for all different reasons. When I asked Kelly and Peggy if they would get up at 7 AM help me load up and be at the animal shelter by 8:30 AM to help the shelter put up tents, put up banners, set up a bunch of cardboard games and do all this in 30° temperatures and 45 mile an hour winds, neither of them hesitated even for a minute. So you pick your friends however you want to. I plan to continue to only pick the ones that have the hearts the size of Texas.

                                          Kelly and Little Peg

So when Mo*Bee's Class Finder helps you find the class you been looking for or it helps you get the word out about the class you are teaching, it's all my friends that you need to thank. It's their selfless hard work that has made Mo*Bee's Class Finder a reality.

We are happy to announce the winners from the raffle:  Lewis Aho won the dog toy and treat gift pack. Joan Gaw (who told me when I called her that she has "never won anything in her life before!" ) won the limited edition pen and ink print of Chimney Rock. Joan, now you can't say that anymore! Courtney Aho and Rou Gildersleeve both won a gift certificate to Open Road Coffee and Tea shop. Dana Mayer won the Bi–Lo gift card.

But the biggest winners of the day were the 4 families who adopted pets from the shelter that day. If you chose to stay in your warm home and you missed out on all the fun, it's not too late for you. Load up the family and ride on over to Foothills Humane Society or if you don't live around here visit your own local shelter where you too can collect the best prize you've ever won. It's an easy game that's fun and where you too can make a difference!

Until next time.

Dee
a.k.a. Mo*Bee

It's simple to find the class you want to take on

Mo*Bee's Class Finder.com!