Author Archives: lifewithlilred

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About lifewithlilred

Just your average gal blogging an average blog!
Apr30

Dandelion Days

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Dandelion Days

Hi everyone and happy Monday! From as early as I can remember, I have always loved dandelions. Apparently, I used to spend countless hours in my youth squatted in the yard and plucking dandelion bouquets for my parents and grandparents. I also had many a temper tantrum when my parents wouldn’t stop the car at random fields to let me go dandelion crazy. But, that’s neither here nor there. And now, twenty years later, I still take delight in seeing the yellow blooms sprouting up in my neighborhood.

A weed and an inconvenience to some has always been viewed as a treasure to me. As soon as the dandelions begin invading the yards and fields in my neck of the woods, I know that spring is here. And, when the tiny yellow petals fall away, a puff of new seeds will come back that are perfect for making a wish on.

While walking through the neighborhood, I saw the perfect little lineup of dandies poking out of one of the driveways, and it brought me so much pleasure that I had to stop and snap a picture.

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It doesn’t take much to make me happy, but it sure is hard not to smile at the yellow pops of color scattered throughout the grass. 🙂

What was one of your favorite activities to do as a child? Who else was a fellow dandelion picker? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr29

Flashback Fun

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Flashback Fun

Hi everyone and happy Sunday! When I talk about my dogs to anyone who will listen, nine times out of ten, I end up showing them the pictures of my rescue pups dressed up for Halloween. Ollie, my terrier mix, and Gem, our Golden Retriever, make up a huge part of my happiness. And, when I think about them, I often flashback to their Despicable Me minion costumes for Halloween this past year:

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I LOVE the polar opposition in these pictures between my babies, because Ollie is just going about his day as normal. Gem, on the other hand, looks freaking PISSED. I am that crazy dog mom who would have pictures of them in my wallet if I could. But, when dogs are the topic of discussion, showing these pictures from my iPod always gets a laugh – and hopefully it makes you laugh, too! It’s just a fun party trick of mine, you know?

Do you dress your pets up for Halloween? Are they like Ollie or Gem when it comes to wearing clothes? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr28

Adorable Cuteness Overload Pt. 2

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Adorable Cuteness Overload Pt. 2

Hiii everyone! So you guys saw my dad’s surprise get well shrine for my mom yesterday – cute, right? Lol, well he added a new member to the sunshine crew and it was so funny that I just had to share it with you all:

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In case you were wondering, yes, that is a cut out head of a monkey sending his well wishes. Wait, what? Haha, I guess we got some magazines from one of the wildlife programs that we donate to, and we got two copies of the monkey edition. Since we had two of a kind, my dad decided that it was okay to cut up the cover to place with the gnome, dog, and flowers.

Naturally, my mom did not want this decapitated monkey picture hanging out on our kitchen table, so my dad retired him to his new location after only one short hour with the sunshine crew:

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I just really can’t even, and it was so funny in the “what the hell” type of way that it only felt necessary to share with each and every one of you. 😀

Does anyone else have weird mascots hanging out in their home? What is the weirdest thing that you or a friend owns? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr27

Pain Relief Without Pills In Five Natural Forms

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Pain Relief Without Pills In Five Natural Forms

Many people opt for a natural lifestyle, which includes avoiding taking medicine if there’s an alternative way to cure what ails you. Looking for a natural form of pain relief? Here are five options to consider if you’re looking for a break from meds:

Herbal medicine:

There are plenty of herbal medicines that can offer pain relief. Ginger has long been used to treat stomach pain from menstrual cramps to digestive disorders. Meanwhile, Turmeric is an effective form of pain relief against joint pain. You can even try products such as cannabis oil as found at https://canabidol.com/. Herbal medicines can be taken as capsules or as herbal teas – you may even be able to incorporate them into your food.

When experimenting with THC or cannabis oil, it is always best to do your research before making any purchases. There are lots of comprehensive guides and best of lists online. Then, you can learn about delta 8 vs delta 9 vapes, the best cartridges, gummies, or teas for your needs!

Remember that if you are interested in using marijuana for pain relief, then it is important to do things right. Look into Arizona medical marijuana laws, speak with your doctor, and use a reputable dispensary. There is nothing taboo about using marijuana to manage pain, especially if you are looking for a more natural remedy.

Acupuncture:

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese form of treatment that involves putting small needles in key points around the body. This treatment can be used to fight all kinds of pain from arthritis to migraines. You should always seek out a qualified professional when getting this kind of treatment. It’s a great idea to get recommendations from friends or family or read client testimonials when you search “Acupuncture Near Me“. If you are squeamish with needles, this might not be the best course of treatment for you. However, it can be most beneficial and having a friend to support you at your appointment can make a big difference.

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Ahhhh!!!

Hot water:

Taking a hot bath can also be a simple and effective form of pain relief. Hot water can help to relax your muscles and create a flood of endorphins around the body that can help to combat pain. This can help to relieve pain caused by everything from joint problems to early contractions during pregnancy. Some people find that using Epsom bath salts can also help when taking a bath. There are even professional forms of pain relief using water known as hydrotherapy if you really want to unleash your inner mermaid.

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Take a soak!

Exercise:

Staying active can also help to fight pain in some cases. This is because exercise releases endorphins around the body and helps to reduce stiffness in muscles. Depending on the source of the pain, there may be some exercises that you should obviously avoid. For example, high impact exercises like jumping and running aren’t recommended if you have joint problems – you’re far better off doing low impact exercise such as swimming or yoga. Exercise is best for chronic pain and not for pain following a recent injury, in which you may be better off relaxing until the injury has began to heal. If you’re not sure which exercises are right for you, you could try talking to a physical therapist. Combining exercise with treatment plans from RELATYV At Home Pain Management in North Carolina (or a similar provider in your local area) can be most beneficial in alleviating your symptoms and improving your overall health. As your pain decreases, you will be amazed at how much more you can do when you are working out.

Meditation:

Meditating might not sound like an effective form of pain relief but it can be a major way of reducing stress, which is known to increase inflammation. Meditation involves clearing your mind and controlling your breathing so that your cortisol levels are reduced – cortisol is the stress hormone and plays a big part in triggering inflammation. By relieving stress through meditation, you could help to fight off the pain caused by inflammatory diseases such as IBS and arthritis.

Trying out these natural forms of pain relief might be just what the doctor ordered to get your body feeling back on track.

Apr27

Adorable Cuteness Overload

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Adorable Cuteness Overload

Hi everyone!! So the other morning I wake up and my dad tells me “make sure you take a picture of what I did on the kitchen table”. So, in other words, I heard “make sure you put it on your blog”. Lol, my dad set up a little surprise shrine for my mom, who is going through some intense medical treatment, to wake up to:

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Before even stepping into the kitchen, I could smell the beautiful hyacinths from our front yard. My dad also included lovely daffodil sprigs in his tiny bouquet. Not only did he pick flowers special for my mom, but he upped the ante with a hello from a cute dog and “Dave The Gnome“, who he was gifted with by JANE herself.

I often write about how my mom will surprise me with fashion related gifts like accessories or clothing and it’s always such a delight. So, it was sweet to see my dad muster up a surprise of his own to help start my mom’s day with a smile. To spread the love even more, CHARLES told me to send the picture of his creation to my sister, too. So cute.

Later in the morning, I heard my mom tell my dad how much she liked her surprise and he replied with “Oh, yeah – I made it for Gem”. (My dog. Massive eye roll!!) The Adorable Cuteness Overload was nice while it lasted! 😀

How do you like to surprise your loved ones? What is the best surprise that you have received? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr26

Pavlovian Conditioner: Grooming Hacks For Pet Owners

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Pavlovian Conditioner: Grooming Hacks For Pet Owners

Ivan Pavlov is a famous Russian physiologist best known for his work with dogs. As good as he was at training their behavior, he never took a shot at their personal hygiene. Why, oh why, Ivan? It would have been your best work to date! As much as we love our furry pooches, there grooming can leave a bit to be desired at times. From their breath to their coat, they sure can smell! Admitting they smell from time to time is the first step, and now is the moment to move onto number two, three, and four.

These are grooming hacks for dogs that need a little extra TLC in the personal hygiene department:

#1: Brush

Throwing a canine into a bath and rinsing him or her with a shower head is easy because it’s quick and simple. The thing is, that it doesn’t work one-hundred percent due to the volume of fur. As the ladies know, a long mane gets tangled and mangy when wet and needs a good brushing. The same goes for dogs. So, before applying shampoo try and massage out the knots. There may be some resistance, but it’s for their own good!

#2: Doggy Shampoo

Shampoo and conditioner are essential, but the human-made stuff won’t suffice. Men and women have hair, while pooches have fur. There’s a big distinction, and it means regular treatments won’t work. Instead, they need a proper dog shampoo and conditioner combo to get down and dirty in the fur follicles. Before applying, these dogs guides by Nina Lyman recommend trimming or cutting their coat if it is too long. For one thing, it helps to reduce the overall volume. Secondly, it reduces the smell as there is less chance of grime getting stuck. You don’t have to be a hairdresser to do it, either, as long as you’re confident with clippers.

#3: Learn To Love

Hopefully, your pet will take to the bath like a duck to water. However, there are enough horror stories to suggest that it’s a 50-50 chance. Good luck, then! All jokes aside, canines that aren’t water babies may learn to love it in the long-term. This is where you have to channel your inner Pavlov and manipulate their conditioning. For instance, remove the obstacles first and foremost. A non-slip mat is a smart idea so that they aren’t scurrying around, as are cotton balls in their ears. Don’t forget to play and give them words of encouragement, too.

#4: Outsource

Learning to love the process goes for the owner, as well. Anyone who hates the process should think twice beforehand because it affects the animal. They can feel negative energy and will respond accordingly. The good news, is that there are professionals who will do it for an affordable fee. Plus, they will clean the dog’s teeth and clip their nails. Sometimes, outsourcing is the best option for pet owners.

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Apr26

What Might Really Be Causing Your Headaches

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What Might Really Be Causing Your Headaches

If you find that you are getting a lot of frequent headaches, you will certainly want to find a way to get to the bottom of it. Having headaches all of the time is not the kind of thing that many people can put up with very well for too long, and it makes sense to want to sort it out as early as you can. As it happens, there can be many reasons that you might develop a headache, and it is often necessary to look into the underlying cause before you can find the best solution for your particular situation. In this article, we are going to look at some of the most common causes of headaches, so that you can be sure what you know is causing yours – and hopefully fix it all the sooner:

Stress:

We all experience a lot of stress in our daily lives, and this can lead to many health problems in time if we allow it to overtake us. This is all too easy to do if you are not careful and allow it to worsen, so it is a good idea to make sure that you deal with it as early as possible. One of the possible results of a lot of stress, is that you might experience headaches throughout the day. You can generally tell if it is a stress headache because there will not appear to be any underlying health problems and it will be linked to stressful or triggering situations. Obviously, the way to get rid of such headaches is to remove the source of stress, or to take up stress-busting activities such as meditation and mindfulness exercises.

Poor Eyesight:

If you have eyesight which is gradually worsening, that too can lead to some pretty bad headaches on the whole. You might have a hard time working out whether you are experiencing this kind of headache, but again there will be some telltale signs. Probably the most obvious is that you will have headaches mostly when you are doing a lot of close reading, or possibly while driving and other activities like that. If you are having this a lot, you might want to get an eye exam and see whether your eyesight is getting worse or not. If it is, wearing glasses or contacts might be the answer, and will hopefully reduce headaches, as well.

Dehydration:

We all know the feeling of the hangover headache – all of this is really  dehydration, and if you are frequently dehydrated you will find that you are having a lot of headaches. The best solution here is preventative – in other words, make sure to drink plenty of water at all times. But if you are struggling to do that, you might want to set yourself reminders so that you can be sure of doing it more often and more easily. With any luck, your headaches will disappear, and if they don’t you will at least know that the cause must be something else.

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Hydrate!

Featured Image By: Pexels

Apr26

April 2018 Finishes

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April 2018 Finishes

Howdy! I hate to say it, but 2018 is moving at a rapid pace. With April drawing to a close, warm summer days will be on the horizon before we know it. As much as I’d love for time to slow down dramatically, that’s just not the way things work! Lovely May is just days away and that means that it’s time to see which beauty products I am saying bye bye to this month. Check it out:

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Would I Use Again?

  • Bath & Body Works Country Apple body spray: YES
  • Tresemme Botanique Damage Recovery hair product: YES
  • Jones New York body cream in White Tea: MAYBE

Why/Why Not?

B&BW Spray: We all know by now how much I love anything apple scented and Country Apple by Bath & Body Works will always be one of my faves. I buy this body spray in bulk for a whole three dollars during B&BW’s summer sales and it usually lasts me close to five months. Talk about a teeny tiny cost per use!

Tresemme Hair Product: I really, really liked this spray. 1) It smelled awesome. 2) It made my hair really shiny. And 3) It provided protection from heat while leaving my hair feeling soft and fresh. It took me at least six months to finish this product and I would buy it again in a heartbeat. In fact, I plan on it once I finish up the oil that I’m currently using. I would definitely recommend this!

JNY Cream: I got this as a gift from my BFF for Christmas and I ended up really liking it. At first, I wasn’t too wild about the White Tea scent, but it ended up growing on me and by the time I finished my cream, I totally loved it. I love the texture of this product. It was thicker than a normal lotion but not as hard as a body butter by any means, which made applying it so easy. Despite the pillow soft texture, my skin still felt really hydrated and supple after each use and I got as least five full body uses out of the jar. I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy it again, but if I was gifted with it, then I would be really happy. 😀

Even though I didn’t finish up too many goodies this month, I enjoyed using all of my empties, which makes April a definite success!

Which beauty products did you finish up this month? Have you ever used any of my empties before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr25

4 Rules For Accessorizing In Summer

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4 Rules For Accessorizing In Summer

Accessorizing well is the key to making any outfit amazing, and now that summer is on the way, you need to start thinking about how you’re going to elevate your summer outfits. Summer is a time for bold prints and bright colors, but when you’ve got that much going on in an outfit, you risk going overboard with your accessories and making it too busy. To stop that from happening, follow these simple rules for accessorizing in the summer:

Pick Sunglasses By Shape:

Sunglasses are an absolute must in the summer and you’ll be wearing them with everything so you need to know how to pick them. When it comes to color, you need something fairly neutral that goes with most outfits, but the most important thing to look for is the shape. The rule is, that you pick sunglasses that are the opposite shape of your face. So, if you’ve got quite a round face, you can opt for square glasses. If you’ve got a fairly angular face, go for a round style. The shape of your eyebrows is important as well and you need to match it with the top frame of the sunglasses. If you’ve got arched eyebrows that come out over the top of a square frame, it’ll look a little off.

Match Three Points:

Color matching when you accessorize is important, but you shouldn’t go overboard. Matching three items in your outfit is a good guideline to follow if you want to create a good balance. Anything less than three and your outfit won’t be complete, and any more than that and you risk making it too messy. So, you could match your shoes, belt, and bag. Or you can match jewelry with your belt and shoes. However you decide to do it, always stick with the rule of three.

Prioritize Comfort:

During the summer, prioritizing comfort to some extent is a must. If you don’t, you’ll end up boiling hot all day. When you’re choosing women’s shoes, go for some sandals that will keep your feet cool. Always avoid dark colors or anything that is tight fitting as well if you want to stay comfortable in the sun. Practicality is important too. You’ll be more likely to be spending the day out of the house when the weather is nice so when you’re choosing a handbag, go for something larger that has the space for everything you’ll need when you’re out and about.

Experiment With Colors:

Summer is the best time to experiment with colors because you can get away with more than you can in a winter outfit. If you tend to go for more plain pastel colors, use your accessories to inject a bit of excitement into an outfit. Floral patterned handbags or large patterned belts all go great with a summer outfit.

When you’re accessorizing your summer outfits, always remember to make them practical and, even though you can experiment with colors make sure that you’re matching properly for an amazing look.

Featured Image By: Flickr

Apr25

High Paying & High Powered: The Careers You Can’t Afford To Dismiss

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High Paying & High Powered: The Careers You Can’t Afford To Dismiss

There is a lot of conflicting advice out there about how to pick the perfect career after college, with many experts emphasizing how vital it is to do what you love. However, it is also important to acknowledge that 99.9% work because we need the money to survive. With this in mind, careers at the top of the pay scale should always be considered before you make your choice. Read on to find out about some of the highest paying and highest-powered careers there are out there that might be a good fit for you:

Stockbroker:

Fancy working on Wall Street, wearing smart suits, and partying as hard as you work? Then the role of stockbroker may be for you. Of course, it’s not all champagne lunches and, in fact, it can be a pretty stressful environment to work in. Because along with the potential for high returns, dealing in stocks and other financial investments is super risky.

Now, as a stockbroker working on Wall Street, you can expect an average salary of around $300,000 a year. Although, you won’t be investing your own money but currency provided to you from commercial or private clients. You may even work with mutual funds where a collection of investors group together so that they can secure a bigger stake in the market.

You will also need to be highly knowledgeable about stocks and shares as well as other investment opportunities such as forex, ISAs, and CFDs. The latter being entirely different to actual stocks because the money is not exchanged for tangible assets. Yes, it’s a complicated process, but luckily you can get some more info about CFDs by researching them online. Although, do note that unless you have a stellar track record, it’s likely you will need a fiance or mathematics degree to get into this field.

Doctor:

Everyone thinks of medical doctors as being at the top of the pile when it comes to high paying and high powered jobs. Such a role is certainly high powered, as doctors end up making life or death decisions on a daily basis, and have to take the responsibility for these, as well.

Doctors need to use their salary to offset their student loans. However, regarding pay, you might be surprised as to how little doctors earn. In fact, the average MD wage in the US is £200,000 per annum. Although, this can be increased by specializing in a specific area or going into private practice.

Unfortunately, as there is so much schooling needed to become a doctor in the first place, the high loan debts that newly qualified medical professionals have often absorb a significant part of their salary. Perhaps making it a less wise choice for those to whom salary is the most crucial factor.

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Pixabay Image

CEO:

A CEO or chief executive officer is the person within a company that makes the high powered and high pressured decisions. The ones that whether the company will sink or swim are based upon. Of course, this makes it a super stressful environment, but many people thrive on this and enjoy carving out a name for themselves and their company in the commercial market.

Also with the average US CEOs salary being at around 13 million a year, the monetary reward is there, too; making it a fantastic career goal you cannot afford not to consider.

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#girlpower

We live in a world where the moolah is everything, and the above jobs can definitely give you a lot of it!

Featured Image By: Pixabay