Dec28

Make Your Home Life Easier By Getting To Grips With These Great Gadgets

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Technology is an amazing thing. The achievements of the modern day make life a lot easier than it used to be. It’s not just everyday life that gadgets can help with, either. Installing some devices around your home can take the hassle out of those jobs that we all love to hate. All you need to do now is know which ones to install. We’ve got a rundown of a few things you need in your home right now. Don’t do things the hard way. Get connected to get on top!

Garage Door Openers: The garage door has long been a point of contention. Having to get out of the car to open the door is always a chore. Not to mention that you have to maneuver the vehicle so that you have enough space to get that door open! Garage door openers are the oldest gadget on this list, but they’re one no home should be without. Openers, like those found at www.garageautomatics.com will take the hassle out of parking. Some options use a remote control while some work automatically. Whatever you choose, it’s an investment worth making. Entering and exiting your home won’t be the chore that it once was with one of these in your life!

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 Wikimedia Image

WiFi Thermostats: Do you often find yourself returning to a cold house? Do you dread getting out of bed in the morning because of the cold that is lurking outside your duvet? You needn’t suffer anymore. With the invention of the WiFi thermostat, it’s never been easier to turn the heating on. For years, thermostats have given the option of timed heating. That’s not always practical, though. The amount of heat you waste with this option is insane. Plus, it’s never warm when you need it to be!

With a WiFi thermostat, you can connect your heating straight to your phone. That way, you don’t even need to be at home to turn the heat on! Turn your thermostat on when you leave the office and return to a toasty warm house! Forgetting to shut down the heating won’t be a problem with one of these, either. You can just open the app on your phone and turn the heat off from wherever you are. Save time and money with one of these bad boys!

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 So Handy!

Automatic Vacuum Cleaners: Cleaning is a chore that none of us relish. We may all be dreaming of robots that can clean the whole house, but technology isn’t quite there. The good news is, is that it’s not far off. If you hate vacuuming, then you need an automatic vacuum cleaner in your life. With one of these, you’ll never have to worry about the job again. Just set your automatic cleaner to roam your house, and it’ll clean as it goes. You can connect these to your phone too so that you can ensure a clean room for your return! Automatic vacuum cleaners have been around for a while now, so there are many options. If you’re unsure of which one is best, sites like  www.toptenreviews.com can give you an idea of the top products on the market.

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DJ Roomba! Parks & Rec, anyone?

Dec28

The Cleaning Musts That Most Of Us Forget

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With Christmas gone, spring is literally just around the corner. It may be hard to imagine when the days are short and we’re all so cold, but it’ll be here before we know it. That’s why it’s time to turn our attention to spring cleaning once again. We all associate spring cleaning with scrubbing out cupboards and washing the floors. There’s nothing wrong with that. It is, however, important to remember the other things that need attention. Here’s a lowdown on the spring cleaning musts that most of us forget.

Clean The Cleaning Cupboard: We fill our cleaning cupboard, yet how often do we check through what we have? Remember that you’re cleaning your house with the products that you’re storing there! If they’ve gone off, or become contaminated, it’ll affect everything. With that in mind, get cleaning. It’s important to scrub the cupboard itself, too. Cleaning cupboards always end up with a sticky residue (Ew!) from accidents. Don’t allow your cleaning stuff to become infected with bacteria. Keep the space clean!

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Keep The Air Clean: It may sound strange, but it’s important that you keep the air in your house as clean as possible. Damp or stale air can cause major health issues if you’re exposed to it for a long time. It can be hard to get your home fresh during the winter, but as soon as the beautiful days come, it’s essential that you get to work.

Throughout the whole year, you can avoid damp air by using a dehumidifier like those reviewed by Dehumidifier Web. During the spring, though, you can take literal air freshening even further. Open windows as often as possible to stop mold growth and staleness. It’s amazing what a difference a breath of fresh air can make. Clean your windows to ensure that they go into summer without any mold spores growing!

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Look After The Outside: It’s also easy to forget the outside of the house when we get stuck into the cleaning. Indoors isn’t the only place that needs a little attention once the winter ends. In fact, the outside of your house will need you more, as it will have been exposed to the elements! Getting the house pressure washed will be an instant facelift for your home and is a cost effective way to make your property shine. You can find pressure washing pros by entering a search for “Pressure washing service in the Waynesboro, VA” or your local area. You should also turn your attention to drains and gutters as soon as possible. During the autumn and winter months, they will fill with leaves. Not clearing these could cause a major backup.

Once that job is done, turn your attention to your garden. It’s bound to have suffered through the winter months, so you may have a fair amount of work to do. Start by clearing any dead foliage, then get to working on making the space beautiful again. For the most part, a little clearing up will ensure that your flowers will grow through as they should. Think, too, about when to start cutting the grass. It’s always worth listening out for when your neighbors start doing theirs!

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You don’t even have to wait until spring to transform your house. Why not get ahead of the crowd and do your spring cleaning in time for the new year? #2017goals !!

Dec28

Post Christmas Shopping

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Post Christmas Shopping

Hi everyone and happy hump day! I hope all of you are having a fabulous week so far. The day after Christmas, my mom and I ventured to the mall to make some returns and do a little shopping. It was actually not as crazy as I expected it to be and thanks to some gift cards and holiday cash, I was able to add two fun new things to my wardrobe. Take a look and let’s discuss:

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The Haul:

  • Forever 21 cropped rainbow sweater
  • Loft velvet skinny jeans

F21 Sweater: I lucked out this Christmas and ended up getting some gift cards to Forever 21 which is easily one of my favorite stores. I think that this sweater is the cutest and it was only twenty dollars which, in my opinion, was a steal. My mom and I went shopping at just the right time because I snagged the only small that was left among a bunch of larges! GREAT SUCCESS. I am actually wearing my new sweater along with my velvet skinnies from Loft at this very moment and it looks adorable! Pictures will definitely be up some time this week so stay tuned! 🙂

Loft Jeans: First of all, Loft literally has the best skinny jeans that I have ever worn, so I was so happy to score another pair that was marked all the way down to twenty-seven bucks from seventy! Second of all, I have had a love/hate relationship with the velvet trend that has been so popular as of late. I love some of the velveteen pieces that I’ve seen but I hate that none of them speak to me on a personal level! But, black velvet skinnies are definitely something that I can do since you guys all know that black skinnies are all I wear. Not only is the fit of the Loft skinny jeans superb but the velvet adds a fun new texture to every outfit and I am loving them with my Forever 21 rainbow sweater! ❤

After a tiny post Christmas shopping haul, it’s now time to save my money and store away my Forever 21 gift cards until spring to add to my warm weather wardrobe. However, this is going to be SO HARD considering my email inbox is legitimately overflowing with sale notifications from all of my favorite stores! GET BEHIND ME, SATAN!!

So there you have it, my Post Christmas Shopping! Has anyone scored some amazing after holiday deals? Where is the best place to get the best price after the holiday season? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec27

Best Of My Holiday Haul

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Best Of My Holiday Haul

Hello everyone and happy Tuesday! I hope this holiday season brought you lots of fabulous goodies and some amazing quality time with your family and friends. This Christmas brought me a great big holiday haul thanks to celebrating with two families (mine and my boyfriend’s) and my best friend. I won’t bore you with featuring all of my prezzies but here are a few of my favorites from my holiday haul! Take a look:

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The Haul:

  • Arturo Chiang heels from my sister
  • Thug Kitchen cookbook from my sister’s boyfriend
  • Philosophy bubble bath, a stuffed bunny, and plaid gloves from my boyfriend

What I Like About You:

Arturo Chiang Heels: My sister spoiled me rotten with these shoes!! Kristen knows that I love all things footwear and I told her I needed one more pair for an empty space on my shoe wall. She took this need to heart and picked out a perfect pair for me in my favorite color – black! I was so excited about these because I was looking at a pair of perforated heels from TJMaxx and didn’t end up buying them but I like my gifted pair so much more! I am so happy to add my Arturo Chiang heels to my shoe wall arsenal and can’t wait to stomp it out in them once the weather warms up.

Thug Kitchen: Finally, someone sees me for the thug that I truly am! My sister’s boyfriend, Ramon, gave me this cookbook along with a Starbucks gift card and I thought that it was so thoughtful. Ramon is one of my best friends and I really appreciated that he picked out something that I actually really like – an all vegetarian cookbook doused in profanity! Thug Kitchen is filled with amazing vegetarian dishes and is freaking hysterical. Not that I would expect anything less from a cookbook that is subtitled “Eat Like You Give a Fuck”!!

Boyfriend Presents: As always, my Kyle spoils me during gift giving occasions and this Christmas was no exception. Among a huge haul of gifts from him, my bath wash, bunny, and gloves are some of my favorites. I love Philosophy products but I would never buy them for myself so I am so excited to use my Vanilla Birthday Cake scented body wash, especially because my favorite fragrance is anything vanilla!

There is actually a cute little story behind my blushing pink stuffed bunny. I have been begging Kyle to get me a real rabbit for Christmas since the beginning of the year but unfortunately, my mom is not on board with the idea. So for now, the stuffie will do but it definitely doesn’t beat the real thing! And finally, I adore my new gloves. The gift shop at Kyle’s restaurant has new variations of these gloves every year and I loved the black and maroon pairs that he got me last Christmas. But I think that this plaid pair is even better! I love the colors and the bow that goes across the wrist is too cute. 🙂

This is just a tiny peek at my holiday haul and I am so thankful for everything that I received this year as well as the time spent with my loved ones. So special shout out to them for making my Christmas one of the best yet!

So there you have it, the Best Of My Holiday Haul! What did you guys score this holiday season? Did you receive anything that you were madly in love with or ehh not so much? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec27

Live Well And Be Happy! Bringing Luxury Into Your Living Room

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In this day and age, it’s important to try to live well. Of course, it’s just as important to live within your means so you don’t have any financial problems or get into any debt, but equally, if you have the cash, it’s important to try to enjoy it with a little luxury in your everyday life. Maybe you do that by using high quality toiletries – there’s nothing like hand soap that moisturizes as well as cleans. Or maybe you like to check out the occasional high priced restaurant in the city where you live. No matter what your vice is, though, we all have a home – and we all like for it to look good. Here are some luxurious touches you can add to your living room for a dose of comfort and glam:

A New Couch: First things first: do you need a new couch? If yours is starting to make protesting, grumbling noises and creaks every time you get up, then it’s probably time to go for a new couch – for example, check out the Duresta sofas and chairs. You want to make sure that you get a couch that looks good but that you can curl up on during the long winter evenings. And speaking of that…

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 Lol at her book!

Comfortable Throws: What’s the point of a couch if you don’t have a throw to snuggle up beneath? Of course you’ll need soft pillows too, but the throws are really where it’s at. Go for soft, colorful wool that you can keep folded on the back of the couch during the day. If you’re feeling decadent, you could go for fake fur so you can imagine you’re on Game Of Thrones as you watch it on TV. And seriously, who doesn’t want that?

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Surround Sound: If you enjoy watching TV, then go for some new speakers and surround sound. It might not be great to feel like you’re in the aforementioned Game Of Thrones – what if you die? They all seem to die a lot – but as a general rule, better sound is always good for your TV and to enhance your viewing experience. Speaking of sound systems, you might want to check out Graham Slee HiFi sale & deals to further improve any of your musical endeavors with the best preamps.

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Blackout Blinds: If you don’t have blackout blinds in all of your rooms, it’s time to invest in some. Make sure you keep them pulled back during the day so they let some daylight and heat into the room, but at night you can draw them. Not only does this mean you won’t have to deal with any creepy reflections late at night, but it’ll also keep the heat in, meaning your heating bill will go down. But mainly creepy reflections – Yikes!

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 Make sure you give your plants some light!

Add Some Art: If you’re into art, your living room is the perfect place to put it. Make sure that you don’t overwhelm the space – don’t put more than one piece on each wall. You could even go for just one spectacular piece, like a piece of sculpture or a painting that stretches the length of the wall. If it’s a really incredible, breath-taking piece then you can arrange the rest of the furniture around it so it becomes the focal point of the room and people will pay attention to it.

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 Check out local artists for a one of a kind piece!

Dec26

December Finishes

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December Finishes

Hello everyone and a very happy Monday to all! I hope that those who celebrated Christmas yesterday had a fantastic day and that everyone is enjoying the holiday season. This is my last post about my monthly empties for 2016 and it is kind of a blah one because all of the products are from The Body Shop! This month was about sticking with what I know and using up some of my favorite products from my go to bath and body and skin care shopping spot. So take a look and let’s discuss:

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Would I Use Again?

  • The Body Shop Strawberry Body Scrub: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin E Moisturizer: YES
  • The Body Shop Cocoa Butter Body Butter: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost: YES

Why/Why Not?

Strawberry Scrub: The scrubs from TBS are a must for me when I am shaving, as they exfoliate, moisturize, and lift the hair from their follicles which results in a smoother shave. I love both the strawberry and satsuma scrub and was lucky enough to find both at TJMaxx for five dollars apiece. Score! The best thing about this scrub is how well it lathers – a small quarter sized squeeze can easily cover your entire leg! A little goes such a long way with this product which is why I finally finished it after the better part of five months. I essentially paid a dollar a month to use my scrub and I can totally get down with that!

Moisturizer: I have wrote about my beloved Vitamin E Moisturizer many a times and my love for it grows with every use. This cream is perfectly in between a heavy and light consistency which leaves your skin feeling like peaches and cream every time. Your skin will look and feel so smooth, soft, and dreamy creamy. Thankfully, I got another jar for Christmas since I’m all out! It took me about a month and a half to finish this moisturizer.

Cocoa Butter: The cocoa butter is easily my favorite body butter that the store has to offer. It smells deliciously rich and chocolate-y in the most subtle way and you can feel it nourishing you as soon as it makes contact with your skin. This was the scent that I always recommended when I worked at The Body Shop because I feel like everyone who uses it loves it just the same. The nice thing about cocoa butter is that it is not as heavy as the Shea butter for those who like something lighter, like myself. Make sure you ask the employees at the store about which butters have a cocoa or Shea butter base next time you shop to get the consistency that you like! It took me about a month to finish this body butter which I scored for six bucks at TJs!

Vitamin C Boost: I am sure that all of you guys know by now about my undying love for the Vitamin C Skin Boost. I have been using this stuff since I was a teenager and I honestly don’t think that I will ever stop. I really feel like my skin looks brighter and more radiant thanks to consistent use of this product and I am so thankful for it! Nothing is better to me than luminescent skin so to achieve that with two pumps of the skin boost per day seems like a no brainer! It took me three months to finish this product.

It was such a treat to use up some of my favorite goodies from The Body Shop this month. It left me feeling perfectly pampered and incredibly happy that I was able to take care of my body with some of the products that I feel are the very best. Here’s to many more skin, beauty, and body care must haves in 2017!

So there you have it, my December Finishes! Please stay tuned this week for some of my favorite new items in my holiday haul! What was your favorite beauty product of 2016? Did anyone score any new makeup or beauty items for the holidays? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec25

Merry Christmas!!

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Merry Christmas!!

Hello everyone and a Merry Merry Christmas to all of you!! I hope that you guys have a wonderful day celebrating or doing whatever it is that you do today. No matter what holiday you celebrate, my wish is that you have a joyous holiday season with your friends and loved ones. I am SO excited to give all of my gifts to their recipients because I have literally been waiting ALL MONTH to do so! I am also really looking forward to ringing in the New Year with all of you here on lifewithlilred.

I am keeping this Christmas post short and sweet so that you can get back to going about your day so I will talk to all of you later. Remember that you are each so special to me and please accept a big, virtual holiday hug from me to you! What was in your holiday haul? How do you celebrate the holiday season? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Dec23

New Hot Pink & Black Nails

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New Hot Pink & Black Nails

Hiii everyone and TGIF! Yesterday, I had a little pampering party to get myself perfect for the holiday weekend. I got my nails filled in the morning and then spent the evening dyeing my hair to get it nice and bright red for Christmas. As always, my nail tech, Vinny, did an amazing job shaping and sharpening my nails. I opted for a color for the accent nail that I rarely pick but am actually loving right now. Hot pink! It is far from your classic, run of the mill highlighter hot pink but more like a bright fuchsia and I think it is so fun! Take a look:

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The color looks admittedly red in this picture because poor camera quality but you get the point! Normally, when I am picking an accent nail color, I go with red or shades like grey, beige, or white. This new accent nail color is definitely out of my comfort zone considering I don’t own one pink item in my wardrobe but I’m glad that I went for it! Small changes to your daily routine are always fun and the little things like a new nail polish color or lipstick can really set yourself up for having an amazing day. Make sure that you find time to TREAT YOSELF this holiday season!

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I hope everyone has a fab Friday and a great Christmas Eve Eve! What accent color should I pick next time I get my nails filled? What is your go to shade of nail polish? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec23

Tasty Recipes That Can Help You Stick To Your New Year’s Fitness Resolution

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Tasty Recipes That Can Help You Stick To Your New Year’s Fitness Resolution

Are you planning on getting fit and losing some weight as part of your new year’s resolution? If so, you might already be worried about being tempted by some of your favorite foods! So how exactly do you change your diet without feeling so hungry all the time? It’s easy really; you just need to start making homemade versions of your favorite dishes. Here are some super easy recipes that will show you healthy alternatives aren’t too hard at all:

Cauliflower-Topped Shepherd’s Pie: Do you love hearty comfort food during the winter, such as shepherd’s pie? Comfort food is the Achilles heel for many people when it comes to dieting. Thankfully, there is a way that you can enjoy a delicious shepherd’s pie without worrying about piling on lots of extra pounds. You just need to swap the potato topping for one made from cauliflower! That way, you are cutting down on a lot of carbs. This is very easy to do, you just need to boil the cauliflower until it is super soft. Then mash it up with an egg. It should now be the consistency of mashed potato! Top your shepherd’s pie with this, and you will forget that you didn’t make it the original way!

Spiralized Pasta: Spiralizers were a very big deal in 2016 and they are set to be even bigger next year! These cool contraptions allow you to make spaghetti and noodles out of hard vegetables, such as courgettes and sweet potatoes. You simply attach the vegetable to one end of the spiralizer, turn the handle, and watch the noodles and spaghetti form before your very eyes! This is a great low-carb alternative to regular pasta. Then all you need to do is boil the spaghetti or noodles much like you would regular pasta and serve it with your favorite pasta sauce!

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Spelt Bread: Are you thinking of going gluten-free next year? Well, one way to cut out so much gluten from your diet is to start eating spelt bread. This is a lot healthier than bread that is made from wheat. Spelt contains no gluten and is a carbohydrate that our body can easily digest. Unlike wheat! Spelt bread can be very expensive in the supermarket so you may prefer to make your own. This isn’t too difficult to do, even for beginners. If you want to make things even easier for yourself, you could treat yourself to a bread maker: breadmachinemom.com.

Avocado Chocolate Mousse: Did you think that eating healthy meant that you could no longer enjoy some of your favorite foods? Nope, that’s not the case! In fact, you can still tuck into chocolate mousse! Just make sure that it is made from avocado, though. Avocado is packed full of essential minerals, and you won’t be able to taste it once you add all the yummy chocolate!!!! There are plenty of recipes for this quirky dish online, including this one: chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2015/10/15/avocado-chocolate-mousse-vegan-healthy/

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 Looove avocado!

Looks like you will be able to have a delicious 2017 and still lose weight! Here’s to the New Year!

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Dec23

Small Things You Can Do To Be Healthier In The New Year

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It’s not long until the New Year now. That usually means thinking about all of the things that we’d like to change and improve. The problem is, is that if we always choose massive goals, then they can become overwhelming to complete. Instead, it’s a much better idea to choose small achievable things like the ones below:

Eat More Fruit and Veggies: Most people’s diets take a bit of a bashing over Christmas. There is so much delicious party food and nibbles around that it can take a will of iron to resist. That is often countered with the start of a strict diet come the first of January. Unfortunately, strict diets are hard to keep up and can cause you to fall back into your old ways defeated and sad by January 14th.

Instead of setting yourself up for failure in this way, focus on the types of foods that you are eating. Increasing fibrous food and fruits and vegetables in our diets provide more nutrients and are more filling. This, then squeezes out the opportunity to eat too much junk food. If you are struggling to get more fruit and veggies into your diet, then you might want to consider getting a kitchen gadget or two like a spiralizer or a juicer. If you are unsure about the type of juicer to get, you can check out the ones selected by Juicer Cruiser to help you make your decision.

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 SO. ORANGE.

Exercise Daily: Exercising daily might not sound like a small activity, but we are not talking about running marathons or spending hours at the gym here. Instead, we are talking 5-10 minutes sessions. The idea here is to get used to building movement into your daily routine until it becomes normal.

It can be any sort of movement you like – you can dance, jog, or lift weights. You can clean the house or run around the garden with the kids. It’s not really what you are doing that matters, it’s that you’re doing it daily. This will help you lay the foundation for a healthy habit to be built into your everyday life.

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Practice Being Mindful: Mindfulness is a very popular concept at the moment. It is about being aware of where you are internally at any given moment. It is about being present in your own body and mind and observing what is going on in there. This might sound like an activity that entails hours and hours of silent meditation. But it can be broken down into small periods throughout the day, repeatedly.

In fact, it suits intermittent periods of practice throughout the day best. Our minds have a tendency to wander off into the past or future, and you have to practice bringing you focus back to the here and now. That means the aim is to not have a streak of being mindful, but to rapidly bring your presence back to now again and again. To do this, you can set a timer on your watch, or you can get smartphone and watch apps that remind you throughout the day.

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 Mind your mindfulness!