Tag Archives: anything and everything

Feb25

4 Tips To Improve Your Personal Presentation

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4 Tips To Improve Your Personal Presentation

People work hard to attain the skills and knowledge to stay progressive in life. They will invest heavily in those areas, often creating specialties that can help them create a stable career and lifestyle for themselves. However, those elements are not the only things contributing to your progress. It might not feel like an important matter, but how you present yourself is critical.

Body language, posture, and self care will be a few indicators of how well you present yourself. Its effects might feel like an effort to please others, but it is actually an opportunity to take care of yourself more. The confidence you can achieve from improving your image can help you interact with others better, even leading to the point where they compliment your efforts. As a result, people have more reasons to listen and believe you.

However, it can be challenging to identify where to start. If you want to enhance how you present yourself, these tasks will be ideal for your daily routine:

Personal Hygiene:

Your self image relies heavily on physical appearance. The first thing people will see is your face and body, and they might already have plenty of stuff to say about them. Flaws will stand out. Walking into a room full of talented professionals means you must also present yourself that way. Unfortunately, you might pop out in the wrong way when you have messy hair, unorganized clothing, and look disheveled. Odors and bad breath could also have more significant consequences for your self image.

Fortunately, you can eliminate those minor physical flaws through your daily hygiene routine. Showering, brushing your teeth at least twice a day, and applying deodorant might be enough to help you stay clean and neat. Your efforts will ensure that you are presentable, making it the first step towards an improved self image.

Skin Care:

Proper hygiene routines can help you stay clean. However, it does not mean you are automatically presentable. They aim to maintain neatness, but you might have to do something more to improve your physical appearance. A good skin care routine can be incorporated to help minimize wrinkles, acne, or age spots. Even sunscreen can do wonders for your appearance. A consultation with a dermatologist can be a good start and will help increase your knowledge of self-skin care routines.

As you explore different options for skin care, it’s important to be able to identify what your skin type is. Then, you can buy products to help improve and enhance it. Looking up skin health information, advice, and tips can help make you more knowledgeable when it comes to perfecting your skin care regimen.

Active Lifestyle:

Going to the gym, playing sports, and performing at home exercises can help you improve your shape. However, the results might be challenging to achieve without a healthy diet. Cutting down on carbs and removing fast food from your life can help reduce weight and prevent illnesses like diabetes and obesity. An active and healthy lifestyle can help you present your physical appearance better, even improving your posture, balance, and self esteem.

Fashion Trend Updates:

The steps mentioned above allow you to make a routine that improves how you present yourself. They might be fixed guidelines that every person must pursue, but another element can make you stand out even more. Your fashion sense will play a huge role in helping you present yourself better.

Experimenting with a few accessories and pieces of clothing will allow you to improve your fashion sense. However, fashion trends pop up unexpectedly. You must find ways to keep up, which means going shopping every once in a while. You can shop for Kate Spade items online to make the experience more convenient or have a treat day at your favorite store.

Keeping yourself presentable is necessary in life, even though it feels like less of a priority than knowledge and skills. Incorporating these routines means that you will always be in peak shape whenever you are in public, because you never know who you’re going to meet!

Feb25

Lil Red’s Spring Cleaning Pro Tips

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Lil Red’s Spring Cleaning Pro Tips

Howdy!! In about two months, Johnny and I are possibly moving into a three bedroom apartment which means that we need to get our place in tip top shape to prove ourselves worthy. The timing is perfect because it coincides exactly with spring cleaning! Slowly but surely, we have been tackling this task and it’s not as bad as I thought, especially when following these tips:

Declutter:

A true deep cleaning of your home can’t happen without a good decluttering session first. Johnny and I are still on this phase in several areas of our apartment but I can already see a big improvement. I knew that we both have a lot of stuff but I don’t think I realized just how much until we began going through everything piece by piece.

When decluttering be sure to organize like so:

  • Throw away: Anything that is damaged beyond minor issues, garbage, and don’t forget anything past its expiration date in the pantry!
  • Donate: Items still in fair condition that are no longer needed including clothing, electronics, home goods, even dishes! Johnny and I have SO. Many. Glasses. which I definitely plan on downsizing.
  • Hand Me Downs: If you have close friends or siblings that might be interested in any of your donate items, feel free to pass them on. I know my sister will want a peek at any of my clothing or accessories that I no longer need!
  • Buy, Sell, Trade Groups: Facebook Marketplace and the like are a great way to make some extra cash for unneeded things. This is especially good for more expensive items or larger ones that you could see someone else wanting. You can use your new funds for more cleaning supplies. 😀

Deep Clean:

Once your unwanted items are out of the way, it will make a good deep clean so much easier. This is when you pull out all of the stops – dusting, sweeping, disinfecting, and so on. Prior to your cleaning session, just make sure you have all of the products that you need to accomplish it. Once you have motivation to complete this task, a run to the store can burst that bubble really quickly!

Remember that you will need specific products for different types of cleaning and some things might require more care than others. For a really good deep clean, it can help to call the experts in. For example, a company like Hydra Clean NW (or a similar one in your local area) would be a good idea to call for tough stains in upholstery and carpets. You will be amazed at the difference it will make once those unsightly stains are gone for good!

Work In Sections:

No one says that spring cleaning has to be done in just one day! Sectioning off your cleaning and working in small bursts will help decrease the stress of such a big chore. I try to work in half hour or so increments every other day and always feel pleased with my progress afterwards.

During my cleaning, I have been working on the easy stuff first while slowly pecking away at the bigger projects. My kitchen and bathroom are small so those were the best places to start whereas my living room will need a lot more effort. Long story short, sectioning off is the way to go when spring cleaning!

Delegate Tasks:

I am a huge fan of organizing and I don’t mind cleaning all that much so those are the chores that I have been working on. However, there are things that require heavy lifting or a lot of elbow grease that I’m just not capable of and will be Johnny’s assignments. If you have kids, a chore chart will be helpful and you can throw a pizza or ice cream party when the work is done to celebrate your nice, clean house.

If you live alone and could use some extra help, invite some friends over and have them lend a hand. Pizza and ice cream also goes a long way for adults! Also, there is no shame in hiring someone to clean, either. Johnny and I are going to take care of a majority of the work but when we move out, we will be hiring my sister’s friend to make the apartment look the best it can and get my security deposit back lol.

Entertainment:

When I am cleaning, I can’t stand to work in silence and will put on my favorite music or something that I have already seen on Netflix. The key words being “something that I have already seen” because nothing kills motivation quicker than getting way too into whatever is on TV! Once your tunes are on or you’re laughing along to your favorite scenes from The Office, the task at hand doesn’t feel so bad.

Reward Yourself:

No one wants to spend their weekend or evening after work cleaning when they could be relaxing. I sure don’t! After I complete my cleaning burst, I try and do something that I enjoy like reading, playing Animal Crossing, or settling down with a movie. But it could be anything! You could treat yourself to some take out or have a nice, hot bath. You so deserve it!

Cleaning is a necessary part of life in your home and while it isn’t the most fun thing, it doesn’t have to be completely miserable, either. Use the tips above and soon your place will be as fresh and clean as a spring day!

What is your least favorite chore? What are some of your spring cleaning tips? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb13

My Writing Routine

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My Writing Routine

Hello! I am currently on a 1,150 day writing streak of daily blogging on lifewithlilred and I am so proud! I get asked a lot how I keep up with this and I guess it boils down to the fact that I am a very routine and schedule oriented person. I thrive when I can check things off of my To Do List, which keeps me sitting down at my laptop every morning to continue delivering the latest and greatest.

Everyone has a writing routine and mine looks like this:

Forming Content Ideas:

I am always on the lookout for ideas for my next blog post and am constantly keeping my eyes peeled for things that inspire me. Whether it’s snapping pics of the winter weather outside or a new pair of shoes, I am already pre-writing the post in my head for the most efficient content creation. To keep all of my ideas straight and also to not forget them, I text myself possible posts all of the time that I can refer to when I feel writer’s block sinking in.

Taking Pictures:

If pictures are needed for my post, I typically take them the night before and then email them to myself so that they are ready to go in the morning. I consider my writing process to be somewhat of an assembly line so the completed post can’t be ready to write without the proper prep work done beforehand. Anything that can make my morning blogging go smoother is well worth it because I still have to get myself to work on time!

My Mornings:

My mornings have followed a strict routine for as long as I can remember and it honestly stresses me out to stray from it. As soon as I wake up, I practice five different languages on Duolingo, I do a short work out, and then I shower. After all of this is complete, I turn on my diffuser by Organic Aromas and start my blogging process. Not only does this include my daily writing but I also have to complete other online jobs before I head to work.

Needless to say, my mornings have to run like a fine tuned machine to accomplish all of the above. This is why my prep work is so important as well as having a pretty strict sleep schedule. Johnny has to get up really early for work and I try to get up at least two and a half hours before I need to leave. We are usually asleep by eight thirty!!

No one ever said a blogger’s life was easy but it is so rewarding. I can’t even imagine a day without writing and it makes it even better to share it with all of you! ❤

What is your writing routine like? How often do you blog? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb9

Pros & Cons Of Apartment Living

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Pros & Cons Of Apartment Living

Whether moving into an apartment or renting or buying a home, there are pros and cons to each of these choices. It’s important, of course, to consider your budget and lifestyle as well as things like the location of the property in terms of your job or the school district. Today, we are going to look at some pros and cons of apartment living to help with your decision:

Pros – Having Maintenance Workers Available:

One of the huge pros of apartment living is always having maintenance workers available to fix issues with your apartment. Whether this be your air conditioner, appliances, or having a chain lock installed, it is so nice to simply make the call and have the problem fixed immediately. You can count on professionals to fix your Miele appliances. And, I myself, have called on maintenance many a time and have always been pleased with their great and efficient work.

While having maintenance at your disposal is a wonderful thing, you should request an inspection of the property prior to renting. Older apartments, for example, might not have the amenities or safety specifications that you are looking for. Perhaps you don’t handle the heat well and you need central air as opposed to a wall unit. If you are on a top floor of the building, are you capable to walk up the stairs if there is no elevator? And are the dry riser dimensions accurate in case of a fire emergency? You will want to know all of this before signing a lease.

Cons – Loud Neighbors:

In most apartments, unfortunately, the walls are paper thin. If you have loud neighbors on top of this, you are pretty much out of luck. Most apartment communities have a noise regulation after a certain time at night but this, often, doesn’t get followed which can keep you up. If you work from home, this can also be a major issue too and is worth talking to your potential landlord about so that you could be put in a less noisy complex. Once your lease is signed and you then find out you have loud neighbors, you are essentially stuck.

Pros – Neighbors:

On the flip side, you might have awesome neighbors and this is great! Having an endless supply of people you can shoot the breeze with is a fun bonus of apartment living. It’s nice to have a sense of camaraderie with the people that you live by and it makes for a much more pleasant experience. Whether it’s grilling with your downstairs neighbors or a friendly person lending you their shovel in the parking lot, this is a cool perk of being in an apartment.

Cons – Limited Space:

One of the major cons of apartment living is how limited your space is. This is even more so if you are living with a roommate. A two bedroom apartment could be ideal for just you but it could be really cramped if you add another person into the mix! If renting or buying a home is not in your budget, it will be crucial to be smart with your space. Your new digs might look super spacious until you move all of your furniture in and find that you barely have room to walk!

Apartment life is, admittedly, not for everyone. However, if the pros outweigh the cons for you, then it can be a great first step into something bigger and better!

Feb2

The Coronavirus Pandemic & Mental Health

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The Coronavirus Pandemic & Mental Health

Mental health has always been a sensitive topic. It’s equally important to physical health, but many believe otherwise. Mental health problems include anxiety, depression, insomnia, and phobias of different kinds. Earlier, people ignored these problems, but now, we know better.

Due to strong efforts by many mental health experts, the world became aware of these conditions and saw their effect on children, teenagers, and adults alike. But the number of patients shot up drastically during the pandemic.

How did the pandemic effect mental health?

People lost their loved ones to Covid, which worsened mental health across the globe. Every day felt worse than the last and it felt impossible to visit our friends and family. Everybody was scared for their lives, and fear is not good for mental health.

Companies laid off people, which increased unemployment and caused worry. Lock downs shut down schools, children were forced to stay home, work from home became a norm, and people had to live in isolation, leading to many mental health problems.

The whole situation created immense pressure in the minds of adults and children. It’s hard to recover from the tragedy of this scale. The environment of uncertainty and danger created hopelessness that’s hard to manage. All of these problems trigger mental issues such as anxiety and depression.

Are young adults depressed?

Surveys have shown that young people are more prone to mental issues due to the pandemic. According to a study of healthcare students at the University of Jordan, it is found that students are suffering from high anxiety, which can also hinder their learning abilities.

Young adults have reported a lack of sleep and a rise in negative thoughts. They crave losing masks and attending events like they were supposed to at this age. The constant fear is always there. What if this never ends? The financial risks are also to note. Colleges might be closed, making it hard for students to study and get good grades to qualify for better courses or jobs. They lack the skills taught inside colleges to make them excel in their respective fields.

Many studies point towards a global mental health crisis due to the pandemic. Young adults are prone to mental health problems like stress and anxiety. Loneliness during the pandemic has made young adults susceptible to depression.

What to do now?

Now that things are looking up, we all must work hard to get our mental health on track. Find people who face similar issues as you and talk to them. Create groups where you and your peers can share their struggles during the pandemic and afterward. Form pacts to put in efforts towards the betterment of your mental health.

These include eating healthy and exercising regularly. You can even hire a trainer who has done an offline or online PT course so that he or she is equipped with the knowledge to help you work out. Having a personal trainer allows you to learn how to get the best out of each workout session. They also suggest diets and healthy habits curb negative thoughts and promote better sleep.

Mental health issues need treatment and professional care. You can always seek help at a mental health clinic or schedule an appointment with a counselor. Schools and colleges can hire therapists to take care of students and listen to their struggles. They can also conduct group sessions with professionals to solve problems on a larger scale.

There is also nothing wrong with using medications when necessary. Severe levels of depression need selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or selective serotonin or norepinephrine inhibitors. Tetracyclic antidepressants are also recommended for depression along with bupropion. Organizations, schools, and colleges can have clinical psychologists prescribe medications.

It has always been important to take care of your mental health but even more so when living in these scary times. Be good to yourself and brighter days are ahead soon!

Jan23

Friendly Reminder!

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Friendly Reminder!

Hi everyone!! Last month, I bit the bullet and made myself an Instagram during my winter break. I always said I would never get one, but here we are now lol. You can follow me @lifewithlilred94 to keep up with all of the latest and greatest that doesn’t make it onto my blog. This includes bonus OOTD pictures, all of the silly Johnny content, as well as a never ending supply of Governor Ferguson from Wentworth. And, of course, if you give me a follow – I will follow you right back!

For more additional tomfoolery, you can friend me on Facebook: at Sarah Mushenheim. However, I will say it doesn’t have as much shout outs to “THE FREAK!!!” haha. Although I am extremely late to the Instagram party, I am glad that I made one and I would love to connect with all of you on a variety of platforms. Who knows, maybe in the next seven to ten years I’ll get around to making a TikTok. 😀

As always, I am so appreciative of the support from all of my dear readers and friends and am looking forward to the continued expansion of my Insta. Keep it posted on all of my accounts for my latest shenanigans, musings, and pictures from my TV screen that I have deemed worth sharing!

What is your favorite social media platform? What about your least favorite? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan12

Walmart Gift Card Haul

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Walmart Gift Card Haul

Hello! Johnny’s mom and dad were kind enough to gift me with a Walmart gift card for Christmas. And, let me tell you, I have never felt more like an adult than during my online shopping haul to use it. I spent my gift card on apartment essentials and while it wasn’t the most fun thing in the world, all of these things will be handy to have around:

image_50397185(1)

For home essentials, you can’t go wrong with any of these purchases. Johnny and I are always in need of Drano, trash bags, electric toothbrush heads, and filters for our Brita pitcher. I rarely do shopping at Walmart so I figured that buying these must haves was the way to go to make the most of my gift card. It will also mean less stuff to buy when I do my next curbside pickup at Giant Eagle. Not only did I get all of the above, but I also got some fluorescent lights that have been burnt out in my kitchen for literal months. Whoops!

Was this the most exciting haul in the world? Not necessarily. But, will it be much needed around the apartment? Totally. It was nice to be able to make such good use of the gift from Johnny’s parents. Thanks again! ❤

What are some of your home essentials? What makes you feel like an adult? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

Jan5

4 Tips For Finding A New Apartment Fast   

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4 Tips For Finding A New Apartment Fast   

If you need to find a new place to live as soon as possible, you might be feeling a little overwhelmed. Perhaps your lease has been suddenly terminated or your living conditions were not sustainable. Maybe you’ve just left it until the last minute to start looking and now the clock is ticking.

Whatever your reasons, it’s important not to panic. If you are committed to finding a new apartment and put the time in, then you could be sitting happily in your new living space in no time at all. To help you find your new home right away, here are four tips for rapid apartment hunting:

Set your budget:

How much can you realistically afford to spend on your rent? Work out your maximum weekly and monthly expenditure, taking into account additional costs like bills and groceries, and you’ll have a clear idea of your budget. This way, when you are looking for apartments you can avoid wasting time by quickly ruling out those that are too expensive (or indeed way too cheap). Usually you can negotiate with the real estate agent to knock the price down, but if you are in a hurry then don’t bank on being able to do this successfully.

Your budget must also include cost of travel and shipping especially if you are planning on moving across states or abroad. A job opportunity might have you searching for “apartments for sale in dubai” or a loft in London. Maybe you just want to make a major change. Whatever the reason, plan your budget as exactly as you can with wiggle room to spare. A poorly planned budget can have a very negative effect like not being able to pay bills on time or have cash to spare for food and necessities.

Use your free time:

If you work all week, it can be hard to find the time in your busy schedule to look for apartments and visit them in person so you need to use your time wisely. Get up earlier and Google “apartments near me” before work, and try to schedule viewings during your lunch break or straight after work. It may be energy draining and stressful but cramming your schedule to the brim will maximize your chances of finding something soon.

Get your documents in order:

Once you have found an apartment and made an offer, you still have to wait until all of your documentation has been processed. Your new landlord is likely to require references so don’t wait until the last minute to get in touch. Contact your people immediately and ask them to write you a reference in advance. You will probably also need to show your landlord identification, bank statements, or letters of employment so bring copies of everything with you to the viewing so your landlord can get them processed quicker.

Take a short term view:

If you are getting really desperate to find somewhere and time is running out, you may just need to settle for the best option currently available. This might mean you end up with a lengthy commute, a rundown apartment, or a rent beyond your budget but this doesn’t have to be permanent. Plenty of places offer short term lets of three months or potentially less, so this could be a good option to keep you going and give you more time to search for something that meets your requirements.

You might have to spend a lot of time and energy looking for your new apartment, but this hard work will pay off. Just be patient and prepared and before long you’ll be feeling right at home!

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Jan4

Paranormal Activity Pt. 6

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Paranormal Activity Pt. 6

Hello!!! Ever since I moved into my apartment almost three years ago, I have been convinced that it is haunted. From misplaced footsteps and shadows on the wall to a levitating piece of paper and So. Much. Broken. Glass. there has been many instances that can’t be explained at chez moi.

I let whatever spirit that’s here know that it was okay if he hung out but to please not hurt me any more. My poor feet were tired of being cut by glass shards! It seemed to work and it has been a while since any paranormal activity has happened. But, that changed earlier this week.

When Johnny and I were unwinding with some episodes of Superstore, I went downstairs to go to the bathroom. I walked near my sofa and my socks were soaking wet. I turned the lights on and I saw a HUGE pool of water going all the way to my kitchen table. At first, I thought Johnny spilled something but I thought it to be unlikely that he dropped at least four gallons of water on our apartment floor.

I began looking for any type of explanation for this mini flood and came up short. There was absolutely no water near our dishwasher so I know it didn’t come from that. All of our faucets were turned off, no pipes were leaking, none of our vases of flowers fell, and there was no leaks anywhere on the ceiling. It was the strangest thing!

It took four bath towels to clean up the tidal wave that took place in my living room and I am still stumped as to how it got there. Every explanation that could have caused it was immediately debunked. I’m just thankful that I wasn’t in a rush to get to the bathroom because I could have slipped and fell. I guess spilled water is better than shards of broken glass in my foot, though.

Every time long stretches with no paranormal activity happen, I often think my “ghostie” does something to let me know that he’s still around. He made himself loud and clear this time!

Have you ever witnessed any paranormal activity? Do you have any ideas as to what could have caused this mystery spill? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec22

Giving A Boost To Your Boutique

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Giving A Boost To Your Boutique

Being a small business owner is exciting – especially during the holiday season as shoppers visit your local storefront. Your boutique is something that can always be improved to make the experience even better for your customers. Today, we are going to discuss a few ways to boost the aesthetic of your store to turn one time shoppers into repeat customers:

Utilize A Beverage Cart:

How nice would it be for customers to enjoy a hot coffee or cold soda during their shopping? A beverage cart is a simple solution that will definitely boost the experience of shopping in your store. Invest in a Keurig with a wide selection of coffee, tea, and hot chocolate pods. Or, you could have a mini fridge with water bottles and pop. Small touches like these will be much appreciated by your customers!

Shopping Incentives:

Everyone likes a good deal and it’s exciting to feel like you’re getting a lot of bang for your buck. You could run a once per month promotion or give a coupon for the next purchase to provide incentive for customers to keep coming back. How often do you get coupons in the mail and feel a hankering to go to a store even if you might not need anything? Chances are, you’re going to walk away with more than you bargained for because it was a great deal.

Improve The Appearance:

The appearance of your boutique is always something that can be changed up for a whole new shopping experience. Potted plants, plush rugs, unique lighting fixtures, or artwork from local artists are all good places to start. Applying ceiling tiles to your business will make a big difference for customers. The same goes for things like an awesome playlist or even a fish tank! This is your chance to get even more creative so have fun with it.

Local Collaborations:

Local collaborations are a cool way to introduce new people to your store. Do you own a clothing boutique? Pair with a local jewelry maker to provide an outfit perfect with a hand crafted necklace. How about a coffee shop? Try an open mic night with local performers. Don’t forget to get in touch with bloggers and influencers! Collaborations are a win/win for everyone involved as it will get your names out there and bring in customers who might not even be aware that your storefront exists.

Local businesses are an important part of any community. Make yours one of the best with the tips above!