Dear So and So - to my JJ

To my most gorgeous boy,

In a few short months you will be twelve and starting secondary school. I am so proud of you and how far you have come. From the giant 5 year old who started school and lacked any kind of empathy or relationship with other children, who also dribbled constantly and had no sense of coordination or balance to the well-rounded lad you are now. In the last seven years you have bloomed and grown so much and I'm so glad to have been a part of your journey.

Of course at times it has been hard, there have been tears, there have been discussions, deep discussions, oh so many discussions about what is acceptable and appropriate behaviour and how to read people and to know when an apology is required or a kind word appreciated.

Happiness is..... bike riding

Two little ladies being able to ride their bikes and enjoying every moment of it!

)

Bikes and twins is not an easy situation when you have limited time that both parents are home with the kids. Add into that another child and it becomes a bit of a nightmare to get them all out and bike riding. Back in July 2011 my parents bought the girls bikes for their 4th birthday and they rode them a lots of times with their stabilisers on and had great fun that summer.  Then once the nice weather turned for winter they went away in the shed and did not come out again until the next spring. By this time Miss M was adamant she wanted to have the stabilisers taken off so we did that and then she cried lots and would not cycle at all.

There was very little time to take each one of them out alone as realistically that is what a child needs to learn. So 2012 was a bit of a write off for Miss M and cycling and then then by 2013 she was too big for her bike.  So Miss E had Miss M's as it was bigger and Miss M sulked and said she didn't want to ride anyway!  of course we then moved to East Sussex last summer and had loads of exciting things to be getting on with so bikes became low priority.

A couple of weeks back I was out washing my car at the top of a small hill and a friend was coincidentally washing her car at the bottom of the hill by her house and all her kids had their bikes out.  They invited my girls to have a go and try and use them. So using bikes without stabilisers they both kept coming up the hill using their feet and free wheeling down the hill. This small lesson in balance must have worked wonders as this was all the practise they had before we bought a new bike for Miss E home and got out JJ's old bike for Miss M and the two of them set off yesterday and made me so very happy.

Thank you Lord, I literally could have cried. One less thing for me to do and they are having a fantastic time.

They were both up, dressed, had breakfast and playing out in the courtyard by 8am this morning before school. Fantastic, who needs alarm clocks?

I'm linking this post up with -

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Beans on Toast

I was reminded last night why I started this blog when I received an email from JJ. It is always good to be reminded of why we do things, it is so easy (especially in blogging) to get carried away and to do things for the wrong reasons. Not wrong per see but just wrong for you. This blog started as a journal of the life of my family and here is the latest journal entry!

The email I received was very simple and to the point but JJ was obviously so proud of himself that he took the time to send me a photo and a short email.

This is what it said -

Here is a pic of my first beans on toast (with cheese) made 100% By myself

From JJ!

I had to laugh! Whilst I had been upstairs having a relax, reading my book dh was getting tea for the kids and he had obviously supervised whilst JJ made his own.

Fabulous, so now he can do a cup of tea and beans on toast, any time I'm ill I've got my nursemaid now!

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So proud of you Miss E

It really is the simple things sometimes.

Well simple to me and simple to her siblings but Miss E struggles with literacy and we are wondering if there will be a diagnosis of dyslexia when she is slightly older. To be truthful, it does not matter if there is or there is not, she is still my smart little cookie and we will work with her to try and make things easier.

Today she sat down to write her name and for the first time ever she wrote it correctly first try. Normally we have a number of the letters backwards (she writes mirror image very often) but not today every single one just right. As I smiled at her and said 'Miss E, that is perfect' she looked up at me with the shy big blue eyes and beamed me the biggest smile ever and then I got my normal hug and 'Mummy, I love you'.

Well my small baby, I love you too and I know reading and writing is hard but I love your fire and your persistence to get it right. One day you will fly baby.............. hang in there!

I'm linking this post up with Jaime for Magic Moments this week, click on the badge to go over and see more treasured posts.

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If you like what you have read and want to stay up-to-date then subscribe by email for free and receive blog posts directly to your in-box - just click the link Subscribe to Mummy From The Heart... by Email or perhaps you like to keep all your blog reading in one place, if that is the case you can follow me on BlogLovin too!

#R2BC, G is for.... girls, grades, God and gang (week 28)

We have made it to Thursday and that rain still keeps on coming, I am pleased to say I have gone beyond being fed up with the weather now and have just got used to it.  It will be such a shame though if we can not get outdoors much during the long summer holiday. Anyway enough of the glum stuff, over to the matter in hand, #R2BC.

This weeks reasons to be cheerful are bought to you by the letter G -

*  My girls - my beautiful little twinnies will be 5 next week and I can't believe that much time has flown by.  They are having a big party with about 40 kids at a local soft play centre on Tuesday and then I am never doing a full class party ever again! This weekend we are having a family day out for their birthday, we are going to the GoGoGo! show in London, the girls do not know this yet but it is so going to be their thing and I am looking forward to it, followed by a nice meal and even better both are reviews, so minimal cost (yes, cheapskate mummy!).

*  Grades - we received the three school reports this week and the girls ones were much as expected.  Miss M was called confident too many times to remember and Miss E was referred to as a shy and sensitive girl (ahh my little poppet). The real star however, was JJ. What a report!  It was one that every parent would be proud to receive, he received an A in all subjects for his attitude towards work and to be honest that is more important to dh and I than anything else.....  but then that was not all! No, he also received grades that were year 5 and 6 standard.  He has just finished year 3,  yes it is a proud mummy moment and I am so thrilled with his progress.  My little man who used to struggle so much is blossoming.

*  God - How could I not mention God?  You all must know by now that He is the pivotal point in my life and I am so pleased to be a Christian.  It is hard to watch others you love not knowing the blessings as I do but I know that in time they will come to know Christ too and find the joy in life.  To be content can never be underestimated.

*  Gang - that's you lot!  My #R2BC gang.  You are such a wonderful group of people who link up week after week.  Some of you don't post for ages but in the main people always seem to come back.  This linky seems to be remembered when people have something really wonderful to share and how perfect is that?  Thank you all.

See simple, this has literally just taken me 10 minutes to knock this post out.  Don't stew over it, just put what comes to mind.  How are you being blessed this week?

If you are new to #R2BC then hello and welcome, check out my primer, write a post, grab the blog hop code and paste it in and then link up here.  Don't forget to go visiting people and leave some comment love.

Have amazing weekends, lets pray for sunshine.  Mich x

Link up now -

This Mummy loves...

You know sometimes you just feel good and there is no big occasion making it happen, you are just content, happy with your lot in life and finding joy in all that you do.  Yep, that's me right now, lucky hey?

I seem to be taking a back seat blogging wise at the moment and making more time to focus on getting my weight and health sorted out, spending time with God and being with my family. As a result of this time away I am feeling good and thought I would share some things that I am loving....

The relationship between Miss E and her Alfie
6.40am and I am just finishing exercising when an audience appears and they sit there quietly and watch me. Just look how tired she is!


 The times when Miss M excels herself and manages to behave really well
This little lady getting herself ready for school in next to no time and being such a poppet the other morning, not a monkey tendancy in sight! yay

The relationship between my kids and their Daddy (my dh)
A couple of weekends back I went down to stay with my Nan for the weekend as she is unwell, this morning I was downloading pictures and found these from when I was away.  I know that my kids always have a good time when Daddy is looking after them but it is even nicer to see the pictures.

Miss M's passion for life
Then on the same camera, I find that Miss M has been practicising her photography skills and taken just over 100 pictures of completely random things.  Here is my favourite one that she took!

JJ learning to cook

My boy is so keen to be able to help out in the kitchen and luckily dh feels confident to equip him.  So they cooked us all a meal together and JJ has done his cooking badge with cubs now because of it.  The rice pudding was super yum.

What about you, anything making you smile right now?

What do my Children mean to me?

Last year at CyberMummy I sat in a room with a couple of hundred other parenting bloggers and we blubbed. We sat there while tears rolled down our cheeks as we listened to my friend Nickie read her earlier published blog post about her daughters fight with cancer. Today I am writing a post to support CLIC Sargent, a charity very close to Nickie's heart and I am writing this to help raise awareness of CLIC Sargent and a lovely campaign that they are launching.

If you are a blogger, you have probably seen the name CLIC Sargent and Yummy Mummy floating around on blogs, twitter and facebook just recently and if you are anything like me you have wondered what it is all about.  I must be honest and say that I nearly choked the first time I saw Nickie tweeting about #dosomethingyummy - that hashtag is so not her! Yes she is yummy but is that a phrase Nickie would associate with herself? I highly doubt it. However, she could well comment and prove me wrong though!

So what is the CLIC Sargent Yummy Mummy campaign all about?

Yummy Mummy Week (10th - 18th March 2012) is a fun-packed fund raising campaign during which mums do something yummy for children and young people with cancer, whilst spending quality time with their own children, family and friends. Money raised throughout the week will be used by CLIC Sargent to provide clinical, practical and emotional support for children and young people with cancer and their families.

To find out more about Yummy Mummy Week 2012 go to http://www.yummymummy.org.uk/ or call 08451 206 658 to register for your fund raising pack. Have a quick think, what could you do?  Patsy Palmer and Annabel Karmel hosted a glamorous tea party and you could do similar?  Or a bake sale at school or how about a dinner party for some friends and they make a contribution per couple. What a wonderful excuse to spend time with friends and to do something really worthwhile, not to say yummy!

Anyway the super Nickie has provided us with some writing prompts this week and I have chosen what do your children mean to you?

You know what? I am a bit ashamed to say that I have never really considered what my children mean to me. Of course they mean a lot, I adore my little people but fortunately I have never had to really spend time apart from them. I would say that I am a pretty independent parent and I encourage my children to be the same. I suppose some of that comes from the confidence gained by having very good family around me, who I can trust implicitly to look after my kids.

Just after JJ’s first birthday, dh and I went off to the Dominican Republic for a week and I know that over the years when I have mentioned this to other parents, more women than not have been shocked and asked how I could leave him. The crux of it was that dh and I were at a pivotal point in our marriage and we needed that time alone. My belief is that the best environment for a child to grow up in is a loving two parent family. Do not read anything into that, I am not judging single parent families, I understand that things happen. Just for me, as a Christian woman, I know that I can only be the best parent I can be when dh and I are in harmony and that means nurturing our relationship as much as my mothering ones.

Anyway this was supposed to be about the children rather than dh and I. Years back when I was at Uni we used to play a game quite often, a game of impossible choices. One of the group would pose the question and the others had to answer honestly and this would open a discussion. I cannot recall many of these discussions but one I remember very vividly. My friend M asked the group if your child and your lover/ husband were both hanging off a cliff which would you save? Quite a dilemma hey?

My friend J was adamant that she would save her child as that would be a mother’s instinct whereas my friend M said she would save her partner as you could always have more children together. The one thing I cannot remember about that conversation was my response but I have an inkling it was in favour of the child. So what would I say now at age 38 and a mother of 3? I don’t know, I think it is only one of those decisions you could make when absolutely forced too, I am pretty sure my heart would be telling me to save my baby for they contain a bit of dh and he would always be with me that way.

I may just have to ask M this question again now she has children of her own and see if her answer has changed. As a mother now I really do question that many people who are mothers could say ‘oh it is OK, we can have another baby’. Every child is unique and special in their own ways and they can never be replaced.

Of course I am totally blessed that I have never had a difficult choice concerning my children. Earlier today I read a post at Not even a bag of sugar and my heart wept for what Kylie had to go through leaving her very premature baby in hospital when she went home day after day but now I just see joy when I know what a wonderful bond she has with her little survivor.

Back to the question in hand, what do my children mean to me? They mean the world. They are my mini Christians that I am bringing up to know Jesus, they are the better parts of dh and I combined together in 3 gorgeous packages, they are my cuddle monsters when I have had a tough day, they are my teachers of patience and tolerance, they are my shining light on a dark day and they are my future.

I love you my babies.

Reasons to be Cheerful - The Birthday Boy Edition

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Week 40 of #R2BC, can you believe it?  But you know what that means, just 12 weeks until next year, or 11 weeks until Christmas, wow that feels soon.

I have been feeling a bit emotional this week and that is not massivley like me but on Tuesday my JJ turned 8 and it has really hit me that he is growing up and getting really quite big and in the main becoming a lovely lad, one I am pleased to be Mummy to. People often comment about how mature he is (well in some ways, not toilet humour of course!).

So this week my reason to be cheerful are all around my handsome fella -

• We are pretty broke at the moment, so much needing doing around the house that we are having to be good and as I am sure you have heard me rant in recent weeks, I am fed up with stuff and buying things for the sake of it.  So we kept JJ's birthday very low key in terms of presents.  From dh, I and his sisters he received a pair of PJ's (so comfy Mum), a pair of trackie bottoms (Oh they are nice) and a DVD (you know I love Veggie tales don't you mum?)  and he was made up.  I spent the sum total of about £15 on him and he was content.  I love that about him, long may it last.  Yes he also received near £200 from everyone else and is now pondering a 3DS or DSi XL.
• We are having a weekend in Clacton at a carvan park this weekend. JJ decided that he would like a weekend away rather than a party and when I can book with Tesco deals vouchers, who am I to argue with that? We are taking JJ's 7 year old cousin with us so we will have 4 excited kids - wish us luck!  This could really go either way, I am a bit worried when the boys Mum and Grandma both wish me luck when I say about him coming with us.
• I have even more deals vouchers that we will be using to help fund the weekend.  A day out to Colchester zoo and a meal out as well.
• JJ decided at the weekend that he wanted desserts rather than a birthday cake, so we had chcocolate gateux and cheesecake (his choice) but I felt that we ought to just mark the actual day so we had some chips from the chip shop and a chocolate cake from Aldi, it cost £1.29 and tasted good.  Can you believe that?  Just shows you can have fun on a budget.
• JJ and I topped his birthday off with a few games of wobbly chef and some cuddles with Holby City.  A great night.

So how are you all this week?  Feeling grateful?  No, well then this is your perfect opportunity to turn it around, count your blessings, write a post and link up.  If you are new to #R2BC then check out HERE for more info.

Sorry I did not get round to everyone last week, it was a tad busy with the MADS, I will try to get to eveyone this week but I will have a PC free weekend while we are away.  Need to spend some time with my handsome hubbie and remember why I fell in love with him.

Over to you....

#R2BC - Wk 29. My Family make me so Happy!!

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Hello all,  I am keeping it simple this week.  Here is why I am feeling cheerful -

 

My wonderful family.  Mum and Dad trekked back and forth twice last week to come and help me do all the cleaning and washing that resulted from the dreaded moths! I am so grateful to them.  It looks as if we have done the job, none spotted for a few days now.  

Teaching your Child to Swim

Image Credit

What age should your child be able to swim?  That is the question I am pondering at the moment.

I did not learn to swim until I was 18 years old and on my first foreign holiday with my super confident swimmer boyfriend. This is quiet bizarre considering I recall receiving a swim badge at school (for 10 metres or whatever the first stage was then) when I was 9 years old. I do remember my feet kept touching the floor though and the teacher not noticing!

Due to this I have a desire for all my children to be able to swim. Not to Olympic standard you understand but to be confident to be able to save their lives if they ever needed to. JJ is now nearly 8 years old and he can not swim yet.  This is not a problem per see, as he is still a young boy but I am wondering what to do for the best.  JJ had swim lessons as a baby, we did about a year of once a week lessons together when he was just months old. I hoped this would improve his confidence to be under the water - sadly not so!

#TheGallery: Heart Melting Moments

So this weeks theme from Tara  is 3 words, these can be any 3 words and we need to tie our Gallery entry in to them.  So my three words are Heart Melting Moments, you know those times when you are positively ozzing love for your child.  It could be a proud mummy moment or it could just be something they have done or a character trait that makes you love them so very much.

Obviously on Sunday gone it was Fathers Day and my kids had avidly been preparing for this day, they had created a book of doodles for Daddy and a Celebrity magazine spread declaring Daddy was 'Dad of the Year'.  They had all made their cards and taken time doing drawings and trying to form words (that was the 3 year olds in case you are wondering, JJ can write just fine!).  Then before I was even out of bed on Sunday morning JJ appeared upstairs with a tray for Daddy.

Silent Sunday & The Gallery all rolled into one!

I got my gorgeous hubbie to take this picture for Silent Sunday as I wanted a picture to sum up all the fun I have been having the last couple of weeks with all my family.  I posted it here in the proper Silent Sunday format, you know the drill - 1 picture, no words and then I saw the theme for Tara's gallery this week and this picture completely sums up my April!  So as Jay is on a well earned rest and I am not linking up on her blog I thought I would be a tad naughty and combine my Silent Sunday picture with my Gallery entry for this week!  I am pretty sure Tara 'what are rules?' Cain won't mind  but I am running a bit scared that Jay might boot me off next weeks Silent Sunday (only joking!)

So for me April was all about family fun.  I have had the most wonderful month - on holiday at Spring Harevst and having loads of time off work with my kids. To be honest if April is as good as it gets in 2011 then I have done well!

What about you, how has your April been?  Surely this lovely UK weather must have helped just a bit?

I hope you have enjoyed Easter and the bank holiday days off as much as I have!  Mich x



A Mothers Love #TheGallery

You have a baby and life changes, not just a little bit, it really changes.  All those things you thought were so twee before and those things you never said you would do, well they just go out the window.  Baby is here and you are completely absorbed, a mothers love takes over and you will never be the same again.

A mothers love means that these you received on Sunday for Mothers Day mean far more to you

than this which you also received.

A mothers love means that your wall hangings of choice will be something like this -

rather than a stylish original watercolour or piece of modern art!

But the one that gives it away to me every time and makes me realise how much I love the kids is this one -

That a tidy freak like me can live with and even encourage to some extent, the kids to have bedrooms where they feel comfortable and able to really play.  See those 3 stacking recycling dumper bins, those are JJ's lego storage, just imagine the floor when all that comes out.

At the end of the day a mothers love will always win, my heart melts and I will do whatever is necessary for them.  How can I refuse my beautiful little sleeping babies?

This post was written for Tara's Gallery.  The theme is Mother Love.

#TheGallery - I have gone for the Comedy Shot!

This weeks Gallery theme is Children, pop over and visit Tara at Sticky Fingers and see all the other fab entries that will be there from Wednesday.

I have just had the most divine hour looking through all the pictures of my kids when the twins were babies, I have some awesome ones that make my heart melt but I just could not decide on one picture and anyway the word Children for me means all my children and thus I need a picture of 3 little terrors!

One that makes me laugh every time is this one. Miss E has fallen down, Miss M is being lovingly cuddled on JJ's lap and she does not like it and JJ, well he is as happy as larry and can't stop grinning.  Ohh I could just eat him.

....and as I could not really decided on just one, here are a few that I gave serious consideration to.  Enjoy!

My How Times Have Changed!

So here is my Proud Mummy wall.  Never would I have imagined that I would have such tat on my wall (even if my kitchen is the only room left needing a makeover!) and love it!

Silent Sunday: Watch Out, Here Come Double Trouble!

Go check out the other Silent Sunday entries - click the badge -

Thank You To My Kids...

To my gorgeous babies - JJ, Miss E and Miss M,

I wanted to write you a brief letter to say a big thank you.  I adore you my kids, each and every one of you. You are as individual and different as can be and you enrich my life greatly. I could not imagine being 37 and not having you, there would be little meaning to my life if it was just about money, possessions and self-gratification.

This year you have bought the magic back into Christmas for me. Watching you get excited and enjoy advent is helping me to remember my own excitement around Christmas. I have been thinking back to my childhood, decorating the tree with my parents, peeking a look inside the Christmas presents when they had gone out, eating chocolate yule log, playing board games with the family after our Xmas dinner and dressing up in my new Christmas outfit. I can not remember the last time that Christmas started in November and the sense of enjoyment and anticipation kept so high.  We have not even got to Christmas eve yet and I can not wait....  the three of you are really a blessing to me.

Mummy wants you to know that she is so proud of you.

JJ- I love your intelligence and inquisitive mind. You are so funny at times that you make great company and Mummy is very pleased with the way you have matured in the last 6 months and started to show more awareness in social situations. I must also say that you make me so happy when you help Mummy, either by being a great big brother or helping me with jobs around the house. You are my handsome little man.

Miss E - Woo betide to anyone who ever underestimates you.  On initially meeting you people think you are quiet and subdued but they have not seen that steely determination and fiery anger that lurks inside. Channel that well and you will be dynamite when you are older.  I adore that you love me so much and I love you that much right back, yes we are best friends darling. Your caring nature and desire to make people happy is very endearing. You are my poppet.

Miss M - My child who is wise beyond her years. Another clever babe but one who also has street savvy. Each day you amaze me when you undertake tasks in a way that 3 year olds just do not do! I love how you climb on me for a snuggle and all those amazing facial expressions that you make. Your chatty and outgoing manner makes even the most serious person crack into a smile. You really are a mini minx.

My message for each one of you is to be who God created you to be.  Be proud to be individual, live your life as you feel it should be lived.  Cherish every day and make the most of what you have.  Concentrate on the positives.  The secret to happiness is to want what you already have.  Remember to live in the day, do not project and allow any worries to creep into your lives, stay innocent and care free for as long as you can.  Enjoy life! Do unto others as you wish for them to do to you.  Think of that phrase 'what goes around, comes around'. Bless others and be blessed right back.  Right a good and righteous life in the eyes of the Lord and just try your best.

I don't care what you choose to do in life, you may wish to work in McDonalds or as an Ice Cream seller (JJ), or you may be a ballet dancer or vet (Miss M), or even a Mummy or teacher (Miss E). As long as you are happy in your life and you are not hurting other people then that works for me. 

I will always be there to support you, in the good and the bad and one day I hope to be a Grandmother and to see your children. I can not even think forward that far as yet but I know it will be a time of much happiness.

Anyway I am not drunk and it is not the end of the year yet so I probably should not be feeling so sentimental or mardly.  I was just struck tonight at Church about how much I love each one of you and how happy I am to be your Mummy.  Yes, you challenge me every day; you can be naughty, I can get cross and over react but by the end of any day we are always back to our loving relationship and enjoying our goodnight snuggle.

Thank you my babes for being you.  You are each just perfect for me.

Love you, Mummy xx

Celebration for The Gallery

Here is my entry to this weeks Gallery.  The prompt we were faced with was Celebration. Of course you automatically think of weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, births, christenings etc but for me the Christian celebrations are very important, with Easter and Christmas being right up there.

So that helped to narrow my search for a photo. My obvious choice was to choose a Christmas celebration given that we are in advent and then one of our most memorable Christmas' was the twins first one in 2007. So here are a couple of photos from the twins first Christmas.  The first Christmas where our little family was a complete unit of 5.

JJ - The proud big brother.

Miss M with a serious face!

Miss E, my little poppet, smiling away!

The Gallery: My Beautiful Boy in Black & White

I was looking through my albums for a black and white photo to use for this weeks Gallery.  I knew the one I wanted but then I came across this and I could not resist.  White babe in a black bag!  This always makes me laugh a lot; if you look at the photo for too long it looks false, as if I have pasted his head and arm on a completely different photo!  He really was in Nanny's bag..

And this is the actual beautiful black and white photo I was looking for. Taken at a professional studio when JJ was about 8 months. I will treasure this picture forever.

The Gallery: Seasons

This weeks prompt from Tara at Sticky Fingers is a lovely one. Just the one word - Seasons, it will be really nice to see what different interpretations crop up across the Blogsphere.

I expect to most people the word Seasons just makes them think of the changing weather and the times of the year. For me as a Christian is has another meaning too, we tend to talk about seasons of our life. Or the phases we might go through during our life and how things and priorities change with those seasons/ phases. So for me right now, I am in the season of Motherhood. Bringing up my children is the most important thing and that takes precedence over other things. Family Rules!

So the pictures I bring to you represent this season of Motherhood and also the 4 changing seasons that we get to experience here in the UK. Looking at these pictures got me thinking that we are very lucky to be able to experience such diversity in our weather and scenery.

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So we start with right here and now, this is my Kids enjoying our town centre on Saturday. AUTUMN. JJ and Miss M are my posers!

Before this came SUMMER and our holiday back in July to Dorset.

April/ May time earlier this year and my girls were Beauties in the Blossom, back in SPRING.

and finally the time that all the kids love - WINTER. Miss E and JJ building a very small snowman back December 2009.

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