April was such an eventful month filled with family gatherings for the holidays, dance competitions, soccer and football, a bachelorette party to Gatlinburg and all the weekly todos in between. I have been feeling like April and May are the two busiest months of the year, with something every weekend for the kids or even for Brett and I. It’s making our summer vacation at the end of May something I’m looking forward to—doing absolutely nothing but laying by the beach. In this episode of Fab Five Friday, I am so excited to share some of my favorites from this past month! Check it out!

1. Solace Watch Bands

Recently, I have been blasted by emails and social media about forever chemicals, or PFAS and was shocked. It’s a bit scary when you start to look into it, and quite honestly extremely intimidating to go on the quest to de-PFA everything you come in contact with in your home.

But, one step in the right direction for us, was these Solace watch bands. After I read that these harmful PFAS are present at the highest level in our watch bands, and that they could be absorbed into the skin, especially when sweating, I immediately made the purchase. Not only for me, but for my daughter as well. It was the best purchase! Not only are the bands beautiful and really well made, but they have a unique magnetic clasp that allows the bands to fit even the tiniest of wrists, which is so hard for both of us. They had a great sale at the time we purchased and we got two additional bands for free. I’ve worn it for weeks now, and at the gym, and they are very comfortable. Definitely recommend!

2. Protein Ice Cream

Protein, protein, protein! Make sure to get your protein! Does protein ice cream count? The answer is yes. I came across this brand of protein ice cream at Aldi, surprisingly. I didn’t realize it was sold at major retailers like Target. When I tell you that this ice cream is dangerously delicious, I meant it. Usually these kinds of ice creams fall short on texture or flavor, or both. But this ice cream is legit! It’s so good for when you need that sweet treat. I have to portion it out because I think it would be too easy to eat the entire pint!

3. Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall

This was the latest book club pick and I really enjoyed it. (Not because it has my name in it.) Looking for Jane is a historical fiction novel featuring three women across different generations and their ties to an underground abortion network in Toronto. It’s based on the real-life Jane Collective—a group of women who provided safe abortions when it was illegal at the time. The story is inspiring, featuring strong women fighting for reproductive rights. It explores themes of motherhood and having a choice, versus facing the devastating consequences of the lack of options.

4. Pureology Leave-in Spray

This Pureology all-purpose spray does literally everything! I recently added this back into my beauty supply because I was using other products and nothing really compared. Color protection, frizz control and heat protection all wrapped into one spray. It’s great!

5. The Ladder App Updates

I had to add my favorite training app, the Ladder App to the Fab Five Friday, again. Not only do I continue to love the diverse workouts that come out every week, but I feel amazing and so strong. In addition to the great coaches on the app, I have to highlight a few new features they’ve been adding. The Ladder app now includes a nutrition log, water tracking and step tracking. All in one place! I so appreciate the addition of these features because I was tracking my water, steps and macros in three different apps until now. It’s awesome to have everything all neatly laid out in an app I visit every day. And it makes the investment even more worth it.

And the food logging feature is also so easy to use. You can add items by voice, text, picture, or by scanning the barcode. It’s pretty accurate, too. It depends on the level of effort you put in, but for someone on the go who wants to better understand protein intake it’s been really helpful.

And that is it for this month’s Fab Five Friday! Thank you for stopping by! And check out last month’s Fab Five Friday if you missed it!

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Happy Friday, from Boston! We are here in Boston for Brett’s cousin’s wedding and are so excited! It’s a quick trip for us, but we are going to make the most of it. This is going to be a fun fab Five Friday so let’s get into it!

1 . Lighting the Pumpkins!

Our friend, Tiffany, invited us over this year to carve our pumpkins and I am glad she did! It was the last weekend before Halloween and our last shot to get it done. I am so glad we did! I love how they turned out. Mine is Derpy from KPop demon Hunters, Rylee’s is Mushroom from Mario, and Reece’s is a Minion. They looked amazing! And of course we made our delicious pumpkin seeds, that make the perfect sweet and salty snack.

2. Halloween Spooks

Halloween last weekend was also such a blast! We had a large group with us and trick or treated in a friend’s neighborhood this year that was spectacular. Another year another costume in the books!

3. Soccer Tournament Finalists

I also never posted a recap about Reece’s Monster Mash soccer tournament. It was such a fun one, Halloween themed so I loved it! Reece’s team played so hard and they won second place! Definitely improving against this harder division this year! Very proud of them,

4. Nueva Cantina Tampa

And while we were at the tournament, we were looking for places to go to lunch with the team in between games, and we found a gem! Nueva Cantina was all decked out for Halloween with fun decor and themed drinks. And the food was so good! They accommodated our party of over 20 and service was amazing as well. If we are ever back in this area I am definitely planning to eat hear again. So good!

5. Garment Bags for Dance Costumes

This one is for the dance moms! Since Rylee is in 6 numbers this comp season, I was looking for something to keep all her costumes and accessories organized. These are on Amazon and currently on sale for $19.99 for a pack of three. These are gonna be game changers for us this season and wanted to spread the word.

Thanks for stopping by this Fab Five Friday!

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Happy Fab Five Friday! (I am loving this Fab header image in honor of Wimbledon. It’s giving.) We are coming off of such an amazing high from last week’s nationals competition. Rylee and her team competed at Nexstar nationals at the Swan and Dolphin hotel all week, and we could not be prouder. It was amazing to see all the girls dance their hearts out to this season’s routines one last time. Saying goodbye to our favorite routines was bittersweet, but everyone’s so stoked to learn their routines for next season so the energy has just been non-stop since last week. Everyone is pumped up and their love for dance makes it all so worth it.

That brings me to my very first Fab Five for this week!

1. Rylee’s a National Champion

Rylee and her team’s large production number won first place at Nexstar, and they got to take home some serious hardware. It’s taller than she is! She also did such an amazing job with her contemporary routine, Runaway, it got invited to perform again at the Big Show and won 6th place overall. It was such a great week (exhausting, but great!) and she’s gearing up already for this upcoming season. Go Rylee!

2. My New Favorite Water Bottle – The Hudrojug

I am obsessed with this new water bottle! My old Stanley was so beat up and I wanted a 40oz one, so I was ready for an upgrade. When I got to Dick’s, I had every intention to pick out my new Stanley (I wanted the new model with the pop up straw) and even knew what color I wanted. As I walked up to the miraculous, colorful wall of Stanleys, I passed by an aisle filled with Hydrojugs. I hadn’t seen them before but a few things caught my eye immediately. 1) The straw mouthpiece was more straw-shaped, like I was used to, versus the new Stanley versions which are a bit wider, and hard to open. 2) The BEST part of the hydrojug is it has a rubber bottom—so no more clanking around every time I put it down. It hands down sold me on their brand. And it was $5 cheaper!

3. Crest Whitening Toothpaste Results

Ok, I posted about this a couple weeks ago, and I swear I’ve noticed such a huge difference. When I compared some photos, I was shocked! So I wanted to for sure come back to share that I am loving the toothpaste. It stays on the Fab Five Friday list!

4. Frownies

While I am at it, I wanted to bring back an oldie Fab Five Friday find, Frownies! I’ve been using these for a while and they always worked well, but I noticed incredible results when I put them on clean, dry skin, without any products. The results wowed me after wearing them consistently every night this week. I definitely have some insecurities (40 is right around the corner) and whether others can see them or not, I am so distracted by the 11’s on my forehead. I know aging is a privilege and I am so grateful, but it still nags at me. Anyways, the photo on the left is one where I had on full makeup, and you can still definitely see them. The one on the right was taken this morning without any makeup at all. I think it looks pretty good!

5. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

The current book I am reading, and almost finished with. It’s the second novel I’ve read from this author, and it seems like she has a theme to her writing. Both books take place in a fictional world where the environmental issues we are all aware of have progressed so much that the common theme is extinction across all species, including humans. And mixed in there are characters, emotions and stories of love and survival strung throughout. The writing is beautiful and it’s really starting to pull at my heartstrings.

We’re on our way to Clearwater for the weekend and I’m about to plug in my headphones now to listen to it, I can’t wait to hear how the story ends.

Thank you all for stopping by this Fab Five Friday! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and have something Fab that you are excited about this week and into the weekend.

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Happy Friday! This week definitely flew by. I hope everyone had a great week. I’m very ready for this weekend, and for Rylee’s first dance competition of the year. We’ll be getting a good night’s rest tonight and waking up bright and early to get ready for her first routine. It’s been a great week leading up to this weekend and I’m excited to share this week’s Fab Five Friday!

1. Weekend at my Brothers

We are coming off an amazing long weekend at my brother’s place. We ate so much great food and spent lots of time relaxing at the pool and beach. The kids love going to Uncle Willy’s house!

2. Sassy Saints Manicures

I am still loving this Sassy Saints kit! My nails have never been this long naturally and I love how long they last. I’ve always wanted a round manicure and I think my nails are finally long enough for it to look good! Thinking I’ll try that next and a more fun color since I’ve been sticking to neutrals.

3. Rhode Beauty

My Rhode kit came this week! I have been dying to try this for a while now and it’s been out of stock. But it came and today was the first day I tried it. I definitely felt glowing and moisturized all day, and enjoyed using it. The face wash is amazing.

4. My Routine Planner

After reading Atomic Habits, I was so motivated to set my routine and stick to it. I’ve been using my Routine Planner printable and it’s making it easier for me to remember what I want to get done with the cues to do so.

5. A Court of Wings and Ruin

Ok, still on the ACOTAR train, people! This series is so good. So much better than Fourth Wing IMHO. This one is just as good as the first and second I can’t wait to see what happens! Highly recommend getting on this fantasy bandwagon.

Have a wonderful weekend, all! And wish us luck at the competition this weekend!

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Happy Friday!

So excited for this Friday but man once again it came so quickly! I want to jump right into this week’s Fab Five Friday and get this party started!

1. Bathing Suits

Floral High Waisted 2-piece | Brick Red V Neck One Piece

I wanted to refresh my swimsuits this summer and really liked the styles that Cupshe has. I decided to give them a try and love the two I kept. I tried a bunch of styles on and these were my favorite. Highly recommend the brand and I’m looking forward to maybe one or two more.

2. Window Bench

I’ve been wanting this bench cushion ever since I put these shelves in. It was the finishing touch of my shelf wall! I love how it came out! And I went to Homegoods for a selection of blue pillows to give it the coastal look I was going for. I’m pretty happy with it. I love the space every time I walk past it. It makes me happy!

3. Formal Dress

If you are looking for a formal dress without the formal budget, check out this brand LOVE&LEMONADE on Shein. I found this stunning beaded gown for two events I attended this year and I was shocked at the quality. It was so comfortable even though it’s form fitting, it’s really stretchy so it’s perfect for dancing in.

4. Family Photos in Jamaica

I never got to post these on the blog, but I had a few little mini photo shoots during our spring break vacation back in March and loved how they came out. If I had more time and my kids (and Brett) weren’t so ready to be done, I would have taken so many more, haha! But it was a beautiful property and we all had such a blast!

5. Rylee’s Last Father Daughter Dance

Romantic Floral Princess Dress | Floral Blazer

I can’t get over how amazing Rylee and Brett looked at their last father daughter dance. It was an Enchanted theme and I thought the dress Rylee picked out was so beautiful and classy. And Brett looked charming in his matching red blazer. I can’t get enough of these two! I love the memories they get to make together, so much fun.

Thanks for stopping by for this week’s Fab Five Friday!

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I know it’s a day late, but I still wanted to stop by on the blog and post a Fab Five for this week. It was a pretty busy week, closing things down at work for the last week of the year and preparing for the Christmas break with the family. There’s always a buzz of excitement at school for the kids, they got to watch Polar Express in their pajamas, and it was a half day on Friday so they are totally in the spirit. We’re so excited to see the family too, so there was a lot of preparing, packing and cleaning. Gotta love coming home to a clean house from traveling. The kids still had soccer and dance, and Brett and I tried to make it to the gym every night in preparation for the holiday celebrations. So with all that said, here are some highlights from the week for Fab Five Friday.

1. Hamster Love

There’s been so much hamster love in the house! The kids love playing with Mickey and I love seeing them so happy (even though I have to clean the cage). They play so well with her and I love the joy that this little animal has brought to the family.

2. Christmas cards spreading holiday cheer

I love getting everyone’s Christmas cards this time of year. They are on display in my kitchen and it so fun to see everyone’s family photos! Such beautiful families, and they make my kitchen so festive.

3. Rylee’s Holiday Showcase

Rylee’s dance studio put on a holiday showcase, where all the competitive teams got to perform their routines for friends and family. Her team did so good! I love watching the dancers perform and they have some incredible ones there! We were so proud of Rylee she did so great.

4. Nike Sneaks

I’ve been loving these new Nike Airs I got, and especially for traveling. They are great walking shoes and I love how they look. And they are on a great sale at Kohl’s here too.

5. Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

I just finished this book by Kristin Hannah this week. I loved her book Nightingale so much I wanted to read another one of hers, but this one has left me feeling so off. I’m not sure I would recommend it, but I also can’t stop thinking about it. It’s very dark and depressing, and I am sure in real life the Dust Bowl and Great Depression were horrible. But there’s something about investing so much time into a story and a character, and then having it end the way it did leaving me feeling so upset and sad that put a damper on the whole thing. I know not every story can have a happy ending, but this was just too much bad without the characters catching a break. Even if it’s not realistic, I still like the books I read to end on a positive note so I can go on with my life feeling good, not sad. Anyways, it was written beautifully and I made it to the end, but take this as a warning before you choose to read this one, that it is miserable.

Well, thank you for stopping by the blog and I’m wishing you a very Merry Christmas week of celebrating! Cheers!

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Happy Friday! I hope you are all in on the Halloween vibes like we are. This weekend kicks off tons of fun seasonal activities in our town. There is so much to do leading up to Halloween, and these next two weeks are going to be filled with events. Like Oktoberfest, kicking off at the Crooked Can Brewery, the amazing Halloween Light show on City Hall, a fall themed farmer’s market tomorrow, and a haunted house at an old abandoned train depot. I love this holiday season! Now let’s get into the Fab Five Friday picks!

1. Halloween Attire

Witchy Halloween Button Down (Amazon) | Sanderson Museum T-Shirt (Amazon)

With all these events taking place, the right wardrobe must be considered. I wanted to get into the Halloween spirit and snagged a few shirts off Amazon. They are adorable and I like that they are different than a normal t-shirt, which I don’t find flattering. I can’t wait to wear them!

2. Halloween Earrings

And to pair with my Sanderson Witch Museum shirt, I thought these witch themed earrings were so darn cute! They got rave reviews on Amazon, and mine should be arriving today. So much fun.

3. Thread & Supply Fall Shacket

It’s that time of year to whip out the boots and jackets! Yes, in Florida when the temp drops below 70 degrees, they are out in full force! I love this shacket I got last season at Nordstrom. The fall colors are perfect and it’s nice and warm! Excited I got to wear it again this week!

4. The Last Flight

I am so excited to discuss our book club pick for the month which we all just finished! Full November Book club post to come, but we finished the Last Flight and it was definitely a pager turner!

5. Containers from Aldi

And on a more practical note, I found these containers at Aldi and because we are almost finished with redoing our pantry, thought it was a sign that I must snag a few! They come packed individually so I got 2 big blue ones and one 2-pack of the green size. The colors are also nicer in person. I’ve purchased a few of the airtight tight containers online and they are such bad quality, some came already broken, but these are really thick and heavy and seem like they will last a while. And they were only $6.99 each!

Thanks for stopping by this Fab Friday! I hope you get your spook on this weekend!

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Happy Friday, friends! I hope your weeks are coming to a nice close and your looking forward to the weekend. This week was another fury of a week and came and went so quickly. We’re looking forward to our big race day this weekend and it should fun. It’s our 12th year wedding anniversary this same weekend that we’ll be celebrating after a long day of running, but we’re going to make it special. We decided to take a break from traveling this year since that last two years we did something for our anniversary, Brett was not feeling well, and our Mexico story is one you have to read. So this year we’re staying close to home and challenging ourselves to a good run instead. And good food as well. Let’s get into this week’s Fab Five Friday!

1. My Running Playlist

Speaking of running, I put together this playlist of 10 songs that make my runs so much better and I’ve been listening to it a lot. I am thinking I might start with this playlist during my race so I start off strong. Music really helps me so much with my focus during a run, and makes it fun! Wish me luck this weekend!

2. Weekday Girls Night

This week my girlfriends planned a little mom’s night out at a local wine bar, and it was such a much needed and fun night out. These ladies are amazing, and it was a blast to see them during the week!

3. Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon

And of course I have to mention the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon! This weekend is the weekend, and it’s been on my mind all week of course. The course looks so beautiful, all along the water and over a few bridges. Which should scare the heck out of me, but I’ve come to terms with the idea of taking my time, and not trying to over exert myself to hit a time marker. I’m going to have to walk if I need to, and I’ll be taking in the scenery as I do, and I’ll be crossing that finish line! (If anyone has any tips for avoiding cramps while running please share! It’s been the cryptonite during my training and I have not been able to figure out how to stop them from happening, I feel like I have tried everything. Honestly the only thing that helps is to walk or slow my pace. That is so hard sometimes when I feel strong enough to run faster, but I think I’ll have to go with it.)

4. Laundry Room Project Complete

This week, our laundry room project officially completed! We are in love with the new space and all the storage! You know the best part about finishing a project is getting to put everything away in it’s new place. I’ll be posting a full before and after post on this little project of ours, but I was too excited not to share today. In a smaller house, we struggle bad with storage and this small upgrade is going to seriously change our lives. We love how it came out!

5. My New Pantry Door

And on that note, we kinda added last minute to the project an upgrade to our pantry, which was so small and puny, we hated it! We are giving it a face lift by taking away the folded closet door and adding a real door, in hopes to not only make it feel bigger, but give us some room to add shelving on the back of the door. What seemed like an easy project has seriously turned into such a pain (like when we thought we ran out of flooring cause we didn’t know how much we needed and had to salvage the project with scraps!) but I think it is going to be so amazing for us.

So that is our week in a nutshell and the Fab Five making this Friday super fab. Have a great weekend everyone!

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Happy Friday! I hope everyone’s made it safely through this week. Highlights included a Hurricane Day, thanks to Idalia, a great game by the UCF Knights at their season opener, lots of things checked off the to-do list and a house project underway (more to come!). I’m so excited for the nice long weekend and looking forward to hanging with family. This week has absolutely flown by and it’s time for this week’s Fab Five Friday!

1. Rylee’s Dance Team Fundraiser

Ok, shameless plug here, because how dang cute is my girl, Rylee? She’s all in on dance this year, and is loving being a part of the prep competition team at her studio. She’s really doing amazing and loving it, and it’s making my heart so full and happy, because that was my sport as a kid. Her dance team is doing a fundraiser, starting today, through the weekend, to help raise money for competitions, choreographers and other awesome opportunities for her and her team. Check out her store today! We’d love and appreciate your support so much!

2. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

I’m still loving this book that the ladies and I reviewed at our book club meeting last Friday. If you saw my post from earlier this week, I talked about the book club I started, and our latest meeting to review The Nightingale. Such a powerful novel and Kristin Hannah is a great writer. Check out the post to learn more about the book and snag a downloadable copy of the questions we reviewed during book club.

3. This Hilarious Fantasy Football Draft Report Card from Yahoo

Did you know AI was funny? These recaps of our family fantasy football draft this past weekend were absolutely hilarious. They used our team names to tear our drafting skills to shreds and it was spot on. My Dad’s team name is The Beavers, and it said “The Beavers are better off gnawing wood than playing football this season.” We were dying laughing. So, so good!

4. Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones

The new gym that I recently joined is so loud, my apple airpods were just not cutting it. I’ve been training for my upcoming half marathon and using the treadmill a lot, and the acoustics up there with the music and HIIT classes going on is terrible. Especially when I like to zone out during long runs and listen to an audio book, it was so hard to focus and get in the zone. I brought these Bose headphones to the gym and it was like magic! And apparently, these over the ear headphones are super trendy. Everyone wears them to the gym now! And I know why. It really helps me focus on my workout instead of all the distractions. Highly recommend!

5. Gatorade Electrolyte Powder Packets

I think adding electrolytes to my day is going to be a routine for me now. We had these Gatorade powder packets in our pantry, left over from one of Brett’s work trips and he swears by them to keep him hydrated in the heat. I used one this am in my first 16oz glass for the day, in hopes to boost my hydration and replenish from the night. I’ve been getting terrible cramps when I run during this training, and was really desperate to try things to help. This was one of the things I wanted to introduce to my routine and for the first time since I started training, I had a great 45 min run with zero cramps. This plus a solid 10 minute stretch session before the run I think really helped. I’m going to keep going this route and hopefully have a great training season ahead of me!

Thanks for stopping by for this week’s recap of my top five fab highlights from the week. Enjoy the long weekend, you deserve it!

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It’s Friday! And the Friday before a long three day weekend. Now I would call that a Fab Five Friday for sure! And it’s officially summer. My kid’s summer kicked off on Wednesday, with a half day, so they have been really embracing the lazy summer days, laying around, reading and playing video games until the rest of their neighborhood friends get off. I feel like this week has been a week of anticipation. For summer to start, for stay-cations and vacations to begin, and for new exciting additions to our city to open. This week’s Fab Five Friday is a collection of things I’ve been waiting in eager anticipation for and excited to share on the blog!

1. End of the School Year

As you know, it’s the end of another year, and these kiddos are ready to soak in the sun and move up a grade level. We couldn’t be more proud of them and all their achievements this year. Both kids have shown a real love for learning and I couldn’t be happier to see them shining in school. Rylee finished all 15 books on this year’s Sunshine State reading list and got Student of the Month for integrity. And Reece finished his last week as Top Three Student of the week and was also selected to do a special book club lesson, and really loved it. I love seeing them enjoy learning!

2. Brightline Orlando

It’s finally open! We’ve been talking about the Brightline coming to Orlando for what feels like years, and it’s finally open to book starting in September. The train will take us from Orlando to South Florida destinations like Boca, Fort Lauderdale and Miami. With my brother and his girlfriend, and a lot of my high school friends living in South Florida, I’m so excited about this because it will make the trip so much more enjoyable, and kind of exciting. We’re looking into heading down there one weekend in September to see a Marlin’s Game, and the Brightline will shuttle you to and from the train station to the stadium.

3. Crunch Gym

We cannot wait for the new Crunch Gym to open up in Winter Garden. I don’t have a gym membership at the moment because my HitFit membership ended and I’ve been looking forward to more variety in my workouts. The location is also super convenient for us, right across from my daughter’s dance studio, so there really isn’t any excuse. That’s one of the hardest things for me to schedule in, the drive to the closest gym which would take up my entire lunch break at the moment. And if I want to go after work, the kid’s activities usually don’t give me enough time for a full workout. I think this is going to give us the variety we need to do quick workouts when we can, or take classes and still fit in work, activities and all the other daily responsibilities. I’m so excited!

4. Summer Camps

I’m planning a post with all of my favorite Winter Garden summer camps soon, but I always love to hear where the kids are spending their summer. There’s so many fun things to experience! This year my kids are going to have a blast at camp and I can’t wait to hear all about their field trips to places like LegoLand, Topgolf and Island H20 Water park!

5. Memorial Day Weekend with Family

This weekend my brother and his girlfriend are coming up for the long weekend, and we’ve got a lot planned. I can’t wait to see them most of all, but we are especially excited to go to Typhoon Lagoon. Will and I haven’t been to a theme park together since we were kids, so it should be really fun. And now we get to bring Ry and Reece to experience it! We always get together for Memorial Day weekend so we’re excited to keep the tradition going.

I hope you have a wonderful long weekend. Let me know in the comments below what you are up to! Thanks for stopping by!

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