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Wedding Etiquette Forum

His daughters mom asked was she invited to the wedding and reception

I am getting married in roughly 6 months and my FH has a 5 year old daughter from a previous relationship. I come from a blended family where I grew up knowing my fathers ex-wife as my Aunt. She was always around and there were no issues, to my knowledge, between she and my mom. She and my dad have 2 kids together and she is invited to my wedding. Here's the deal, I entered this relationship hoping that it would be a good situation, not that we'd be BFFs, but that we could all be adults. Initially it was cool until I started seeing how disrespectful she is to him. I would always be cordial regardless of my feelings and would even pick his daughter up from her. She friended me on FB and, while I knew she just wanted to by nosey, I accepted. I posted a status and she commented with something I didn't like. I had him confront her about it and ask that she not do that. That prompted a phone confrontation between she and I that was initiated by her. Again, I would still be cordial because at the end of the day, there's a child involved. Some months go by and his daughter says to us that her mommy said she doesn't like me. When my FH confronted her about it, she said that she didn't like me, didn't respect me, and nobody could make her. At that point I was done with it. Then a couple months later she was asking me to do something from her daughter. The situation is cordial again now, but I don't want the stress of wondering what person is gonna show up on that day. The issue is, his daughter is really excited about being a flowergirl and I don't think she'll let her be in it if she can't come.
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Re: His daughters mom asked was she invited to the wedding and reception

  • Jen4948Jen4948 member
    Knottie Warrior 10000 Comments 500 Love Its 25 Answers
    edited May 2015
    Editing my original opinion. If the wedding is taking place during a visitation then it's not up to the ex whether or not your SD to be is there.

    Otherwise, there's certainly no requirement that the ex be invited, but I'd have security available if you do. Hopefully she'll act like a mature adult, but if not, at least be prepared.
  • afox007afox007 member
    1000 Comments 500 Love Its Second Anniversary First Answer
    What is the current visitation schedule between your Fi and his ex? My bio dad had a similar issue so he made sure his wedding day was on a day he would have me anyways. Then my mom didn't have to be involved.
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  • kaos16kaos16 member
    Knottie Warrior 500 Love Its 1000 Comments First Answer

    I am getting married in roughly 6 months and my FH has a 5 year old daughter from a previous relationship. I come from a blended family where I grew up knowing my fathers ex-wife as my Aunt. She was always around and there were no issues, to my knowledge, between she and my mom. She and my dad have 2 kids together and she is invited to my wedding. Here's the deal, I entered this relationship hoping that it would be a good situation, not that we'd be BFFs, but that we could all be adults. Initially it was cool until I started seeing how disrespectful she is to him. I would always be cordial regardless of my feelings and would even pick his daughter up from her. She friended me on FB and, while I knew she just wanted to by nosey, I accepted. I posted a status and she commented with something I didn't like. I had him confront her about it and ask that she not do that. That prompted a phone confrontation between she and I that was initiated by her. Again, I would still be cordial because at the end of the day, there's a child involved. Some months go by and his daughter says to us that her mommy said she doesn't like me. When my FH confronted her about it, she said that she didn't like me, didn't respect me, and nobody could make her. At that point I was done with it. Then a couple months later she was asking me to do something from her daughter. The situation is cordial again now, but I don't want the stress of wondering what person is gonna show up on that day. The issue is, his daughter is really excited about being a flowergirl and I don't think she'll let her be in it if she can't come.

    If your Fiance doesn't want his ex there, I don't think she has to be invited, whether or not their common daughter is in the wedding.  You'd hope the mom would be adult enough to let the daughter be in the wedding even if she isn't there.  With that being said, If they are dealing with child custody through a court, it might not hurt to get the court involved to order it, only if the ex is being really difficult and threatening not to let the daughter be in the wedding.
  • I am getting married in roughly 6 months and my FH has a 5 year old daughter from a previous relationship. I come from a blended family where I grew up knowing my fathers ex-wife as my Aunt. She was always around and there were no issues, to my knowledge, between she and my mom. She and my dad have 2 kids together and she is invited to my wedding. Here's the deal, I entered this relationship hoping that it would be a good situation, not that we'd be BFFs, but that we could all be adults. Initially it was cool until I started seeing how disrespectful she is to him. I would always be cordial regardless of my feelings and would even pick his daughter up from her. She friended me on FB and, while I knew she just wanted to by nosey, I accepted. I posted a status and she commented with something I didn't like. I had him confront her about it and ask that she not do that. That prompted a phone confrontation between she and I that was initiated by her. Again, I would still be cordial because at the end of the day, there's a child involved. Some months go by and his daughter says to us that her mommy said she doesn't like me. When my FH confronted her about it, she said that she didn't like me, didn't respect me, and nobody could make her. At that point I was done with it. Then a couple months later she was asking me to do something from her daughter. The situation is cordial again now, but I don't want the stress of wondering what person is gonna show up on that day. The issue is, his daughter is really excited about being a flowergirl and I don't think she'll let her be in it if she can't come.

    First of all, paragraphs are your friend.

    Secondly, your FH's ex sounds like a bitch. If she uses his daughter as a pawn to try and get an invitation, there's nothing you can do. I would absolutely NOT let her win that war. If you do, it will teach her that she can use the child to manipulate y'all into getting things she wants. This won't be good for y'all or for the child.

    Are you planning the wedding for a weekend when FH has custody? If so, his daughter's attendance is none of her business and she has no control over it.

    And for the sweet love, fix your FB privacy settings. If you don't unfriend her, restrict her so that she can't see your status updates, others' posts on your wall, tags of you, photos of you. Restrict her permissions to tag you in anything. She is obviously a social media drama queen. Cut that off by taking control of your account.
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  • There is no court order, but he gets her every weekend. She asked him when the wedding was and she said that they have a trip planned at the same time. She then said she would try to change the date and subsequently asked uf she was invited. Again, if the situation weren't so back and forth, I probably wouldn't care, but it's too wishy-washy for me. I honestly don't get why she would want to be there other than to be nosey.

  • Sorry southernbelle; I do realize paragraphs are my friend. We are not friends on FB anymore. I should've mentioned that.

  • edited May 2015
    This issue needs to be dealt with between the two bio parents. I think you're best bet is stop contact with this woman on social media and allow any issues/favors/requests regarding the little girl to be dealt with through her father.   I have a few friends that are separated and/or divorced from their child's father.   They discuss any arrangements regarding school, pick-ups, money or anything of that nature between the two bio parents. 

    I would not invite her to the wedding just for the sake of keeping her happy. If you do this know, this will be the case for the remainder of your marriage.  She'll feel entitled to being invited to any and all major family events. The issue of the little girl participating/attending the wedding at all needs to be dealt with between the two bio parents.  I'm sure they have a custody agreement and other arrangements set in place that give your Fi (the girl's father) rights in this situation.   
  • fyrchkfyrchk member
    250 Love Its 100 Comments First Anniversary First Answer

    I have a similar situation. I'm friendly with his ex, but also realize she's bat-shit crazy. When she asked if she was invited, FI asked her why she would want to come. I believe his words were, "Why would you want to come? To see what you aren't getting?" Snarky on his part, but put her in her place a little. We all know she only wanted to come to see what we were doing, what she thought we spent, who was coming, and to make shitty comments.

    It's not her day in any way, shape, or form.

  • There is no court order, but he gets her every weekend. She asked him when the wedding was and she said that they have a trip planned at the same time. She then said she would try to change the date and subsequently asked uf she was invited. Again, if the situation weren't so back and forth, I probably wouldn't care, but it's too wishy-washy for me. I honestly don't get why she would want to be there other than to be nosey.

    So she has custody full time and allows the child to see him on weekends? 

    Y'all really should look into changing this. She sounds conniving enough to do this whenever it suits her, which would be really heartbreaking for y'all.  

    Since there's nothing official, you'll just have to work it out with her. And your DH should be the one to handle this - not you. "No, I'm sorry. We're keeping the wedding small and intimate. Let us know if (child) still be our flower girl." 

    If she plays hardball, then you'll have to explain to the child why she couldn't attend dad's wedding: "Your mom had a trip planned and she told us you couldn't make any changes to the plans. We're sorry, sweetheart." Factual and simple. The kid doesn't need to know about the drama.
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  • There is no court order, but he gets her every weekend. She asked him when the wedding was and she said that they have a trip planned at the same time. She then said she would try to change the date and subsequently asked uf she was invited. Again, if the situation weren't so back and forth, I probably wouldn't care, but it's too wishy-washy for me. I honestly don't get why she would want to be there other than to be nosey.

    Why not? If there's no order and the mom has custody, she can take her out of the wedding if she wants, or do whatever she wants to mess with any plans he makes with the kid in the future.

    Why wouldn't he get the Court to set a custody schedule and give him partial custody? 
  • afox007afox007 member
    1000 Comments 500 Love Its Second Anniversary First Answer

    There is no court order, but he gets her every weekend. She asked him when the wedding was and she said that they have a trip planned at the same time. She then said she would try to change the date and subsequently asked uf she was invited. Again, if the situation weren't so back and forth, I probably wouldn't care, but it's too wishy-washy for me. I honestly don't get why she would want to be there other than to be nosey.

    Why not? If there's no order and the mom has custody, she can take her out of the wedding if she wants, or do whatever she wants to mess with any plans he makes with the kid in the future.

    Why wouldn't he get the Court to set a custody schedule and give him partial custody? 
    Wedding aside I STRONGLY advise your FI go get an actual court order ASAP. For awhile FI saw no reason to get a custody agreement for FSS. We had him full time and he visited his bio mom occasionally. He figured it was working no reason for a court order.

    Bio mom picked FSS up from a friend one day with no warning and refused to answer our calls. We called the cops who said technically there was nothing anyone could do since there was no custody agreement. We basically had to just wait it out for over 24 hours until she decided to tell us where we could pick up FSS.
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  • flbride2015flbride2015 member
    Seventh Anniversary 500 Love Its 100 Comments Name Dropper
    edited May 2015
    afox007 said:

    There is no court order, but he gets her every weekend. She asked him when the wedding was and she said that they have a trip planned at the same time. She then said she would try to change the date and subsequently asked uf she was invited. Again, if the situation weren't so back and forth, I probably wouldn't care, but it's too wishy-washy for me. I honestly don't get why she would want to be there other than to be nosey.

    Why not? If there's no order and the mom has custody, she can take her out of the wedding if she wants, or do whatever she wants to mess with any plans he makes with the kid in the future.

    Why wouldn't he get the Court to set a custody schedule and give him partial custody? 
    Wedding aside I STRONGLY advise your FI go get an actual court order ASAP. For awhile FI saw no reason to get a custody agreement for FSS. We had him full time and he visited his bio mom occasionally. He figured it was working no reason for a court order.

    Bio mom picked FSS up from a friend one day with no warning and refused to answer our calls. We called the cops who said technically there was nothing anyone could do since there was no custody agreement. We basically had to just wait it out for over 24 hours until she decided to tell us where we could pick up FSS.




    I second this. Your fiance seriously needs a court order. His ex sounds like my ex husband's ex, down to the Facebook request and all. I grew up in a similar situation as yours and also tried being friendly with her. We actually invited her to a few dinners and events; then when our wedding approached it all went to hell.

    His daughter wasn't allowed to attend our wedding, and she actually told her it was because we didn't want her (the child) there. When Christmas rolled around, we went to pick up his daughter on our way to the airport to visit his mom, and his ex actually refused to hand over his daughter. We spent Christmas Eve in court with his attorney to have the judge force her to hand over his daughter. We were able to get new flights for the next day but we had to pay for it out of our own pockets because she wouldn't reimburse us. 

    So yeah, at least with the court order we were able to spend that Christmas with her. If he didn't have one we would have been SOL. My ex and I get along great, and I actually consider his new wife family, so we don't follow our court order, but I still have one, just in case.

     

  • RezIpsaRezIpsa member
    250 Love Its 100 Comments Name Dropper
    I am around family court quite a bit and I strongly urge you and your partner to get a court decree regarding custody and support.

    Posts above have covered a lot of the reasons why, but here are a few more.

    Many people (not saying your partner is in this group) avoid a legal resolution because they can then pay whatever and whenever for the child's maintenance. This backfires routinely, especially when they don't collect detailed receipts from the custodial parent every time they give them money for the child. A parent could have paid a ton every month like clockwork, but if the other parent claims they didn't and that money was for something else, or it was untraceable cash, the noncustodial parent can end up with back ordered child support. If they don't pay, they can have their license suspended and do jail time. It's a shit show.

    Many parents also don't go to court because everything is working fine as is, so why rock the boat? Way too much risk here of the custodial parent using access to the child as a lever- as you are experiencing. The temptation to say "if you don't do X, then you can't see your kid" is just too much for many people.

    Most jurisdictions have self help packets at the county clerk's office that detail how to go about filing properly on your own. You don't necessarily need a lawyer. If gets contentious at all, get a lawyer immediately.

    I hope for his daughter's sake that mom grows up. I wouldn't count on it, and I would assume things could get very bad and prepare accordingly.
  • Failing to get a court order to arrange custody is failing to take care of his daughter and make sure he has a permanent role in her life. I wouldn't marry a man who didn't take care of that detail.
  • Please don't pass judgment about a situation you don't know. As a previous poster stated, his reason for not having a court order at this moment has nothing to do with him not wanting to have a permanent role in his daughters life. There are other factors surrounding that and that's not to say that he will never get one. He is EXTREMELY present in her life and I see that first hand.

    Unless you're gonna respond to the topic at hand, please keep your negativity to yourself. Thank you
  • Please don't pass judgment about a situation you don't know. As a previous poster stated, his reason for not having a court order at this moment has nothing to do with him not wanting to have a permanent role in his daughters life. There are other factors surrounding that and that's not to say that he will never get one. He is EXTREMELY present in her life and I see that first hand.

    Unless you're gonna respond to the topic at hand, please keep your negativity to yourself. Thank you

    You don't get to tell other people how to post. And frankly not having legal custody has a major impact on how people are going to answer your question. I would love to know what legitimate reason exists for not getting a court order. The ideas that come to my mind are... not pleasant. Like, outstanding warrant? Criminal background that would lead a judge to not award him anything? I hate to speculate, so please, enlighten us on what the reason really is.
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  • The fact that you jump right to such a negative speculation is concerning, however, as someone else stated, sometimes situations are amicable and people choose not to go the court route. Such was the case for my father and his ex-wife; there was never a court order in place and everything worked out fine. For this, I don't agree that you ALWAYS need a court order.

    Having said that, my fiancé is one that has not wanted to rock the boat, as his child's mother can be vindictive. Can that be annoying, yes. However, at the time he was gonna go, she was making more and had a better situation in general. He was scared that she'd come up with some lie and he wouldn't be able to see his child at all. As another poster made mention of, while he was paying daycare and whatever else her mother asked him to do, she could easily say he wasn't doing anything because at that point he was paying cash, which I immediately told him to stop because there was no paper trail. Things have since changed and he's in a better financial situation so going to court would not be an issue now.

    Again, this post is not about a court order, although I do understand how it came about as there would've been no dilemma had it already been in place. However, I hope you've been slightly enlightened on the reasons, other than warrants and criminal backgrounds, that could lead people to not want to go the court route.
  • RezIpsaRezIpsa member
    250 Love Its 100 Comments Name Dropper
    Those are reasons but they sure aren't good ones. Whatever has occurred in the past, he needs a court order yesterday. You have described her as vindictive and stating she doesn't like you. You guys are getting married shortly. I guarantee you that without a court order outlining support and visitation, this poor kid will end up being used as a tool.

    Also, child support is keyed to income and debt ratio. If your partner was in a bad financial place the maintenance would have reflected that. It is also easy to get a modification if things change. Money is always a terrible reason to not do what needs to be done for children's welfare.

    Seriously, talk to your partner about getting a self filing packet from the clerk and taking care of his business so you guys don't have uneccesary drama in your lives, and this poor kid doesn't end up either never seeing her dad or being a pawn.
  • flantasticflantastic member
    Knottie Warrior 2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    edited May 2015

    The fact that you jump right to such a negative speculation is concerning, however, as someone else stated, sometimes situations are amicable and people choose not to go the court route. Such was the case for my father and his ex-wife; there was never a court order in place and everything worked out fine. For this, I don't agree that you ALWAYS need a court order.

    Having said that, my fiancé is one that has not wanted to rock the boat, as his child's mother can be vindictive. Can that be annoying, yes. However, at the time he was gonna go, she was making more and had a better situation in general. He was scared that she'd come up with some lie and he wouldn't be able to see his child at all. As another poster made mention of, while he was paying daycare and whatever else her mother asked him to do, she could easily say he wasn't doing anything because at that point he was paying cash, which I immediately told him to stop because there was no paper trail. Things have since changed and he's in a better financial situation so going to court would not be an issue now.

    Again, this post is not about a court order, although I do understand how it came about as there would've been no dilemma had it already been in place. However, I hope you've been slightly enlightened on the reasons, other than warrants and criminal backgrounds, that could lead people to not want to go the court route.

    People are not purposely trying to be negative for the sake of doing so. They are concerned for you, your FI, and your FI's kid, and offering suggestions to keep what's happening now from happening again, in a worse way, in the future. "Things are reasonably good now" or "It's worked out for my parent" is not an adequate reason for him not to protect himself and his kid. 

    You don't buy insurance because you expect your house to burn down, but you know that there are fire hazards (like @Rezlpsa pointed out) and you're saying, "Well, it hasn't burned down yet" and "Someone else didn't buy insurance and their house never burned down." That logic doesn't work.

    The courts have practice sorting through real issues and bullshit. So he should be less concerned about her "coming up with some lie" and more concerned about the fact that he doesn't have any actual right to see her at all and the access he does have, she can take away for any reason.
  • Thank you. I do understand everyone's concern. You also have to understand that when you are the original poster and know the ins and outs of the situation, having someone attack your mates character by saying they don't want to be in their child's life because they haven't done XYZ, can be a little annoying. Should he get a court order, yes. I'm by no means negating that fact. My point is, will getting a court order tomorrow change the issue at hand? I don't know how long that process takes.
  • RezIpsaRezIpsa member
    250 Love Its 100 Comments Name Dropper
    edited May 2015
    It varies a lot. Under six months is definitely do able, and you can ask for a temporary order to rationalize the situation until a final order is entered. That way, if she drags her feet, it doesn't effect his ability to see his daughter. You can also get a temp order granting him visitation the day before, the day of, and the day after your wedding.
  • The fact that you jump right to such a negative speculation is concerning, however, as someone else stated, sometimes situations are amicable and people choose not to go the court route. Such was the case for my father and his ex-wife; there was never a court order in place and everything worked out fine. For this, I don't agree that you ALWAYS need a court order.

    Having said that, my fiancé is one that has not wanted to rock the boat, as his child's mother can be vindictive. Can that be annoying, yes. However, at the time he was gonna go, she was making more and had a better situation in general. He was scared that she'd come up with some lie and he wouldn't be able to see his child at all. As another poster made mention of, while he was paying daycare and whatever else her mother asked him to do, she could easily say he wasn't doing anything because at that point he was paying cash, which I immediately told him to stop because there was no paper trail. Things have since changed and he's in a better financial situation so going to court would not be an issue now.

    Again, this post is not about a court order, although I do understand how it came about as there would've been no dilemma had it already been in place. However, I hope you've been slightly enlightened on the reasons, other than warrants and criminal backgrounds, that could lead people to not want to go the court route.

    I don't know the laws in the State where you are, but I do know that without a court order, the primary custodian (Mother in this case) can make any and all decisions without input from the father. This includes medical interventions, decisions of a life and death nature, and decisions of packing up and leaving across the country. I have seen this happen. If your FI has the best interests of his child in mind, he needs to start the process. Once the process is begun, his ex cannot do anything without the court's permission. 

    OP, before you go on the attack, I am all for Father's rights. I was raised by a single dad and I have seen fathers destroyed by exes hellbent on "getting back" at them for wrongs perceived in a previous relationship. Your FI needs to protect himself, his daughter and you. 
  • flantasticflantastic member
    Knottie Warrior 2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    edited May 2015

    Thank you. I do understand everyone's concern. You also have to understand that when you are the original poster and know the ins and outs of the situation, having someone attack your mates character by saying they don't want to be in their child's life because they haven't done XYZ, can be a little annoying. Should he get a court order, yes. I'm by no means negating that fact. My point is, will getting a court order tomorrow change the issue at hand? I don't know how long that process takes.

    It won't, no. People gave you the strategy for handling the issue at hand. However, I would be grateful if people also then gave me advice for ensuring the issue doesn't happen again in a different context, not upset that they weren't specifically talking about what you asked. 
  • For clarity, I have no issue with people giving advice for the future. I have responded favorably to persons who gave advice and even their opinion in a nice manner. My issue comes in when people are rude with the advice and make condescending assumptions.
  • SP29SP29 member
    Sixth Anniversary 2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    I get where you are coming from OP. My parents separated more than once, and finally when I was in my early 20s with two younger brothers. No court orders. My parents even settled their finances (like the house) between each other out of court. You'd like to think people will do what is best for their children.

    But in light of this crazy ex- I'd work on that court order NOW (he is obviously in a situation where he needs it). Keep a paper trail for everything. 

    Great advice of Rezlpsa about the temporary and day of orders.

    Otherwise, there is honestly not much you can do if mom says no. I would have FI ask her, "This is the date of our wedding, we would like daughter to be there as our flower girl" and see where it goes. If daughter goes with her dad every weekend, seems mom should've been asking him about the trip before it was booked right? But obviously she doesn't care much about that or is making up this trip because she is mad. Thus, getting a temporary order would be good. 

    If this doesn't work out, I would be honest with daughter, but without throwing mom under the bus. 
  • RezIpsaRezIpsa member
    250 Love Its 100 Comments Name Dropper
    Did FI ask mom if she had anything planned before you guys selected a date? If not, I can kind of see her point. She may have spent money to book travel and accommodations, or made arrangements of which you may not be aware a long time ago. And now weekend dad wants to waltz in and rearrange her plans for his marriage to new person she doesn't care for.

    Just trying to consider both sides. And yet another illustration of why a hard and fast vistation schedule is best for everyone.

    And on the flip side, my mom and dad had the world's most amicable divorce, and the kids were basically allowed to decide where we wanted to be at all times (a bad idea). What happened when Dad started dating someone 20 years younger and mom felt royally screwed over that she wasn't getting support paid timely but he and new gf were out partying down? Real bad blowout, threats of never seeing me again, court, etc. Just because things are good today (and they aren't with you guys) doesn't mean they will be tomorrow.
  • scribe95 said:

    At this point in your situation the mother is the custodial parent and controls everything. So if you want the daughter there sounds like you have to invite her.

    This. If your FI does not want to go to court to have a court ordered custody agreement, then this is your best option for ensuring his daughter will be at the wedding. She could still decide not to show up, but it will increase your chance of having FSD present.

    GL!
    :kiss: ~xoxo~ :kiss:

  • Ew. Bad situation. I personally would not invite her because there is no telling what she will do. Then again, she may behave. If you do invite her, make sure someone can escort her to the door if she doesn't act like a mature adult. 
    Daisypath Wedding tickers
  • scribe95 said:

    At this point in your situation the mother is the custodial parent and controls everything. So if you want the daughter there sounds like you have to invite her.

    This. But her being vindictive is, IMO, just one more reason to get a court order. Then she can kick and scream and pull petty shit all she wants but she can't take his court-mandated time with his daughter away from him.
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  • Op, my brother fought hard to get primary custody of my niece. When they split, his ex literally took my crying niece out of my brother's arms and took her out of the house. She ended up moving to a town nearly an hour away. They didn't have a court order until fairly recently. And the court order gives my niece, who is now going on 15, the reins in determining when she wants to visit her mother.

    My brother's ex is someone I'd describe, however that word may get me banned. She got married and has had three other children with her husband. Seems that she treats those children on a higher ground than my niece. Hence why she usually doesn't go to her mother's unless she wants to.

    It was a rough few years seeing this all unfold. But I also think a court order would be something to consider.
    Formerly known as bubbles053009





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