Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort – Orlando
September 10, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Hotels & Resorts
The Disney Coronado Springs Resort is Central Florida’s most luxurious American-Southwest themed resort. This resort is conveniently located between two of Disney’s most popular theme parks, Hollywood Studios and The Animal Kingdom. Guests will be amazed to discover the beauty and fantasy of each of the 3 distinctly-themed areas providing an unforgettable experience full of history, relaxation and family fun!
Coronado Springs Resort
1000 West Buena Vista Drive
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
What You Need to Know About Auto Insurance Claims in Central Florida
September 10, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Central Florida Living
Everyone’s budget is being stressed today, but, like death and taxes, auto insurance is an inevitable expense that you must squeeze into the budget. We all know that auto insurance is high, especially if you’re under 25 or single. In both of these cases, some auto insurance actuary has determined that the insurance company’s risk is higher than that of insuring a married couple. This does seem discriminatory, but we don’t make the rules.
However, the risk of not having insurance on your car is too great. For one thing, if you are stopped for a traffic violation in Florida and found to be uninsured, your vehicle can be confiscated and impounded on the spot. You’d then be faced with a ticket and fine, impound fees and coming up with the money for insurance before you can get your car back.
Now that you have this auto insurance, you may be in an all-fire hurry to get your money’s worth, right? However, before you pick up the phone to make an auto insurance claim, take a moment to weigh whether it’s worth filing. Auto insurance companies have a very long memory. If your insurance coverage pays for minor damage, you’ve got to balance this off with the potentially astronomical increase you might realize in your insurance premiums. For example, windshield repair and windshield replacement is covered in Florida. However, it may not be the best idea to run to the nearest auto glass business and get a whole new windshield for a rock you picked up on I-4. Sometimes, it’s not worth making the auto insurance claim you are entitled to according to your policy. That $30 repair could very well raise your premium by $5 a month.
Always remember that insurance companies have long memories. The more auto insurance claims you submit, the higher your rate will go. For those minor parking lot encounters, see if you can’t do the repairs yourself. Any time you can avoid submitting auto insurance claims, your insurance rates tend to remain stable. If the repairs are simple and relatively inexpensive, you’re certainly better off doing the repairs yourself, or hiring a local Central Florida car body mechanic with good references to take care of the blemish.
Cake Making Tips
September 9, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Central Florida Living
Using a boxed cake mix is perhaps the easiest way to make a chocolate cake. But cake prepared out of a boxed mix may be pretty plain and dull as well. Nevertheless, you may make the usual cake from boxed mix much tastier with some straightforward and easy ideas. Here are a few of them.
You can make the cake a lot more appetizing by adding other elements. You may use chocolate chips or mini M&M’s for the same. Ideally, you ought to mix a mug or two of the chocolate chips to the mix for most sufficient outcomes. First create the batter as directed and add the chocolate chips towards the very finish. Now bake the cake as instructed and Voila! You will have classic chocolate cake with a yummy twist in no time, thanks to the chocolate chips.
Another good trick that could help contribute flavor to the usual boxed mix is to employ 2 diverse flavors simultaneously. Perfect is usually to choose chocolate cake and white cake. Create a batter of the 2 cake mix in several bowls. Then in a third bowl create layers of the white cake mix batter and the chocolate cake mix batter. Put this layered cake mix for baking now. You can also contribute a twist to this cake by giving it a swirl look. Merely put the two batters together, and give it a light mix. This will add to the visual appeal of the cake and will at the same time gorge your taste buds as well.
While water is typically used to blend all the ingredients, you can exchange it with chocolate milk rather. Adding the chocolate milk to your cake mix will not just make it creamier however additionally provides it an additional chocolate zest. However, remember to utilize toned chocolate milk rather of the full cream variety when utilizing it for the cake. It gives the cake the suitable consistency.
You could additionally improve the flavor of your cake by adding frozen fruit to the mix. It will add a fruity flavor to your cake. Nevertheless, while you might have numerous frozen fruit options to make a choice between, frozen raspberries work the greatest. In case you’re utilizing frozen fruit, bear in mind to add them at the very end and combine it in lightly. Additionally, you are needed to cook the cake for slightly longer than the instructed time on the package when utilizing the fruits.
Marshmallow cream could also intensify the flavors of your usual chocolate cake. Take fifty percent of the cake combine ‘n pour it into a bowl and then add a marshmallow cream layer. End it away by pouring the leftover fifty percent of the cake mix into the bowl and cook as directed. Your children are bound to like the gooey cake centre of this certain cake.
There are some individuals who relish the flavor of coffee. Adding coffee liqueur to your cake can as well enhance the flavor significantly. About half mug of coffee liqueur ought to serve the aim well. When using coffee liqueur, you’ll have to replace some amount of liquid that you are utilizing to prepare the mix.
So, what are you waiting for? Simply use these easy ideas and you are surely going to love the taste of the common boxed cake like never before.
However, after you have tried and eaten of this cake, you may need the following resources. Here are a few more ways to know about Exposed Acne Treatment and High Cholesterol. Also, get detailed information on Buying Treadmills.
Personal Trainers in Central Florida
September 8, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Fitness & Wellness
Living in Florida where it is beach weather most of the year may frequently keep that bikini on your mind. Have you been putting “Lose 10 pounds” on your New Years Resolution list for years? Have you tried every diet and natural metabolism boosting remedy on the market? You’re not alone. Sometimes the business and stress of our or daily lives prevents us from making the choices that are best for our health. Sometimes we are just too tired to go to the gym or too lazy to cook a healthy meal. Sometimes we just need a kick in the patootie to get us on the road to genuine weight loss and fitness.
Losing weight is hard! For most, it takes constant attention and dedication. Although we may motivate ourselves for a while, eventually, as we all know, we hit a wall. Results slowly retard, and frustration sets in, followed by tendencies to subconsciously admit defeat.
This is a well-known phenomenon. It is possible to hit a fitness wall and be able to go no further. The exercises you are doing are simply not strenuous enough to push you up to the next level. At this point, you may want to consider hiring a personal trainer.
Accredited personal fitness instructors are not cheap. However, most gyms offer a variety of discounts dependant on vocation, location, and frequency. A personal trainer will push you like nothing else. They will make you go further, workout harder, and stay longer than you would on your own accord. What is more useful is that a personal trainer can develop a fitness plan designed specifically for your body type and personal goals. You will soon begin to witness the sculpting of different muscles, doing different cardiovascular exercises, and in general having a greater variety of activities than before.
What are you waiting for? Life is too short to wait on convenience. Contact your local gym or fitness center in Central Florida today!
Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa
September 8, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Hotels & Resorts
Come experience Floridian tranquility at Westgate Lakes Resort and Spa in Orlando. Treat yourself to an afternoon of rejuvenation at the Spa, bask amongst beautiful lakefront scenery, and enjoy multiple swimming pools, volleyball and basketball courts, and numerous state-of-the-art amenities. Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa is sure to provide you and your family with an unforgettable and rejuvenating experience.
Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa
10000 Turkey Lake Road
Orlando , FL 32819
(407) 345-0000
Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
September 7, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Entertainment
The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (TBPAC) located in downtown Tampa is the largest performing arts complex south of the Kennedy Center. This 335,000 square-foot facility provides the Central Florida area with a variety of world-class events and entertainment such as leading Broadway productions, opera, and a variety of concerts and stage performances.
Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
1010 North W.C. MacInnes Place
Tampa, Florida 33602
813.229.7827
Laminate Floor Repair in Central Florida
September 7, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Central Florida Living
In Central Florida, more and more people are using laminate flooring in their homes. Gone are the types of laminate floors that look cheesy and make a room look cheap. When you use this, even in a very expensively decorated home, you are going to love the options that you now have. Laminate wood floor, for example, looks as good as the real thing, and some cannot tell the difference. Though this flooring is very durable, things can happen. It’s best to know a little about laminate floor repair when something goes wrong.
The type of laminate floor you have depends on the style you choose and even the room in which you are going to lay your new floor. This makes a difference in how you go about laminate floor repair. Some come in rolls and others are going to come in tiles. Obviously, laminate floor repair is going to be easier if you are dealing with tiles, but that does not mean that floors that come in long rolls cannot be fixed. It might take a bit more effort, but, rest assured, you don’t have to live with nicks and scratches.
The way that your flooring is installed can tell you how easy or difficult laminate floor repair is going to be. There are many different types of glues that you can use to put down the floors and some hold better than others. Some are also easy to get up when a tile needs to be replaced, and that is probably the easiest laminate floor repair that you can do. However, these glues may not hold the floor down as it should and Florida humidity may affect results. Be sure to find the best of both when you lay your laminate yourself or when discussing your options with your local contractor.
If you have tiles, you have probably guessed that your laminate floor repair is going to be much easier. You only have to remove that tile, if the damage is that extensive, and then you can go about adding a new tile of the same pattern. This job should be easy and quick, though you do have to use the same drying time rules that you used when the floor was installed. It’s important to wait 24 hours or more after laminate floor repair before traffic hits the area.
When your laminate floor repair involves long rolls of flooring, you may have to pick up the entire area covered by the damage. However, that is not always necessary. Ask your local Central Florida home improvement store for easier ways to go about your laminate floor repair. It is best to have your laminate floors installed professionally by a local Central Florida contractor or Central Florida flooring expert unless you confident in your own skills. Either way, be sure to keep extra tiles or laminate on hand so that you always know that you have an exact match if a flaw arises.
Protect your Child’s Emotional Well-Being
September 5, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Central Florida Living, Fitness & Wellness, Health & Beauty
In our effort to balance extremely full and hectic lives with our families and our jobs, we may perhaps have been neglecting an all-important facet of our child’s life: their emotional well-being. The first three years of a child’s life is a vital time. The drama involved in the changing of child care providers or having a ‘part-time’ parent float in and out of their lives can be really traumatic and destabilizing for them. It’s imperative that mother and father, educators, involved adults and care providers make a concerted joint effort to ensure that a child’s emotional needs are met on a daily basis, just as their physical needs are. The effects of not meeting a child’s emotional needs, specifically during the first three years, can have devastating consequences. Violent, disruptive or defiant behaviors often result from emotional neglect.
The very first 3 years of everyday living are crucial in a number of ways. This is when bonding and emotional separation takes place. If there are interruptions in either of these processes, misbehaviors from the child can result. This can later have an effect on their relationships later in life and hinder them in developing their own healthy relationships as adolescents or adults. Teenagers and adults who seem to be “socially awkward” are often that way due to emotional neglect sustained as a child.
Through the first three a long time of life, the brain goes through its most rapid development. By the time they’re 3 years-old, the brain is already ‘hardwired’ from the experiences they’ve had to that point. It is imperative that these be loving, supportive, safe, good experiences so the brain will be conditioned to expect positive things. If they’ve been frightening, hurtful, abusive, or dangerous, then the brain is conditioned to anticipate negative occurrences. These neurological tendencies often are sustained throughout a lifetime. A child who has suffered emotional abuse or neglect will struggle with these tendencies that are manifested in social behavior or thought processes for the rest of their lives.
For that reason it’s essential that parents, caregivers and other involved adults make a concerted effort to make sure the child’s emotional needs are met in a good, constructive and wholesome manner. Parents ought to ensure that the childcare providers are stable and consistent, and don’t move them around to several childcare providers during this critical phase. It is important to ensure that your child feels safe and secure with structured and consistent schedules and routines. Be sure to spend as much high quality time with your child as possible at this time, regardless of your otherwise busy and hectic lifestyle. Your child can sense that such a schedule is stressful to you and it can become a frightening or confusing element for them. Thus it is crucial to take time out to reassure them that you’re in no way too busy for them.
Remember that your child’s mental well-being is just as essential as their physical, so do your part to ensure your son or daughter knows he or she is growing up safe, secure, treasured and loved.
If you are a new dad or mom, you will have your hands full. And as a new dad or mom, your name and address has no question discovered its way on to a parent mailing list or new parent mailing list. Marketing organizations often collect your info to create a new parent list, which they market to a range of industries. Quite a few corporations will send you offers inside the mail for valuable items and services you may require as a new father or mother. You may want to watch your mailbox for these kinds of offers, as they can save you tons of time and money, along with provide you with great parenting tips and tricks!
Charity Golf Tournament – HFTP Mid-Florida Chapter
September 2, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Best of Central Florida, Events Calendar, Golf Courses
HFTP Mid-Florida Chapter is holding its 8th Annual Charity Golf Tournament to raise funds for Camp Boggy Creek. The tournament will be held on Friday, September 24, 2010 at the Orange County National Golf Center and Lodge; t-time is 1:30 pm.
HFTP is looking for golfers, sponsors, and raffle prizes (hotel stays, golf certificates, etc.).
Visit HFTP Mid-Florida Chapter’s website to purchase Raffle Tickets and see the list of prizes.
HFTP will also be holding a Live Auction. Auction Items include:
- 2010 Arnold Palmer Invitational Golf Hat signed by Arnold Palmer and players from the 2010 Invitational
- Shadow box with glove and ball used and signed by Arnold Palmer
- Two tickets to view the Rolex 24 from the Champion’s Club ( an $800 value ); includes:
- Infield/Garage Access Thursday through Sunday, Rolex 24 Weekend Access to the Daytona 500 Club Saturday and Sunday. Package also includes roof- top viewing (first come, first seat) and access to Gatorade Victory Lane for the post-race celebration.
- Grandstand Access in the East Horseshoe
- Lunch and Dinner Buffet on Saturday, Jan. 29, the first day of the Rolex 24, and continental breakfast and brunch on Sunday, Jan. 30, the conclusion of the Rolex 24
- Unlimited Coca-Cola soft drinks and Dasani water
- Six beer and/or wine tickets for the two-day package (cash bar additional) and cash bar for mixed drinks (21 and over with valid ID to consume alcohol)
- Sprint FANZONE access*
- Souvenir event program
- Guided garage tours
- Souvenir gift
- Driver Appearance – Q&A
- Winner can drive two parade laps around the track in their sports car (needs to be a sports car, not a SUV, mini-van etc ).
Click here for more details or contact Kristopher S. Shoemaker at 407-685-9827.
The Development of Hybrid Cars and SUVs
September 1, 2010 by Central Florida Magazine
Filed under Auto
It used to be said that if you wanted a hybrid car, you had a choice of the Honda Civic, Honda Insight or the Toyota Prius. These cars had the same benefits: high fuel economy, low emissions and a compromised performance character. For anyone who wanted to do his or her part in saving the environment, it was really a matter of choosing one of the three. Today, hybrid cars and SUVs are the darlings of the industry. The rising fuel costs and the awakening realization that we are the guardians of our planet and that oil is running out have brought about this change. Recent brands of hybrid cars and SUVs use a gallon for 28 miles. Some full hybrid cars are propelled by electric motors before the gas engine starts. These autos offer significant fuel savings and pollution since they can run approximately 15 miles per hour on electric power and cut engines at stoplights and in traffic. Partial hybrid cars and SUVS on the other hand offer better performance with improved fuel economy.
Increasing interest in hybrid autos can be seen in the willingness of many drivers opting for these cars even though the fuel savings will not make up for the original cost difference. An interest in electric cars will likely see them become mainstream in a few decades. It is proposed that by 2012, a plug-in hybrid car will be available that will allow drivers to drive for approximately 50km on a battery pack that takes 5 hours to charge. Originally meant to be launched in Europe, it is estimated that about 75 percent of drivers will be in a position to drive these cars.
The energy efficiency of such plug-in hybrid cars can be covered by today’s electric capacity. It would require a single medium-sized wind-power station to cover the annual electric consumption of between 1,000 and 2,000 electric cars in normal use. If, say 15 percent of Europe’s cars were electric hybrid cars, it would require an increase of only 1 and 3 percent of the current total electric requirements, quite possible with today’s technology.
In the meantime the cost of the batteries remains a challenge. It is also likely that future vehicles will use aspects of hybrid electric technology instead of a hybrid drivetrain in reducing fuel consumption. We can expect to see more of regenerative braking that recaptures energy, shutting down of engine at idle and emissions reduction. It is hoped that this will be a stepping stone to full hybrid autos in the not-so-distant future.

