If You Think Your Children Need More, Think Again

How much is too much to give your children? Consider this: for everything you give, you are taking something away. This applies to buying your teenager a new car, giving them a down payment on a home, or leaving them $100,000 when you die. The typical parent, at all income levels, imbibes the fiction that it is his or her responsibility to take away the struggle in their children’s lives. When parents assist their children frequently, it dulls the character, integrity, work ethic and socialization skills their children need to become responsible adults. The responsible and intentional parent makes an effort to contemplate, discuss and if possible, determine what life lessons will be missed if financial support or a gift is given.
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Come to Bloom

The fresh face, with a dusting of colour on eyes, lips and cheeks introduced on the runways back in the fall, has reappeared at spring and summer fashion shows. Faces are luminous, with a barely there look, and neutral shades help to complement skin tones. “The focus rests on soft eyes with little mascara, full and defined eyebrows, light pink lips and bronzer to replace blush,” says makeup artist Rita Stirpe.

We will still see some intense shades, but rather toned-down versions of the neon colours seen last summer. Smoky eyes will return, combined with sparkling shadows, and eyes will be lined with sheer pastels such as lavender, metallic, green and baby blues. You will see the classic red lip making a statement
this season.
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All Playa and No Work at LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort

LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort is a warm Floridian resort featuring tropical greens, warm yellows and floral prints. Located on Florida’s Paradise Coast, which is home to exclusive residential communities on finger-like peninsulas, LaPlaya is close to Old Naples, which straddles a strip between the Gulf of Mexico and Naples Bay – a 12-block, L-shaped pedestrian-friendly downtown. It is here where two-storey, pastel-coloured buildings house one-of-a-kind boutiques, restaurants, antiques shops and art galleries, which feature the works by Marc Chagall, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol.
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Range Rover Evoque

When taking a look at automotive companies in general, it’s easy to see the many ups and downs that are experienced over the years, whether the circumstances are based on economic climate, consumer taste, product appeal or financial health. As can be seen in today’s fast-paced auto industry, mighty corporations that appeared invincible can easily be humbled by a variety of issues. The most compelling is when products start to lose appeal, as in the case of the Land Rover Group. Just a few years ago, its product portfolio was starting to look stale and fall behind the leaders in the premium segment. The company realized its shortfall, and has since reinvented the brand, offering appealing premium SUVs that now cover the compact premium crossover, mid-size and large premium SUV segment. The big news is the launch of the radical 2012 Range Rover Evoque premium crossover SUV, which replaces the aging Read more

Fitness in a New Light with Paul’s Boot Camp

After losing her father to lung cancer, watching her marriage break down and finding out that she had a cyst in her lung, mother-of-three Patricia Testani decided to take control of her life. On Dec. 17, 2009, she joined Paul’s Boot Camp by Integrity Fitness, and has since seen her life change in immeasurable ways.

Testani started off taking Level 1 circuit training classes two to three times a week, focusing on a combination of cardiovascular and resistant exercises. “They were very encouraging,” she says. Then, during the summer of 2010, despite being a non-smoker, she was told that her cyst had evolved into a tumour that would require surgery. Less than two months after having a third of her lung removed, she was back at Paul’s Boot Camp. “They were very helpful, they knew when not to push me and when to push me, and it worked out very well.”
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Meditation 101

Seven years ago I watched an Oprah Winfrey interview with David Bach, bestselling author of Smart Women Finish Rich. He was a top financial advisor on Wall Street and described how his stress-ridden life had become divided into “15-minute units”. One morning he arrived at the office, looked at his calendar and found he had one ‘unit’ unfilled. He went into a mild form of a panic attack. This, followed by a big ‘ah hah’ moment, changed his perspective of life and his destiny forever.

It is very easy for most of us to fill up every ‘unit’ of our day with work, commitments, emails, and now, for many, frenetic text messaging. But when and if we finally get a little break, we immediately look to fill up that space and find something else to occupy our mind.
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The Gen-Y CEO

Chris Bryson, CEO and founder of Unata Inc., pulls a fresh Ping-Pong ball out of his pocket and casually serves it across the table, the conversation hot on its tail. With each swing of the paddle, Bryson explains to his opponent, a potential hire, the direction he’s aiming his technology company and the vision for his brand. Between backhands and an accelerating rally, the two discuss the speed of the constantly advancing industry, the fundamental shifts required to keep a company relevant and the strategies Bryson implements.
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The Bits and Pieces of a Hoarder

At a Second Cup on the corner of King West and John streets, Carol* sits across from me at a back table in a black blazer and white blouse, her dark jeans pulling the look together in a smart-casual sort of way. She’s somewhat tentative, looking down before making eye contact, sipping on the chilled green tea before her while carefully revealing pieces of a story that many are too ashamed to tell. She flips her cellphone intermittingly, taking a call, checking the time, not wanting to be away too long from the design firm where she works as an interior designer with a penchant for simple spaces. And yet herein lies the disparity: this shipshape woman – blond hair bordering flushed cheeks and an emerald gaze, lined precisely with eyeliner, framed with dainty eyeglasses – can’t do for herself what she does for others. Her home instead is a blueprint for an underground psychopathological design: Read more

Get Real

RIVERWALK ON THE CREDIT
Walk your way into a neighbourhood designed for family and friends. Located in Streetsville in Mississauga, Riverwalk on the Credit is as close to Pleasantville as it gets. Designed by Caliber Homes, these quality townhomes situated near the banks of Credit River offer ravishing views.
www.riverwalktowns.com

ONE SHERWAY
Affordable Etobicoke living is heightened with the introduction of One Sherway. Seconds away from Sherway Gardens mall, fine dining, entertainment, highways and public transportation, One Sherway Condominiums cater to couples, bachelors and families with an appetite for urban amenities.
www.onesherway.com
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Kitchen Conundrums

Chefs need routine, and when they are taken out of their habitat (the kitchen) to an off-site location without the proper equipment to execute their dishes, it causes immediate panic. Catering is all about preparation. Sometimes caterers may be viewed as second-hand cooks when compared to restaurant chefs, but that’s certainly not the case, especially with The Food Dudes. After opening our first restaurant concept, I know now more than ever that high-level catering is just as challenging as cooking at a fine dining establishment.
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