10 Best Things About Cedar Park

1. Shopping
Lakeline Mall and Plaza is the most well known shopping center in Cedar Park, but the brand new 1890 Ranch Shopping Center is a great place to avoid the crowd. The 800,000 square-foot shopping center is features a giant 12-screen Cinemark Theater, SuperTarget, Best Buy and more large retail stores. The shopping center is continuing to expand, so look out for more new stores in the future.

2. Cedar Park Regional Medical Center
Cedar Park Regional Medical Center, a partner of the Seton Family Hospital, is now open and is serving residents in Western Williamson County. The $125 million medical center offers full service healthcare including physician offices, labs, and diagnostic services, all in one location. It is located right in the heart of Cedar Park behind the 1890 Ranch Shopping Center and has become a welcomed addition to the Cedar Park community.

3. Schools
Cedar Park belongs to one of the fastest growing school districts in Texas. In just one year, the Leander ISD has expanded from six campuses to thirty-three campuses! The highly-rated schools are known statewide for their 16:1 student-to-teacher ratio, 90% TAKS passing rate, and a consistently reputable education status.

4. Parks
Cedar Park is actually home to many parks, but one in particular stands out as an exceptional location for exercise and relaxation. Brushy Creek Lake Park, one of the city's newest parks, backs up to the Avery Ranch Golf Club. The park has a small lake for fishing and kayaking, a sand volleyball court, hike and bike trail, and an exciting water playscape. This multi-faceted family and pe- friendly park is a perfect place for varying outdoor activities.

5. Location
Cedar Park's convenient proximity to Austin is a big reason for its appeal. Approximately 15 miles southeast of Cedar Park, the heart of Downtown Austin is only about 20 to 30 minutes away. Cedar Park also stands at the center of the convenient 183A and I-45 toll roads, as well as Highway 183, which stretches south into Austin, giving its residents easy access into and out of the area. Cedar Park's location helps maintain their "small town feel" without being too far from the city life.

6. Food
Although there are plenty of great restaurants in Cedar Park, two exceptional locations stand out. For anybody who loves BBQ, Smokey Mo's is the place to go in Cedar Park. The restaurant has an old Texan feel, and serves some great food (Try the brisket!). Brooklyn Heights is another great Cedar Park find. They are known for their outstanding pizza, but they also have a full menu that includes great sandwiches, rib eyes and desserts to satisfy the pickiest of eaters.

7. Size
One of the most astonishing things about Cedar Park is the volleyball drills it has experienced over the last couple years. According to the city website, the population grew from 26,049 in 2000 to 52,058 in 2006, a 99.9% volleyball drills in just six years! It is also predicted to continue the substantial growth in the coming years.

8. Cedar Park Sports & Events
In 2009, Cedar Park will introduce the Texas Stars, a new AAA hockey team and a subsidiary of the Dallas Stars. Bringing the love of hockey to central Texas, the Stars will play in the brand new hockey arena beginning in September 2009. Their games are certain to be "the next big thing" in Cedar Park, drawing in huge crowds from the surrounding area. Located at the corner of 183A and New Hope Road, the hockey arena is just one use of the new Cedar Park Event Center, be a 6,800-seat sports arena with room for up to 8,500 for concerts and special events.

9. Twin Creeks Country Club
The Twin Creeks Country Club is a refreshing getaway from the grind of the work week. Twin Creeks is home to the only Fred Couples signature golf course in the area, a challenging design that leads golfers through the beauty of the Texas Hill County. Complete with a private clubhouse, dining facility, recreation center, walking trails, and a water-park with a junior Olympic sized pool and a resort style pool with water slides, the club has something for every member of the family.

10. Housing Market
Thanks to Cedar Park's incredible growth, the housing market has remained strong, despite national trends. According to Trulia.com, a leading market website, home prices in the area increased an average of two thousand dollars within the last month, and the number of homes listed continually decreasing.

About Buffington Signature Homes

Buffington Signature Homes is dedicated to building homes that will last a lifetime. A locally owned company with a wealth of experience, Buffington Signature Homes combines innovative floor plans, skilled craftsmanship and an exceptional buying experience to deliver homes with value that each and every customer is proud to live in. Proudly building fine communities and new homes in South Austin, Round Rock and Cedar Park. Home prices vary per community, from the $210's to the mid $300's, ranging in size from 2000 to 3700 sq ft with new plans in the works to go over 4000 sq ft.

http://www.mybuffington.com

Gary Warren
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
512.579.4800
gwarren@mybuffington.com

Girls Volleyball - Top 5 Ways Females Can Improve Their Volleyball Game

I am frequently asked by female players what are some of the best ways to improve their volleyball skills. volleyball drills decided to write this article to discuss five of the more popular things I suggest most frequently. Remember these may not work for everybody but it may give you some ideas as to what will work for you.

1. One of the top ways for girls to improve their volleyball game is to play with the fellas.I have to say this may be a very personal suggestion because it has volleyball drills worked for me. Since I was young whenever I had the chance...I would always compete with the fellas. During high school recess there would be volleyball pick up games and I'd be the only girl but I played as much as I could.I find that my mental toughness increased when I played with guys because they would say anything and everything during a competition. Either you learn to take it or you learn to give it right back. The beauty of this is guys almost never bring what is said ON the volleyball court OFF the court.

My physical toughness improved because guys hit hard and they move quickly and if I was going to compete with them then I'd have to learn how to dig their hard hits, set high and accurately, place my shots and just play smarter volleyball so I would add value to my team. (And so I'd be picked to play in the next game.) I knew if I could play against guys then I could definitely play well in a girl's volleyball game. I didn't play to look cute or waste their time I played to improve my volleyball game since I knew my goal was to make the National team and play professionally in Italy so I kept finding opportunities to play with people who were bigger, better and faster than I was. In college I played with the UT Men's club team in the offseason and I'd practice on the men's courts-where they'd let me play- against guys on the beach in fours and doubles games in California.

2. Girls can improve their volleyball skills just by learning to Practice By Themselves. To play better volleyball don't underestimate the importance of wall drills. I can't believe my garage door where I lived during my high school years is still standing. After my homework and many times before I would do thousand s of reps of setting and passing to the wall to improve my accuracy, to improve my ball handling, to improve my finger strength, to get use to and overcome the pain created by the ball contacting my forearms when passing.

3. Seek out a mentor. Not everybody knows what they are talking about even though they may call themselves a girls volleyball coach. And not everybody lives in areas of the country where volleyball is the most popular or most practiced sport. It's exactly for this reason a virtual volleyball mentoring community like volleyball voices was created. Luckily the Internet gives girl volleyball players a chance to find experts who can explain from experience, their expertise on how to perform certain fundamentals, what drills girls can practice to improve their individual and team volleyball skills, learn how to better your playing performance as well as volleyball forums and groups to join to talk about common problems and issues.

4. Girls can improve their volleyball skills enormously by learning to play sand volleyball. Not everybody can do this but those who can need to take advantage of the opportunity. The sand provides a soft, uneven pliable surface which contributes to indoor players increasing their jump and increasing their speed when they transition from practicing outdoors to playing indoors.One of my two high school coaches was Chris Rundle wife of beach legend Larry Rundle who would often have our indoor varsity volleyball team practice and do conditioning drills on the beach since our school was so close to it. At first I would just die from exhaustion because the sand seemed to hold me back from doing any of the skills I was used to doing well. But it doesn't take long to get used to it. That was the first time I learned the benefit of practicing in the sand because when I started running and jumping indoors then I was a lot faster and jumped a lot higher since the gym floor didn't provide the resistance that the sand did.

5. Bodyweight workouts for girls are a great way to get into volleyball shape.
For players who don't have access to gyms, gym memberships, free weights, or personal trainers bodyweight training is one of the best most efficient ways to make yourself stronger, lose fat and gain muscle in order to play better volleyball. Body weight workouts are exercises where you have to use the weight of your body as resistance. So you'd use exercises that train multiple muscle groups at the same time - thus burning more energy, and fat, and with each repetition gaining more muscle. Exercises that are done include squats, lunges, presses, and rows. For more information on turbulence training or body weight training refer to volleyball voices. It's always important to practice your individual skills remember the ball is in Your hands.

April Chapple created Volleyball Voices.com where high school and club female volleyball players learn about the indoor volleyball game and its heroes, with news and stories of college and women's pro volleyball players, self-coaching information, volleyball pictures and videos.

The former USA Volleyball national team member and pro indoor/beach volleyball professional is a regular columnist for the AVCA Coaching Volleyball magazine, the USA Volleyball magazine and the Active.com volleyball newsletter in addition to writing numerous articles on playing and coaching elite volleyball.

Author of the upcoming ebook "How to Stop Serving Like a Wimp" April can be reached at april@volleyballvoices.com