We've decided: We're moving to Florida!

[ilovefh]

Anyone who lives in FL ever get tired or bored of Disney? That is one of my fears when we move, is that it will become too "normal" for us.

We're definitely not tired of Disney! We've been here 3 years and we still go 3 times per week or so.

We do Disney very differently though. For example during the week my coworkers and I take our kids after school one or two nights. We get there around 5 and leave at 8. We're super spoiled and hardly ever wait in lines.

On the weekends we go for a few hours. If something is too long we skip it. Last weekend DH and I went to DHS for Star Wars weekend. We ended up going to Darth's Mall (merchandise tent), getting what we wanted and leaving.

And we very rarely eat at Disney .

This summer we'll spend 2-3 mornings per week at the water parks!

We're always trying to decide if staying or moving back is the right thing for us and it is a very hard decision! We love it here!

 

[Buckalew11]

Your family sounds so much like ours--I'd love to keep in touch!

Dh works from home too, so we have the opportunity to move anywhere we want. Guess where we are going once our house sells?

We are in the Portland area and are SO tired of the constant grey and depressing weather. Even in July last year, there were too many days where the sky didn't clear until 2pm and I had the kids in jackets. Yuck. Tired of that!

Do you have a house that you need to sell first? We are almost ready to get ours on the market.

We are selling and donating a lot of what we own. Do you have a plan for moving your stuff? We are thinking of doing something like Pods. Driving a U-Haul with gas prices over $4 a gallon doesn't make sense to us

My DD (19) is in Portland for the summer. I'm hoping the dreary days will send her in another direction but she seems to be loving it.

I keep telling her she is our only and we can follow her wherever she lands, But, the reality is, that is too dreary for me, too expensive for me and too far from WDW.

Anyone who lives in FL ever get tired or bored of Disney? That is one of my fears when we move, is that it will become too "normal" for us.

I think this is something you need to be aware of and not burn your kids out on. Mine burnt out on it and we live in TN!!

I've lived here nine years. I still love my time in the parks, but I don't go anywhere near as often as I did when we first moved to Windermere.

The nice part is that you don't feel pressure to go or to do a great deal when you go. I go when I'm in the mood. While there, I do just what I want. If I get tired or the lines are too long, I leave. I can always go back at any time.

Often, when I do visit a park, I simply people watch or stroll around. I only ride rides with very short wait times. I am more into the atmosphere than the rides now days.

When we go now, this is the way we do it too.

 

[ethanwa]

My DD (19) is in Portland for the summer. I'm hoping the dreary days will send her in another direction but she seems to be loving it.

The summers are actually pretty nice in the Pacific Northwest, that is why she is loving it. We've actually had a particularly nice start to the summer this year, which is unusual. LAST year summer didn't really get above 80 degrees until early August! Tell her to stay in Portland from October-April. She'll begin to hate it. Here's why (and what bothers us):

Clouds cover the ENTIRE sky 99.9% of the time. Rain most days with a temp no higher than 45 degrees. Some days it's raining and 33 (which is the WORST type of rain because it's so cold but not yet snow). Dark because we are farther north, so you have very short days. Lots of trees and hills tend to block light.

2-3 months of great summers is not worth the 9-10 months of depression and darkness.

Most people who visit Seattle/Portland do so in the summer tourist months, and they come here and think "wow it's so beautiful, I would love it here, I want to move here!"... and that is true but only for a very short period of time. I think most people who move to the PNW from a warmer climate are in for a shock after the initial honeymoon period of moving.

Ethan

 

[ORMom2Four]

Ethan is spot on about the weather!

The big problem I have with the Pacific NW is the lack of sunlight--and that it doesn't get warm enough to justify having a pool in the backyard During most of the year, I'm driving my kids to school at 7:45am and it's still dark. Then it is completely dark by 4:45 in the afternoon. During those "daylight" hours, it never really gets too light because the clouds overhead are so dark. Month after month, it is dark, chilly, and wet. It's so bad that, when the sun does come out, people call their family and friends to make sure they go outside to see it! (omg, look outside, the sun is out!) It's a fun 10 minutes, but then the sun goes away again and we all go back indoors.

Have to say, it did take me about 5 years before the honeymoon wore off--I loved the clouds at first and never imagined leaving!

There are 2 videos on youtube that I love about winters in Portland. One is called Portlandia winter. The other is a Pemco commercial called goosebumped beach bum

 

[Feralpeg]

I have enjoyed reading this thread (only found it today). We live in Missouri, which my DH and I lovingly call "Misery". We have dreamed of moving to Florida for years. He has a job that has many locations and have kept in touch with the location in Jacksonville, FL, just waiting for a job opening that would be acceptable. We always thought we would move around the time that DS17 graduated from HS. He will be a senior this coming year. Well, a month ago a job was posted and DH applied. He got a call last Wednesday and is going down next week for an in-person interview. I am beyond excited!! If he gets the job it will be hard to begin with. I will stay here until DS graduates, so we will have to live apart for almost a year. They are wanting to have the position filled by August, and I would need to be here until mid May 2014. But the company will pay for us to move and will help with selling our house. We hope that DS's and I would be able to go down a few times during the year. We also would be going into this move with the attitude that if we don't like it he would always have a job to come back to. Of course, I hope we love it. My parents are getting older so they are my only concern at this point. I think they will visit regularly as they are semi-retired. I think at some point I could convince them to move down or at least be snow birds. My parents are extremely close to both my boys so I think they would want to be nearer to us. My DS17 hasn't decided where he will be going to college yet but has always hoped to go to U of F in Gainesville. So that would be nice for us to be closer to him as well.

I'm just so excited for anyone following their dreams and taking the big step of moving from your comfort zone and taking on a new adventure. I CAN NOT wait to start ours!! Congrats to you and good luck to us!!

My daughter and I moved from Kansas City to the Orlando area nine years ago. She was just starting her junior year of high school. It was hard moving her at that point, but it worked out for the best. Because she attended a Florida high school for at least a full year, she qualified for Florida Bright Futures. Because she had good grades, Bright Futures paid for 75 percent of her college expenses.

There have been some changes to the program since she graduated, but it is still a good program. You might want to check into it. I know it would be hard to move your son just before his senior year, but the savings on college expenses might make it worthwhile. To qualify, he would have to complete his entire senior year at a Florida high school.

Good luck! Hope it works out for you!

 

[LisaR]

My daughter and I moved from Kansas City to the Orlando area nine years ago. She was just starting her junior year of high school. It was hard moving her at that point, but it worked out for the best. Because she attended a Florida high school for at least a full year, she qualified for Florida Bright Futures. Because she had good grades, Bright Futures paid for 75 percent of her college expenses.

There have been some changes to the program since she graduated, but it is still a good program. You might want to check into it. I know it would be hard to move your son just before his senior year, but the savings on college expenses might make it worthwhile. To qualify, he would have to complete his entire senior year at a Florida high school.

Good luck! Hope it works out for you!

Free money is always good, in my opinion, but you're right, Bright Futures has changed drastically since your DD went to school. It does not pay anywhere near 75% of college expenses. Right now it pays $100 per credit hour, so not quite half of the cost of tuition only.

 

[hopemax]

And we very rarely eat at Disney .

This is a biggie for my parents. When they vacationed at Disney, they had their favorite places to eat. But Disney's restaurants are not set-up well for locals. How often do you reserve your "local" restaurant 6 months in advance? If you want to eat at Le Cellier, Be Our Guest, Chef Mickey's and some others, remember, you will have to plan that out as much as a vacationer does. Also, no Disney Dining Plan, so you are paying the inflated menu prices (which make the Dining Plan look like a good deal, but out of pocket not so much). Instead of eating at Disney being "fun," it became a negative experience. So now they don't eat at Disney.

This is also something to keep in mind for when Fastpass+ goes into effect. No one really knows how it will work for "locals" so you may have to get in the habit of reserving your ride times way in advance too.

 

[Buckalew11]

The summers are actually pretty nice in the Pacific Northwest, that is why she is loving it. We've actually had a particularly nice start to the summer this year, which is unusual. LAST year summer didn't really get above 80 degrees until early August! Tell her to stay in Portland from October-April. She'll begin to hate it. Here's why (and what bothers us):

Clouds cover the ENTIRE sky 99.9% of the time. Rain most days with a temp no higher than 45 degrees. Some days it's raining and 33 (which is the WORST type of rain because it's so cold but not yet snow). Dark because we are farther north, so you have very short days. Lots of trees and hills tend to block light.

2-3 months of great summers is not worth the 9-10 months of depression and darkness.

Most people who visit Seattle/Portland do so in the summer tourist months, and they come here and think "wow it's so beautiful, I would love it here, I want to move here!"... and that is true but only for a very short period of time. I think most people who move to the PNW from a warmer climate are in for a shock after the initial honeymoon period of moving.

Ethan

I'm thinking it would get old quick for her but she's in the "courting stage" right now!

Ethan is spot on about the weather!

The big problem I have with the Pacific NW is the lack of sunlight--and that it doesn't get warm enough to justify having a pool in the backyard During most of the year, I'm driving my kids to school at 7:45am and it's still dark. Then it is completely dark by 4:45 in the afternoon. During those "daylight" hours, it never really gets too light because the clouds overhead are so dark. Month after month, it is dark, chilly, and wet. It's so bad that, when the sun does come out, people call their family and friends to make sure they go outside to see it! (omg, look outside, the sun is out!) It's a fun 10 minutes, but then the sun goes away again and we all go back indoors.

Have to say, it did take me about 5 years before the honeymoon wore off--I loved the clouds at first and never imagined leaving!

There are 2 videos on youtube that I love about winters in Portland. One is called Portlandia winter. The other is a Pemco commercial called goosebumped beach bum

I'll have to look those up. I can only imagine how well I'd do mentally in weather/time like that. I'm in a very mild area with 4 seasons that I love but in the "dead" of winter, I love a visit to FL with sunshine and blue skies and flowers. It does my head a lot of good!

This is a biggie for my parents. When they vacationed at Disney, they had their favorite places to eat. But Disney's restaurants are not set-up well for locals. How often do you reserve your "local" restaurant 6 months in advance? If you want to eat at Le Cellier, Be Our Guest, Chef Mickey's and some others, remember, you will have to plan that out as much as a vacationer does. Also, no Disney Dining Plan, so you are paying the inflated menu prices (which make the Dining Plan look like a good deal, but out of pocket not so much). Instead of eating at Disney being "fun," it became a negative experience. So now they don't eat at Disney.

This is also something to keep in mind for when Fastpass+ goes into effect. No one really knows how it will work for "locals" so you may have to get in the habit of reserving your ride times way in advance too.

Yeah, I'm in TN and I do not fool with the dining plan or more than 1-3 ADRS on my trips. I can;t imagine Fastpass+ being any fun at all!!!

 

[Sparkly]

Seattle sounds a lot like England at times..rainy and yucky in the winter! It's actually been lovely here the past week though.

 

[ethanwa]

Seattle sounds a lot like England at times..rainy and yucky in the winter! It's actually been lovely here the past week though.

England and Seattle are very similar when it comes to weather, yes.

 

[ethanwa]

By the way, for an update on this, we DID sign on a 1-year rental lease on a house in Windermere FL! It's 2400 sqr feet, built in 2007, single story, in a good neighborhood less than a mile from school, and only $1795/mnth. We're going to stay for a year and if we like it, we'll stay in Florida. If not, we'll move back to Seattle.

Apparently you can see the fireworks high in the sky from behind the Magic Kingdom every night from the front porch of the house. How cool is that!

We'll be there around Sept. 11th or so! Annual passes here we come!

Ethan

 

[SLK1]

Moved to Orlando from the Washington, DC area almost 20 years ago and have not once regretted it (well, except for the occasional run-in with those darned tourists who can't drive worth a darn! ). Windermere is an excellent area and you will be happy with the schools in Orange County...Florida overall might not be the best schools but Orange County is a GREAT school system! Good luck to you, and enjoy all the Florida resident deals on theme park passes and Disney cruises!

 

[horseshowmom]

By the way, for an update on this, we DID sign on a 1-year rental lease on a house in Windermere FL! It's 2400 sqr feet, built in 2007, single story, in a good neighborhood less than a mile from school, and only $1795/mnth. We're going to stay for a year and if we like it, we'll stay in Florida. If not, we'll move back to Seattle.

Apparently you can see the fireworks high in the sky from behind the Magic Kingdom every night from the front porch of the house. How cool is that!

We'll be there around Sept. 11th or so! Annual passes here we come!

Ethan

Very cool!

We contemplated moving 20+ years ago and really should have done it. Excited for your new adventuere!

 

[Tinkerboy00]

By the way, for an update on this, we DID sign on a 1-year rental lease on a house in Windermere FL! It's 2400 sqr feet, built in 2007, single story, in a good neighborhood less than a mile from school, and only $1795/mnth. We're going to stay for a year and if we like it, we'll stay in Florida. If not, we'll move back to Seattle.

Apparently you can see the fireworks high in the sky from behind the Magic Kingdom every night from the front porch of the house. How cool is that!

We'll be there around Sept. 11th or so! Annual passes here we come!

Ethan

Nice area, and great price on the house! Good luck with the move.

 

[rutgers1]

I read most of this thread and didn't see if you mentioned a job. Do you have a job lined up in Florida?

 

[Traveliz]

I read most of this thread and didn't see if you mentioned a job. Do you have a job lined up in Florida?

The third sentence in the the first paragraph of the OP states he is a work at home software something or another.

Liz

 

[Feralpeg]

By the way, for an update on this, we DID sign on a 1-year rental lease on a house in Windermere FL! It's 2400 sqr feet, built in 2007, single story, in a good neighborhood less than a mile from school, and only $1795/mnth. We're going to stay for a year and if we like it, we'll stay in Florida. If not, we'll move back to Seattle.

Apparently you can see the fireworks high in the sky from behind the Magic Kingdom every night from the front porch of the house. How cool is that!

We'll be there around Sept. 11th or so! Annual passes here we come!

Ethan

Welcome to the neighborhood! Sounds like you'll be very close to me. You're going to be very happy with this area.

 

[Princess_Nikki]

Yay!

Let us know how Windermere is, I have heard some great things, but not much detail!

We have our own boat/yacht cleaning biz, I work from home, and I'm a massage therapist (becoming Physician's Assistant) and we are looking to move that direction too! We are currently in the Florida Panhandle (a.k.a. Emerald Coast). I LOVE the Gulf of Mexico area, but we would love to be farther south and closer to WDW!!

I just turned 35, my DH is 30 and our kids are DS4 & DS6. School's would be a huge factor for us, too. How exciting for you & your family! Keep us posted!

 

[Riles_and_Gabe]

By the way, for an update on this, we DID sign on a 1-year rental lease on a house in Windermere FL! It's 2400 sqr feet, built in 2007, single story, in a good neighborhood less than a mile from school, and only $1795/mnth. We're going to stay for a year and if we like it, we'll stay in Florida. If not, we'll move back to Seattle.

Apparently you can see the fireworks high in the sky from behind the Magic Kingdom every night from the front porch of the house. How cool is that!

We'll be there around Sept. 11th or so! Annual passes here we come!

Ethan

That is so exciting! I moved to South Dakota a few years ago from Maine and lasted about 8 months before I missed my Mom and had to move home . I am sure your family will love it. Even if you move back, I am sure it will be a great experience for you!!

 

[Kitten]

For those Diser's that are familiar with the area, what hospitals are within 10-15 miles of Disney?