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

[ilovefh]

We did the same thing 3 years ago but without kids. We said we'd stay for two years and then reevaluate. We're trying to decide if staying or moving back is right for us. The main motivation to move back would be family. But we really like it here. We're torn!

People always ask if we're sick of the parks and so far we aren't. We go at least twice per week. Last week we went to MK with our friends after school one day, to the 24 hr MK thing Friday and Star Wars weekend Sunday. In fact I've volunteered for our 8th grade trip to Universal the past two years!

We've made some great friends that have really become our family here.

We don't regret our move at all!

 

[ethanwa]

But, you are being VERY conservative in thinking that the heat and humidity is maybe only 30% of the time - try about 70% and you will be more accurate

I think when I said 30% I meant really more unbearable "I don't want to go outside" heat. My wife and I LOVE humidity and tropical weather... like when you go outside and your glasses fog up. So we're looking forward to it. We may get sick of it quickly though, so who knows.

 

[ethanwa]

Congrats! I found people either loved the Florida lifestyle or couldn't make the transition. It's a GREAT place to grow up...

Thanks for your comments and suggestions! We will make sure to do those things. I love relaxed lifestyle (if it were warming here I'd wear shorts EVERY day) and seafood (crab, shrimp, fish, scallops, clams, you name it!).

 

[ethanwa]

I wasn't trying to be a downer at all sorry if I came off that way. We were super excited for the adventure as well. One huge advantage you have is there is so much to do in Florida, Denver was a great city but it felt secluded from the rest of the world. That's the same way we looked at it you don't like it you can always go home.

Don't worry, I didn't take your comments the wrong way. And Seattle gives you that same "secluded" feeling, trust me.

 

[ethanwa]

I'm shocked that the living expenses are that much greater in WA. :eek

We live in Bellevue, WA here (far east of downtown). I would say Windermere, FL is somewhat equivalent in terms of the type/wealth of people who live in the areas... but they have their differences. Generally though both are considered more affluent suburbs of larger cities. I would say parts of Issaquah, WA is probably a good match to Windermere as well.

A 2500 sqr foot newer built home (15 years or less) in a good neighborhood with great schools here will run $3500/mnth rent. Windermere is about $1800/mnth or so. HUGE difference. The housing collapse of 2008 hit the rest of the USA a lot harder than it did in the Seattle area.

 

[11290]

Wish I could get the wife to move down but the grandkids are just 2 hours north of us here in Indiana. We had taken over our daughters apartment lease in Orlando in 09 when she had gotten a different job and I got a part time job at the Magic Kingdom. Was only going to be a couple of months but I decided to stay until the end of 09 and then went Seasonal Cast. Been coming down 3 or 4 times a year for 4 to 6 weeks at a time since January of 2010. Will be going down in a couple of weeks and staying 5 weeks. Been working out but still wish I could move down.

Stay in an extended stay hotel during my trips and really getting a little tired of it. Wife usually comes down sometime during each of my trips for a week or so but she gets bored of just taking me to work about noon, hanging out at one of the park pools for the afternoon and then coming back to pick me up about 12:30 in the morning (I work turnstiles and parade audience control so I'm usually there for both night parades).

When we used to stay at the apartment near Mall at Millenia, I used to go through Windermere to get the the CM parking lot north of MK (why they call it Westclock parking I'll never know as it's north of the park not west). NIce town but be sure to observe the speed limits. They used to be a bit cranky about that.

My family likes to eat barbecue at a place near Windermere called Yellow Dog Eats. Kind of a dumpy place but the food is really good. If you like barbecue (they have other stuff too) you need to check it out.

Good luck on your move and I hope you find more to do in Orlando than I do. Whenever someone asked me why I work so much when I'm there I always say, if you're not going to the attractions, not going to the beach, don't play golf and don't have a boat, jet ski or a girl friend, there just isn't a lot to do in Orlando. LOL

 

[ilovefh]

I think when I said 30% I meant really more unbearable "I don't want to go outside" heat. My wife and I LOVE humidity and tropical weather... like when you go outside and your glasses fog up. So we're looking forward to it. We may get sick of it quickly though, so who knows.

In my world it's 72 degrees all summer long. 72 in my house, 72 in my car and 72 inside wherever we go!

Truly we don't mind the heat. Like I tell my dad who always asks how we stand the heat; living here in the summer is MUCH different than vacationing here in the summer. We don't spend hours on end outside. If we go to a park we go early in the morning and we're home by noon or we go after the sun sets. We spend tons of time at the water parks.

It's actually the opposite of NH. In NH we stayed in during the cold winter and played in the summer. Here we play outside in the winter and try to stay inside in the summer.

 

[North of Mouse]

I think when I said 30% I meant really more unbearable "I don't want to go outside" heat. My wife and I LOVE humidity and tropical weather... like when you go outside and your glasses fog up. So we're looking forward to it. We may get sick of it quickly though, so who knows.

Well, I won't argue, but that's kind of what I meant by the 70% I love it, but can't stay outside in it for very long periods. It has been 80* on christmas day (also has been colder). Sometimes it's only cold for basically Jan - Feb. It really varies from year to year. The best to you

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Well, we've decided to move to Florida. In fact, we're moving to Windermere this September, which is RIGHT BEHIND the Magic Kingdom! It's a highly desired area with great schools. I am lucky enough to have a work-from-home software job so we can go anywhere we want.

As you can tell from my avatar on the left, we're from Seattle, so this is a HUGE change for us... weather, geography, culture, and just about everything really. We're leaving behind the parents (grandparents) to go on an adventure and see if we like it or not.

Since we're renting a house and not buying, if we hate it, we'll just move back to Seattle. For the curious, here's why we are moving:

- Weather: Depressing and rainy in Seattle 85% of the year. FL has "bad" weather with extreme heat/humidity maybe only 30% of the time.

- Adventure: We don't want to be in our 70's and say we've only just live in Seattle our whole lives. I find that to be boring. I want my life, and my family, to have had journeys and experienced different places. Just the 5 day drive across 10-15 different states to get from WA to FL will be something we remember for the rest of our lives.

- Saves money: It's so much cheaper for us to live in FL. Budgeting it out, I'll be able to save over $20k next year just on cheaper housing and taxes alone.

- Sports: For me personally (not my wife) this is awesome. I love baseball, and FL has the Marlins and the Rays. They also have spring training. I am a diehard Seattle sports fan and always will be, but I'm glad I get to have MORE baseball (and trust me, the Mariners are just as painful to watch as FL baseball sometimes).

- Stuff to do: Being in Seattle for 34 years of my life (my age), I've done it all here. I'm looking forward to Disney, SeaWorld, Legoland, Universal Studios, Space Center, cruises, Miami and other cities, beaches on both sides, and more in Florida! All the time!

We don't have many close friends here, only family, and the toughest part is leaving them. But we'll be flying home in the summer and for Christmas, and it will give them a reason to come and see us and take a nice vacation. Honestly, I think it will make us all closer in some weird way.

Anyway, I am excited. Has anyone else done a long-distance move and can recommend a good mover?

Ethan

How old are your children?

 

[ethanwa]

How old are your children?

5 (going into K) and 7 (going into 2nd grade).

 

[ethanwa]

Well, I won't argue, but that's kind of what I meant by the 70% I love it, but can't stay outside in it for very long periods. It has been 80* on christmas day (also has been colder). Sometimes it's only cold for basically Jan - Feb. It really varies from year to year. The best to you

We are planning on flying back to Seattle to visit family for 3-4 weeks in both mid-summer and over Christmas break every year if possible. Maybe that will help cut into the warm weather a bit.

Anything around 75-85 degrees is perfect for us. By the way, in Seattle we can't stay out for very long periods of time either.... mostly because of the cold and constant rain 70% of the year though.

And for those of you who DO live near Seattle, today is a PERFECT example of what I've grown tired of here with the weather. Dark, cloudy, grey, rainy, cold, all day, for weeks.

 

[horseshowmom]

I think this is actually one of the biggest reasons we ARE moving... it's that we want the adventure, and if it wears off and we hate it there (or are just really homesick) we CAN move home. It's nice to know that life is not set in stone!

But right now we are excited (well, my son is worried, but the rest of us are ready to go).

Reading your posts made me smile.

I think you're being very reasonable in what you have in mind. Like you said, if you don't like it, you can move back since your job is flexible. In the meantime, you get to have a "very" extended vacation!

I hope you have wonderful time and truly enjoy every minute of your adventure!

 

[ChristmasElf]

You will love the area you will be renting in. Close to everything, and you should be able to see the fireworks every night.

The schools are great in this area are great.
If you have any questions on how to get anywhere or the name of a great pediatrician that is close by, feel free to ask away!

 

[jwfla422]

LOL I just had to laugh when I read about the heat and humidity 30% of the time but hey really it's all "relative"...no pun intended. Guess you'll find out more about that when you live here especially from right about this time of the year until September or so...but that's what A/C is for!

Just take the hurricane stuff seriously and you'll be set. I moved down here from the Northeast to South FL many years ago and hated it at first. I even had to move to Atlanta GA for a year to make myself realize how dumb I was for moving away to where you can't wear shorts in the winter, then I came to my senses and moved back LOL!! That was more than 20 yrs ago!

As many mentioned it's for some and not for others, I've seen so many people come and go...there's a lot more to it than just the weather. You'll understand after you live here for a while then you can decide if it's for you and your family or not. The nice thing is that you have the flexibility to try it out. Good luck to you!

 

[11290]

Some things you'll find out about driving in the Orlando area.

1. There is a magnetic force field in the area that makes all auto turn signals inoperative.
2. MERGE means GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY. They will just force you off the road if you don't let them in.
3. There must be one heck of a prize for getting to the red light the fastest, everyone is trying to get the prize.
4. Almost no one (including some police officers strangely enough) can tell you what the blue lights on the traffic signals mean.

Just a side not, road construction takes twice as long as other states. The Orlando area has to be the underground pipe capital of the US.

 

[Mickey'sMainMami]

I am so envious, and hope it all works out for you and you love it! I spend a lot of my time wishing I lived there. If jobs were better for my DH and I there, I would move in a heartbeat. I keep praying that one day God will line everything up for us and we will be able to go, too. Good luck!!

 

[TeresaNJ]

Wish I could get the wife to move down but the grandkids are just 2 hours north of us here in Indiana. We had taken over our daughters apartment lease in Orlando in 09 when she had gotten a different job and I got a part time job at the Magic Kingdom. Was only going to be a couple of months but I decided to stay until the end of 09 and then went Seasonal Cast. Been coming down 3 or 4 times a year for 4 to 6 weeks at a time since January of 2010. Will be going down in a couple of weeks and staying 5 weeks. Been working out but still wish I could move down.

Stay in an extended stay hotel during my trips and really getting a little tired of it. Wife usually comes down sometime during each of my trips for a week or so but she gets bored of just taking me to work about noon, hanging out at one of the park pools for the afternoon and then coming back to pick me up about 12:30 in the morning (I work turnstiles and parade audience control so I'm usually there for both night parades).

When we used to stay at the apartment near Mall at Millenia, I used to go through Windermere to get the the CM parking lot north of MK (why they call it Westclock parking I'll never know as it's north of the park not west). NIce town but be sure to observe the speed limits. They used to be a bit cranky about that.

My family likes to eat barbecue at a place near Windermere called Yellow Dog Eats. Kind of a dumpy place but the food is really good. If you like barbecue (they have other stuff too) you need to check it out.

Good luck on your move and I hope you find more to do in Orlando than I do. Whenever someone asked me why I work so much when I'm there I always say, if you're not going to the attractions, not going to the beach, don't play golf and don't have a boat, jet ski or a girl friend, there just isn't a lot to do in Orlando. LOL

Oh my goodness, my DH & I love Yellow Dog! Every time we had visitors, and we had a lot by the way, we brought them to the Yellow Dog in Gotha!

Some things you'll find out about driving in the Orlando area.

1. There is a magnetic force field in the area that makes all auto turn signals inoperative.
2. MERGE means GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY. They will just force you off the road if you don't let them in.
3. There must be one heck of a prize for getting to the red light the fastest, everyone is trying to get the prize.
4. Almost no one (including some police officers strangely enough) can tell you what the blue lights on the traffic signals mean.

Just a side not, road construction takes twice as long as other states. The Orlando area has to be the underground pipe capital of the US.

I must agree with everything you said! I thought NJ had bad drivers until I moved to Florida! Very few people use their turn signals, they drive like bats out of hell, and the traffic stinks!

As far as the heat & humidity in that area, I think it is just as hot and humid here in NJ in July, August & September as it is in Florida. There are just a few days that are hotter in Florida temperature wise. As for the rest of the year, you can't beat the weather!

 

[thedonduck]

We made the move a year ago with a 4 month old and almost 2 year old. It was the best decision we have made in our marriage. We are in east Orlando though, but love it all the same. For those worried about schools, there are a lot of great schools. You just need to do some research.

 

[BlovesC]

Well, welcome to FL, and I hope you are happy here! But let me just say that we would LOOOOOOOVE to live in Seattle, if we could afford it. Too bad we couldn't have done a house-swap or something. I guess the seaweed really IS always greener in somebody else's lake!

 

[kimmyann]

I envy you! Really, both my DH & I would love to move to Florida, but just don't think we will. With one in college here, one getting ready to turn 18, I'm just not seeing it being possible. We have also lived in the same place our entire lives & we totally hate it here. Other than our children, we don't have any strong ties to stay here & I often wonder why we do.

We always said if my DH lost his job that we would make the move. Well, he did lose his job of 20 years almost two years ago & we ended up in survival mode & stayed. He now has a good job, but I think we could get equal employment down there. Anyways, good luck & hope you love it there!