We’ve finally found warmer temperatures in our new home and my kids are happily back in their shorts and flip flops (for now, I’m not overly optimistic that it will last!) But the past month was a major lifestyle change for my four little Florida babies and it became apparent very quickly at how different our daily lives were from the majority of normal people.
And I’ve learned that you can take the kids out of Florida, but it’s going to be awhile before the Florida is no longer a part of the kids.
These are a few of the things we’ve struggled with since arriving in New Jersey:
Socks
I quickly realized that my giant box of unmatched socks that went generally untouched in Florida (unless we were going roller skating, bowling or to an indoor play place) was not going to cut it in freezing temperatures. And my Florida babies were not that thrilled about the idea of having to wear socks all the time. Plus the arguing about why socks were needed and time it took to help get everyone socked made getting out of the apartment (an already daunting proposition) an even longer process.
And managing the socks has been a learning process for me. My Florida kids are still barefoot lovers so as soon as we’d arrive back home, the socks would come off with the shoes and be thrown on the floor. So we developed a two-bin system: one for matched, folded socks (another life skill they’ve had to master) and one for dirty socks. Plus a bag for unmatched socks, because: kids.
No Flip Flops
Unless we were going to the park to climb, we pretty much lived in flip flops in Florida. They were quick and easy to put on and take off which made getting out of the house a breeze. No flip flops has caused so much drama (Florida kids apparently don’t understand why sandals and snow don’t mix) and after a lifetime of never really wearing proper shoes, my kids are not very good at putting them on which means I’m responsible for shoeing more people before we can go out of the house.
Coats
My kids are kind of, sort of familiar with coats. They wear them when we visit family in the winter time and they’ve worn them when we’ve been out somewhere for the day and it’s rainy. But as far as daily coat wearing goes, that’s never been our thing. So not only are my Florida babies adamantly against the idea of a coat, they don’t actually know how to put them on, either. Which, again, makes for more work for me getting out the door.
Plus, we didn’t really bring coats. Since we arrived in April and all, I didn’t make room in the car for our winter coats and the raincoats I brought just weren’t going to cut it so our first week here was spent hunting down light-weight coats for everyday wear.
Pants and Long Sleeves
Our pants and long sleeves pretty much remained untouched in the Florida. We pretty much only owned them for when we would travel family out of state and none of the kids owned enough for full-time wear which meant we got to do some shopping before we moved.
But even with almost brand new wardrobes, you would not believe how many times my kids have come downstairs, ready to go out for the day, wearing their favorite shorts or t-shirt when it’s been 50 degrees or less outside. My Florida kids just don’t seem to understand that cold weather means warm clothes. Plus, all the shorts and t-shirts are in a suitcase in the closet so every time they try to circumvent the rules I end up with a huge mess to clean up!
Hills
In case you weren’t aware, South Florida is pretty much flat lands. There is not much to be found, at all, in the way of hills and valleys. And my kids became very accustomed to the flat terrain and ease of getting places.
The New Jersey suburbs of New York City, however, are a plethora of cliffs and hills (which Google Maps did not at all properly prepare us for). My kids love going down the big hills to get places and laugh as we climb, climb, climb back up them when we return home. Except when we try to walk somewhere, in which case, whining is always in fashion and those Florida-made legs become incapable of taking a single uphill step (even when the park is at the top).
The Wildlife
We didn’t have a lot of wildlife in our backyard in Florida aside from bugs, lizards, frogs, birds and an occasional bunny. But looking out from our apartment, they’ve actually spotted deer, groundhogs and bluejays. They’ve spent so much time just looking out the window, delighted at the wild animals below.
City Life
In Florida, we were in a very suburban area. The houses were spread out, there were large shopping centers with ample parking, wide open roads and we drove everywhere.
Life here in New Jersey, though, is quite different. While some of those niceties still exist, life overall is very different. We don’t currently walk many places (see hill section above!) so are still in the car quite a bit, but the landscape is not anything like where we came from. The roads are narrow, the housing dense and many places we go have minimal, on-street parking.
Plus New York and everything it has to offer is at our doorstep. We can hop right onto a bus or train and be in the city in a half hour.
Diversity
Our former Florida home, unfortunately, wasn’t terribly diverse. While there was a large population of people from Central and South America, their cultural influence was not always present unless in a neighborhood heavily populated by a specific group of people. The area we’re in now, however, has a heavy Asian influence and it can be seen everywhere we go. We’ve not been shy to try new places, even when we’re the only people like us in the building, and I look forward to broadening my children’s horizons to how other people live.
The transition hasn’t been difficult by any means, though it has taken some adjustment for the kids. But I’m fairly confident my Florida babies are going to do just fine here!
