Things we've learned about Florida

1. Where we live is called South Florida. Emphasis on South. Nobody says "Welcome to Florida" its always "Welcome to South Florida".

2. All the schools have uniforms.

3. South Florida has a lot of ants, tons of ants, millions of ants, trails of ants, and more little ants. All trying to get in the house. Oh wait, they are all ready in the house. Gabe has made them his new pets.

4. The day we moved we had to put away all our winter clothes in a box.

5. You are allowed to talk on the phone while driving . (unlike other states) and the kiddos are not always in seat belts.

6. You have to make sure you have all information before signing up for anything.( Birth Certificate, ID., passport, shot records, marriage licences, etc., etc., etc. )

7. Be ready to wait: make sure you have nothing going on for the rest of the day. You'll be waiting, waiting, and waiting for ever til its your turn in line. David and I waited to get our Drivers Licences for 3 1/2 hrs.

8. All the water from the ponds is water from underground. Years ago this whole area was part of the everglades, until they dredged up the land and created islands around pockets of water, which is now the primary source of irrigation for the neighborhoods. So although our house now sits upon the same area where once there were snakes, alligators, and other unimaginable creepy crawly things, they are all gone now thank goodness.


9. They tell us that occasionally an alligator will find its way into common waterways, but is in unlikely. We are also told that baby alligators do live in the water, but are harmless, but baby alligators grow up, yikes.


10. The kids have to take a test to determine if they pass or fail the grade level.

11. Homework. Never ends. More, more , more every night. Our poor kids.

12. So many different races here. So I am concerned Caucasion, Not White. Weird.

13. We have to lock our cars, houses, garages, The second week we were here Gabes Bike was stolen.

14. Everyone drives super fast. The speed limit for residential areas is 35. The school zone are 15.

15. The normal speed is about 45-50. And if you stop to long at a stop sign someone will honk at you . I thought I had a lead foot. but I guess not. David fits in really well. So make sure your horn is in good working order.

16. All the houses have tile or hard wood floors. Ouch, My feet kill after a while. But we've heard its cooler in the summer months.

17. The ducks in the ponds, lakes, and canals are fake in some of the neighbors. The are floating in the middle of the water. We think they alligator decoys. To keep them away.

18. The people here are wonderful, very laid back most of the time and we are really enjoying the diversity. David gets plenty of opportunities to use his spanish.