Normally I’m pretty organized about what post I want to do on which day here on Mommies with Style. But as I type this, it’s Sunday afternoon and I’m looking out from our oceanfront hotel room at the Marriott on Marco Island in Florida and my mind is a big ‘ol blank.
It’s been a brutal winter back home in Philly and I didn’t realize just how much it was affecting me mentally until I got off the plane and into the sunshine of southwestern Florida. And it was some feat that we managed to even get here.
The day arrived? Nate had the flu, 16 inches of snow was about to drop on Philadelphia (like, within minutes of our plane taking off) and I forgot to bring my drivers license to the airport. (Did you know that you can get through security without a photo ID? It’s not a fun process for sure and I’l have to share what happened in another post for another day but needless to say, I was well screened!)
It was pretty amazing that we even made it – nearly impossible given everything against us but I NEEDED TO GET HERE. I didn’t realize it but I was definitely in a winter weather-related funk and it was weighing heavily on my mental health.
I love Philly. More than anything, I love the town we live in – I love our friends, I love my kids school and I love our parish and my gym. We’ve built a life and a home in our town… but I come down here and I really question the phrase quality of life. Is it worth it if you have an amazing place to live with amazing friends, if you’re depressed for 2-3 months out of the year, hating the weather and dreading going outside? My house gets messy, I retreat into myself and I just hole away and wait for nice weather. Is that the best way to live?
As I’m about to realtor.com it and buy a house down here, I have to remind myself that I probably wouldn’t be sitting on the beach every afternoon if I lived in Florida. And the margarita with lunch every day probably wouldn’t fly long term. So there’s that come down to reality fact.
Still, even if I didn’t have a margarita every day for lunch, even if I got complacent about the beach, I’d still have the sun… And people, did you know how cheap housing is down here compared to Philadelphia?
So I’m not really sure what the point of this post is. It’s a I’m having too much fun to review or post anything of substance post. Hey, maybe that can be a new category on Mommies with Style?
If you’ve gotten this far, thanks for listening. I’ll get back to my regularly scheduled program of posts and reviews once I’m home in Philadelphia and the snow is keeping me holed away and Vitamin-D deficient.
If you want to see some other photos of sunshine, check out my Instagram account (@whitneymws) – I’ve been a photo taking fool down here, soaking it all up so I can remember when we get home!
Hi Whitney…when you arrive back home, you will have a guest waiting on your door step. His name is Rex and weather.com expects him to arrive about Tuesday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Having lived in Florida, yes, one doesn’t drink Margaritas every day and they have careers etc.
But instead of driving to work through ice and snow, commuting is a breeze!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But after this winter, won’t you appreciate Spring so much more??? That is one thing we missed…the seasons (except of course for harsh winters).
Take heart, better weather is on the way. The robins are here by the hundreds which means they are on your way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love your post- smiling and chuckling as I read it. . . .
Ditto what Brenda says. adding to it: I LOVE Florida- even loved it before I knew it existed. At age 5, I cried if I had to play with in the snow – ‘please Mom do I have to go sledding today? Do I have to ice skate? Do we have to go skiing? Do we have to build a snowperson? Can’t we just sit on a beach somewhere.. . … ”
So, with that said, my vote is “go to the sun”! BUT BUT, cannot deny Philly is a great place, and all else you mentioned. . . . sigh. . . . so, who says you can’t have both- just escape a week or two with the fam(during school breaks of course) . Birds sure are smart- when it’s time, they fly south . .only to return when it’s time again. .
if only we had wings. . . .
Gotta say, in our 12 years in FL, we never got jaded or complacent. We loved every day of it. We made new friends, and new associations, were active in the community, and truly enjoyed the life style. That being said, having decided on NC as our retirement home was driven, in part by the fact that we wanted to be closer to our girls (Philly and Cincy). We will have milder seasons and look forward to settling in to our new environment with a positive gusto that brings with it the excitement of new adventures and experiences.