Moving from NJ to FL

We weren't in the same situation, but slightly similar. My husband and I moved from California (where we were both born and raised) to Florida in June of this year while I was 26 weeks pregnant, but because my husband is in the military and got relocated to Florida after his assignment in California, so we didn't move across the country from all of our friends and family. However, we had always planned to move out of California given cost of living etc, and we love Florida. As far as being away from our family with now a 2 month old, we've seen our parents more often than when we were living in California because they make more of an effort to come see us, but that's just our situation.

@Alyssa I appreciate that! We are prior military (I was active AF and hubby was active Army) so I get it! This situation is weird because now we have an option of moving whereas with the military we didn’t really get the choice so I feel it makes it harder. At least beforehand if we had to move states we could tell family it was the military’s fault but now if we move away it was all on us. What part of Florida are yall in?

@Samantha ahh I see, yeah that does make it tough. I totally get that with being able to say it's the military's fault, because we were able to kind of prepare our family almost a year in advance when my husband put in his pick-list that we were leaving California (although we had started preparing them for longer than that since it was always our intention to leave California). We are in the Miami area. Honestly, this mindset isn't for everyone, but even though family is huge and very important to us, the wellbeing of our immediate family (meaning my husband, myself and my daughter) comes first to us now, and that meant living somewhere we could afford the lifestyle we wanted for ourselves and our daughter, as well as the environment we want for her. So I'd say there are times you just have to be a little selfish and make a decision that works best for your family, whether that's for finances or for family. One of the two end up working out in the end.

@Alyssa absolutely, I agree. We mentioned the job offer to my MIL and she started crying and lecturing to my husband how he can’t dare take our boys away from her…. But we have talked about moving to FL in the past because a lot of our interests are down there and finances wise it seems it will be either the same or even alittle less than NJ. We are huge on outdoor activities, the beach, we are big Disney people, cruising, etc. and alot of our really good friends that we love like family are down south whereas NJ we have family there but the only person we see on a regular basis is my MIL. I feel like as an immediate family we would love FL but my oldest song is very close with my MIL so I don’t know how that may affect him and I know the schools are not as good in FL compared to NJ so I worry about that as well…

@Alyssa doing my best to remind myself that we can be all the family they need but it’s hard because both my husband and I grew up with large families

@Alyssa and not to mention we were WAY happier when we were in the military and lived far away from family versus living close by

@Samantha I totally get being happier further away from everyone. We both knew we needed to be further away from both our parents, because we need the freedom to do our own thing and not be bombarded by everyone all the time, especially as First time parents

We moved from NC to KS and had our kids away from family and it was honestly the best thing we could have ever done. We're in FL now, with family again, but I miss the village we built in KS. It's hard AF, but so worth it tbh

As someone who grew up as a military child and never lived close to extended family… it’s really not a big deal. At least to the children. The worst that’ll happen is you might hear some complaining from yours or your spouses parents which is normal but they can always hop on a plane or in a car and go visit you. I love looking back and thinking about all of the places I got to go as a kid, and places I wouldn’t have ever seen or things I never would’ve done if my parents stuck in the same state/area my whole life just to be closer to family. I’m so appreciative of the opportunities that I’ve had and I’ve learned along the way who in my extended family actually cares enough about me to make an effort to see me, and who doesn’t.

My husband and I made the move from NJ to FL about 2 years ago, and it was the best thing we ever did. The warmth from the sun here is like medicine. The beaches are so beautiful, the ocean is so warm and comforting, the nature is just so so beautiful. Every state has its bad areas, so I would be cautious of that, but aside from that, I think Florida has a lot to offer. We left everyone we’ve ever known when we moved down here, including my entire family, and it was hard at first (I cried the entire drive down because I was sad to leave my dad) but the feeling fades and they can always come visit for a cheap Florida vacation at my house 🙌🏼🩷

For what its worth, I have a couple of friends and family members that have moved from NJ to Florida over the past two years, and the schools are better here than in NJ “by a lot.” (Quoting two of my friends). Granted they moved to bigger cities like Tampa and/or Orlando. Not sure if u think the schools will be bad a in a small town like Crestview (maybe they will idk). But the schools in the bigger counties have way more resources and opportunities than most in NJ can offer and I know that for sure.

@Melany i’m hoping they will be better than it appears the only reason I say that is because on paper when you research how the schools are rated between New Jersey and Florida it looks like New Jersey tends to rank better.