When you think Florida, what comes to mind?  Beaches? Hurricanes? Disney?  Alligators?  Hot temperatures?  Retirement haven?  Afternoon rains?

devinoliverkayak1When we first visited Florida about 23 years ago, we immediately fell in love with the natural beauty, the peaceful nature, and the people.  Our tour of Florida centered around the AFA convention in Miami Beach, followed by a visit to Disney and some beach time, but it was the views between that captivated us.  The August heat was not much different than that in our home in Centralia, New York, though we knew it lasted much longer.

tropical miamiShortly after we arrived home to Western NY State, Hurricane Andrew devastated many of the areas we had visited.  It was very sad to know that so many of the people we had just met were now trying to piece together their lives, but it didn’t stop us from beginning plans to move to the place that felt so much like home to us.

I was born and raised in western New York State, Chautauqua County, to be precise, and I love that region, but I’m not a winter person and winters are often long and cold there.  We moved to Brevard County, FL in summer, 1994 and were happily followed by my parents the next summer.  Our family had found our new hometown!

Florida is not the perfect home for everyone (thankfully!) but for many of all ages, it is a welcome home or vacation.  Yes, summers are hot, but winters are not waist high in snow and I’ve yet to slip on ice here.  Cherry trees don’t grow well in our zone, but oranges are plentiful.  We’ve made the adjustments and are quite happy.

ft myers dockAnd that brings me to our new website, http://floridasplendors.com , featuring what we love about Florida!  We’ll take you on short jaunts around our beautiful state, little known parks, interesting kayaking trails, and privately owned restaurants featuring local fare.  There is plenty available on navigating Disney and finding a popular beach, but we’d like to introduce you to the lesser known splendors of our state.

lilacs 3 lgWhether you are visiting Florida for a week, planning a move here, or have lived here all your life, we’d like to help you discover a bit more about this wonderful area we call home.  You will find our new site at: http://FloridaSplendors.com and we invite you to subscribe so you won’t miss a thing!  Subscribers will also be eligible for special giveaways and contests–watch the website for more information!

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