My children call me “Mommy.”
My husband calls me “Babe.”
My dog looks up at me and silently begs me to pet him.
My cats scream loudly, “Feed Me!”
My friends call me Denise.
My husband and I both grew up in Michigan. However, before moving to Florida in 1996, we had been in Chicago for several years. When we were choosing between moving back to Michigan to raise our family nearer to relatives or going to Florida where some relatives had already migrated, it was not a difficult decision for me. (I do not do well in the cold.) However, once we got down to Central Florida we found it very difficult to find a town that we could feel comfortable in. The landscape, architecture and culture seemed so foreign to us. Then we discovered Mount Dora!
I grew up on a lake in Waterford, a small suburb of Pontiac, so coming to Mount Dora was a lot like coming home. Here’s what “Money Magazine” had to say about Mount Dora when they put out their first list of Top Ten Terrific Retirement Towns in 1997:
“You know you’ve reached Mount Dora when the Dairy Queens and Cumberland Farms along the highway give way to antique lampposts. Suddenly, you might think you were in New England – except for the palm trees. The occasional gingerbread house, the hilly, live-oak-lined roads that wind along a chain of nine lakes leading to the Atlantic, and the 1915 train depot, now home to the Chamber of Commerce, look exotic in central Florida…You’ll be bowled over by the quaint charm of Mount Dora, a little town that’s evocative of New England, with much better weather plus Southern hospitality.
Mount Dora is not just for the AARP-set. Mount Dora has recently been listed as one of the “50 best small Southern towns” for city-dwellers who want to relocate. The book by that name looked at factors beyond Mount Dora’s hills and lake views, Victorian architecture and old oak trees. Internet access, proximity to bigger cities and cost of living were as important as charm and livability.
The author of “Visiting Small Town Florida” called Mount Dora “the prettiest, most quaint and most romantic small town” in Florida.
As for me…
I love the fact that I can walk to town and get the mail. I love that everyone smiles and waves as they pass or when they take the time to stop and admire my dog. He adores the attention.
I love that I can “borrow a cup of sugar” from my neighbor. (Ooh that reminds me, I’m still out of sugar.)
I love that my kids get to grow up swimming, fishing, and wake boarding on a beautiful pristine lake just as I did up North. Except they get to use the lake 12 months out of the year!!! One year my son went skiing on Christmas day just so he could tell his cousins up North about it!
I love that we have the best entertainment that the country has to offer right in our “backyard.” There’s no need to get a hotel when we visit Disney, Sea World, or any one of the many theme parks in Orlando.
I love that when we go to the Opera in Orlando it’s only a 45-minute drive. I love that we can take the kids to see a musical or play put on by Mt. Dora’s own theatre company. I could go on and on.
Can you tell that I have fallen in love with Mount Dora, Florida? I think that you will too.