^^^^^ Regional specific advice is really useful!

For general commuting advice:

1) Distance- Round trip of 22 miles is IMO an ideal commuting distance. My usual commute is 21.2 miles round trip and I do it year round in Boston.

2) Weather- This has to do with preparation. Good rain gear is a necessity for the every day commuter. A search of threads in BF's will give you lots of suggestions. In places like Florida, where the weather is warmer, sometimes I'll ride without rain gear and just change clothes when I get to my destination. You will want to have a change of clothes available to you and a place to change when you get to work. This is also due to the warm temperatures. You're going to sweat, it would be great if you could shower. Regarding the heat. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Sunscreen when needed. Take it easy in the heat and you'll be fine for an 11 mile ride.

3) Road safety- Take all advice given on-line and in these forums with a good dose of skepticism! Unless someone is riding on the same roads you are riding they can only give you theoretical advice. Get to know some other bike commuters in your area. Find out what roads they are riding. Ride with a few of them just for practice to see how they handle the roads. Look for riders who are responsible not reckless, who have been commuting without incident for quite a while.

In general,you want to obey vehicular laws like stopping at stop lights/signs and riding with the flow of traffic. But Florida is it's own world for riding. It has earned it's place as the state with the highest bicyclist fatality rate for good reason. Despite it's flat, straight, open roads it has it's challenges. I hate to admit it but, despite my reluctance to do so, I've actually taken to the sidewalk at times when riding in Florida. Make yourself visible with brightly colored clothing and make sure you have lights should you get caught out after dark.

4) Family issues- For many families car ownership equals status and success. A bicycle is seen as a kind of humiliation. When I was flat broke I commuted by bicycle. I am (fortunately) no longer in that circumstance and I still commute by bicycle. I recently took a group ride with several very successful, quite wealthy people (a couple of CEO's of big corporations) all of whom commute by bike daily in various cities around the world. They just tend to ride more expensive bikes- but not all of them were ostentatious in their bike choices.

It's an intelligent, healthy, responsible means of transportation. It might be worth it to carefully lay out for your family how economically efficient a bike is as well as how healthy it is.

Do keep in mind that should you have an accident or breakdown on the bike they may be far less sympathetic than they would be should you have an accident or a breakdown in an $800 automobile. An $800 auto sounds like undependable transportation if I've ever heard of it but the general public tends to think a car, any car, is always going to be a better way to get around than a bicycle.

Look at the math. Compare the cost of ownership of the $800 car, plus gas, oil, insurance and maintenance. I can't imagine that a car that costs $800 isn't going to need quite a bit of maintenance. And what if it breaks down? Towing, emergency repairs etc. add up.

Are there public transportation options available for days when the weather is really bad? Combining the bike with other alternative transport are other possibilities.

Good Luck!!