Hi! I'm only 80 miles south of you and Caladiums are hardy here if the soil is rich and drainage is good (but not too dry.) I think you might have better luck wintering them outside, if you have a suitable spot. (Like if the outside walls of your house make an "inside" corner where you could build a makeshift coldframe against those 2 walls.) If your garage is attached to the house, maybe storing them on a high shelf would be warm enough. Do you have a basement?
Since the ground doesn't freeze in Montgomery, you could be able to improve your soil (fertility/tilth/drainage) and use a heavy cover of leaves or other organic material to help zone-cheat ever so slightly (if even needed, drainage could be the key.) Doing that is as easy as adding organic matter to the soil surface periodically, but does take time for the effects to manifest.
In general, it sounds like they are getting too dry. I would put them in the ground by next weekend. 10-day forecast for Montgomery shows 43 tonight, then nights in the 50's to the end of the forecast. That should be warm enough for them to start growing roots again & get ready to make leaves.
Happy to elaborate if interested in any of this.
