~guest post by MRS

I’ve mentioned before that while I did not grow up on a farm, I did grow up in a farming community – which generally translates to “in the country.” And I did. In fact, I grew up in one of the least populated counties in Indiana, one of the only counties in the state without a red/green stoplight, a McDonald’s or (gasp) a Wal-Mart. While I was in college I used to joke that the community I came from had more cows than people. Although I was joking, I was probably right.

Unlike a lot of my friends, I always enjoyed being from the country. I loved the sense of community I felt when I stopped to get gas and the cashier knew exactly who I was. I enjoyed playing outside, in the woods, in the creek and climbing trees. I loved the scenery, gently rolling hills interspersed with pastures, fields and trees. While growing up I never had dreams of moving to the “big city” and only briefly considered (and quickly discarded) it while in college. I always wanted to get married and raise my children in a small town/country community. While I’m not living in the community I grew up in, I am living in a small town farming community that has a lot of the same attributes as the community I’m from.

And I love it.

The road we live on.

I love knowing that Blue can play outside in our yard and not have to worry about a busy road being just a few feet away. I love knowing that no one is driving down our road without a purpose and that most of the time I know who the person is driving past our house. I love knowing that if HandyMan and I ever need something there are several people we could call who would immediately help out. I love knowing who my UPS man is, who is wife is and that she works with my mother-in-law and used to drive my brother-in-law’s school bus. I love knowing that as Blue grows he is going to be surrounded by people who know & love him and will watch out for him when HandyMan and I aren’t around.

I remember when I was a teenager, driving to my high school that was almost 20 miles from my house. Like most teenagers, I had a lead foot and passed several slower vehicles on my way to school each morning. Evidently one morning, I passed a good friend of my grandpa’s while going significantly over the speed limit. When I got home from school that afternoon, my grandpa was waiting for me and read me the riot act for driving so irresponsibly. While, at the time, I hated being “ratted” out, now that I’m a parent, I’m looking forward to having so many people watching out for my children.

I’m sure there are things Blue and baby #2 are going to miss out on by living in the country versus living in a town. They’re never going to have pizza delivered to our house. Their friends will most likely live several miles away instead of just down the block, but as far as I’m concerned the pros decidedly outweigh the cons.