Parents - do you regret where you raised your kids?

[Berrie143]

I don't really REGRET raising our kids where we're raising them right now, but I'm not exactly thrilled about it, either. We live in the same city that I grew up in, about an hour east of LA, in a solid middle/upper-middle class suburb. Our neighborhood is safe and the schools are very good- the school my eldest will be attending in the fall is a CA Distinguished School and is actually the same school I went to- and the majority of people who live around here are educated, etc.

What I DON'T like about living here is the lack of feeling as if there is a real "community". DH and I would much rather be part of a smaller city/town and really know and like the people who surround us; we'd also rather have our children grow up where there are more natural resources and they can explore and play a lot. In our current city, people are very clique-y and not terribly friendly and the battle of who has the best and newest cars/clothes/cell phones/vacations, etc., is pretty rampant. Example: I overheard 2 mothers talking today at my child's school about their recent trips to Disneyland and how the hotel they stayed at was "only" $500 a night and how great it all was, blah blah. A TON of people I know have the annual passes to D-Land and for a family of 4 with the cheapest passes that's $1200 a year. I also drive an older SUV and I've seen the way that these other mothers look at it in disdain, which I don't understand because it's a good-looking Jeep- I love that car, LOL. It's just not a NEW Jeep or BMW or Suburban, so therefore it isn't as good.

We hope to eventually move and be part of a community that is more focused on family and modesty as opposed to so much materialism. It's hard for me to not get caught up in it and not feel as if I'm lacking because we don't have the ability to do all of the fancy things others do and have the designer clothes but we have to keep reminding ourselves that we DO have plenty, our kids are loved and cared for and don't go without and we have no debt. Having that kind of foundation means more to us than designer duds and new iPhones.