[hhggfdss]

Really? I grew up in a rural area and the suburbs always seemed like fun, you know why? There were other kids! Is this just an illusion? All I ever wanted as a kid was a neighborhood. We had to convince our parents to drive us all over hill and dale if we wanted to see anyone our age.

[giantg2]

I guess it depends in the demographics and location. I grew up in both settings.

In the rural area I could ride my bike or walk to friends houses, but there were really only 2 that were in range. There were tons of activity options - bike trails, fishing, exploring the woods, model rockets, etc.

Then in a small town setting, there were more kids, but not as many options for stuff to do. You would need to drive places for many outdoor activities, such as the fishing, mountain biking, model rockets, etc. So the activities were more indoor, which was still stuff I could do rurally, like video games (well rural couldn't do online, just in-person), board games, etc.

[Finnucane]

That's funny--I grew up in a suburb and always wanted to be somewhere else. I didn't want to read books about places like the one I was already in. (I now live not far from where my great-grandparents lived when they first came to this country, so I guess I made a big loop).

[iso1210]

I believe the idea is that the grass is always greener on the other side.

[mdorazio]

In the suburbs if you're not old enough to drive your "adventures" mostly consist of meeting at someone's house and doing house things. So yes, there are other kids to interact with, but not much of an environment in which to interact with them.

[sidibe]

Seems like most things kids want to do just require yards or houses and other kids.

Before you can drive I think the main factor for how much fun your environment is (assuming safety and no poverty) is the density of kids your age in the neighborhood.

[watwut]

Kids do what is available. And kids are definitely able to use more then just yard.

Yard gets boring when you are like 6. Then the kids either have bigger space to bike, explore, play actual hide and seek where they can actually hide etc .... or move all activities inside typically toward videogames.

[indymike]

Suburban parent of five kids here.

I live in a lower middle class suburban neighborhood with about 600 homes. My kids have the following, within walking distance of their home: two neighborhood swimming pools, three parks, three schools (two public, one private) two convenience stores, two drug stores, a small department store, and a pizza joint. They can safely walk, ride bikes, play soccer, basketball, swim and even get to school without a bus. This is not a fancy suburb for the wealthy. It's a decidedly normal one in a pretty normal midwest city.

[pmiller2]

Have you met kids? They suck, especially to other kids.