We have kids that run around here and plenty of dog walkers, bicyclists, joggers, and those jogging bicycles. But it’s all quiet activities except when the eight kids between two neighbors get together. Parties are reserved for Fridays and Saturdays. I prefer quiet; I grew up out in the countryside.
We like our neighbors for the most part in this neighborhood. The old neighborhood had SO MUCH DRAMA. I’m not a drama person, either.
I grew up in the country, too. Couldn’t ride my bike to visit friends…too far. A 20-minute ride at least to any form of civilization. Spring-fed well that went dry nearly every summer. An acre of land to mow with a push mower (snakes and voles got caught in it more than once). A looong driveway to shovel in the winter. Hauling bags of wood pellets for heat. (Uphill both ways, I swear! 
)
Country living is not for me, lol. We currently live in suburbia but on a river. I get plenty of wilderness in my backyard without the toughness of the country. Everyone here has romanticized views of living in the country but the reality is it’s hard!
The no drama factor is also what we like about our neighborhood. Everyone mostly minds their own business. Doesn’t get uppity about little things. But if you need anything, everyone comes together.
I like the idea of living out in the wilderness, but the reality is that at my age, I have to be near medical facilities and specialists. I also don’t like to drive far to get anywhere, and if needed, I can call an uber or ride the bus. Knowing that we will have quick responses from emergency services like police and ambulances is important.
Jim considers the Publix in our neighborhood his big old convenience store…he goes just about everyday… 
. It is a running joke in our family that if he is not home, that is where he is…
We also have “city” ammenities like restaurants, theater, museums, colleges, etc. I would miss the diversity of the community as well that I think is missing in the country…my current neighbors are all colors, ages, ethnic backgrounds, gay/straight/trans/gottaasks…I like that the most…open but not intrusive, helpful but not nosy…well, except for Sharon: self-appointed neighborhood busybody…tolerated by all, just don’t get on her bad side! lol
Hahaha! There’s one in every neighborhood! 
Dandelions, clover, violets all sound super lovely and what we also have in some areas! 
There are mosquito “dunks” you can put into water that will stop them from developing, but are harmless to other wildlife (birds, fish, pets). I’ve used them and they do work.
What a lovely space!!
(the mosquito dunks are also a problem for other insects & arthropods-- I tend to leave actual pond spaces without them so that the mosquito predators can grow, but then I put out bucket traps with a bit of water in the bottom & a piece of mosquito dunk, since the mosquitoes prefer shallow water that nothing else can really survive in.)
My best friend lived in NYC or it suburbs for almost 30 years. She moved back to Michigan to a nice area near where I grew up with the intention of living with her sister and enjoying family still here in Michigan, but that hasn’t worked out as hoped.
She’s going to move back to NYC. She misses having people around and a wide variety of things to do. I’m going to really miss her when she goes, but I want her to have the happiest life possible! She needs to make a trip to NYC soon just to try and find a suitable apartment. She thought she’s had no problem moving back into the building into which she moved after her husband died, but they have no openings now.
While I can enjoy a lot of the activities available in a city, I need the country and trees and wild life! Jackson and I saw two baby fawns on the road the other day. I think they were just at the age where they no longer needed to be with their mother OR she was near by and we just didn’t see her.
That’s how I use them - and not in my pond for precisely those same reason! I try not to use any form of pesticide or herbicide, but I’ll use the dunks near the cat enclosure and the dog yard.
I’ve never heard of mosquito dunks but that’s going in my yard. They love me & both my kids, our skin reacts horribly & it ruins being outdoors for us. I grew up partly in the city, partly in the country. I never learned how to drive & now the cost to insure a new driver is not feasible for us. I need to live where there is good public transportation & services are close by. Oh well, next lifetime!
We have chosen the best quote for the back porch & siding, work to commence in August. I think we’ve decided to garden again so rather than building a dining pavilion where the garage used to be, we’ll scrape it out & order yards of organic dirt.
The other thing I’ve been reading recently is that one of the best mosquito-deterrents is breeze, & you can get at least as good a result for not being bitten while you’re out from setting up a fan as from smelly candles or whatever.
Smelly candles, oils etc have all been studied & found ineffective. Imma tell ya, bitey bugs will fly straight through a windy smokey cloud from the campfire to get to me. They loooooove my blood. Love it!
We call my dad “Ol’ Sugar Blood” when we sit out in summer. As long as he’s around nearly everyone else is safe. Poor fella.
LOL I’m the same way!! Skeeters love me.
Agreed-- the other bit from the article (I think it was in Consumer Reports?) was that it’s the smoke not the scent that’s a deterrent, so there’s no point tormenting yourself with citronella.
(this is why we have a screened-in porch)
My dream! One day I’ll be posting about mine here. 
We have finally ordered up TheMisterT’s new, dual fuel range and downdraft! He is sooooo excited and I am relieved that we found a way to vent our oven after all these years! It’s going to be costly, but hopefully so worth it. 4-6 weeks until we can expect them. In the meantime, we need to get an electrician out to move our 220V, add a 110 and have propane tank added, pipe buried, and a couple of ports added to the house. We hope we can bury the tank, because ugly and in the front yard, and that we can also add a spot to attach the grill to. By Halloween we’ll hopefully be cookin’ with gas!
That is exciting! He’ll be cooking up a storm, and just in time for all the delicious foods that’ll be in season.
He’s kind of like a kid with the coolest new toy! "And another thing that’s cool about the new stove… " apropos of nothing when we’re not even in the same room. It’s pretty cute! Today he measure out a quart of water and recorded it’s temperature, then set it to boil on the current stove. Recording the time it took to boil. So he can compare to the new one! Probably each of the burners on the new one!
Ever since the war in Ukraine started and caused so much volatility in the price for natural gas, gas ranges have been disappearing almost overnight here. The company we bought our kitchen from, a couple of years ago, 90% of what they sold were gas ranges, but they don’t even have them in stock anymore now, because nearly everyone wants induction anyway. We also switched to induction - now we have solar, we’ll be able to cook for free. We’ve had it for a few days now and it’s easier to get used to than I thought, but I’m still in the “try simple recipes” phase - it will be a while before we’ll try steak or anything like that.