adapting to surburbia...is it possible?

I live in an antiqued born-again, small town that has doubled in size from the time I was a little girl of the 70's. I graduated in 1990 with 186 kids in my class. Like many of my highschool friends we moved away to go to college, but when it came down to kids, house...suburbia...we somehow fell back into our (my) safety net and settled where we grew up. It so happens my mom also grew up in this same town and I knew at an early age what that meant...everyone knows your business, shamingly good and gossipy bad. She told me wherever I go, someone most likely will know me or know of me. I'm sure at the time it was a way to keep me "good." That untactful guilt parenting technique mostly worked...sometimes it did not. My children, I fear and not also, are already aware their mom knows a lot of people. Their dad is not from here and grew up in a large city--he's not quite adapted to suburbia either. He has a hard time accepting there's not much to do after 5pm, except go to the library, the park or get a beer--well, he doesn't have a hard time with that. I am wondering sometimes why I chose to move back to some place I love and don't...