Country mouse or City mouse?

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the process of buying a house.  This is not surprising since we are in the middle of this process right now.  There are so many factors to consider (square footage, do we really need a designated guest room? why are there so many houses built on the highway? what will the commute be like? schools? neighbors?, etc. . . ), I end up running the risk of idealizing potential homes.  

For instance, we really like a house just north of Redmond, in Woodinville.  The house sits on over an acre of land with plenty of trees and wildlife on the property.  In terms of privacy, this house has it all.  You cannot see any neighboring houses from the house and, for much of the year, the same is true for the yard.  The interior is lovely.  The only real "updates" we would consider would be cosmetic.  The kitchen is one of the few we've seen that hasn't been recently updated with granite counters or a stainless steel fridge, but it is pretty spacious and the custom cabinetry would not need replacing.  The neighborhood seems close-knit, despite the large lot sizes and the only traffic we saw while touring the property was of the equestrian variety.   

But. . . what about city life?  Are we really ready to officially declare our country mouse status?  I think Chris is prepared to opt out of downtown living; he has never claimed to be a lover of cities.  My biggest concern is that I will end up completely alone in this big house in the country, missing out on the social interactions that seem to come more frequently in densely-populated communities.  

The thing is, after living in cities or even in downtown areas, you still have to make some effort to seek out these social opportunities.  After all, city life is not exactly communal living . . . that is a completely different option altogether.  

For ecological reasons, I do feel somewhat guilty for even considering purchasing a big old chunk of land for a family of three.  

There are just so many implications to our decision.  I wish I could have E's input!  She is the one who will be growing up in the neighborhood we choose, playing pretend in the house we make a home, building forts in the yard. . . .