Hello NarutoBase! I currently live in Ohio, and for those that don't know, that is in the United States. On to my point, my girlfriend and I are thinking about moving out of this state and possibly starting a family. If you all don't mind, could you give me some possibilities of areas that are nice and suitable to raise a child, and a place that is warm? Thank you for all of your answers and advice in advance!
All places have their advantages and disadvantages in terms of living conditions.
Personally, I prefer the Ozark regions of Missouri (pretty much follow I-44 west out of St. Louis. Everything on I-44 can be considered the foot-hills of the Ozarks - everything south of I-44 can be considered the Ozarks (until you get around Rolla... then you're pretty much in the Ozarks)). You can live in a larger town that often has many of the amenities of a larger city with a suburban footprint without the crime (and a local battery of colleges) - or you can live in a more rural setting (while still only being 15-20 minutes away from larger towns/cities).
The terrain is what I enjoy the most - a lot of granite hills (proto-mountains, I like to call them) with pine and cedar-heavy forests with plenty of springs and streams to be found. Depending upon where you are at, you'll also run into quite a few limestone caves (there's something of a network that is largely undocumented that spider-webs through much of South Eastern Missouri). Costs of living here are also quite low compared to other regions of the country (though average wages are not as high, either). A $200,000 rural home can be damned near a mansion sitting on 10+ acres of ground. That will barely get you a two bedroom house in some cities (and not in the best neighborhood, either).
But I wouldn't recommend moving here unless you can set yourself up a job to transfer to. There is some industry here (IBM moved in up near Columbia, Pro-Energy here near Sedalia - both of which are farther north of the Ozarks), particularly in Kansas City and St. Louis - but there's still a lot of agricultural base to the economy - particularly out west. Some of your metal industries still cling to life down around the Lead Belt (Steelville, Rolla, Sullivan, Fenton, etc) and that might see some revitalized initiatives with silver prices climbing due to increased industrial and coinage demands (a lot of silver comes from lead refining) - but that's speculation and speculation, only.
A lot of the region has a problem with meth (as everywhere) and some areas are experiencing increased home invasions because of the growing meth problem (though areas like Columbia are reporting a reduction in crime - so just do your research on that).
You might also want to do a little bit of research on racial tolerances for the region. St. Louis is a pretty mixed community - but you go west down I-44 and run into some towns that used to be... intolerant. They can still be a little closed to various racial groups, and the eastern end of the state seems considerably more cliquish than the western end of the state.
By that same token - the western side of the state seems to have a much more active underground drug economy - though it could just be that I was too young to notice it when I was living on the eastern side.
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In the end, however, it's really up to you two and how you want to live versus what you are capable of managing. You may find you want to live in Colorado - but that you have to spend some time working in Dallas before you build up enough funds and an employment opportunity opens itself for you to move to Colorado.
Raising kids is going to vary widely even within a small geographic region. I would not feel too keen raising kids in a city - but that's the life some people know and are comfortable with. I prefer the suburbs for the idea of raising kids (still other kids to socialize with, but you have a much better eye on who they have the opportunity to interact with). But, again - that's what I was raised on and what I know.
My advice for a family home, though, is to go rather utilitarian. Short trips from the car to the kitchen/pantry; tile and concrete floors where possible (or something that can be easily cleaned); a minimum of 2 full bathrooms; and at least 20% of the floor space being storage. Purchase wrought iron furniture and do not get 'nice things' until every kid is at least 12 years old. When the kids complain - let them know it's their down payment for college.
I'm kind of being silly... but create a comfortable atmosphere that is also rugged and keeps in mind that kids are machines of destruction.
