Go read the Disclaimer again. I am not a doctor. This is not medical advice. Seriously.
Small towns, in general, don't have designer playgrounds, swimming pools or other water features. Yet people persist in thinking they are good places for small children. They are not, actually, entirely wrong.
Small towns (worth living in) do have a library, if not libraries. And if your small town has a lot of families, the library will probably have some stuff for you to do with your kid. You'll have to do it on their schedule, since you won't be able to go, which branch has someething today, the way you could in a city. But once you figure out that schedule, it can become a regular part of your week, and you'll see the same set of faces most of the time, which means you and your kid might be able to make friends. Be careful, though, because if you are a jackass, everyone will remember.
There may not be a designer playground, but there will hopefully be a playground with multiple structures at least one of which is suitable for your child. Again, you'll tend to run into the same people over and over again -- some of whom you already know from the library or vice versa. But over time, you can also figure out when other people tend not to go to the playground, and have it all to yourself, if that's what you want.
Brookline, New Hampshire, the small town we live in, has a quasi-official town playgroup, held in a big empty room above town hall (this felt familiar) once a week for two hours, with a bunch of toys, none of which are climbing structures. Again, very inconvenient since if you miss it, it won't happen for another week. And it is only held during the cold months (and very inclement weather). But as with the library, if it becomes a part of your schedule, it's a predictable time to see a familiar set of hopefully friendly faces.
Small towns being what they are, it may be easier to set up a playgroup than in a city. The standards will be looser as everyone is that much more desperate for someone else to spend time with.
This sounds implausible, but it is also available in a city. The regional health clubs (Hampshire Hills and the YMCA) have the only quasi-public indoor pools in the area. Both offer activities for a wide range of ages, swimming pools (including tot lessons) and babysitting (which gives you a chance to do something by yourself, and amuses the kid by putting them in an environment with attentive adults, other children and toys they don't own).
Make Your Own PlaySpace Indoors
Finding Fun Kid Stuff in a City
Copyright 2007 by Rebecca Allen.
Created February 20, 2007 Updated February 20, 2007