Please tell me about Fargo

[kbridi]

DH may get transfered to Fargo, so I'm trying to do some research on it.
Please tell me everything you have time to write...here are some things I'm interested in.

Do they have a co-op? Is it AP friendly? Are there any LLL meetings or HMN meetings?

Are there any birth centers or good midwives? What are some nice towns to live in? Are any of the towns walkable? What is there to do in Fargo? We like anything outdoorsy...

Thanks so much!!

[kbridi]

Pretty please???

[jillc512]

Do they have a co-op? Is it AP friendly? Are there any LLL meetings or HMN meetings?

Are there any birth centers or good midwives? What are some nice towns to live in? Are any of the towns walkable? What is there to do in Fargo? We like anything outdoorsy...


I'm here! I'll try to answer as best I can. Sadly, I've lived here most of my life and I'd like to know the answers to some of these questions!

No co-op that I know of. I wouldn't call it AP friendly exactly -- people may look at you funny if you said you co-slept and never let your baby 'cry it out', but they would probably be too polite to say anything.

I believe the nearest LLL chapter is in Minot (about a 5-hour drive). The hospital where I had my babies has a well-attended breastfeeding group every week with a lactation consultant on hand. It is almost exclusively new babies, however (under 6 months). That hospital also employs two midwives -- they caught my babies, and I liked them. If I have another baby, however, I will be checking out the birthing center called the Stork's Nest that I have heard good things about (http://www.birth-center.com/storks-nest.html). They have several meetings at their facility -- I have not attended but plan to check into them soon (I'll let you know what I think once I go).

We live near the river, south of downtown. IMO, this is the best neighborhood -- close to parks, lots of trees, big old houses, fun downtown stuff to do (here's an article from about a year ago that was featured in the LA Times about downtown Fargo: http://www.fedc.com/page.cfm?page=resource&id=15). A lot of eastern North Fargo is similar in feel, and similarly close to downtown. I would guess that this is one of the more liberal areas of Fargo. There is A LOT of new development in West Fargo and South Fargo, but I find many of the neighborhoods to be very generic and, without mature trees, very windy!

As for outdoor activities, many people around here head to the lakes in Minnesota in the summer for swimming/boating. And, there are miles of bike trails along the river that are good for cycling in summer and cross-country skiing or snow-shoeing in winter.

I hope this helps! LMK if you think of other specific questions.

[JenniferV]

THis is my third attempt at a reply. If they all appear at once, forgive me, but I've lost the other two somewhere in cyber space.

I'm here across the river in Moorhead, and second much of what Jill said (except I think North Moorhead is a cool neighborhood, too). My partner and I bought our house here 4 years ago, and I grew up in a small town near here.

I'll write more if I can get this reply thing to work....otherwise, feel free to ask specific questions.

[TripMom]

OK - grew up there - went to college there - parents and brother still live there - go there couple times a year usually - best friend lives there and is raising family there. I need to say all that as a preface to this . . .

Here is how I would describe it: conservative, homogenous, scandinavian, catholic OR lutheran, mainstream, kind people, rural, scandinavian, cold, very very very very very very cold for a very very very very very long time during the year, very affordable, scandinavian and cold.

I would have to think that APing would be in the VAST minority there? Its very mainstream in Fargo.

Re: Where to live -- There recently has been a renaissance downtown - its kind of cool now. And I agree with PP that by the river south of downtown is a cool place to live - lots of older historic homes too - I lived there during college myself. But, gotta change your mindset a little bit - b/c for MUCH of the year - you ain't walking (especially with kids) anywhere b/c temps are routinely below zero. So . . . . its a driving town, for sure.

[ernie]

I used to live in Fargo - Fargo is the most depressing place that I have ever lived it. It is so windy and cold in the winter, the summers are windy and depressing. It is windy all the time, there is no lakes, trees, the land is super flat and there is no scenery, except flat land, houses and buildings. You could not pay me to live there.

I wish you the best.

[Jillie]

Hey Fargo isn't that bad! I lived there as a child and again in collage (GO BISON). Sure its cold, but it is North Dakota after all, what do you expect? And its flat, so the wind does tend to really rip up and down the Red River Valley, but I enjoyed living there. I have always lived with in 100 miles of fargo, so I'm used to the weather but I could see why some one used to a more comfortable climat would not like it weather wise. However the people are nice and its affordable to live here. There are jobs to be had and the crime and pollution are relatively low.
As far as AP, there are some of us here. There is a LLL and an API in Grand Forks. There is also a (small) natural foods store there, (don't know about Fargo). Its not all bad around here! Give it a chance, if you can get past the weather quriks, you might really like it here.

[jillc512]

I felt like I should jump in and defend Fargo, too! :) There is an AP and bf group here http://www.api-fm.org, although, like others have said, these are pretty revolutionary things in this area.

Regarding the weather, I would have to say that, especially in February, the winters feel LONG, but I love the summer and fall here.

[mamapixie]

Well, I'm not in Fargo, I'm in an outlying community, but I'm only 20 minutes away. I don't like the traffic in Fargo, and I like the school in the community I'm in better than the Fargo schools.

Anyway, I made a conscious choice to come back to Fargo after 2 horrible years in Louisiana. I hated everything about the area we were stationed at in LA. I was so happy to see Fargo again. Esp. Taco John's(gotta try them out, best fast-food taco place ever)

All the grocery store chains have a natural foods section, and there is Tochi products near downtown Fargo(natural products store).

Alot of the other information about Fargo has already been posted. Oh, the mall DOES have a family/breastfeeding room, and plenty of couches/benches elsewhere. I was never harassed when I nursed my youngest son in public, but, that's not to say that no one would ever harass you.

As for the other ND-mom's, anyone know of a family practitioner or pediatrician who WON'T harass me when I bring my son in to start his vaccinations? I have delayed his vacs, but I feel he is ready to start some of them now(primarily the DTaP), however, I do not want to be yelled at by the doctor/nurse who does them.

[jillc512]

mamapixie, we just started going to Independent Family Doctors in Fargo. Dr. Michelle Radke was very accepting of our decision not to vaccinate. I've also heard Dr. Teri Johnson at the same practice won't yell at you for not being 'on schedule' with vaccines.

[mamapixie]

Thank you so much!