I wouldn't call us urbanites, but confirmed first-ring suburbanites.

The only places I would even remotely call "first-ring" suburbs are going to be towns in the northern part of the county closer to LA. If you have a car and have time to check 'em out, maybe give Anaheim, Santa Ana, Fullerton, & Huntington Beach a look. Further south it's only going to be endless tract home developments.

There is some commuter rail in OC now, but not sure if this would be of help to you. Traffic is horrible out there and you wouldn't want to be commuting from one end of the county to the other.

http://www.metrolinktrains.com/