Hullo Birdland,
Information gleaned through my travels suggests you're on the right track about the average citizen of the Shire having a high standard of living in comparison with the citizens of some of the grander, more renowned locales.
You mention things like hygiene and nutrition. Well, soap and hot water were obviously present, baths being celebrated in song ... and you know well enough yourself the high esteem a Hobbit could earn for providing a satisfying feast at table. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
For what it's worth ..... Taking a slightly more scholarly approach, here is a quote based on Leatherleaf, G. (SR 1550) "An Account of the Relations between the Dwarves of the Blue Mountains and the Hobbits of the Northfarthing before SR 1420" (PHd dissertation)
Quote:
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Much to the consternation of their Dwarfish teachers, the Hobbits never seemed particularly interested in the design and manufacture of weapons or armor, but rather took the metal arts to their highest expression in the production of fine bronze plumbing fixtures and fittings. Indeed, for those who could afford it, Shire-made kitchen and bathroom fixtures were the highest quality and best known in Middle Earth, for the Hobbits did enjoy comfort more than anything. By the end of the first millennium it was only the poorest Hobbit dwellings that still made do with outhouses, as indoor plumbing had become the norm (Leatherleaf SR1550).
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The above erudite anthropological information comes from the following website:
http://www.shirepost.com/HistoryPractice.html
(Okay, so maybe it's not official, but I thought the information entertaining enough to be worth sharing anyways.) [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
At your Service,
Gandalf the Grey