Well, the upside is that since you already live in Texas, a relatively conservative area won't freak you out too much. The people looking for liberal politics, nature, and a low cost of living are tough to help.
What about the Upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan) since you have kids and need to think about the education system? Long winters, though, which may not be for you. The Upper South (western Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee), is really beautiful and not insanely hot but I don't know that I'd want to put kids through school there (although even those areas have college towns or cities that have more options.) Another choice would be the Intermountain West--Montana, Idaho, parts of Utah and Colorado (not Denver), even eastern Washington and Oregon--although there the suspicion of government spending tends to have an impact on public amenities. All those areas get some snow but there are parts where the winters are not too awful, especially at lower altitudes.