As a parent of an ACTIVE 9E (pinnacle) employee, I must say that we have used our pass priveleges to the max, often to get from Connecticut to So. Cal. Of course, we've usually done it one 'our' airline, NW, and have been very fortunate to get out there 3x /year over the last 4 years, usually BDL-MSP/DTW-LAX/SNA. Sometimes it's been nail-biting, which I have no trouble with bit wifey does. Of those 24 round trips, we have had to sleep at LAX once, but other than that have always gone on the day we chose (carefully). Besides that one mis-fire, we've had a few close call, like Good Friday before last (stupid or what?) when we arrived in early in DTW from Hartford and had to watch one west-bound plane after another leave without us until we got the last 2 seats on the last one, and only because the weather had caused mis-connects. Oh yes, and the time of the LAX sleepover we also couldn't get back to BDL from MSP and had to settle for LGA and rent a car. And out of MSP, getting on he LAX flt is always a nail-biter because space is always tight, but with the above exceptions we've always made it.
But without the pass priveleges, we would have seen our granddaugthers (oh and yes, the son and daugther-in-law) much less.
In addition to all the travelling to the West Coast, we've done about as many trips to MSP to see the other son & grandson, all very smoothly.

There is lots of chatter about that we will soon loose all that when the NW-DL non-rev systems merge, but we're hoping.

So..it all depends how much your nerves can take vs. how much your budget can afford. Good luck!