Oh man, this thread is really great. I appreciate all of the heartfelt responses and recommendations, especially yours Crazy Person.
Just to clarify a few things because multiple people have asked... My "goal," if you can even call it a goal, is just to run a lot. I love to run. It makes me a better person. I don't have many ambitious training goals anymore. Like my wife, I ran in college and got a lot of the competitiveness out of my system. Line me up at a race and I want to win, but I don't get the urge to race as much anymore.
I would quit running in a heartbeat if I thought it was affecting my family life. That doesn't mean I wouldn't miss it. I love running, but I love my family more.
Just to clarify on the long work hours, lets just say i work from 8 - 6. Seems like a normal day, but if I need to be at work at 8am, I better be running at 5:30 or 6:00. That means no time at the breakfast table with the kids. If I get off at 6, it typically takes 30 or 45 minutes to pack up and get home, and I only live ~10 miles from my office. Kids go to bed at 7:30 or 8:00, but anyone with children knows that the bedtime process means they are getting baths, brushing teeth and everything at least 30 minutes before bedtime if you even hope to get them to sleep anywhere near the target time. So even without an evening run, I only get to see them for an hour or so. If I ran after they were in bed, that would cut into time with my wife, which would suck too.
On weekends I am inseparable with my kids. Like another poster said, I love it when my 4 year old daughter wakes up early on a Saturday b/c I sneak her out in the BOB stroller. We normally run the 3 miles to local bakery and I get her a mini doughnut and she eats it on the way home. Not the best run in the world, but considering the company and the excitement, it is fun. We also do trail runs and she thinks it is hilarious when I launch her over roots and rocks.
My 10 month old son is too young to run with me. My wife takes him in the double stroller, but she runs slower and on the roads. I think I would be too bumpy for him right now.
Sometimes I wish I could just stop time and go run for 90 minutes every day. I need to find a 25th hour somewhere.
When it isn't 300 degrees outside, I will take my daughter over to the local university track. She loves running around and staying in the lanes. The last time we went, she ran a mile. 4 laps, although not consecutively. I wouldn't be able to run my own workout though, she is way too curious. She'd end up in the steeple pit or something. I just take her out there so that she will have fond memories of the track.
Good luck to everyone, and thanks for the WSJ article, a very interesting read.