OM-D EM-5 as an every day, all around camera?

If I were shopping for APS DSLRs, the Kii and the Nikon D7000 would be at the top of my short list. As a matter of fact, they might be all that made it onto my short list

My personal experience is, perhaps, similar to yours, although I'm a few years ahead of you and don't have kids yet. I started out with higher quality point-and-shoots and super zooms over a decade ago. In 2004, I moved up to a DSLR - the Canon 300D, shortly after it went on sale.

Loved it. Carried it everywhere I went. I took more than 30K photos with that camera in the first couple of years I had it. Busted a shutter less than a week before my warranty ran out and had it replaced for free by Canon. I took travel photos, concert photos, photos of parties, landscape photos (I do some hiking in the Alps), portaits of friends, candids of friends and family, street photography, a bit of architecture. Lots of different things, but few that required tracking and nothing to do with astrophotography.

I ended up growing tired of the bulk, after a while. It was a PITA to carry the thing with me everywhere, and it ended up spending most of the next few years on a shelf, gathering dust, only to be pulled out on special occasions (which didn't work too well, since I wasn't staying in practice). I purchased a the first 10 megapix point and shoot that came out a few years ago. Wasn't compelled enough by the image quality to carry it with me, except on vacation.

Fast-forward to last April, and I had the bug again, for some reason. I did a TON of research before landing on the E-M5. It's about as close to perfect for my needs as anything that's out on the market, right now. I purchased one of the first to go on sale in Austria, at the end of April last year, and I've taken just at 17 and a half thousand photos with it in the interim.

Love it. Carry it everywhere I go. It fits in a coat pocket with a pancake attacked, and I can carry a second lens in another pocket. I bought a very small bag that fits the camera and three lenses, and I also repurposed the bags I used to use with my Canon. I can fit the camera, all 6 of my lenses, various accessories (including the battery charger and a Nexus 7 tablet) in a medium-sized bag that's comfortable to carry, but I usually stick with one of the smaller bags and a subselection of lenses, based on whatever I think I'll need before I head out.

Anyway, that's my experience, so far. This camera is as close to perfect as they come for my particular needs. You should DEFINITELY hold it and make sure you're OK with the ergonomics before you buy it. I have no problem with the ergonomics, but some people do. I get you won't have much problem with it, since you won't be moving down from a DSLR, but you should hold it and get a feel for it before going ahead with a purchase.

Whichever of these two cameras you end up with, you're going to have a very nice camera that will probably outpace your skills for some time into the future. I hope you have a blast with whichever one you end up purchasing!

tex