Feasibility of using a C152 for visiting family

I am moving to Chicago for a new job that will be paying close to 200k/year. All my family lives in Michigan in the metro Detroit area which is around a 4.5 hour drive away. The girl I'm dating lives even further north than that, about a 5.5 hour drive away.

I have wanted my PPL for a while now, and did a discovery flight a couple years ago. But the fact I'm moving farther away from family might be my excuse to actually do it.

Obviously the cheapest way to see my family would be to just hop on the Amtrak or drive. But my time is valuable, and being able to fly to small airports near where my family/girlfriend lives to visit them on the weekends would be very convenient. It seems like it would also be faster in this case, allowing me to visit them more often.

I do have six figures in student loans and a mortgage, so I won't have a ton of money to blow.

Obviously renting is an option, but that wouldn't give me the flexibility that I want. I would be wanting to hop in my plane Friday evening on a whim and come home Sunday evening all the time.

I am throwing around the idea of buying something cheap, like a C152. Obviously it's not as fast as other planes, but from what I've seen it would allow me to visit family a lot more often than if I was always driving 5.5 hours one way.

I would likely be flying quite a bit, as I am close with my family and visit them often. The girl I'm dating being far away is also obviously a factor. That's why ownership is attractive over renting.

My limited research has shown that cost to own/operate a 152 really isn't that terrible. I might actually do this.

Is it too unrealistic?