December 5, 2025 • 7 mins
Episode 205: The 10-Minute Memory Check-In – A Simple Tool for Meaningful Travel What if the most important part of your next family trip isn’t where you go, where you stay, or even what you do? In this episode of The Family Vacationer, Rob shares one of the most powerful — and practical — strategies from his new book: the 10-Minute Memory Check-In. This isn’t just a tip — it’s a mindset shift. A 10-minute conversation before your next trip could be the difference between another blur of busy days and a memory your family talks about for years. Whether you're heading to the beach, the mountains, or the in-laws’ house for the holidays, this mini-episode will help you reset your focus and connect before you pack a single bag. In this episode, you’ll learn:
- Why memories — not destinations — should shape your travel plans
- 3 powerful prompts to ask before your next trip
- How to align expectations and reduce family travel stress
- Why choosing one intentional moment can shift the tone of the entire trip
- A personal story that proves sometimes the best moments are the ones you didn’t plan for
- What memory do we want to make on this trip?
- What pace do we want — rest, adventure, or a mix?
- What’s one intentional connection moment we can build in?
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
What if I told you the most important part of
your next family trip isn't the destination, not the hotel,
not even the itinerary. It's something you can plan in
under ten minutes. Today we're talking about the ten minute
memory check, in a simple tool to make every trip
more meaningful. Episode two oh five starts right now. Welcome
(00:28):
to The Family Vacationer with Rob and Tracy, your go
to podcast for families on the moon. Welcome back, friends
to the Family Vacationer. I'm Rob, and today we're gonna
do something a little different. We're gonna do a little
quick episode about one of the core ideas behind my
new book, The Family Vacationer, a Parent's Guide to Meaningful Travel. Now,
(00:51):
if you've listened to the podcast for any length of time,
you know that we've always been about helping families create memorable,
meaningful adventures together. And one thing that I've learned through
six years of podcast seeing over now two hundred episodes
and a lifetime of traveling with my own family, it's this,
Memories don't just happen. They're shaped, they're practiced, and they're chosen. Today,
(01:16):
I want to give you a tool that helps you
do exactly that. A little over a year ago, when
my dad passed away, I found myself going through old
photos of my family and it hit me all the
pictures that meant the most weren't the perfect pictures. They
were the ones where something real happened. A crooked smile,
a rained out beach day, a kid holding a melting
(01:38):
ice cream cone and looking proud of it. Those imperfect
moments were the ones that told the story. And the
more I talk with families and experts on the show,
the more I heard the same thing. Travel is the
backdrop connection, that's the story. But in the rush of
planning and packing and executing, especially during the holiday, we
(02:01):
forget to ask the simplest of questions, what memory are
we actually trying to make here? That's where the ten
minute memory check in comes in. This is a super
simple ritual you can do before any family trip. We
can get away, road trip, holiday, travel, whatever. Here's how
it works. You gather your crew, even if it's just
(02:21):
your partner, and you walk through three quick prompts. That's
it ten minutes tops, but it changes everything about how
your trip feels. Let's walk through the questions. Question number one,
what memory do we want to make on this trip.
This is huge. Instead of asking what are we doing?
Ask what will we remember? Maybe it's a slow morning
(02:44):
cooking pancakes with your kids, or taking your team on
a walk and really talking, teaching your little one how
to swim, a family photo at a spot that means
something to everybody, or maybe it's just having one meal.
Nobody is rushed. When you choose the memory ahead of time,
you stop chasing perfection and you start chasing connection. Question
(03:09):
number two, what pace do we want? Families travel at
different speeds, Some sprint, some stroll, but most of the
conflict on trips come from mismatched expectations. So ask the question,
is this a rest trip I see everything can trip
or is it a mix of both? If one person
(03:31):
wants a beach cheer and another person wants a twelve
hour theme part marathon, you're gonna need this conversation. When
expectations match, frustration drops and that connection rises. Question number three,
what's one intentional connection moment that we can build in Now,
this doesn't have to be deep, it just needs to
(03:52):
be designed ideas. Some ideas include a nightly favorite moment
circle where you talk about some of the favorite moments
of the day, a photo walk, a no phone's dinner,
a dad kid morning donut run, or a mom kid
sunset walk, a laugh until you cry, a game in
the hotel room. The point is you're choosing connection instead
(04:15):
of hoping it just magically appears. In the book, I
talk about this idea a lot, designing these micro moments
that become macro memories. Otherwise we just spend the whole
trip reacting instead of getting that connection. Now a personal example,
and I've talked about it on the show a lot,
and I talked about it in the book as well.
It's another one of our Disney trips where you know,
(04:36):
I've got everything planned to the second, at least it
feels that way, right. So one morning we were rushing
to get to the skyliner to get to our first
reservation to do this, and then that well, one of
my sons makes a beeline for this really pathetic little
playground at one of the resorts that we're at the
resort where we were at, and so I go chasing
after him. I'm like, buddy, we got it. We've got
(04:57):
to hurry, We've got to do this, and there's no
line here. I can just play, and that kind of
put the entire trip in a little different perspective. My
first instinct was worrying about the itinerary. But the goal,
what you know, shouldn't be to conquer the destination. It's
to connect with each other. So what we should have done,
(05:18):
what I should have done, is just slow everything down,
let them play, reservations, whatever, so he can enjoy that moment.
Sometimes meaning shows up the moment you give it a
little space. So how do you use this on your
next trip? Sit down at the kitchen table, talk through
those three questions, make them fun, let the kids answer
(05:40):
to You'll be amazed how it changes the tone of
the trip because now everybody's aligned, everybody feels heard, everybody
knows the why of the trip, not just the what
so there it is And if this idea resonated with you,
This is the heart behind the book The Family Vacation,
or a Parent's gide to Meaningful Travel, I wrote to
help families move from perfect itineraries to purposeful memories. It's
(06:05):
full of tools like this, simple, practical, doable even for
the busiest families. And you can grab that book wherever
books are sold. If this episode helped you, share it
with a fellow parent, or leave a rating. Those ratings
really do help more families find the show. Remember, folks,
keep your passports and your heart's open. Safe travels everyone.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
I've got it all the beach places in the hotel stasis.
I'm using the buck rides and water sides, mountain ranges
and seasonal changes. I'm need to serve.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
I'm the fairly vacation of.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
I've got skinned food on all the beach pretty soon
is in hotel spaces, amusement park rides and water slides,
mountain ranges and seasonal changes. I'm here to serve. I'm
the family vacationers.
What if I told you the most important part of
your next family trip isn't the destination, not the hotel,
not even the itinerary. It's something you can plan in
under ten minutes. Today we're talking about the ten minute
memory check, in a simple tool to make every trip
more meaningful. Episode two oh five starts right now. Welcome
(00:28):
to The Family Vacationer with Rob and Tracy, your go
to podcast for families on the moon. Welcome back, friends
to the Family Vacationer. I'm Rob, and today we're gonna
do something a little different. We're gonna do a little
quick episode about one of the core ideas behind my
new book, The Family Vacationer, a Parent's Guide to Meaningful Travel. Now,
(00:51):
if you've listened to the podcast for any length of time,
you know that we've always been about helping families create memorable,
meaningful adventures together. And one thing that I've learned through
six years of podcast seeing over now two hundred episodes
and a lifetime of traveling with my own family, it's this,
Memories don't just happen. They're shaped, they're practiced, and they're chosen. Today,
(01:16):
I want to give you a tool that helps you
do exactly that. A little over a year ago, when
my dad passed away, I found myself going through old
photos of my family and it hit me all the
pictures that meant the most weren't the perfect pictures. They
were the ones where something real happened. A crooked smile,
a rained out beach day, a kid holding a melting
(01:38):
ice cream cone and looking proud of it. Those imperfect
moments were the ones that told the story. And the
more I talk with families and experts on the show,
the more I heard the same thing. Travel is the
backdrop connection, that's the story. But in the rush of
planning and packing and executing, especially during the holiday, we
(02:01):
forget to ask the simplest of questions, what memory are
we actually trying to make here? That's where the ten
minute memory check in comes in. This is a super
simple ritual you can do before any family trip. We
can get away, road trip, holiday, travel, whatever. Here's how
it works. You gather your crew, even if it's just
(02:21):
your partner, and you walk through three quick prompts. That's
it ten minutes tops, but it changes everything about how
your trip feels. Let's walk through the questions. Question number one,
what memory do we want to make on this trip.
This is huge. Instead of asking what are we doing?
Ask what will we remember? Maybe it's a slow morning
(02:44):
cooking pancakes with your kids, or taking your team on
a walk and really talking, teaching your little one how
to swim, a family photo at a spot that means
something to everybody, or maybe it's just having one meal.
Nobody is rushed. When you choose the memory ahead of time,
you stop chasing perfection and you start chasing connection. Question
(03:09):
number two, what pace do we want? Families travel at
different speeds, Some sprint, some stroll, but most of the
conflict on trips come from mismatched expectations. So ask the question,
is this a rest trip I see everything can trip
or is it a mix of both? If one person
(03:31):
wants a beach cheer and another person wants a twelve
hour theme part marathon, you're gonna need this conversation. When
expectations match, frustration drops and that connection rises. Question number three,
what's one intentional connection moment that we can build in Now,
this doesn't have to be deep, it just needs to
(03:52):
be designed ideas. Some ideas include a nightly favorite moment
circle where you talk about some of the favorite moments
of the day, a photo walk, a no phone's dinner,
a dad kid morning donut run, or a mom kid
sunset walk, a laugh until you cry, a game in
the hotel room. The point is you're choosing connection instead
(04:15):
of hoping it just magically appears. In the book, I
talk about this idea a lot, designing these micro moments
that become macro memories. Otherwise we just spend the whole
trip reacting instead of getting that connection. Now a personal example,
and I've talked about it on the show a lot,
and I talked about it in the book as well.
It's another one of our Disney trips where you know,
(04:36):
I've got everything planned to the second, at least it
feels that way, right. So one morning we were rushing
to get to the skyliner to get to our first
reservation to do this, and then that well, one of
my sons makes a beeline for this really pathetic little
playground at one of the resorts that we're at the
resort where we were at, and so I go chasing
after him. I'm like, buddy, we got it. We've got
(04:57):
to hurry, We've got to do this, and there's no
line here. I can just play, and that kind of
put the entire trip in a little different perspective. My
first instinct was worrying about the itinerary. But the goal,
what you know, shouldn't be to conquer the destination. It's
to connect with each other. So what we should have done,
(05:18):
what I should have done, is just slow everything down,
let them play, reservations, whatever, so he can enjoy that moment.
Sometimes meaning shows up the moment you give it a
little space. So how do you use this on your
next trip? Sit down at the kitchen table, talk through
those three questions, make them fun, let the kids answer
(05:40):
to You'll be amazed how it changes the tone of
the trip because now everybody's aligned, everybody feels heard, everybody
knows the why of the trip, not just the what
so there it is And if this idea resonated with you,
This is the heart behind the book The Family Vacation,
or a Parent's gide to Meaningful Travel, I wrote to
help families move from perfect itineraries to purposeful memories. It's
(06:05):
full of tools like this, simple, practical, doable even for
the busiest families. And you can grab that book wherever
books are sold. If this episode helped you, share it
with a fellow parent, or leave a rating. Those ratings
really do help more families find the show. Remember, folks,
keep your passports and your heart's open. Safe travels everyone.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
I've got it all the beach places in the hotel stasis.
I'm using the buck rides and water sides, mountain ranges
and seasonal changes. I'm need to serve.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
I'm the fairly vacation of.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
I've got skinned food on all the beach pretty soon
is in hotel spaces, amusement park rides and water slides,
mountain ranges and seasonal changes. I'm here to serve. I'm
the family vacationers.
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