Bethany is a former special education teacher and mom of four who loves spending time with her close-knit family. She is using Remento to prompt and record family conversations and capture life's big and little moments, from birthdays to baking. Read about her experience in her own words below.

When I think of the holiday season, one word comes to mind: family. My family is already close-knit and we are thankful to spend time together on a weekly basis, but there’s something extra special about spending the holidays together now that my sister and I are older and growing our own families. It’s a sweet season of little feet running through the house, holding babies, baking cookies together, and of course, watching our toddlers tear through wrapping paper as fast as humanly possible to find new toys and trinkets.

While it’s such a special season, I also find it bittersweet. As a child, the holiday season felt like it passed so slowly and I was able to savor more of the “magic”. Now that I'm older and have my own children, the days pass by quickly and it feels as though some of the magic is lost between the hustle of gift wrapping, planning holiday parties, making treats, and shopping for presents.

"As I reflect on the busy-ness that this season inevitably brings, I’m reminded to slow down and focus on what truly matters: people."

As I reflect on the busy-ness that this season inevitably brings, I’m reminded to slow down and focus on what truly matters: people. When I reach the end of my life, I won’t value the turkey we ate at Thanksgiving or the gifts I was given on Christmas morning. Instead, I will value the time I sat in the quiet with my dad and talked about his favorite holiday traditions as a child. I will value the time everyone in my family belly laughed while we shared funny memories from the year. I will value the encouragement and love we shared as we shed tears and thought about what Christmas would have looked like if my brother was still alive. Those are the memories I will carry in my heart for the rest of my life. That’s why Remento is an app that my family will be utilizing in the years to come.

We decided to try Remento recently when we gathered for my sister's birthday (see the video below). It’s so simple to start using! My dad (bless his heart) is NOT tech savvy and even he was able to navigate the app and have basic understanding of how to use it. Remento makes meaningful conversations easy by providing so many options of prompts to choose from.

We decided to have my sister go through the “Yearly Reflection” prompts to learn more about how she viewed her year. We already knew it was a special year because she completed her family and gave birth to their beautiful daughter Hazel. My sister is the best mom I know and it brought tears to my eyes to hear how so many of her responses to questions involved being a mom, loving her children, and enjoying watching them grow. I love that the prompts include both light-hearted and deeper level questions and especially love that it video records the speaker.

"I love that the prompts include both light-hearted and deeper level questions and especially love that it video records the speaker."

The app also makes it easy by saving projects so you don’t even have to worry about downloading or saving to your camera roll. Just to be safe, my sister saved the recording to both the app and her phone so that next year she can rewatch her responses and record the prompts again. It will make such a sweet memento one day to have all of these recordings from birthdays past. We are excited to try some of the other prompts on Thanksgiving and Christmas and are curious to see how the children in our family answer some of the prompts. They have so many great options like “10 Kid Friendly Questions for Thanksgiving” and “Thanksgiving Questions for the Whole Family”.

Like I’ve mentioned a few times, my family is very close. But I can see how this would be the most amazing resource if your family is on the opposite spectrum and maybe struggles to have meaningful conversations when they get together. You don’t have to rack your brain for conversation starters with this app, it’s very direct when it comes to asking questions/prompts, and anyone can be involved. I highly recommend this app for families. Even beyond the holiday season, Remento can be used for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, special occasions, etc. to capture the meaningful conversations that matter most in our lives.

"This app means so much to me and I know I will be using it in years to come to capture and save meaningful moments and conversations with the special people in my life."

I’ve heard it said that you don’t truly know the meaning of a moment until the moment is gone. And lately, moments seem to pass by so fast. As a naturally sentimental person, this app means so much to me and I know I will be using it in years to come to capture and save meaningful moments and conversations with the special people in my life. Download Remento from the app store today and try it with your family this holiday season.

About Bethany Morris
Bethany is a mom to 4-under-4 kids, thanks to surprise twin girls, and absolutely loves sharing about navigating motherhood. You can connect with her and follow her journey on Instagram and TikTok @itsbethanymorris.