Not surprisingly, many readers like to make memories with their families. But exactly how they do that — and how much they are willing to spend — varies.

In last week's column, I shared an e-mail from a reader named Mike, who talked about his attempts to balance his goals of saving money and staying out of debt with his desire to enjoy sometimes-expensive experiences with his family.

While acknowledging that "family togetherness" doesn't necessarily require a large expenditure, Mike said some of his most memorable experiences have come as his family spent more money and traveled farther from home.

I have discovered the same thing. But since I'm also trying to pinch pennies, I asked for reader remembrances or tips on this topic. Several of you responded.

One reader, posting on the deseretnews.com Web site, suggested that a trip to the great outdoors could satisfy both the need to get away and the desire to save money.

"For those of us of moderate family size and apparently less means, we find regular camping trips a cost-effective way to make the 'clean break' from the drudgery of home life while still providing memorable experiences. From the Wasatch Front, you can go in any direction and be at a campsite for an overnighter within two hours," he wrote. "Sometimes the solution is many little trips instead of a few big trips."

Good ideas, and I'm glad he shared them!

Meanwhile, another reader commented on her memories of a childhood trip from her home in Hawaii to the U.S. mainland —the exact opposite of the trip many of us would like to take!

"Some of my best memories of childhood are from our family's trip to the mainland in the summer of 1966 when I was 8 years old," she wrote. "Maybe it's because we have tons of photographs from that time. But I also remember things not in those photographs, so there must've been something exceptional about that trip."

New places and experiences do leave a mark on our memories. But another reader said that simple activities in familiar surroundings could have a similar impact.

"Your column in the Deseret News intrigued me, inasmuch as I was a 'Depression kid' and had absolutely no concept of a 'theme park,' " this reader wrote.

"In those pre-television days, we read a lot individually, but as a family, we rented jigsaw puzzles (yes, that was our 'Blockbuster') and had a card table set up where we could all work together on the completion. My brothers played outside most of the time, while I enjoyed paper dolls, for which I planned and constructed fanciful wardrobes, and with my little girl friends 'pretended' great stories for them."