I wish there was a chance to clap more than 50x for this. I agree with EVERYTHING you say here. My six-year-old and I have daily de-briefs (for like 20-30 mins) at bedtime and he refers to them as "conversations" and he LOVES them.

I find it is the best time for his mind to just flow with what he's been thinking about. I hope that this will allow him to talk to me more as he grows - like you have said with your son.