Return to a dream

I pretty much remember one dream a night normally, and recall having had more than one, just not what was in them. So I guess I have a pretty good natural dream recall to start with. But what I'm wondering is where consciously returning to a dream fits into lucid dreaming. Several times, (just this morning again in fact) I will wake from a dream and want to return to it to finish. So I'll get up, turn off the alarm, lay down and tell myself to return to the dream at the point where I woke up. And I do. (Unless I try too hard, which I haven't done for a few years actually.) At that point, things tend to go the way I imagined them going when I was awake, which is why I wanted to continue the dream in the first place. It's not control exactly, because once back in the dream I forget that it's a dream and just act it out, but I did control it from the outside as it were. Anyone else experience this? What is it called? Did I just skip a bunch of steps and end up somewhere in the middle?

Sounds like dream incubation to me. ;)

If you told yourself to return to the dream at the point where you woke up and do a reality check when you're dreaming, you might get a lucid dream.

Dream incubation?

Theres a good explanation on wikipedia.

Dream Incubation

Thanks, now lets see if I can try lucid dreaming. Only had one when I was a kid, saw something about lucid dreaming in a Smurfs episode, and then I tried it that night and it worked. Lol. It's always easier when you're a kid, no preconceptions. Just try, and do.