Beyond Good Intentions With Kristen Duke

After I shared about the year of the teenager initiative, I had a handful of people say, “I just can’t get behind that, because I’m in a really hard place with my teen.” My heart hurt for them. One commenter said to me, “I love following along to what you share, but sometimes it makes me feel worse about myself.” That is the complete OPPOSITE of the feelings I want to invoke! There are so many variables to consider, and so many ways of doing things, but I did some research, and sharing what I pulled together from all of that. I tackle: eye rolling sibling rivalry punishments apologizing resentment test of wills teens+grades preserving glitter I referenced a few different articles I wanted to site: How to help teens weather their emotional storms When behavior problems traumatize siblings When kids say hurtful things As always, grateful for shares, iTunes reviews, and emails with extra thoughts! kristenduke@gmail.com @KristenDukeChats on Instagram  

Kicking off the first interview and episode of the new year talking about teens and stress. Excited to share ways that parents can help teens de-stress and better understand emotions. We also talk about the importance of SLEEP and how it can cause stress (lack of it). Speaking with Nicci Bontrager, a licensed professional counselor in this episode. She meets with clients in Austin, TX at Joyful Family Counseling and shares tips on her instagram: @JoyfulFamilyLife Listen to the tips she shares, and join the conversation with the community at @KristenDukeChats this week as we un-package STRESS. We are grateful for any iTunes reviews, too! If you have teens that would enjoy listening to the topic, have them find the Fist Bump Podcast with a corresponding episode on a similar topic comes out 2 days later, on Fridays. Nicci shares her thoughts with them on the topic, too.

I'm declaring 2020 The Year of the Teenager as we focus on tactics to strengthen the relationship with our teens. Listen to this short podcast episode that is a recording of the video I shared on Instagram. If you prefer to watch it, you can do that here:  We Were All TEENAGERS Once IGTV video As always, I appreciate any shares or podcast reviews!

Hi Friends! I've missed sharing episodes with you this month as I've taken a little time off to work on a few projects. ONE OF THEM I'll be sharing really soon (hopefully less than 2 weeks) and I chat about it in this surprise episode.  I figured I'd share a little brain dump with my loyal listeners, and ask for your feedback. So PLEASE email me {kristenduke@gmail.com} or reach out in a DM on Instagram {@KristenDukeChats} to share your thoughts. I talk about some mentoring I've started, and how to get on my free trial list, as well as sharing a little more about the AMAZON STORE.  Feedback always welcomed!

BONUS EPISODE!!! We are not all blessed with the same capabilities, work ethic is a lifelong skill, learning how to be a good sport whether you win or lose is a conversation we need to have with our kids! Kristi Haskins is my guest today sharing all the things, and I'm so happy to have her! Listen with your kids, discuss, it's a conversation that may not happen naturally, but by hearing these tips, will go more productively.  SUPPORT THIS PODCAST BY SHOPPING ANYTHING AMAZON THROUGH OUR AMAZON STORE LINK! We love iTunes reviews AND join us to chat on Instagram at @KristenDukeChats

Divorce is hard, and I'm grateful that Chari Pack was willing to come on and share the challenges of blending families, with her 3 teens! From curfews to phone rules, and with teens coming from different rules and expectations, she talks about merging and adjusting.  Find her on Instagram at @Chari.Pack and @PersnicketyPrints   Catch the highlights and extended discussion on divorce and co-parenting on my Instagram: @KristenDukeChats

Lynette from @ThrowbackParenting is a fabulous guest and we are talking all about letting control go as a parent of teenagers and taking on the Mentoring position.  This is season 3 of the 4 seasons of parenting she has broken down and I LOVE what she has to say!  Listen. Share. Implement.  Find her at www.lynnettesheppard.com as well as a few free courses on her website. She also has a podcast, THROWBACK PARENTING! On Instagram at @ThrowbackParenting as well.  

My friend Emily is just barely 17, already enrolled in college, has a few businesses under her belt, and guess what? Didn't graduated high school!  There are so many routes to get to a career destination, and Emily opened my eyes to other options. And so did the community this week on @KristenDukeChats on instagram where we talked about all different types of schooling.  It's ok to seek out alternative options!  You can find Emily a few places on Instagram: @TheSheJewels @EmilyLoderup @EmLoderupPhotography I hope you'll look her up! I'm also grateful to those who share this episode or any other episodes on Instagram or texting your friend that might enjoy it. Our AMAZON store shopping is a great way to support this podcast as well, so check out our favorites!

We ALL love our screen time, and I talk to Andrea from @BetterScreenTime all about how we could do things a little better. I got some great tips for MYSELF and we talked about how isolating screens can be, especially for teens, who over-consume.  Andrea shared a fabulous TEDxtalk from Adam Atler with me which I reference as well. We are chatting EXTRA about this topic this week on @KristenDukeChats instagram page. If you miss it, scroll through the highlight bubbles! PLEASE SHARE with your friends if you found this helpful! Consider leaving an iTunes review as well, I'd be so grateful;)

We've been talking about teens and dating all week on Instagram, you can catch a recap in the highlights under DATING. I've got my friend Kaylee on to chat with me today. She's in college now, and I've had the opportunity to know her since she was 15 and watch from the sidelines a bit as she navigated dating as a teen. You will surely love her as I do. SHARE this episode with friends if you found it helpful! SHOP the AMAZON STORE to help support this podcast (Any item on Amazon purchased through this link within 24 hours of clicking helps in a small way). We've got the store filled with our favorite family games, parenting books, and random other gadgets. Here is a video of my teens and I chatting about dating. Leave an iTunes REVIEW. Join us on INSTAGRAM! @KristenDukeChats

Is your Child Addicted to Pornography? Probably not. If you've found your teen has been seeking out pornography, it doesn't mean they are addicted. Free in 13 is a program meant to bridge the gap between preventative measures and pornography addiction. Very few teens are addicted and there is a stigma attached to the word "addict" that we don't want our teens to feel. There is so much information about how to prevent pornography exposure, but what to do if you've found your child is stuck in the trap? There is help! Look at www.Freein13.com as well as great information on their instagram @Freein13  We talked about the Children's book: Good Pictures, Bad Pictures The teen podcast Fist Bump (out 9/20) has some extra info about video gaming, isolation, and the connection with pornography use. Take a listen, and encourage your teens to as well and HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT IT! Please consider leaving an iTunes review if you enjoyed this episode! Visit us at @KristenDukeChats on Instagram where we've discussed th

My friend Jenny just graduated from high school and I'm so grateful she was willing to share her story from her sports injuries in high school.  She shares her highs, her lows, her frustration, and moments of depression. She shares how she treated her parents and what her parents did that was helpful. If you've got a teen that has had a heartbreaking injury, this may just help, and if not...plan for the future! Check out our AMAZON store for all of our favorites. SHARE this episode with those it may bless. Leave a REVIEW on iTunes to help us out!

My guest Kay from @AWorldwideSisterhood chats with me in this episode and offers some actionable steps about how we could improve our communication with our teens.  We exchange some funny stories about our imperfectness in parenthood, and how we are striving for great communication, but still working on it! Listen, share, and leave a review if you found it helpful! Our AMAZON store has my favorite parenting book that I mentioned: How to Talk so Kids will Listen and Listen so Kids will Talk. We are discussing communication all this week on Instagram @KristenDukeChats, so come be a part of the community!  

I'm so grateful to have Amber from @TeenTake30 on the podcast today, sharing how her family suffered from BULLYING, and the consequential move afterwards.  As parents, we are all TERRIFIED of it happening to our kids, but do we talk about it in such a way that we let them know we are on their side if it does? Do we give them tools to deal with it if it's happening? Have we talked about how to be an up-stander instead of a bystander? All of this is covered and more in this discussion, and I hope you'll listen and SHARE with your friends. We are discussing this in depth on instagram this week also at @KristenDukeChats. If you listen to this later, look for the discussion in the highlights.  Shop our AMAZON store for family fun activities and my favorite parenting books. As a reminder, we always love iTunes REVIEWS!!!

I'm so grateful to be able to share my oldest, Tyler, with all of you, and how he is READY TO LAUNCH, fly the coop, move out of the house, spread his wings. In this episode, we talk about where he is headed, what he learned to prepare him for this, and even why he quit social media years ago! My emotions are high, and you'll hear that come out in my intro, recorded just 2 days before my son heads out on his 2 year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  If you'd like to follow along on his mission journey, I'll be sharing updates on his Instagram, @Tyler_Duke which he said I can make public so others can see how he's serving. Sharing in the AMAZON STORE all of the items we got for his mission. If you'd like to listen to the interviews from my other kids, check out: Matthew, 16, Episode #39 Alyssa, 14, Episode #23 Cali,10, Episode #62  

Delighted to have my friend @BeckyProudfit chatting with me today about simplifying and not becoming an over scheduled family. I believe it's a goal for all of us, but DIFFICULT in PRACTICE! Becky is a light, and I love her actionable tips she shares. Make sure you join the conversation after listening over on my Instagram page: @KristenDukeChats and share your insights and perspective.  Check out our family favorites in our AMAZON STORE. Grateful for your iTunes Reviews! We'd love for you to SHARE this episode with a friend who would appreciate it as well. You can find information about past podcast episodes on the Beyond Good Intentions homepage (we mentioned episode #34 where I chatted with her podcast buddy Becky Higgins). You can share the version of this episode geared towards teens at the @FistBump.Podcast as well.

This phrase, "preserve the relationship" has been stuck in my mind for about a year, and I've been chatting about it here and there on Instagram at @kristendukechats, but after a comment from a member in our community last week, it really got me thinking, and I knew I needed to dedicate an episode all about this as we begin this journey to strengthen our teens. What does the word PRESERVE mean to you? In this episode, I talk about PRESERVING, and how it's a HOPEFUL message in parenting! I share about my search for similar meanings and how I came to a better understanding of what I can do in my parenting to preserve it not just for now, but for later as well. Please listen and share if you know others that would benefit from this discussion. Then join us on Instagram to further chat this week.  If you want to see what our family loves in our AMAZON store, that's another way you can support this podcast. 

I've been hinting at a new focus for the podcast, and it's here! This is a short introduction to how things are going to change, and WHY I felt so impressed to turn it to a new direction. There might be a few tears shed by myself as I explain how it all came to be. Thanks for being a part of this journey with me!

Hi friends! I'm back from my vacation and thoughts I'd just share a little brain dump of what's going on in my life. I'm in a little transitional phase with the podcast right now, and sharing some of those changes in this episode, along with some TEARS with behind the scenes thoughts on the goings on in my life.  Thanks for joining me in this journey and DM me on Instagram if you have thoughts about future topic ideas, who to interview, or responding to my thoughts I shared. @KristenDukeChats on IG or email me at kristenduke@gmail.com

This episode is very dear to my heart!  So much so that I am sharing a FREE e-book with the 13 points outlined, meant for discussion between parents and teens. In this podcast, I explore each point in depth with extra detail. Grab the e-book HERE: Teens and Social Media I also chatted about my AMAZON store in the episode: My favorite phone case and my daughters Air Pods. Grateful in advance for any shares of this episode, iTunes reviews, or just joining in the party on Instagram at @KristenDukeChats.