Capturing Joy with Kristen Duke

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Capturing Joy with Kristen Duke

Chatting about how to connect with your TEENS It's hard to pinpoint when I began my photography business.

I developed in the darkroom as part of the yearbook staff in high school. Took photography 101 in college and photographed friends engagements. Got my digital SLR in 2003 and started taking clients then. I've taken all kinds of pictures, now I focus on Family portraits and high school seniors.

11/13/2024

Is this helpful? What is something you are grateful for with your teenager?

11/09/2024

📌 SAVE this to have a more meaningful discussion at the Thanksgiving table this year.

👉SEND this to your partner, mom, sister, aunt to help you remember 🤣

👀Watch for a link in my stories/Thanksgiving 🦃 highlight in the next few days for a printable copy coming soon!

11/05/2024

🙌Welcome to the community for intentional parents of teenagers! Slide through this carousel to learn more about what has been created for you.

Follow along here at to better navigate the tricky teen years, and become more trusted by your teenager.

📬DM me anytime, I always answer when I see it!

Comment LINK for my trusted bot Trudy to automatically send you the info links in these slides.

👉Now, WHAT I REALLY WANT TO KNOW: tell me about yourself, how old are your kids? How can I best support you?!

10/28/2024

⁉️Which of the 7 is most horrifying to you? Any other haunted scenarios to add to the nightmare ?

Thanks for the inspo 🎃

10/25/2024

👉Share this to your story to alert the masses to let teens have fun on Halloween this year!

🙌LIKE this if you agree! Additional thoughts on this? Did you trick-or-treat as a teenager? Does your teen want to?

🎃👻🕷️

10/24/2024

I’ve written and re-written this post a few times, and I can never capture fully what’s in my heart as I send my daughter off for 18 months to share about Jesus Christ as a full time missionary for

Ultimately, my heart is exploding with gratitude that I learned how to earn her trust after breaking trust because we have formed such a special relationship that fills my heart with joy, and my eyes with tears.

Grateful my daughter sees me as a confidante, knowing I won’t freak out because I learned how not to. Our relationship encapsulates everything I’m here to teach you in this space: how to recognize your blind spots to earn your teenagers trust.

Though I’ll miss the special handshake my daughter and I have, her silly facial expressions when I say something curious, and her peanut butter & fruit topped pancakes being assembled in my kitchen daily, seeing her growth through this refiners fire of being a missionary has already shown me that this is where she is meant to be right now.

I got her for 18 years, she is now fully dedicated to the Savior for 18 months.

She’s SO ready, and I’m so delighted to continue to be her biggest cheerleader!!!

(Thank you to those of you cheering ME on and sending worlds of encouragement this week!)

09/22/2024

👉Comment TRAP to see which of the 5 parenting traps you’ve unintentionally fallen under and get tips on how to turn it around.

You CAN break free of the traps and learn how to earn your teens trust.

Thanks to for all of the fun images!

09/17/2024

👗Modesty can be a very polarizing topic for parents of teenagers, especially teen girls, even mom vs. dad, and then we’ve got grandma and neighbors weighing in….

The question is… are you truly concerned about what your teen wears, or are you concerned with what others think?

Honestly, I aim to steer away from this topic as much as possible because it’s so polarizing, (I’d rather talk about po*******hy any day over this!)

AND because of my faith tradition, my perspective may be different than you might expect.

I like to keep this space “non denominational” as it pertains to raising teens (though many know my affiliation and I’m proud of my faith) because I don’t want any unintentional shaming happening with moms who have different modesty standards.

With that being said, I’ve never had strong personal feelings one way or another as it pertains to my kids and what they wear, I think I just suggested a certain standard and they never pushed back, so we went with it.

I think i worried for too long what others thought and now I just don’t.

I DON’T think that if my child dresses a certain way as a teen that they will dress that way for life, and I don’t think it’s a big deal to wear something like unto a swimsuit to a dance because we wear swimsuits to the beach, so it’s not about “covering up” it’s about appropriate-ness for an occasion, and I just don’t see them as mutually exclusive.

I want my daughters to respect their bodies, and sometimes I think pushing modesty does the exact opposite effect, and so I want to embrace what they choose, even if it’s not something I would pick out for them.

I think it’s possible that at a future event, my daughter will wear a different style of dress that some may deem as “immodest“ and I’m perfectly OK with that.

I was preparing myself for that for this event, and told her it was her choice, amidst more conversation about it.

I’m all about giving choices

In summary, I know how in feel, but can’t express it in words as well as I can with other things.

Our relationship is more important to me than pressing an issue that doesn’t feel so heavy to me.

👉Please share your thoughts!!

09/16/2024

🚨Tired of your teenager not opening up to you? (Or just want to learn tips so you can keep that constant communication?)

Are you a pretty great intentional mom but your teenager still won’t talk to you? Won’t listen to you?

If the only “talking” you’re doing with your teen every day is boring schedule logistics….

YOU ARE WHY THE TRUSTED CHALLENGE WAS CREATED!

(AND if you’re worried about the teen years approaching, and want to plan ahead!)

💥There is a better way — and you will never have to bang your head up against the wall wondering what you can do differently ever again.

🪄 I’ve created the magical relationship of my dreams with my teens (and now adult children) because I have DITCHED what I thought I was supposed to do, and created a new, different approach to become TRUSTED...

This is the method you’ll get to learn more about inside the TRUSTED Challenge.

(Just FYI: this does not mean you have a “bad” teen or you are a “bad” mom, it means you are intentional and want to improve your relationship each day).

👉Comment TRUSTED to learn more about what will happen each day of the challenge, to see if it’s the right fit for you.

💗You owe yourself and your teen to up level your relationship.

09/15/2024

So many insights and memories from the Transform Retreat for moms of teenagers this last week, I had to out a few of my favorite pictures and memories in a permanent spot on my feed.

It’s tricky to go to retreats like this, have strong connections, and leave wishing they were your neighbors moving forward.

I love this quote that I saw recently on page and I’ve heard in a variety of ways before….

“Some people are in your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.”

It can feel like a tough pill to swallow at times, as you mourn the loss of long time friendships, or long to have some people more involved in your life….and make friends who live states away.

I say… let’s celebrate connections and friendships, even if only for a short season.

They were often there for a reason, with memories to last a lifetime.

👉Have you felt this with friends?

09/04/2024

Tis the season…Let’s talk about homecoming!

Having experienced homecoming with two boys and two girls, I’ve seen the gamut of experiences!

And for the record, I LOVE that kids don’t feel they have to go with a date and go in groups, but I do love the push out of comfort zone with going with a date, too.

Share your experience below….

08/04/2024

❌Don’t make it about you that your teenager may prefer their friends over you. (This looks like moping, the silent treatment, or ignoring them.)

✅Be ready when they come, earn their TRUST so that they will feel safe to talk to you and brainstorm ways to navigate the tricky teen years with friendships.

❌Don’t SHOULD on your teenager… that means telling them what they “should“ do. Instead, ask them questions to help them come to their own conclusions.

Questions like:
1️⃣ What is it about this particular friend that you enjoy being around?
2️⃣What are some ways you think you could build new friendships?
3️⃣ How are you a good friend?

💥This builds their confidence.

💥This helps them feel capable.

💥This helps them to see that you have confidence in them, which will help them have confidence in themselves.

(Confidence is not built by you saying “you are amazing!“ or “They are just jealous.”)

👉SAVE this to reference back

👉What are some tricky situations your teenager has had with friends, and I’ll offer up some questions suggestions about how to start the conversation with them about it.

07/23/2024

My daughter is opening her mission assignment TONIGHT and we are so excited!!!! You can watch at 7pm mountain time on her IG if you’d like…

The fun tradition is friends guessing where she might go, (it can be anywhere in the world and it’s a surprise assignment!) and I’m hoping it’s where one of YOU live so you can keep tabs on her for me🤣🤣🤣

Guess in the comments…at the least, tell me where you live so that can be your guess….

💥For those unfamiliar with the process, they don’t get to choose where they go, sometimes if you have a language under your belt, that may determine, she took 3 years of ASL in high school.

My boys served in the Dominican Republic and Phoenix (Tyler) and then Mesa Arizona and Barbados French islands (Matthew).

They were both “pandemic missionaries“ meaning because of the pandemic. they had two mission assignments, one in the US, after their original assignment happened to be outside of the US.

💥Leave your guesses below, and if you have any questions about the missionary process, leave them below and I will answer as well!

07/22/2024

🚨Tired of your teenager not opening up to you?

Are you a pretty great intentional mom but your teenager still won’t talk to you? Won’t listen to you?

If the only “talking” you’re doing with your teen every day is boring schedule logistics….

YOU ARE WHY THE TRUSTED CHALLENGE WAS CREATED!

(AND if you’re worried about the teen years approaching, and want to plan ahead!)

💥There is a better way — and you will never have to bang your head up against the wall wondering what you can do differently ever again.

🪄 I’ve created the magical relationship of my dream with my teens (and now adult children) because I have DITCHED what I thought I was supposed to do, and created a new, different approach to become TRUSTED...

This is the method you’ll get to learn more about inside the TRUSTED challenge.

(Just FYI: this does not mean you have a “bad” teen or you are a “bad” mom, it means you are intentional and want to improve your relationship each day).

👉Comment TRUSTED to learn more about what will happen each day of the challenge, to see if it’s the right fit for you.

💗You owe yourself and your teen to up level your relationship.

06/26/2024

📌 SAVE this to discuss with your teen and family leading up to July 4th or with a gathering of people at your Independence Day celebration!

👉Which question are you most anxious to hear your teenagers response to?

06/20/2024

Have you seen the new movie Inside Out 2? What did you think?

Our family went this week and we loved it!

It’s all about teen emotions and introduced 5 new emotions from the previous movie, geared towards teen development:

⭐️Anxiety
⭐️envy
⭐️embarrassment
⭐️ennui (boredom)
⭐️nostalgia

I loved knowing beforehand that they consulted with one of my favorite teen researchers, .damour

If you’ve seen the movie and your teenagers have, ask these 7 questions! They can also be adapted to discuss emotions anytime, but based off of points in the movie.

👉Have you seen this movie?!

06/13/2024

My son and oldest child gets married a week from tomorrow and being a supportive & TRUSTED mother in law has been weighing heavily on my mind!

I created this Mother in law post 3 years ago, and these tips originally shared from YOU in stories hasn’t been far from my mind since then… knowing that my adult children would have marriage as their next big step in life. And here we are!

I have actively focused on several of these tips since the day my son told me he was dating someone, (knowing the possibilities) and I’m so grateful for the tips shared with me, I have to pass it on.

📌SAVE this to plan ahead or to work NOW to be TRUSTED as a mother in law.

9 ways to be a great mother-in-law:

💕Praise them openly, praise them privately
💕Decide you will love them before you meet them, (just like positive affirmations)
💕Tell them early on you want to be a support, and that you will need their help and guidance to do so
💕Be very careful how you speak to your child about their significant other while dating, and especially after marriage
💕Have patience, it takes time to develop a new relationship
💕Support your kids standing by their spouses side, above your own thoughts or expectations
💕Be approachable, let them know that you are not perfect and want to do right by them
💕Before you offer advice, ask if they want your opinion Find ways to connect one on one to build that relationship

💔Many of you shared experiences of painful interactions with your mother-in-law, and have vowed to do better with your future in-laws, and I commend that!

💗Others have been blessed with positive experiences that reinforce how you can do the same in your future.

👉Would love to know if I left anything out, please feel free to add in the comments! Or please expound on one of the points above and how it has affected you.

❓Do you have married kids? Advice for the masses?

04/24/2024

🙌Welcome to the community for intentional parents of teenagers! Slide through this carousel to learn more about me, my WHY, and what I have created for you.

Follow along here at to better navigate the tricky teen years, and become more trusted by your teenager.

📬DM me anytime, I always answer when I see it!

If you’d like more info on any of the creations I shared above, comment the magic word at the bottom of those slides, and my trusted bot Trudy will send them to you, but make sure they are separate individual comments if you want more than one link.

👉Now, WHAT I REALLY WANT TO KNOW: tell me about yourself, how old are your kids?

👉Did you trust your parents when you were teenager? How is the trust with your own children?

💕I will read and respond to everyone comment that isn’t for Trudy my bot.

Address

Austin, TX
80920

Website

https://www.kristenduke.com/

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