Photos by Christy Parent – 4 Birds Photography

Episode 93 – You can also listen on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Pandora, and Amazon Music

About the Episode:

Bunny talks with Christy and Adam Parent about their unique New Mexico story and how they fell in love with Santa Fe!

Links
4 Birds Photography
Follow 4 Birds on Instagram
Follow Adam Parent on Instagram
About Adam Parent – Santa Fe realtor
I Love New Mexico blog page
Bunny’s website
I Love New Mexico Instagram
I Love New Mexico Facebook

Original Music by: Kene Terry

Featuring:

Christy and Adam Parent

About Christy and 4 Birds Photography:

4 Birds Photography is the culmination of almost 20 years of photography experience. I began with documenting the everyday moments of life with my husband Adam and our 4 children (our “4 Birds,” as I often called them) and branched out into product photography, followed by travel, food, portrait, and architecture photography.

We are based in Santa Fe, New Mexico where I take photos every day. The unparalleled light and beauty of our region compels me to capture it with ever-greater skill for sharing with others.

I am passionate about finding and capturing the beauty of what is before me – from the beautiful people I have the privilege to meet and the sacred moments I get to witness, to historic adobes, luxury homes, farms & ranches, and more. I love to work with clients and create a portfolio that tells a visual story of their family, their business, or life in their home, finding the details that make it special.

About Adam Parent:

Adam Parent’s journey began on the West Coast of the United States, where he spent his early years immersed in the diverse environments of California, Oregon, and Washington. A decade ago, he discovered his affinity for New Mexico, particularly enchanted by Santa Fe’s rich historical tapestry, cultural vibrancy, and stunning natural scenery. This connection was so profound that he and his family decided to make it their permanent home.

Adam’s professional background is as varied as it is impressive, encompassing multiple entrepreneurial ventures and a degree in theology. This unique blend of experiences has endowed him with a deep understanding of business dynamics, a compassionate approach towards others, and a consistently positive and kind demeanor. His prior involvement in real estate photography and marketing has equipped him with a nuanced understanding of the real estate industry, enabling him to navigate its complexities with both style and grace.

What truly drives Adam is his passion for assisting others and his aspiration to create enduring value in people’s lives. Real estate, for him, is not just a profession but a platform through which he can guide individuals in making one of their most significant life decisions. Every day, Adam feels privileged to live and work in Santa Fe, a city he considers among the most dynamic in the world, and to help others find their place in it.

Adam Parent’s story is not only marked by professional success but also by a spirit of adventure and a touch of humor. Before settling in New Mexico, Adam and his wife embarked on a unique journey, traveling across the southern United States for over two years with their four small children in tow.

This extraordinary expedition was a blend of education, exploration, and family bonding. They homeschooled their children on the road, turning each day into an educational adventure, balancing lessons with visits to every museum and roadside attraction they could find. This experience wasn’t just about sightseeing; it was a humorous and sometimes chaotic quest to embrace the quirky and the educational, from the grandest museums to the most obscure roadside wonders.

This chapter of their lives added a rich layer of experiences and stories to their family’s tapestry, and it’s a period that Adam often reflects upon with a mixture of fondness, amusement, and a slight bewilderment at how they managed it all. Now, settled in Santa Fe, Adam brings this same sense of adventure, flexibility, and humor to his work in real estate, ensuring that each interaction is not just a transaction but a memorable and enjoyable journey.

You can reach Adam directly at (505) 318-6310

Episode Transcript

Bunny : (00:00)
Hi there. I’m Bunny Terry, and you’re listening to the I Love New Mexico podcast. Whether you’re a native new Mexican, who’s lived here for your entire life, or you’re just considering a visit, this episode is for you. Join us as we share a lot of New Mexico stories, talk about all things New Mexico, and include topics like what’s magical here, where you ought to visit, what’s happening, and the things you absolutely cannot miss in the land of Enchantment. We’re excited that you’re here and we can’t wait to show you what an amazing place New Mexico is, because let’s face it, I love New Mexico.

Bunny : (00:49)
My guests today on the I Love New Mexico podcast are, um, lucky for me, great friends of mine, and, um, I also work with them professionally with both of them. So welcome to the podcast, Adam and Christy, parent, how are you this morning? Thank

Adam : (01:06)
You. Thank you. Doing great. Beautiful Santa Santa Fe morning. I mean, whew. Every morning feels beautiful here in Santa Fe.

Bunny : (01:15)
Yeah. So, so you, one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you, besides the fact that I just find both of you to be, um, joyous and delightful and amazing humans, is that you ended up in New Mexico in, um, um, you didn’t grow up here, and the method by which you got here is a little different from a lot of people that I know. So, tell people, um, why don’t you start, Adam, tell folks where you started, when you, where you were, when this, you created this long journey that ended up here, .

Adam : (01:53)
Yeah. So we owned a restaurant, it was a coffee house bakery called the Blackbird Coffee House in Port Angeles, Washington. And we had owned that. We started it, created the business, owned it for a little over five years, and then sold the business. Uh, and we had this harebrained idea that we would buy an rv, a fifth wheel, and travel the US after we sold the restaurant. And so, uh, we did just that and we traveled the US for, uh, almost two years with our four kids, uh, in tow. And, um, that’s how we ended up in Santa Fe.

Bunny : (02:37)
So, so we talked about this the other day, um, because for folks who don’t know, Adam and I are in the same office. He’s a realtor in my office, and we were talking about, you know, there was this trend that seems to me to have begun right before the pandemic where everybody in the world got in an RV and with their family and moved around. But, um, you, you started your RV journey a little earlier than you, you were trendy before it was trendy, right?

Christy : (03:07)
,

Adam : (03:08)
I think so. Don’t you think, Christy?

Christy : (03:10)
Yeah, it was, I mean, it was fall of 2013 that we started, uh, and we had been talking about it for at least a year Mm-Hmm. , um, before it actually happened. Yeah. And then, you know, we got here in 2015, so Yes. And I actually was just talking to a friend the other day about how we were kind of on the really pre end of the trend and even social media was just not, um, I had a friend who was like, you need a hashtag. And I, I remember saying in 2013, what’s a hashtag? You know, then, and I mean, and her husband was in tech, and so she knew what a hashtag was and I didn’t. And I said, I don’t even know what that does or what it means. And of course we learned since then, but it was early on

Adam : (04:05)
And we, we did start it. We had a blog going when we traveled, so we did have a blog and we kinda, you know, we did a little bit of the social media stuff, but it certainly was not like it is today.

Bunny : (04:17)
So, so we, I mean, we can’t, we know each other very well, but we can’t assume that people who are listening know. So you didn’t travel alone, right?

Adam : (04:26)
No. Well, we, it was the two of us and our four kids . Um, yeah. I mean, what do you, what do you mean by travel alone?

Bunny : (04:34)
Well, we, we hadn’t, in, in the podcast we hadn’t said yet that you also took, you had four children that you took with you. Right. And they ranged in age from

Adam : (04:45)
Boy when we started. How old were the kids?

Christy : (04:47)
So Ava, um, well, our oldest had just turned 13. We had her 13-year-old Mm-Hmm. birthday party with all her friends in Washington right before we left. I think it was the weekend before we left. So she had just turned 13. And then our two boys in the middle were 11 and nine, and then Ava was five.

Bunny : (05:10)
So yeah. So folks who are listening are gonna, I mean, you guys do this parenting thing so, so graciously and so gracefully that you make it look really simple, but folks who are listening are gonna say, you went on the road with kids ranging in age from five to 13 in an RV for how long? Two years.

Adam : (05:30)
Almost two years, yes. So, you know, the restaurant business is, can be quite crazy. And the hours, so many hours that you devote to a restaurant when it’s your own and it’s owner operated. And, and so we had run that restaurant for over five years. And really, uh, I felt a bit isolated from the family because I spent so many hours in that restaurant. And part of our reason for traveling is, uh, was that I wanted to reconnect with my kids in a more intimate way. And so really that was the purpose of our travels, was for all of us to reconnect, to get close and just to spend time together. Uh, because you can’t get time back. Right. And, uh, so that was a big deal. I remember Ava specifically, uh, she was a, a bit disconnected from me ’cause I was always gone at the restaurant and she was so young.

Adam : (06:32)
And so I remember about a month into the trip, her and I just really reconnecting and getting closer, you know, and, uh, just the gift that was of just having time together. And I think when we left that first month on the road, I think we all just took this really deep exhale because our life had shifted so dramatically from busy, busy, busy, busy restaurant life to, uh, just being together. And really that full two years felt like a giant gift for all of us, and it really did bring us closer together as a family. And I, I know that we would not be where we are today had we not made that, that decision.

Bunny : (07:18)
Yeah. That is, I, so this feels like the title of a book, like how to, you know, how to reconnect with your kids. Um, I I have you thought about that? Have you thought about writing all of all of it down? Because it’s, yeah. I mean, you homeschooled them, right?

Christy : (07:35)
Yeah. Yeah, we did. Um, I, I’ve always loved writing. I was an English major in college. I always thought someday I would write and that would be my career. And it hasn’t happened yet. I write periodically, you know, I used our blog as a journal and I’ve definitely, you’re not the first person to say, are you gonna write a book?

Bunny : (08:00)
. I I think it’s a great idea. Yeah.

Christy : (08:02)
You know, so possibly at some point. Yeah. You know, it was like when we started the restaurant, um, Ava was 11 months old and, um, so she was our baby. She, I wore her in a carrier while I pulled espresso shots and while we baked pies in the back. And, um, so for the first probably two years of our restaurant Mm-Hmm. , I was there with Adam, we did it together. Our kids were there with us. They sampled new recipes for us and gave us their very brutally honest feedback , as kids do. And, um, you know, we were, it was a family affair, but then, you know, Ava started walking and she didn’t wanna be in the carrier all day anymore. And, um, you know, our other three got rowdier and rowdier, and meanwhile the restaurant was yeah, more and more busy, which was fantastic. But, you know, we had more tourists coming in who were not as connected to our entire family affair. And, you know, it wasn’t as cute when you had a toddler dropping to the floor in the middle of the restaurant, losing itt, because it was nap time. So, um,

Adam : (09:19)
Yeah, we were a true mom and pop business.

Bunny : (09:22)
You were, you were really? Yeah. I’ve seen that description and I’m like, yeah, now I get it. Yeah. Yeah.

Christy : (09:27)
And so, yeah, so at, at that point, we had to make the very hard decision that one of us was gonna have to step out and one of us was gonna have to run the restaurant. And, you know, I, um, chose to stay home with the children. And, you know, Adam pulled the open to closes six to seven days a week for a long time. Yeah. So, you know, and then when we sold it, that is why, you know, we went, we want time together because we kind of, our original vision was to be together. Um, but the reality of a busy, successful restaurant is that it

Bunny : (10:08)
Kind of Well, and when you’re, I mean, when you have your own business, you, you work in it and you work on it like 24 7. That’s right. So, um, yeah. So cheers to you for doing that. So, so describe, like, you left, uh, so Port Angels, is that a, is that an island or is it a

Adam : (10:26)
No, it’s on a peninsula. So it’s on the Olympic Peninsula, it’s west of Seattle. It’s about an hour and a half drive. You take a ferry from Seattle to the, the Peninsula, and then you drive, uh, or you can go south through Tacoma and miss the ferry altogether. Uh, so it’s on the, the far west of Washington state. And so you have the mountains, you have Olympic National Park, you have the ocean. It’s really, it’s wet , it’s wet, uh, but very green and beautiful. Yeah. Uh, but it’s a, it’s a town that we decided we didn’t wanna live in long term. And the people were wonderful to us. We had built a community there, but we were ready to do something different. So when we left for our travels, we were really open to settling anywhere and we, we sort of had this romantic idea that we would drive through a town and we would know, oh, this is it. Uh, although in the back of my head I thought, yeah, well that’s probably not gonna happen, but we’ll, we’ll see. We’ll see how it goes. Um,

Christy : (11:29)
I thought it was gonna Happen.

Adam : (11:30)
Yeah. . So we, we really, uh, just sort of chased summer on our travels and we stuck to the, the coast and the south, uh, the warm weather. And we had come through Albuquerque in the month of March, I believe.

Christy : (11:48)
Yeah.

Adam : (11:48)
So we were staying not the

Bunny : (11:49)
Best month in New Mexico, by the way.

Adam : (11:52)
No. staying in a, a little RV park in Albuquerque, right on the highway. I remember like a million rabbits in the RV park . Uh, and a friend of ours had told us, you have to go check out Santa Fe. And we, we thought Santa Fe. Oh, sure. But okay, we’ll go check it out. So we decided to drive up for just an afternoon, and it was, uh, sort of an overcast day, you know, a little bit of rain and wind. Uh, and I remember we, we had this big F three 50 pickup truck, and so we were coming down old Santa Fe Trail, uh, just following Google’s map and, uh, coming into town. And I remember telling Christie, where, where is the city? Where is the capital city? , because I’m picturing skyscrapers, tall buildings, you know, a capitol city. And, uh, realizing, wow, this act, this is the capital city. Look at how amazing all these Adobes are. And, you know, the history and just really taken aback by the city Yeah. Uh, as we drove in and started to explore.

Christy : (13:05)
Yeah. I mean, you know, looking back now, um, gray, it was gray, it was cold, it drizzled a little bit. It was windy of course. ’cause it was March. And, um, we still went, wow. We could not get Santa Fe out of our minds. Mm-Hmm. . I remember driving back down to Albuquerque after we had spent the day, and of course, you know, the scenery between Santa Fe and Albuquerque at Sunset , um, golden Hour. Yeah. And all the, the mountains and the beauty of the land, um, after a day in the city and Yeah. Driving old Santa Fe Trail, and I’m, I was the navigator, so I had the map pulled up on my phone and Adam’s like, how far are we from downtown? And I said, it says, we’re, you know, we’re a four tenths of a mile. Oh. Now we’re a third of a mile.

Christy : (14:03)
We’re a quarter of a mile away. I don’t know where the city is. , you know, . That’s funny because we really, we really didn’t know anything about Santa Fe. Yeah. Really nothing, um, other than it being the capital city. And, um, because we were just coming for a short afternoon. I hadn’t even taken the time to look it up yet, so didn’t realize, um, what Santa Fe was. And it was just a complete and utter surprise and joy to walk in and, or drive in, and then walk around the plaza and discover Santa Fe

Bunny : (14:39)
March. Wow. I’m Well, and that, so that really is a testament to how , um, magical, um, it is. I So was this on your, were you on your way? Was this Mm-Hmm.

Adam : (14:53)
You? Yeah. This was, you

Bunny : (14:54)
Still, you left and you went elsewhere, right?

Adam : (14:56)
Yeah, we left. This was really the early days of our travels. We were about, uh, let’s see.

Christy : (15:02)
Well, we were about four

Adam : (15:03)
Months in, four to five months into our travels. Yeah. Yeah. When we initially came through Santa Fe. So we kept traveling, we went all through the South Florida, then up a bit of the East Coast, Charleston, Savannah, all the, all those amazing places. Um, and really en enjoying ourselves and taking our time. We would stop at a place and stay a month, uh, just no rush. And so when we were, we were done traveling, we decided that we were finished. We sold our truck and fifth wheel all as, as one package to a family. And, uh, it was just after Mardi Gras, uh, because we were staying on the beach in Pensacola, Florida, I remember. And, uh, the couple who bought our rig, uh, they were coming to get it right after Mardi Gras. So our last hurrah was the weekend of Mardi Gras. And the beach was crazy. And, uh, and then we bought a minivan, pulled a small trailer, and we decided, Hey, how about we go back to Santa Fe for a week and just explore? And we asked, asked the kids what they thought, they were like, yeah, let’s do it. Let’s go. And so we rented an Airbnb for a week in here in town, just, uh, off of Cerillos. And, uh, after that week, we decided to sign a year lease on a house, and, uh, move here, lock, stock, and barrel. And we ha we haven’t left since.

Christy : (16:32)
Yeah. Yeah.

Bunny : (16:33)
So when you think about that, um, when you came back and you stayed for a week, what were the things you did? Uh, you know, like if you were so, so let’s pretend you are, um, somebody who’s listening and you’re sort of intrigued. Um, what, what were the things you did that seemed to make this decision? Almost, uh, I mean, it was almost like you couldn’t decide, make a different decision. That’s how it feels to me when you talk about it. Uh,

Christy : (17:02)
All during our travels when we would come into a new city, um, our top two things as a family, actually three things. First of all was finding good coffee .

Adam : (17:14)
Absolutely.

Christy : (17:16)
Second was finding good pizza, . And third was good ice cream. Those were our three things. And Wow.

Adam : (17:25)
And the library.

Christy : (17:26)
Oh, and the library. Yeah. Libraries. Okay. So four things, but three of them were food because we’re foodies and, you know, our kids, the same four kids, you’re like, oh, coffee for Adam and I, pizza and ice cream for the kids. But we also loved finding the best pizza in a city. Um, and then of course, the libraries. And then as homeschool parents, we would look up , okay, what are the best things free to do in an area for a family? ’cause we were on a budget. Um, and so we were always looking for, all right, how can we see the city, but see it in a way that isn’t gonna cost us a fortune? And, um, libraries was always one of our first stops. Yeah. Because they almost always have amazing historical, um, resources. Librarians are fantastic for pointing out things to families, um, to do and see that are important. And then they also, of course, books, you know, and we found libraries to be one of our favorite things on our trips. We’d walk in and, you know, librarians were just so ready to help and encourage us.

Adam : (18:41)
And libraries will give you a library card if you don’t live in the community. So we have a lot of luck guard Yeah. From our travels.

Christy : (18:49)
Yeah.

Adam : (18:50)
Um, . Yeah. We just, you know, we ate our way through Santa Fe and drove around and walked around. Yes. Downtown in the plaza. And I think the biggest thing for us is, uh, was the friendliness of the people that we came into contact with. And we were in the grocery store. This happened twice to us in the grocery store. Uh, strangers came up to us and just said, wow, where are you from? And look at your beautiful family. Welcome to Santa Fe. And we even had one woman offer a prayer to us in the grocery store. And just, we felt this overwhelming, uh, welcome to Santa Fe Yeah. That we hadn’t felt anywhere else across the us and it really, uh, caused us to realize that we were supposed to stay, that this was the place. And, uh, just feeling welcomed by strangers is not common to have someone approach you randomly in, in stores. And so that was a really big deal for us.

Christy : (19:58)
Yeah. I mean, you know, we had traveled through a lot of the US and, and in places of the US that stereotypically are friendly and welcoming. Um, but, you know, we had four children. And so we would walk into places and, you know, you watch people headcount, , counting, how many of us are gonna walk through the door? How many of us are gonna climb out of our rv? The clown car? No, the clown car. Yeah. And, um, we did not feel that at all here. Um, and it was so refreshing to have our family be seen and welcomed as the gift that it is, because yeah. We have always seen our family and our four children as just this huge gift to both of us, to all of us. Mm-Hmm. . And, um, to have to come into a community where people saw that and express that to us was really, it was deeply moving to have people who valued. So our, you know, valued our family like we did and welcomed us with open arms and, you know, we’re like, what a gift. You know, what a blessing you have here and welcome. So That’s so

Bunny : (21:23)
Cool.

Christy : (21:24)
Yeah. And I know you asked, you kind of asked like if people were intrigued and they’re coming to Santa Fe, we kind of got off of that.

Bunny : (21:34)
Well, I just think, um, I mean, my experience and I, and as you know, because I mean, Adam’s a realtor with me, and you were my, my assistant before, but what I found is that people, and and there are people who like to say this, that Santa Fe and New Mexico as well, will either really embrace you or spit you out. I would say that the number of people and not spit you out, I don’t like that terminology, but the number of people that don’t stay is so, such a small percentage, or the number of people that don’t want to stay is such a small percentage. I think I’ve had one, um, buyer who came here and thought this was going to be their forever home. And after a year they’re like, Nope, not for us. But, but this is, I think the, I think the, in, in my experience, um, New Mexico is a place where you kind of get to be whatever, whoever you are and whatever you want to be. Um, I’ve lived in other states where that was not necessarily the truth. You know, you sort of needed to fit a mold that, that, um, worked for the locals. And I don’t think that’s true here. I don’t… It doesn’t sound like you found that either.

Adam : (22:49)
No. I mean, we, we are ourselves and we have felt the freedom to be ourselves. And, uh, I don’t know. New Mexico is just such a unique state, and I’ve lived in several states and, uh, there is just this pull to New Mexico and I think the warmth of the people, the history of New Mexico, the landscape, I mean, every day I still say out loud, wow, look how beautiful it is today. Look at those mountains and look at that view. And you know, my kids laugh at me if they’re in the car with me. And I know, dad, you say that every day.

Bunny : (23:31)
Uh, well, and you know, it’s, it’s true. I you know, I’ve gone to conferences on the East Coast and people will say, you’re in the desert. Right. And I’m, I’m like, that’s not, I mean, we are in the high desert. Yeah. But, but they have this idea that we are in the midst of a bunch of Saguaro cactuses. Right?

Adam : (23:51)
. Yeah. Oh yeah. Everybody, everybody thinks that. But we we’re really a mountain town. We have the mountains, we have the desert, we have the plateaus, we have rivers, we have, you know, we are, we, it is green in Santa Fe, New Mexico, believe it or not.

Bunny : (24:05)
Um, especially now. Tell folks about where you live, because that’s a, a pocket outside of Santa Fe. That’s pretty cool.

Adam : (24:14)
Yeah. So, um, we live in the Remedio Valley, and that is above Tesuque and then down into, uh, a historic valley north of Santa Fe. And we love it in this valley. It’s green, it’s quiet. I hike every morning across into almost BLM land. And, um, it’s, it’s a, just a small community that’s very intimate and also very friendly. I remember the first week we moved here, we had people pull into the driveway just to welcome us to the valley. And you don’t always get that, uh, these days.

Bunny : (25:00)
Yeah. Well, all, I mean, that’s, there are a lot of people that have lived there for generations, right?

Adam : (25:06)
There are, yes. Absolutely. Yeah.

Bunny : (25:08)
And the river runs, you said yesterday that the river runs all the time.

Adam : (25:12)
Yeah. So we have a little seasonal, uh, river or stream that runs behind our house. Uh, the Rio Midio, I believe runs all year long, but we’re on the other side of that. And so we have a little seasonal, uh, stream, and then we have the aeia, so we get to hear water and, uh, we even get mosquitoes, which, uh, you know, you don’t always think of in the desert, but Yes, they are here. Uh, and tons of wildlife

Bunny : (25:38)
In your part. Yeah. You have bear. Yeah. Right.

Adam : (25:41)
Yeah. Bear wild Turkey, bobcat, coyote, deer, you name it. Elk. We elk. We’ve seen it pass through our, through our property. Wow.

Bunny : (25:51)
I didn’t know about the elk. That’s cool. Okay. So now you, you, um, I mean, you went from being restaurateurs to being travelers and bloggers and homeschoolers, and now I want folks to know what you do because I want them to be able to find you. So Christy, you talk, you go first. How did this, how did you evolve into this, this crazy busy career you have now?

Christy : (26:17)
? Yeah. You know, um, when we traveled, we, um, we, well, for years I had bought and collected, uh, vintage and antique clothing. And I had sold it on the side as a little way to make money, um, while we owned the restaurant when I was home with kids. ’cause I needed something else to do. I didn’t

Adam : (26:40)
, I don’t know why ,

Christy : (26:42)
I did not need something else to do, but I did it . Um, so when we traveled, um, we actually continued that. And, um, I did all of the photography of the items that we were buying and selling. Um, and of course I, since our children were born, I had made it a side hobby of photographing them. And uh, so when we came to New Mexico and Adam started, um, working as your assistant, I remember, um, you saying to him, Hey, Christie takes photographs. Can she photograph? She could photograph a house for me. Right. You think she’d photograph a house for me, . And Adam said, sure, , I’ll ask her. Yeah, why not? And he came home and said, you can photograph a house. Right. And I said, Adam, I have no idea how to photograph a house . And um, and he’s like, oh, you can do it. I went, okay, I’ll do it. And uh, so I remember photographing that first house for you on Declovina down off of Siringo.

Bunny : (27:45)
Oh, the Dec Lavina house. It wasn’t, that was

Christy : (27:47)
The first, I think

Bunny : (27:48)
Because it was wel Roble, but it was that Declovina that was,

Christy : (27:51)
That was Declovina first then we, yeah. Welta Roble was second. Um, and so, you know, I just started studying how to do it. And um, so I’m self-taught, but that turned into a full blown commercial photography business from there. Yeah. Um, you know, and it really was the result of you believing in me and, um, and Adam believing in me. ’cause I certainly didn’t at the time, um, ’cause I just saw myself really as more of a hobby photographer. Um, but you know, you and Adam both were like, you can do it , this is great . And, um, you know, gave me the opportunity and then really the incentive to learn. And, um, you know, I’m so grateful for that and, um, grateful for both of your belief in me and, um, you know, me being able to take something that I really loved, um, still loved to do and taking photographs and expand it and, um, have it be something that I get has continued to let me have flexibility to raise our children and be with our kids as much as possible. .

Bunny : (29:03)
Well, and I want folks to know that you don’t just do houses. I mean, you do restaurant, you do, um, I mean you’ve had other clients, right?

Christy : (29:13)
Yes, yes. No, I, you know, it started out with doing those first couple houses for you. Um, but you know, right at the beginning of the pandemic, um, well the year before the pandemic I was working the photography business. Adam was working it full-time. One of our teenage sons was working it, Addison was working it with us. And, um, we were so busy. Um, we were on, we were growing about 25% year over year.

Adam : (29:42)
Yeah. 2019.

Christy : (29:44)
And so 2020 we was set to be our biggest year yet. And I was not sure how in the world we were going to be able to keep up with all the clients. We were trying to kind of juggle that growth that small businesses have to contend with. And then March of 2020 happened and everything completely stopped, as we all know. Um, yeah. And so at that point, um, you know, everything was canceled and we went, okay, well what, what’s,

Adam : (30:21)
Yeah. We hunkered down like everybody else for that Yeah. Season. Um, but then Christy started, we started talking about trying to sort of branch out from real estate Yeah. And do different things within the photography world. And so we, Christie started photographing more portraits and events. Uh, we did a wedding and then food photography and really just expanded her portfolio. And so now you’re really doing a, a mix of different, uh, yeah. Projects, which is, which is great. ’cause it’s variety and Right. Um, it increases the interest.

Bunny : (31:01)
I would say though, I, I, I mean everything you do is beautiful, Christie, and I’m, now, I, I don’t think any people will call me and say, who does your photography for your listings? But I would say if you look at, especially like on your website, that beautiful baby that you, um, you’re and my family photo, you’re really, those family portraits are, are you, they’re amazing. ’cause your heart is so, um, it’s, uh, that’s, you have a heart for families and you do that exceptionally well. Yeah. So how do people find you?

Christy : (31:37)
So, um, the name of our business is Four Birds Photography. Um, four Birds because we, me especially would call our children our, my Little Birds. And we have four. So, um, it’s the number four birds photography.com. You can see my portfolio and my work and reach out to me. Um, I’m on Instagram as well, so you can reach me there, but the website’s probably the fastest and easiest way to find me. And I do love, I love working with families. Um, I love working with businesses that are like families and trying to tell their story, um, and what they bring to our community. And, uh, so yeah, it’s work that found me. And um, and I love it.

Christy : (32:25)
I like, and I have, and the Beautiful Baby on my website is your, one of your beautiful grandsons on there. , because I’ve been able to photo, you know, I photographed him as a newborn in the middle of the pandemic. And I remember I had bought a new lens that would let me stay back. Yeah. Plenty. Especially from babies and little ones. So families felt safe to have me come around and photograph and I still ha I mean, we had masks on and um Yep. And photographed the Little Baby Milo when he was so tiny

Bunny : (33:01)
, who’s now almost four years old. And yesterday spent the day with little Ava who is not little anymore. She’s not five old , she’s 16, which is crazy, but, and Adam, tell him what you’re doing. Yes.

Adam : (33:15)
Yeah. So I have the pleasure of being a realtor here in Santa Fe. And I really love, I really love it. You know, the best thing about being a realtor is just being able to help people. Because really my, I find value in loving people and helping people and it’s such a huge transaction to buy or sell a home. That to walk with somebody from the beginning to the end and get through that process is quite rewarding. And so that’s what I get to do every day. I’m grateful for it every day. And Bunny, you’re a great mentor. It’s been so good so far teaming with you and, um, it’s just we’re

Bunny : (33:58)
Having fun. Yeah.

Adam : (34:00)
We’re having fun and, uh, learning every day and growing and, uh, it really is just a wonderful, uh, career. So yes, that’s what I do here in Amazing Santa Fe.

Bunny : (34:13)
So we are going to have a link. I mean, there are links because somebody’s listening to this right now. Um, there are links to both Christie’s website and to Adam’s, um, Instagram account and to our, my about the about page on our website that, but I want people to be able to go to your Instagram page and find your phone number and give you a call because, um, just in the same way that you, um, made a choice to, um, you know, nurture those kids and recreate that relationship you had with them, that it’s how you treat the rest of the world too. And so I want people to know that and I want ’em to be able to find you because it’s so rewarding to see what you’ve done, not just for your kids, but for yourselves and for your community. So there’s my bit of sappiness for the day, but thank you so much. This has been so much fun.

Adam : (35:10)
I know it always so good to talk with you, bunny. Yeah,

Bunny : (35:15)
Yeah. Thanks for being my guest and I’m, folks are gonna find you. I’m so excited.

Christy : (35:20)
Yeah. Thank you so much Yes. For giving us the chance to talk with you, bunny. We have really loved it.

Bunny : (35:26)
Thanks to all of you for taking the time to listen to the I Love New Mexico podcast. If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please feel free to share it with your friends on social media or by texting or messaging or emailing them a copy of the podcast. If you have a New Mexico story that you’d like to share with us, don’t hesitate to reach out. Our email address is I love New Mexico blog@gmail.com and we are always, always looking for interesting stories about New Mexico. Subscribe, share, and write a review so that we can continue to bring you these stories about the Land of Enchantment. Thank you so much.