The Fountain Family welcomed little Larisa in April and she couldn’t be sweeter! This week they’re sharing the sweet way Marisa told Josh she was pregnant, some great advice for new parents, what they love about running their business in Glens Falls, and lots more!
Tell us about your family!
We are Marisa and Josh Fountain and we just welcomed our baby girl named Larisa June Fountain. She was born April 23rd of this year.
We are from and live in Queensbury, both graduates of Queensbury High. We are the owners of Sweets by Marisa, which is located at 217 Dix Ave, in Glens Falls. We have been open three years this past May. Unfortunately due to Covid-19 we are temporarily closed, and were unable to celebrate our anniversary with our amazing customers. Josh also owns 518 Auto and Cycle, which is a mobile automotive, marine and power sport electronics company. Both of our businesses have also been winners of Best of the Region the last two years.
We love the area that we live in and our community. We have had so much support for our business and also for our new addition to our family. The Adirondack region has always been special to us. The local events such as the Balloon Festival, LARAC, and Taste of the North Country are all favorites of ours. One of our favorite things to do is have dinner at locally owned restaurants - Mikado and Craft on 9 being our two favorites. During the summer, we enjoy spending as much time as we can outside and on the Lake. Fall being my favorite time of year, we decorate our home with mums and pumpkins from The Garden Barn while enjoying their amazing cider donuts.
Our family is very big into the holidays. Christmas is a special time of year for us. We decorate our home, watch Christmas movies, and love driving around looking at the Christmas lights. It's a special time with our customers at Sweets by Marisa as well. We have our signature Grinch cupcakes that not only the kids love, but the adults do as well. And we get to help our customers bring their ideal sweets to their homes. Each year we have done our Christmas Eve dessert box, which is an assortment of our cookies, fudge, and eclairs, as well as our decorate your own sugar cookie box. Families have such fun decorating their cookies together. Our customers send us photos of them enjoying each other while decorating, and of course their finished art work. Owning not only one, but two businesses in our area has really brought us close to our community and we are forever grateful.
Sharing the News
When I found out I was pregnant my husband was working. A few years ago I had made a box of cards that said “Open When”. One of those cards was an “Open when I tell you I'm pregnant” card, so when Josh got home, I walked out of our bedroom holding the envelope in my hands, as he turned around to talk to me, it was the first thing he saw. We couldn't have been happier with the news.
Telling our family was one of the most exciting moments for us. We did a little something different for each of our parents and my sister and his brother with signs and sayings. They were ecstatic when we shared the news. It had been something everyone had been waiting very patiently for.
Our friends were not expecting this news. With Josh and I running two businesses and being on the go all of the time, they thought it would be a while. We made Christmas ornaments, that read Aunt and Uncle, with their names on them. Everyone was so happy!
We did find out the gender and had a gender reveal party at our home. All of our family and friends came to enjoy the exciting news with us, and my Uncle who is from Hudson Falls, but now lives in Missouri was able to Facetime with us during the reveal so he wouldn't miss this special moment. We popped a large black balloon in our backyard that had pink confetti inside. My husband had no doubt in his mind that it was a girl, and of course he was right!
Josh, Marisa, and Larisa Fountain (photo provided)
All About Larisa
Larisa June was born on April 23, 2020 weighing 5lbs 12.5 ounces and measuring 17.5 inches.
I wanted to name her after myself but Josh wouldn't let me - haha. So we decided on Larisa. Her middle name is after my grandmother, June Allen, who passed away the week before I found out I was pregnant.
Larisa already has such a personality. She smiles and makes all kinds of faces. She doesn't really cry, she will only fuss when she is cold, wet, or hungry. We couldn't have asked for a better baby. The amount of hair she has is one of her most popular traits that everyone notices immediately. That she gets from me, I had a lot of hair as a baby. She resembles me quite a bit, but has Josh's eyes and mannerisms. She loves sleeping with her hand behind her head, or straight back above her head, which is one hundred percent her dad.
We have been very fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time together as a family. We take daily walks together, set aside time for Larisa to have tummy time, and I'd have to say bath time is our favorite right now. She loves the warm water and having her head massaged.
On Parenthood
Our favorite thing about being parents so far is watching Larisa grow. She has changed so much since she was born, and we are a part of her growth and learning. She is the best thing that has ever happened to us. The most challenging part of being parents so far is getting things done around our house. Not because we are tired, but because all we want to do is spend time with her, and we catch ourselves just staring at her while she sleeps because she is so cute!
Being a parent has taught us that a lot of things that we thought mattered really don't. She is now the most important part of our lives and we will do everything we can for her. Becoming parents has changed our responses to many different things. At night when we are sleeping, as soon as she moves or makes a noise we are both awake. We also just somehow know what each of her fussy cries mean, and what she needs at that moment.
We are looking forward to so many different stages of her life, but currently the one we are looking forward to the most is when she hugs us for the first time.
Words of Wisdom
The best advice we have gotten so far is to always listen to what she has to say at every age. No matter what it is. If we give her our full attention and listen to the little stuff, as she gets older she will still come to us and talk to us about the big stuff. Nothing your child says is unimportant.
Advice that we would give to new parents is that the more relaxed and calm you are, the more relaxed and calm your baby is. Babies pick up on stress and tension, which then may make them start to get fussy. Now of course this is easier said than done sometimes, so make sure you always take a little bit of time every day for yourself.
On Newborn Essentials
We have a swing that is also a bassinet, and it has three features such as laying flat, being propped at a slight angle, and then it is also able to sit her up. It has been amazing for us. Larisa will sleep and just relax in hers with no problem.
Our Diaper Genie is something we would absolutely recommend to parents. It saves you from constantly taking your garbage out, even when the bag isn't full.
Our Bottle Sterilizer is our favorite tool. We don't have to worry about boiling our bottles, we are able to stick her bottles in the sterilizer, turn it on, and they are done in ten minutes!
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