September Family Dinner Night - MOD PIZZA
OUR FIRST FAMILY DINNER NIGHT OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS ON THE BOOKS!
On Tuesday, September 26th, Our local MOD PIZZA in Reston, VA will be hosting an all day fundraiser for our school!
All pizzas (and other scrumptious things) sold to customers who show our flyer will earn us 25% of their purchase.
THIS MEANS ANYONE YOU SHARE THE FLYER WITH CAN SUPPORT COMMON GROUND CHILDCARE! Please pass it along to friends, neighbors, coworkers, anyone who loves a good time and may not want to cook on a busy Tuesday.
YOU CAN ALSO ORDER ONLINE WITH THE CODE: MODGIVES25
Forget Taco Tuesday, Mod Pizza has delicious options for your most limited eaters!!
You can get your pizza or salad any way you like. We have had kids just order the pizza crust with olive oil and rosemary!
They offer gluten-friendly and cauliflower crusts.
They offer little cakes that are SO AMAZING they do not need a name.
Check out their menu here!
You can do takeout, but you can also dine-in! Many families from Common Ground take these nights as an opportunity to dine with other CG friends. Dinner out with littles is a lot more fun when they have a whole host of friends they get to see out side of the classroom.
WHO KNOWS? Maybe your child will see another kid trying a pizza they’ve never had before, and get curious! Trying new foods is much more likely to happen with peers than parents.
Hope to see you there! Post your favorite pizza order in the comments!! And no haters ;) we love everyone at Common Ground, even people like me who dig the pineapple/jalapeno combo.
Season of Giving: Scholastic Fair
IT’S THE SEASON OF GIVING, AND WE WANT TO GET OUR KIDS IN ON THE ACTION!
We are doing an IN-PERSON Scholastic Book Fair November 29th-December 3rd (online shopping until December 12!), and along with doing your normal Holiday Shopping, we encourage you to contribute to our BOOK FUNDRAISER! Any book you buy for the fundraiser will be donated to a kiddo in need for Christmas.
We have heard how there will be a lot of shipping delays for the holidays. The bonus of our Scholastic Fair is that the books will be right here! You can bring them home, stash them in your present closet, and not be constantly checking your Amazon Orders to see if it will come on time. Give yourself the gift of Peace of Mind.
Kids are constantly bombarded with ads for toys. YouTube, streaming services, other kids on the playground, jingles from stores, shows WITH toys, books based on shows based on toys, it’s a consumeristic NIGHTMARE that is almost impossible to turn off.
What we are hoping for with our Scholastic Fair is to encourage kids to look around the fabulous, eye-catching, technicolor Smörgåsbord of books and pick out a gift for someone else.
Books help stimulate the mind, body, and spirit. Books can inspire empathy for a character as intense and real as it could for a friend they know off the page. Books are an incredible outlet and emotional guide. Is there any better gift than a book? Yes. Teaching a kid to give that incredible, life changing gift to another kid.
DO YOU HAVE FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND NEIGHBORS WHO WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE??
Make sure to share our link when it goes live! We will share it EVERYWHERE!!
Pizza Pizza Party Party!!
On Friday, October 15th, we had a DAY LONG PIZZA PARTY!
We are big fans of themes here at Common Ground, and if there is an opportunity to integrate FUN into eating, we are going to take it!
All of our classes got to have Ledo’s cheese pizza, and they chowed down! Even our littlest Common Ground champions got into the fun.
That night, we had several families and friends who continued the pizza party fun! Some ordered from their favorite restaurant, some made pizzas from scratch, and some got the best of both worlds by making individual pizzas from our Little Caesar’s Fundraiser!
Part of the awesome benefit of the LITTLE CAESAR’S PIZZA KITS is that picky eaters get to MAKE their own pizza, and know EXACTLY what goes into it! Maybe they try a little bit of cheese while they put it on. Maybe they lick the sauce spoon, or like the look of the little olive circles so much that they use them to make a pizza smiley face. At the end, once it’s all baked, maybe the kiddos are so proud that they want to try the food that THEY MADE THEMSELVES. Give them agency over what they put on their pizza. Maybe they don’t want to try the sauce. Maybe they just want to add olive oil and rosemary to the bread. Maybe they want to put the cheese on before the sauce or wrap the pepperonis inside the dough!
Remember: You aren’t just making pizza. You are making little independent learners who aren’t afraid to experiment. You are rewarding their curiosity and cherishing the experience rather than being tied to convention or recipe. And who knows? Maybe Banana pizza with cinnamon topping is your next family tradition.
THANK YOU FOR CREATING NEW MEMORIES WITH US! Remember! Even when we are apart, we are together.
CG Fundraiser: Little Caesar's! So Good it's SCARRRYYYY
YOU ASKED FOR IT, WE ARE DOING IT AGAIN!
From October 1st until October 31st we will be hosting another
Little Caesar’s Pizza Kit Fundraiser!!
What is a Little Caesar’s Pizza Kit?
Little Caesar’s has created these amazing kits with all the fixins you need to create a pizza night for your family! They have mini pizzas, regular sized pizzas, breadsticks, and so much more!
Kids can help you create your perfect pizza! They can spread the sauce, sprinkle the cheese, add the ingredients. Did you know that kids are more likely to try foods they help prepare? You can reward them with a scrumptious cookie they also baked themselves!
These are frozen! They keep for any occasion. Movie nights! Birthdays! Rainy days when you don’t feel like cooking. Rough days when you want to see a smile. Have a perfect memory stored away for when you need it most.
Anyone can buy them and support us! Share THIS LINK on your social media, with your office, with your fam! Anyone who buys a mouth-watering pizza, breadsticks, cheese bread, or cookie kit with our link earns us money!
This fundraiser is completely online and runs 24/7! The Pizza Kits get delivered right to your door, so it’s simple, easy, perfect.
You could have a Pizza Pumpkin Party where you carve pumpkins and eat pepperoni!
You could watch (not so) spooky movies with a large spinach and pineapple pizza!
You could roast marshmallows in the cool Autumn breeze, tell Halloween stories, and enjoy simple-yet-effective cheese pizza!
What other Autumn Pizza Nights could you Enjoy? Share in the Comments…. also….
WE ARE TRYING TO CREATE RESTON’S LARGEST PIZZA PARTY!
On October 15th we will be cooking our own pizzas and going live from the center! We will read books, sing songs, and YES! Eat lots of pizza! We encourage you to order your kits early and do the same! If we get enough people taking pictures and eating their pizza at the same time from their homes, we could actually host THE LARGEST PIZZA PARTY RESTON HAS EVER SEEN! When Rome did it, they got 1,146 people. While we know that it’s Covid and wow… that’s ambitious… LET’S SHOOT FOR THE MOON! We can only land among the delicious pizza stars.
HOW DO YOU HELP US SELL PIZZAS AND ACHIEVE OUR GOAL OF LARGEST RESTON PIZZA PARTY?
HERE IS OUR PIZZA FUNDRAISER LINK
Share with friends, family, neighbors, tiktok buddies, facebook acquaintances, insta-friends, and more! Tell them to check out our Facebook on the night of the 15th from 6:00PM to 9:00PM and take pictures with their pizzas!
We are so excited to share this hilarious, fun, ridiculous goal with you. This is going to be SO AMAZING that… it’s almost spooky.
Save the Date!
Your CG Family
CG Spirit Night: BASKIN ROBBINS BACK TO SCHOOL
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8TH FROM 6-9PM
WE WILL BE CELEBRATING THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR
AT BASKIN ROBBINS!!!
A lot of our school age kiddos have already started classes (which is also worth celebrating!!) but our preschool programs start on Tuesday, September 7th! We wanted to give everyone the opportunity to say goodbye to the summer months and Hello to school in any delicious style they want.
IT IS ALSO A FUNDRAISER!! Every wonderful, yummy, technicolor treat purchased gives us proceeds to help support your classrooms all year! Encourage your friends, family, and neighbors to come celebrate the new year with us, because everyone should have an excuse to get icecream.
Worried about Covid? They have amazing outdoor seating! Still don’t want to stay out? You can order pick-up or delivery!!
However you order, just make sure that you are letting them know you are ordering to support Common Ground! Along with eating something delightfully tasty.
If you have any questions you can email LJ Donnell. Happy September!
CG Birthday: How to Celebrate with Us!
We are turning 49 on April 6th, but we are celebrating ALL MONTH LONG!!
Normally this would warrant one of our excellent all-school events with food trucks, moon bounces, a giant cake, maybe a carnival…
But since we can’t do that, we are finding a ton of new, exciting ways to celebrate, and we want to tell you how you can join us from your own home.
Sign up for our Spring Stuffy Sleepover!
Our featured author Andrea Lamont will be doing a reading of her new book “The Friendship Rock” for the stuffys and their kiddo friends at home. This event is a total blast that we really think is a perfect way to celebrate together while apart.
Participate in and Share our Book Fair!
From April 12th-April19th, 24/7, you can participate in our Online Book Fair with Scrawl Books! There will be readings, book recommendations, and wish lists! Whether you are supporting your classroom, buying your kids’ new favorite book, or finding your next “relax by the fire pit” Spring read, any book you buy supports our fundraising efforts to raise money for our Non-Profit mission. The best birthday present you can give Common Ground is helping us raise money for our educational efforts.
Host your own Fundraiser on Facebook!
Our Non-Profit missions benefit our students, our teachers, our outreach, our support of much needed educational reform. By supporting our beloved school, we are also supporting our community! Helping us raise money to support those efforts is an AMAZING WAY to help us celebrate our birthday.
Here is our Our PayPal Donation Link where anyone can donate! Thank you for widening our impact.
You can Celebrate “The Week of the Young Child” with us!
We have several activities we are doing with all of the children at the center, but here are some ideas for how to celebrate at home!
Music Monday: Instead of turning on the tv when you get home, turn on the stereo and have a dance party!! Show your kids your favorite songs, and let them show you theirs, make a big Youtube playlist of your favorites, dance your heart out!
Pro Tip: Eighties Pop makes great Dance Music, here is our Owl’s Spotify List.
Struggling to come up with songs? Check out our Mister Josh Rock at the Blocks series on Youtube!
Tasty Tuesday: THROW YOUR OWN COMMON GROUND BIRTHDAY PARTY!! We know putting together something complicated on a Tuesday night feel like it’ll take more energy than you have, so you can always save this for a free weekend day. Whether you decide to try it on a weeknight, or a weekend, this does not have to be over the top to be special with your kiddos. Big Bird has a super easy Banana Bread Recipe! Make healthy banana bread “cupcakes,” stick candles in them, sing Happy Birthday, and chow down!
Work Together Wednesday: At school we will be planting our new class gardens!! We encourage you to plant local, pollinator-friendly plants with your kiddo so they can contribute to a healthy environment. Every little act brings great goodness to the world, and if your kid learns that early with you, they will be more confident and ready to do more and more each day.
Artsy Thursday: Draw chalk art on your sidewalk. Send postcards to family members you haven’t seen awhile with pictures from your kids. Let your kids paint with ice cubes or paint rocks to leave on your local trails. Any little art project that you do with your kid is time spent creating something lovely in the world, no matter what your skill level is. This is also a perfect opportunity to show teacher appreciation: If you want to make your teacher’s day, have your kiddo make an art project for them telling their teacher just how much they matter.
Family Friday: Movie Night! Family Walk! Shadow Charades! Board games! If you want to make it Common Ground themed, this is a fine night to throw the CG Birthday Party! You can also do a “name that teacher” guessing game.
All-Smiles Saturday: Sign your kids up for our Saturday Session on April 10th! While your kids are partying it up with us, you can relax, go on a date, do some much needed yard work, finish that 1000 piece puzzle you’ve been saving, anything that makes you smile!
HOWEVER: If SPRING CLEANING without interruption is what really makes your Saturday perfect, we highly suggest saving any gently used clothing/linens, small household appliances, personal accessories, and books for our JUNE FUND-DRIVE DONATION EVENT! By cleaning out your houses and freeing up your space, you could earn your school BIG MONEY. It’s our favorite type of “fundraiser,” because it is a WIN WIN WIN. You get a cleaned out bureau and don’t create more waste, we get much needed funds for our various educational objectives, and someone gets much needed “new to them” items for an affordable price from UNIQUE without creating more waste.
Whatever you do to celebrate, however you do it, please send us pictures. We would love to make a huge birthday picture collage for the center to show all the ways we honored Common Ground Childcare. Show us your cakes, your decorations, your art projects and gardens! Whatever it looks like, it was done with love, and that is everything to us.
Love Love Love,
Your CG Family
P.S. Let us know how you plan on participating on Common Ground’s Birthday in the Comments!