Covid-19 Vaccine: First Two Days
Hurray! It’s Vaccine Day!
What to Expect — Vaccine Reactions
That’s what we (Ms. Liz and Ms. LJ) have been cheering all day!
When we saw that Preschool Teachers would be eligible for the vaccine starting this week, we decided we wanted to be leading the pack and documenting our journey all the way. We talk a lot about this in our live video right after our first vaccination, but here is a quick overview.
We hope that by getting the vaccine as soon as we could, being open and honest about our experiences, providing peer reviewed research, and encouraging everyone to talk to their PERSONAL physician, we can help alleviate any fears and dispel any misinformation relating to the Covid-19 vaccine.
When we arrived at INOVA Fairfax at 8:38 AM there was a long, appropriately spaced line! It wound all the way to the parking-lot. But the weather was good and spirits were high!
One of the things LJ was anxious about was not the vaccine at all, but the fact that we had to go to a hospital. We were concerned about being contacts of all of those people, masks or no. But the line moved at an even clip and, in no time at all, we were waiting with our little registration clip boards for a nurse.
Some quick thoughts before THE BIG MOMENT:
Everyone on the staff was excited we were there. They were encouraging and helpful. We had our IDs, proof that we worked at a school and weren’t “jumping the line,” and our appointment confirmation sheets, but they took us at our word. We honestly think that they are just trying to make sure everyone gets it as easily and painlessly as possible, which was encouraging. This is something that should be available to as many people as possible as quickly as possible, and Fairfax County is a medical powerhouse.
There were at least fifty stations with health professionals standing by. Our nurses were friendly, warm, ready to answer any questions.
WE BOTH GOT THE PFIZER VACCINE. Fact Sheet for Pfizer Vaccine
The stick was surprisingly not painful! Giving blood, the TDAP, Flu shots, PNEUMAVAX, there have been far worse shots in our experience. They gave us a card so that we could schedule our second vaccination in within 21 days. We were moved into an area stationed with health professionals where we could sit between 15-30 minutes to see if we had any immediate reactions, either from the vaccine or, more likely, a Vasovagle Syncope reaction from being stuck with a needle.
(What is Vasovagle Syncope? READ MORE HERE)
In the afternoon, Ms. Victoria, our fantastic OWLS teacher, also got her vaccine! Hurray! We felt empowered, like we could finally, FINALLY do something about this pandemic. This was a concrete step in the right direction, a small action to say “we are here to support our health, our families, and our community!” We finished up the day with a Kindergarten Interest Meeting all about our beliefs in play-based curriculums and what our Common Ground Kindergarten would look like this coming September!
Whether it was the excitement, the long day, or the vaccine, all of us went to bed early, feeling quite tired and a little warm.
Ms. LJ felt a bit itchy around the site, and an immediate tightness in the shoulder that lasted until Saturday. It was never any worse than what you would experience with the TDAP shot. She also went to bed early both Thursday and Friday night.
Ms. Liz was dizzy at first, a regular reaction for her to most vaccines, and her shoulder also felt tight as the day went on.
Ms. Victoria had pain in her shoulder, and for the first three days she had fatigue, flu-like symptoms, and occasional hot flashes.
Mr. Josh had the shoulder pain and flu like symptoms the next day, but two days out already feels better.
We are excited to announce that Ms. Adella, Ms. Mimi, Ms. Simi, Ms. Pinky, Ms. Vanessa, Ms. Petty, Ms. Janette, and Ms. Kisha will all be getting their first doses over the next two weeks as well!
Saving our Planet: Recycling
Okay! So you want to be more green! You want to get those three R’s in action.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
But where do you start?
We all know that change needs to happen on a world-wide scale. It seems all-encompassing, overwhelming. What can we do as our house, our family, our one person self?
Well, our kiddos are learning about just that. Starting in November, our Rising Stars and Honeybees classes will begin a RECYCLING unit! They will be sorting their recyclables, creating new things from old, and learning life-long habits to reduce their carbon footprint .
We recommend these books to help cement those essential insights on how to protect their world:
Lift-The-Flap Questions and Answers about Recycling Trash — Katie Daynes
A comprehensive, interactive book all about recycling that answers all your curious kid’s questions! The pictures are enchanting, the facts are sharp, the message is STICKY.
Planet Earth Mazes — Sam Smith
Does your kid love to doodle while they learn? Planet Earth Mazes is a book chock full of facts and enchanting images to capture your child while they solve complex mazes and exert their logic skills.
Be the Change, Make it Happen — Bernadette Russell
As we said above, it can be overwhelming to want to help, to enact BIG CHANGE, but be a small person. Bernadette Russell shows kids how even the littlest changes (and the littlest person) can change the course of the future.
These are incredible books to feed your kids’ appetite for knowledge and can be purchased at any time. But if you purchase them this weekend (October 23-26th) Common Ground gets 10% of the funds!
(Visit our Book Fair here)
In the meantime, here are some steps to get you going at home!
1) Look up your local recycling facility HERE
2) Learn which items can be recycled and how HERE
3) Find some creative/fun REUSE projects to do with your kids HERE
4) Find some ways to REDUCE your use of disposable products HERE
We will be posting more ways to do those 3R’s on our Facebook as well as easy tips to reduce your carbon footprint, so check us out! PLEASE also let us know what you are doing at home! We need to work as a team to keep this planet GREEN!!
Have a FANTASTIC DAY!
LJ and your Common Ground Team!