Palo Alto Tender Tracks Wednesday Oct. 6, 2013 Day 10

Waxing Crescent Moon
Forest Grove in Los Altos

Natalie returned and with high, happy, engaged spirits! Eric was just in happy heaven today and Jasper had a great deal of fun with Bosch.  Nareya and Dahlia were off playing on their own a lot today.  Aurora was her adventuresome, belly laughing, engaged self.  Anissa was her rough and tumble, smiley, happy self.  Hailey was a bit quiet and reserved yet filled with stories of home life and Emme was simply, grand!
Very  importantly though, today was Dahlia’s Birthday!!!  She brought us a special birthday snack and we sang her our special birthday song.  In circle we had all new songs accept, we still are singing the cricket song because, they are still singing themselves!!!   A lot of the songs, and the story are about Squirrels.  With this we brought their awareness to nuts and what might be under ground or buried under ground.  We shared with them, through story and song, where the Squirrels nests are which brought us into looking up and in the trees.
After circle the group played with Bosch while Eric and I went to the bathroom and then, off on an adventure down into the dry creek bed we went.  Along the way we found lot’s of feathers and Bay nut babies to be born.  We then discovered yummy Red Wood Sorrel to eat when we got to the Grove.
Once there, they ate lunch and…
• played on a great log that was WONDERFUL  for bouncing and bouncing and bouncing and bouncing….
• building up an existing “house” structure.  All but Jasper played in this and cleaned it and swept it with sticks and then we took some Ivy that was cut and piled  and put it on the house
• I became a squirrel early on and had them bury me and then they treated me as a squirrel for quite sometime.  They fed me in the house and buried nuts for me to find.
• Jasper was playing with Bosch and finding glass that they then buried. They visited us for a bit
• Dahlia and Nareya went to pee by two trees but then it turned out that they really POOPED!  The whole group came to see and then we all got sticks and stones and buried it so no one would step in it and all the bugs would bring it back into Mother Earth’s arms so she can make good soil.  I then shared how they can let me know when they need to poop and we will find a place that is easier to bury.
There were great games going on, balancing on logs which Aurora had such great success with.   At first she wanted lot’s of help but then, I showed her, by sitting in front of her, how she could scooch along the log and make it across.  She did and was so happy for this success.
After making it all the way back to the bus, on the way back they all got small Golden guides to read/ their request, and they were happy and content.