Naked bath-body groupon and free hugs day

My day in pictures...

The first order of business for the day was lunch at the Black Walnut Cafe in Rice Village. I had a side Greek Salad and a Roasted Vegetable Omelette - both of which were divinely delicious! Highly recommended! I got Daline the roses just because, they spoke her name when I saw them, and she's been working so hard at her education in all things music. Viva Spring Break! We tried for weeks and weeks to schedule this day to get together and use the "groupon" she'd gotten me for Christmas and we finally found the perfect day. And it was a perfect day! The weather was absolutely amazingly delicious, all sunshine and breeze and beauty.
After an early lunch, we walked over to Naked Body+Bath. I'd never heard of the place before Daline got me this gift for X-mas, but it's very cool! You create your own fragrances for lotions, perfumes, shampoos, bath gel or whatever you pick. We both opted to use our money toward a lotion using the Pink Sugar-Milk and Honey scent combo we made up, plus we each got a free make-your-own cologne.
Even without buying something, you get a free foot soak with a fizzing bath bomb, plus after the soak, they give you some Happy Feet sea salt scrub to rub and scrub your feet with, which makes your feet as soft as a baby's bottom. Then you rinse that off, they dry your feet, then they give you some Happy Feet lotion to rub in. Last, they spray the Happy Feet spray! It makes your feet happy warm and tingly for about 30 minutes afterwards. The Happy Feet line smells really good. It's got a mix of oil of mint thyme, peppermint, tea tree, and lavender. Time to check out! We had quite the adventure at the check-out counter, with us and the lady mixing, spilling, mixing more, adding more fragrance...We accidentally tumped some mica glitter all over the counter so we added that to the lotion, and then all over us as well. I swear by the time we left the place you could smell us from Timbuktu!
Having fun with lotion!
Next mission - FREE HUGS! We walked to the front of Rice Village on Morningside, and started giving out hugs. Umm, Daline? Your sign is upside down! :) We met up with an old friend of Daline's (Clint) from way back in the days that she had first met me, some 20 years or so ago, who took most of these pics!
As we like to say Amigas siempre!
Would you like a hug? Maybe? Come on, you know you want one!
OK, a sideways hug will do. He talked to us a while, and I think got a second hug later!
They were sitting on a bench close by, and after a while came over and asked us what this was all about. We explained there's no strings attached - just hugs! We talked a bit about India, where they're from. I spent a night there near Darjeeling back in 07, while trekking through Nepal! Yes it does look like I'm tickling him but I swear I'm not! Ha ha!
Hugs R Us!
These folks just loved the hug concept! They each got hugs from both of us and wanted to take pictures!
Hey that guy's cute!
Him too!
Hugs make the world go 'round! Take one, pass it on!
Daline gave out the roses later in the day!Whew all that hugging was hard work. We were worn out, and decided to go across the street to get some Nachos Cubanos - nachos with plantains and black beans (yum!) at El Meson Cuban Restaurant. And while at a Cuban resturant how could I not sample a mojito, since after all I am on an international quest for the ultimate mojito, and mojitos are a Cuban drink! And GUESS WHAT?! I found it!! This is the best mojito I have had the world round!! It was very delicious, just perfectly made! That makes sense, since it's a Cuban resturant... my previous favorite was in the Hotel Oro Verde bar in Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Christmas 09 pics

My beautiful daughter by the Christmas tree!
Copyright (c) 2009 Wendee Holtcamp

My daughter took many of these photos and Sam took a few also. Savannah is now a budding photographer herself so even though she just got her first nice Canon camera last year, she likes to take and use my yet more expensive camera... She is taking photojournalism at school and has her own blog and is very talented! She is much better at photo editing than I am, so these are just some shots I barely edited. She'll have more on her blog soon.

We went to see Avatar on Christmas Adam (Adam came before Eve... ha ha!) - and we all loved it. We didn't see the 3D version, but I'd like to if I see it again. Here's the skinny on Christmas - but below are the pictures that tell the story. Christmas Eve I baked my homemade pies - pumpkin and apple - and made a broccoli casserole (which nobody liked but me... but I love this casserole and now I have a huge bunch of it - ha!). Then me, Doug and the kids went to church around 6pm, which was a really nice festive service. After church, we came home and watched It's a Wonderful Life while eating a bunch of random hors d'oevres like baked brie, chips and queso, strawberries with chocolate fondue, summer sausage, hummus and naan bread, and chicken salad with crackers. Yum! The kids opened one gift each. When the kids went to bed, we packed up their stockings with Santa gifts and then Doug and I watched Lost... We're on the last season out on DVD. I love that show!

Christmas Eve we got up relatively early and the we all opened their stocking gifts and we ate pie for breakfast (what else?). Next we opened all the gifts under the tree, one at a time. The next big plan for Christmas was to have our 2nd annual FREE HUGS event at Starbucks. Last year my ex had the kids so I had wanted to do this ever since I saw the Youtube video and heard about the FREE HUGS campaign. I had just started dating Doug so I roped him into doing it. Ah the things you can do with new love... this year I had to rope the kids into doing it with us. It's funny, Savannah was all excited about doing it if her friends would come, but of course on Christmas few people are around to go stand at Starbucks and give out free hugs. So she didn't want to go. She thought it would be embarrassing. So we went to a Starbucks a bit further away from our house to minimize the chance she'd encounter someone from her school. Ha! But once we got there I think everyone had a good time. My friend Georgia and her family came again this year.

After we were done with that, we came home and I cooked up a pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes, gravy, sauteed mushrooms, corn, and stuffing. I had made the broccoli casserole the day before but forgot to put it in the oven - oops! We prayed and gave thanks, and stuffed ourselves. Then we watched the movie Cloverfield, not exactly a Christmas movie but what the heck. Doug wanted me to see it. I got very sleepy... probably all the food and the chocolates I kept eating after dinner! All in all it was a very good and fun Christmas holiday!

Laughter is a beautiful thing!
I want that one! Christmas Even everyone picked out one gift to open.
Sam opening his one gift on Christmas eve. Notice the Snuggie? LOL
He got... Halo ODST3. Just what he wanted. Plus a cool pair of jeans in the box that even fit and he likes them!

I opened my gift too - a salad spinner from Doug! I've wanted one forever! But Sam liked it best of all. He would not stop playing with it!
Christmas morning! About to open stocking gifts. I sewed their two stockings many years ago from fabric from a maternity dress.
I got Savannah this hat from Buckle, which she loves and looks soooo cute in!
The cat got her present - the Balderdash box. She loves boxes of all types.
On to Christmas free hugs! This is me, Georgia, her daughter and Savannah.
Everyone needs a hug!
Sam and Savannah torturing one another as usual.
Savannah stuck her hand in front of the camera - random just like her!
Hugs anyone?
This is a local pastor who loved our free hugs campaign. He had us take a picture and send it to him.
M and Savie. So cute!
M and L bringing the Christmas spirit to the Free Hugs campaign!
Me and Savie!
Doug decided to run around the parking lot screaming, "Just give me a damn hug already!" while jumping around like a madman. Savannah recorded it on video. It was hilarious!!
Being weird!
Would you like a hug? We are equal opportunity huggers!
Of course!
Another success!

The video that started it all...

Free Hugs!

“Through life’s trials and hardships
we arise beautiful and free.”
— Julia Butterfly Hill

Who could resist giving a hug to him??? :)

For Christmas I finally got to do the FREE HUGS campaign I've wanted to do for a while now! Check out http://freehugscampaign.org/ for the story about how Juan Mann changed the world... and started an international free hugs movement! (And I've embedded the Youtube video at the end of the pics) He was even on Oprah! We had a blast! Me, Doug, Georgia and her kids did this at the Starbucks in Kingwood :) Got lots of hugs! Before that, we ate breakfast in the morning at IHOP and a total stranger paid for our meal and then so when Doug went to pay the waitress said a stranger had paid for it! Just a random act of kindness! I paid it forward by giving my Starbucks card with about $30 on it to pay for several customers drinks as they came in, while we were outside giving Free Hugs!

Making the signs at my house, getting ready to go.
Georgia Doug and her daughter Madelyn giving free hugs at Starbucks in Kingwood on Christmas day. What a great way to spend Christmas!!
Who could resist?

Me holding Madelyn. She's such a doll!
Someone giving Madelyn a hug!

Silly Doug!
Giving a hug!
Holding up the sign for all to see. Madelyn called them "customers" and whenever people would drive up she'd go "We have customers! We have customers!" :)
Big smile!


Doug got lots of hugs!
Yet another hug!
Mwaa!
Wonder twin powers activate! LOL. We went to the park after we gave out hugs!
Madelyn and I rolling down the hill!

I could lie and say I'm really good at handstands... but this is a cartwheel. :)
This was earlier in the day holding my abominable snowman!