Ike Getting More Attention, A Summer Weekend to Enjoy

Happy Weekend Everyone -

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
While we are enjoying sunshine and more tolerable humidity, folks along the eastern seaboard and in the northeast are getting drenched by Hanna. The good news is that by the end of the weekend, Hanna will be back out in the northern Atlantic. It is still a tropical storm, but it won't keep its tropical characteristics much longer. I haven't found any reports of tornadoes.

Now to Ike...a complex set of steering influences making it more difficult to figure when it will turn once it gets into the Gulf on Tuesday. The good news in the southern Bahamas (where it is currently tracking) is that there has been some shear--enough to make it lose its major hurricane strength. It is now a Category 2. Strengthening is likely once it gets into the Gulf. The official forecast is that it will be back to major storm strength with 115 mph winds by Thursday. The path is a toughy. High pressure in the western Atlantic will ease eastward, which should allow the storm to start moving westward and then come under the influence of a trough over the eastern U.S. which will help it turn northwestard and north. Some location of the north central to eastern Gulf is going to get hit. It is possible that New Orleans will be hit late in the coming week. Watching the trends of the models, each new run has pushed the storm track further to the west. Now once that first trough pushes east...well, if the storm doesn't get influenced enough, that means that the track will be further west. The saving grace for the northwest Gulf is another trough (which pushes a cold front through the Houston area) later in the week. By the way, don't get too excited by the word Gulf. It is going to end up making our weather like what we're enjoying this weekend.

Speaking of this weekend's weather in Houston, the humidity returns Monday. And there could be a few showers each day through the week.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
The word for today is indudablemente pronounced n-do-dahb-lay-mehn-tay. It means undoubtedly. So when someone is having a heated discussion about someone in Spanish, you can simply interject, indudablemente. They will be sure to know that you are following along.

There are so many benefits to early language learning. According to Armstrong, P.W., & Rogerts, J.D. (1997). Basic skils revisited: The effects of foreign language instruction on reading, math, and language arts. Learning Languages, 2(3), 20-31.

Third-grade students...were randomly assigned to receive 30-minute Spanish lessons three times a week for one semester...Students in the Spanish classes scored significantly higher than the group that did nto receive Spanish instruction in math and language on the Metropolitan Achievement Test (MAT).

Your children can benefit from early language learning from the comforts of home. Order my award winning DVD, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco from from http://www.frankandpaco.com, Ventura's Educational Supply, Dolo Publications, Carlex Inc., The Curious Mind Store, amazon.com, bestbuy.com, and barnesandnoble.com.

AND MORE
Do you like toads? Sarah and I do, and we have 13 toad hunter movies on youtube. There is a link to one of those movies on the links box to the right. But, if you want more, you can go to youtube.com and search for TOAD HUNTERS. The more recent movies have more information. Let me just say I have learned so much about toads.

Have a great weekend everyone and be safe!

Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman