Rick Remnants and Heavy Houston Rain

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Rick is weakening but it is going to affect the weather for a lot of geography. As its weakens and moves into Mexico on Wednesday, much of its moisture will get caught up in an advancing upper trough and this will bring heavy rain to parts of the south including Texas Wednesday through Thursday. In the Atlantic, there is one small area just off the Central American coast that will bring rain to the at area.

Temperatures on Wednesday will certainly reflect the upper trough pushing eastward (along with its associated surface cold front). Highs will be in the 40s and even upper 30s with some snow mixes in the higher elevations from Colorado into the Great Lakes states. Also, expect upper 40s in northern New England. There will be some showers and thunderstorms from Texas to Wisconsin. Highs in the southeast will be in the 60s, 70s and 80s. Highs out west and in the Pacific Northwest will be in the 50s to the 70s.

Houston can expect more than 3 inches, maybe even 4 to 5 inches in spots. National Weather Service might issue a Flash Flood Watch but they are saying that we should be able to handle 3.5 inches. Getting closer to 5 in a widespread way will cause trouble. Notice that as I write this post, the area around Waco and up to Dallas is under a Flood Watch. Timing of heavy rain will be Wednesday late afternoon into midday Thursday. Then a pleasantly cool and dry weekend is on the way. Remember the rule of thumb, "Turn around, don't drown" when you encounter a flooded roadway or area either in a car or on foot.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do wet or mojado, pronounced mow-HA-dough. It will be very wet in east Texas Wednesday and Thursday.

Just over 2 months until Christmas. Yikes!!! But no worries, you can get the little ones something new, educational and entertaining. Order Volume 2 of our award winning series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco from our web site www.frankandpaco.com or at www.amazon.com. If you order through Amazon, please help us out and put in some positive comments. It makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings. You can also order the award winning Volume 1 about Home, Family, Eating/Drinking and Play.

AND MORE
I have posted the new drought figures and Climate Prediction Center outlooks for November through January. The recent rains in Texas show a vastly improved drought situation, especially along the upper Texas coast and extreme south Texas. Still a big drought concern for the Coastal Bend. Outlook shows improving conditions expected through January of 2010. This has a lot to do with the fact that we are going into an El Nino winter. And as the Climate Prediction Center outlooks for November through January show, this area is expected to have above normal rainfall and below normal temperatures.

Happy Wednesday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Hurricane Rick threatens Houston with Heavy Rain

HURRICANE AND WEATHER
Tropical Atlantic is quiet but look out, here comes Hurricane Rick (from the Pacific)! As I write this post, Rick is off the west coast of Mexico, a Category 5 hurricane with 160 mph winds...should be a Category 2 or 3 when it hits the southern Baja California peninsula. But the big story for Texas is that moisture is going to get drawn up into an approaching upper trough and bring some heavy rain Wednesday through Friday! Some locations will get several inches.

Well I couldn't help noticing what looked like a blizzard as the Titans/Patriots game aired this afternoon. Sure enough, they were having heavy, wet snow with the temperature close to freezing in Foxboro, Massachusetts. A part of the state is under a Winter Weather Advisory. In the late 80s, I was living in Danbury, CT and went to Boston for the weekend early in October. We had a heavy wet snow storm. The snow broke the limbs trees laden with fall leaves, downing power lines. The winters there can be very raw because of the humidity due to proximity to the Atlantic. Most snowfalls were wet...only a few were very dry.

On Monday, highs will be in the 40s and 50s across the northern states and 60s and 70s across the southern half--maybe a high of 80 in Miami. There will be rain and thunderstorms across the Rockies and Intermountain West, a part of the northern plains and extreme southern Arizona and New Mexico.

Houston, Monday will be another pleasant day with slightly higher humidity and highs in the 70s. It won't warm up all that much this week due to increasing clouds cover from Pacific moisture but it will be humid. Look for heavy rain (3 inches + possible), especially Thursday into Friday as the remnants of Hurricane Rick get pulled into the approaching upper trough. Next weekend, look for more Chamber of Commerce weather!


SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Let's do dike or dique, pronounced DEE-kay. What kind of dique would be most helpful to Galveston, which was hit so hard by Ike last hurricane season. Find out about a special Ike Dike talk in the AND MORE section.

Time to order Volume 2 of our award winning series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco. YOu can get it through our web site www.frankandpaco.com or at www.amazon.com. If you order through Amazon, please help us out and put in some positive comments. It makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings. You can also order the award winning Volume 1 about Home, Family, Eating/Drinking and Play.

AND MORE
What a perfect weekend for an outdoor festival. So, of course, we headed to the annual fall bazaar at St. Laurence in Sugar Land. As you can see, Sarah really enjoyed dancing it up! There were also lots of bouncees, bungee jumping, rock wall climbing, games and of course lots of food and music and bingo. New this year was a washer tournament. I had never even heard of that but Gordy and my stepdad Gerry had. They were throwing these round washers and trying to get them in this small holes. Looked like there was a lot of participation.

Friday night, Sarah and I headed to the monthly opry in Rosenberg. It was a packed house with Tommy Horton performing. Tommy is son of the famous Johnny Horton...see link below. When I googled Tommy, I found some web site that insisted there is a Tommy Horton who is not the son of Johnny. But I am telling you, the man I met and the photos of Johnny Horton are just about spitting images. I spoke to Tommy and he lives it the Brownwood area near Abilene. He just drove in earlier in the day. I was teasing him about some of his CD covers...one in particular he looked rather windblown in his jacket leaning against a tree. I asked him...what were you thinking when that picture was taken? He answered "I was thinking, daw-gone it's cold. Let's finish this and get inside!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpUJZ92JkAY&feature=related

The November show will have Moses Rangel, Jeff Woosey, Jimmy Calhoun and Arnold Parker and of course once again, my very talented stepdad Gerry Payne on saxophone, keyboard, violing, mandoline or whatever is needed! The Rosenberg opry is held in the community center at 1330 Band Road in Rosenberg--right next to where the Fort Bend Fairgrounds are located.

Our poll on what you all thought about President Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize is closed. The results were as follows:
10% thought is was wonderful
40% couldn't believe it
70% didn't think it should have happened
40% want to know why it happened
0% think he will earn it
0% think he has already earned it
20% think he won't earn it

More than one answer was allowed. Thanks to all who participated.

Our new poll is Halloween? This year it falls on a Saturday. How will you spend it this year or will you celebrate it at all. More than one answer is allowed. Thanks in advance for answering.

The next meeting of the Houston Chapter of the AMS will be this Tuesday, October 20th. The following comes directly from chapter president and my buddy, Lew Fincher
Bill King and Jim Blackburn will be doing presentations addressing the idea of the "Ike Dike". I have met both gentlemen, and have seen both of their presentations on the subject of the Ike Dike idea in meetings that have attracted large crowds. If you haven't had time to make a meeting in a while for whatever reason, the next two are meetings that you should seriously try to attend.

And it's me again...here is the chapter link with location information.
http://www.amshouston.net/

These meetings are so good! And anyone may attend (not just members). If you want to become a member, you don't have to be a meteorologist and dues are very reasonable.

Have a great week!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Chamber of Commerce Weekend/Hurricane Rick/Clarification Child Safety Law

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Beautiful and in some places chilly weekend for much of the country. Look for some storms in spots (as indicated by Storm Prediction Center graphic) northeast, southwest, southeast and northwest.

Houston, get ready to be spoiled...highs in the 70s, low humidity and lows in the 50s and upper 40s respectively for Saturday and Sunday. More humid air begins to return middle of coming week. Then, warming until next cold front and a few showers and thunderstorms move through on Wednesday pm.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do happy or feliz...FEH-lease. I am so feliz that the weather is dry and pleasant.

It's here!!! Volume 2 of our award winning series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, is now available. Order your copy today...it makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings. Order Volume 1 or 2 at www.frankandpaco.com. You can also order the award winning Volume 1 about Home, Family, Eating/Drinking and Play.

AND MORE
Clarification on new child safety seat law (thank you Larry Mack)...here is the original correction to the old law:
TRC § 545.412. CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY SEATSYSTEMS; OFFENSE. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a passenger vehicle, transports a child who is younger than eight [five] years of age, unless the child is taller than four feet, nine inches [and less than 36 inches in height], and does not keep the child secured during the operation of the vehicle in a child passenger safety seat system according to the instructions of the manufacturer of the safety seat system.

So, this means that all children under the age of 8 have to be secured safely (unless than are taller thatn 4'9".

Have a great and safe weekend!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Next cold front/New Child Safety Seat Law/Happy Anniversary

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Tropical Atlantic is quiet. In the Pacific, Tropical Storm Patricia is bringing rain, rough surf and gusty winds to the tip of the Baja of California. The storm is forecast to move past the tip and weaken as it heads west. Further south, there is an area with less than 30% chance of developing.

On Wednesday, highs will be in the 40s and 50s across the northern Rockies, northern Plains, Great Lakes, Midwest and Northeast. Across the southeast, highs will be in the 80s and 90s with scattered showers and thunderstorns. Highs will be in the 60s along the west coast. Note: the winter weather advisories for the northern Rockies and some flood watch areas in the southeast and in California this evening.

For Houston, Wednesday will be warm and muggy with some thunderstorms. Cold front arrives Thursday and brings some dry and pleasant weather over the weekend. Morning temperatures will be in the 50s on Saturday and Sunday. It will be a great weekend to head to the Festival at St. Laurence in Sugar Land.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do safety or seguridad, pronounced seh-gyour-REE-dahd. Seguridad is so important for our child passengers. Find out about the updated Child Safety Seat Law in the And More section.

It's here!!! Volume 2 of our award winning series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, is now available. Order your copy today...it makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings. Order Volume 1 or 2 at www.frankandpaco.com. You can also order the award winning Volume 1 about Home, Family, Eating/Drinking and Play.

AND MORE
Tomorrow, October 14th, Gordy and I celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. But what's in a date? Originally, we planned to marry on the 15th but couldn't get that worked out. We chose that date as a tribute. It just so happened that October 15th was the anniverary of Gordy's maternal grandparents. Gordy's Grandma was so excited about us having the same anniversary. We didn't have the heart to tell her that we had to move it to the 14th. That is one example of when a little lie is a good thing. Grandma Sondag is no longer with us, but I know that she was very happy about our wedding being on October 15th.

Sarah's school sent home a post card with an Update on the Child Safety Seat Law. I'm not sure what it was before, but now the rule is:
All Children Who Are Less than 8 years old and less than 4 feet, 9 inches tall MUST be properly secured in a car seat or booster seat.
For more information, go to the source:
http://www.safekidsgreaterhouston.org/

Sarah is already 8, but she is only 4 feet, 1 inch tall. I can tell you that without the booster seat, she wouldn't be comfortable at all...seat belt strap would cut right across her neck. Gosh, I'm 6 inches (or so) past 4'9" and I can barely get comfortable in the back seat. I'm kind of surprised the age isn't higher.

Well safe driving everyone.
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Warming Up Again!/Obama and Nobel Peace Prize/Museum Natural Science Sugar Land

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
The tropical Atlantic is quiet. In the Pacific, Tropical Depression #19E is forecast to strengthen slightly and then weaken as it moves north and then northwest.

On Monday, highs will be in the 20s and 30s from the northern Rockies to the western Great Lakes states. Some thunderstorms and warm, muggy conditions across the southeast and south Texas. Elsewhere, highs will in the 50s to 70s.

In Houston on Monday, the day will start pleasantly cool in the 50s. Then the cold front which brought such a delightfully cool weekend will back up as a warm front and bring back the warmth and humidity. Dewpoints (and thus humidity) will soar for Tuesday into the first half of Thursday. Highs middle of the week could reach the low 90s. And morning temperatures will be unpleasantly warm and conditions humid. There will be thunderstorms and rain Monday and Tuesday. Next cold front arrives Thursday pm and then it will be cooler for the weekend. Looks like a very nice weekend coming up!

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do free or gratis, pronounced GRAH-teese. Do all kids eat gratis in IHOPs deal from 4 to 10 pm? It depends. Find out how in the AND MORE section.

Volume 2 of our award winning series, Let's Learn Spanish with Frank & Paco, is now available. Order your copy today...it makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings. Order Volume 1 or 2 at www.frankandpaco.com.

AND MORE
We visited the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Sugar Land today. It's in a historical building...formerly a prison. The inside is neat too. The general admission exhibits were comprised of four main areas...some dinosaur and prehistoric bones along with petrified wood, some exotic frogs and toads, some sparkling stone exhibits (like big hunks of rock with amethysts and citrines), and a planetarium with a rotating series of movies on the half hour. As you enter, there is a T-Rex, and directly above it suspended is a huge globe which, when I looked at it, was illustrating the polar ice cap change from season to season. However, you might not notice it unless you go upstairs. For the $12 adult price tag and $9 child price tag, I did not feel satisfied. We were done in about 30 minutes. One problem is that Sarah did not want to watch the movies. The upstairs was devoted to the traveling Narnia exhibit. It was an extra ticket ($25 for adults, $18 for kids) to see that and since Sarah does not care about Narnia, we did not see it. Downstairs is also a "Dig Pit" for the kids, but you had to pay $5 to do that. It was a large rectangular area filled with goodies that the kids could find in a synthetic mulch like material. Still, I am glad we went just to see it. And I think they will be getting more exhibits in the future. So, we will probably check it out again. To learn more, click on this link:

http://www.hmns.org/education/sugar_land/visit_hmns_at_sugar_land.asp

Our poll on airborne allergens is closed. Happy to report that no one who responded had trouble with airborne allergens. Thanks to all who participated.

Our new poll has to do with President Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize. How do you feel about it?

My last post was written before some new records were established at both Bush Intercontinental Airport and Hobby Airport in Houston. On Thursday morning, before the temperature drop on Friday, some new regard high minimum temperatures were set. This means that the temperature did not cool down very much. The low temperature at Bush Airport was only 82...that was the warmest low temperature ever for the month of October. The previous record was 80 (so it was 2 degrees above the record for the entire month!!!) And Hobby Airport's low of 81 also was the warmest minimum temperature for the entire month of October--previous record was 80. So, yes, it has been very warm...record warm!!!

Here is a clarification on the kid's eat free deal at IHOP. We actually ate breakfast there today. The deal is that every day of the week from 4 to 10 pm, kids can eat free...but it is one free kid's meal per adult meal purchased. So, if you had 4 kids in tow, you would have to have 4 adults eating to get all of their meals free.

Have a wonderful week everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman

Weather Update 2 pm Fri. 10/9

Just a quick update to let you know that the storms and cold front have moved through. Still some light to moderate rain but the rough stuff is now offshore (east of Houston).

Have a safe day!

Severe Storm Threat/Cooler Weather Almost Here!

HURRICANES AND WEATHER
Last advisory for Henri has been issued. It is just a remnant low with no forecast for redevelopment. Just east of the Lesser Antilles, there is less than a 30% chance for a new area of disturbed weather to develop.

In the eastern Pacific, there is one area with less than a 30% chance of developing.

Severe weather is marching across the central US (Including west Texas) as I write this post late this Thursday evening. There have been several reports of hail and high winds. And there are tornado and severe storm watches in effect. This is along and ahead of a cold front which will finally bring an end to the heat and humidity the south has been enduring. Along and ahead of the cold front on Friday, there will be numerous severe storms. Although tornadoes can not be ruled out, the biggest threat is high winds. A very chilly day for the northern Rockies and northern plains on Friday with highs only in the 20s and 30s. 40s and 50s for much of the Midwest. Warm and sultry across the south (ahead of the front) and southeast. Mild along the west coast.

Houston, Friday is your last morning to wake up all sweaty. Cold front moves through mid-afternoon. Look for storms as early as late morning with the most intense weather around mid-afternoon. For the weekend, cooler weather with some scattered showers (lows in the 50s and highs in the 70s with low humidity...yeah!!!).

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do cat or gato, pronounced GAH-toe. If you're going to wear scrubs, might as well have some with gatos all over them. See the AND MORE section for more.

Well, I've been making the big push this week...burning the candle at all ends...is there a wick on the side of that candle? Yep!!! And Yippee!!! Volume 2 is now available through our web site www.frankandpaco.com/. Order your copy today...it makes a great birthday or holiday gift. Volume 2 has three chapters (and about 50 words/phrases) My Day, My Body, My Feelings.

AND MORE
Thought you might get a kick out of Megan's scrubs...cats all over...quite appropriate given she is "The Cat Lady" and she works at a cat hospital. Too cute!

Have a safe Friday everyone!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman