Maria's Blog

Here I am... in full mommy-mode and loving every minute of it. Yes, despite the sleep deprivation and the 24/7 "on-call" schedule. It's absolutely the best thing I've ever done. It's also the most challenging... and I take my hat off to all moms out there. Wow, it's a full time job, but the rewards are so worth it! Ysabel just got her first tooth (finally!) and she's about to take off crawling. She says ma-ma and has long conversations consisting of vowels and sweet sounds. She's the sun, the moon and the sugar in my life. But I do miss everyone at Fox.

Hi there! I left FOX April 11th and I've been meaning to write, but it's taken me a while to find the time... so here I am... a stay at home mom. I really can't describe the happiness I feel, to wake up and spend every hour of the day with my baby girl, Ysabel (I'll post new pictures soon). She's almost five months and she does something new every day! She just grabbed her toes for the first time yesterday! I go around with my video camera trying to capture her ever move. But mostly, I just sit back and enjoy the moment. It's a blessing to be where I am today. And while I don't miss getting up early, I do miss the people at FOX. I enjoyed working there so much. But my new job now, I must say, is better than any I've ever had. I'll write more soon, I hear Ysabel calling for milk :)

After the round of strong storms on Monday, be prepared for more severe weather today! Most of the day should be ok...scattered showers and storms for some, and warm sun for others. It's late evening into the overnight hours that we're watching for the development of a squall line. The main threats will be hail, damaging winds, and heavy rain but there will also be a potential for tornadoes.

 

Why all this?? There's an upper level low spinning to our west, along with a cold front and dryline. It all will head towards North Texas so by later today, a Severe Thunderstorm Watch or Tornado Watch is likely. Stay tuned to FOX4, we'll keep you 4-warned.

Your St. Patrick's DAY celebrations should be fine, with warm, muggy, windy conditions. But if you're planning anything at NIGHT, stay tuned to the weather. We're seeing all the ingredients line up to give us the potential for some heavy downpours, hail, and damaging winds... including the possibility for tornadoes.

 

We're under a FLASH FLOOD WATCH from this evening until Wednesday morning. The best timing for the heavy rain is during the overnight hours and through tomorrow.  Rain totals will range between one and three inches, with isolated higher amounts. We're also under a MODERATE RISK for severe weather. In other words, there will be rotating cells in the storms, which could spin up a tornado. Keep those weather radios ON tonight!

 

Make sure you keep it right here on www.myfoxdfw.com and stay tuned to FOX4.  Ron Jackson will be here all afternoon, Evan Andrews will watch the storms over night, and I'll be here tomorrow morning. We'll keep you 4-Warned.

She's sleeping beside me on our bed. I too try to rest but knowing I have to feed her in 30 minutes, I can't seem to fall asleep. I lay here, looking at her and giving thanks. Her little lips move between breaths, her arms spread open like wings. She's finally sleeping on the bed and not ON us like she did the first few weeks. Will she ever sleep in her crib?

 

The days evaporate between feedings, diapers and naps. I can't find the time to check emails, exercise or call my friends. No pedicures, no hair appointments. I barely find the time to dry my hair. But none of that matters more than this little angel lying on our bed.

 

Now she's stretching, making sweet noises, her eyes open, but then decide to close again. It's my own eyes that have opened, and nothing looks the same. Having a daughter is the greatest gift I could ever get.

It's been a long time since I've written... getting ready for my baby girl, due in a month and 4 days!!! Ahhhhh!!  But I had to write a quick note to talk about meeting Jerry Seinfeld. Since getting pregnant, I must say, I've done some of the most memorable interviews of my career, and Seinfeld didn't disappoint.

 

He was in Dallas promoting his new animated film "Bee Movie". You've probably seen him on a million TV shows... he's very proud of his first venture into animation. He co-wrote, produced, and stars in the adorable movie. We got to see a screening of it, where he and the directors/producers made comments about certain scenes.

 

Jerry answered questions about his TV show, his cars, his children... he got laughs with every response! We all wore these special wristbands to enter the screening, and when I sat down to do my one-on-one interview with him, I yanked and pulled, trying to take off the red bracelet.  He told me to hang on a minute. He reached in his deep pockets and got out a swiss army knife. He cut off the band, and said... "in life, there are two kinds of people, the swiss army knife kind and the other kind"... I felt like I was in a scene from "Seinfeld"... And that started off our interview on the right foot! Who would have thought that Seinfeld carrried more than millions in his pockets?

 

Well, the movie is un-BEE-liavably witty, charming and fun! It's rated PG because of some suggestive humor, but overall, I think "Bee Movie" is worthy of all the buzz it's getting. If you miss my chat with Seinfeld on Friday's show, remember you can always watch the video right here on our website. It'll be under "Good Day" after Friday's show. Have a great weekend!

Record rainfall so far at DFW!! It hasn't rained this much on this date since 1992. As of 11am, the airport got 3.23" and many locations across North Texas got anywhere between 2-6 inches!! Tropical, slow moving downpours created a nightmare on the streets. And for the remainder of the afternoon, we could be in for more wet weather. It will be more scattered, though, not as  widespread as the rain overnight and this morning..Still, any additional rain will only aggravate the flooding. There's a Flash Flood Watch in effect for North Texas until 4pm.

 

We will likely continue to see scattered rain through this evening. By then, a cold front will move in and stabilize the atmosphere. It will also bring us drier, cooler air. So we'll only be in the low 80s tomorrow, and it won't feel as muggy out there. Until then,  please be careful and DO NOT drive through barricades. They're there for a reason. Please stay tuned to FOX 4 and let us know how much rain you got in your backyard. Stay safe everyone!

I interviewed Kevin Bacon yesterday, via satellite. I could see and hear him, but he could only hear me. In all the interviews I've done like this, no other actor has tried to crack a joke right at the beginning. They're all usually very serious, ready to go, start the conversation, and get it over with. But Kevin said "You look good this morning". I said... "Yea right, you can't see me"... and we both laughed about it. Nice way to break the ice. I like that.

 

So his movie "Death Sentence" is not good. If you like gory, graphic violence, you might see something I didn't. His acting was serious, dedicated, intense. But I just didn't really care about the other characters that much.  And it is SOOOO violent! Jodie Foster has a similar type of "vigilante", revenge movie coming out soon called "The Brave One" and I got the chance to see it already. That's much better than "Death Sentence". Seems like there's a news string of these films being released. By the way, Bacon's movie is based on the 70s thriller, "Death Wish", and it's directed by James Wan ("Saw").

 

What else did I talk about with the "Footloose", "A Few Good Men", "Apollo 13" actor... his movies of course! He's got such a variety of genres under his belt! He told me he doesn't like to watch his films more than once. He says it's like that outgoing message you leave on your phone, and you want to delete it, and re-record it. That's how he feels when he watches his work. He's too critical. He's a huge talent. And can you believe next year he celebrates his 50th birthday, and his 20th wedding anniversary to Kyra Sedgwick? Congrats!!

 

Other movies opening today: "Balls of Fury", about ping pong; and "Halloween", need I say more? Have fun at the movies!

 

I've gotten that question a lot lately: Is the weather lady pregnant?? I  must confess, you all are very observant... even before I announced it on the air, some of you "knew" I was expecting. I started showing about 3 weeks ago... and I am now 5 months pregnant!!! Still can't believe the truly remarkable experience it is to be carrying a little soul inside of me. There is nothing that's been as gratifying and full-filling (literally and spiritually!) as this time in my life. I've wanted this for a long time... we tried for many years to have a baby, so this is even more momentous for us!

 

I know many women go through fertility challenges, and I had a hard time sharing what I was going through... Feeling inadequate, as if there was something wrong with me, and I didn't want anyone to feel sorry for me, or tell me to "just let it happen!" But the more I talked about it, the more I learned from other women that had a similar journey. So if you're reading this and want to have a  baby more than anything else in life... don't give up! Your time will come. No doubt about it. There is a divine plan for all of us.

 

So is it a boy or girl??? I thought it was a boy and my husband was sure it was a girl. Well, my husband is usually right so...  We're naming her Ysabel and cannot wait to see her again on Monday when we go for another sonogram. I'll share her pictures when I get them :) Oh! And I just started feeling her dance around in my belly two weeks ago. She hasn't stopped since! If you or anybody you know is expecting, please congratulate them for me!! And tell them to drink extra water in this heat!!! What a blessing and a gift it is to be carrying Ysabel!

I was in high school when The Simpson's first came out... I used to watch the show religiously for the first five years or so and loved it. Remember Bart's "Ay Caramba"!! Eventually,  I just caught the re-runs and lately, I haven't watched as often. So, do you need to be a die hard fan to watch the movie?... D'oh! You'll enjoy it more if you are, but it's obviously not required.

 

The offensive, dysfunctional, brilliant humor typical to the 22 minute TV show is in the 85 minute movie... and they even push the limit a little bit more. There's brief cartoon nudity! Religion, global warming, a new president, and a pet pig are just some of the subjects you'll see on the big screen. I thought the movie was hilarious! Some people who've already seen it found it offensive... but come on! It wouldn't be The Simpson's if it wasn't a little rude and irreverent!

 

I went to L.A. to interview the creators of the show/movie, and was delighted to take a quick glimpse into their minds... I understand the humor a little better now! These are men (Matt Groening, Al Jean, David Silverman, James Brooks) who gave it their all to finally bring the story to the big screen. As Jean (writer) told me: "I never felt in my life that I did everything I could, as I did for this project. We left nothing in the bullpen." The Simpson's Movie is rated PG-13.

When will we finally declare our independence from the rain?? Not this 4th of July! Record rain again at DFW yesterday, and between 3-5 inches in many locations created a nightmare flooding situation. Today, we are still under the FLASH FLOOD WATCH, and it's been extended until Friday evening now. So the threat for heavy rain continues. It's moving in from the SE, and it's all because of... YES, the upper low that won't leave us alone. It's in south central Texas, and some models are indicating that instead of moving towards Mexico, it will come back to North Texas!!  It's still a little early to tell, but if it does come back, it means rain through next week. Let's say it doesn't come back... then rain chances will finally decrease by the weekend.

 

It's really been a tricky forecast, hasn't it? Rain, rain, and more rain. The big question's been, "when does it stop?" Here's some interesting data from DFW... rainfall total so far 35.23". Yearly normal is 34.73" so we've surpassed that! And so far, it's the 9th consecutive day of rain at DFW. Ten is the record, and looks like we'll get it today. Also, in 2005, we only got 18.97", and in 2006, we had 29.75". The wettest year at DFW?  1991, when we got 53.54". Just something for you to compare.

 

Forecast for today... 87 with scattered showers and storms building throughout the afternoon. Some could produce heavy rain, and it all should die out around sunset. So your plans for fireworks should stay dry. Still, have your umbrella nearby if you're planning on a BBQ or afternoon at the lake. Happy 4th everybody!

After the floods in June, we started off July with a bang, didn't we? 0.67 fell at DFW today, we had a Flash Flood Warning for Dallas county, and a Tornado Warning for Ellis county. In case you didn't see any rain in your backyard, believe me... it rained elsewhere! So now what?? That upper low which plagued us with buckets of rain last week will be back this week. It will bring us instability, humidity, lift... all the ingredients necessary for heavy rain. We are under a FLASH FLOOD WATCH until Monday afternoon. The best time frame for storms will be in the late afternoons, but tonight, we will keep a close eye on what's forming to our northwest.  We could have heavy rain over night, especially north of DFW. Monday, a 60% chance for rain, and looking ahead to the 4th... about 40% chance for scattered showers and storms. Keep it right here folks, it's going to be an interesting week!

The subject of rain is a hot topic this week, isn't it? Some want more, some want less... we all have our thoughts, and I appreciate you sharing those! This week alone, we've seen 4.71inches at DFW, and a lot more for many of you.  So what's going to happen now?

 

We've talked incessantly about the persistent "upper low", right? It's been stuck over us, between high pressure on the east and west coasts. But the next few days, the low will weaken and break off... which means we'll have less chances for rain! Today, the heaviest stuff will be to the west of Tarrant county. There's the potential for 1-2 inches of additional rain, with localized higher amounts! We are still under a FLASH FLOOD WATCH (it's been in place all week!)... Over the weekend, expect scattered showers, but there will be plenty of rain-free periods, so get out there and enjoy!

I wish I could stop this trend, or do a rain dance to end the rain, as some of you have ordered me to try! But we are still affected by the circulation of the upper low which has brought us all this wet weather. The low will weaken, but we'll remain unstable, with plenty of low level moisture available to feed the storms. So the FLASH FLOOD WATCH is still in effect through tomorrow morning (it's been extended three times!).

 

Interesting information: June is, as of right now, the second wettest on record. We've had 10.85", which is unbelievable. And with more expected the next two days, we could surpass the 1928 record of 11.58". Look for more scattered downpours today, and scattered activity through the weekend. We should finally "dry out" a bit by next week, in time to celebrate the 4th! With lakes and rivers full, please be careful if you're planning on getting on your boat to enjoy the holiday. Have a great day.

Who is ready for a break?? I know I am. But we won't get it today. We're in for more rain! After a record 2.54" at DFW yesterday, and many locations seeing 2-5 inches, additional rain today will only aggravate the flooding that took place Tuesday. At one point, there were almost 20 counties with Flash Flood Warnings in effect. That is extremely unusual! Goes to show you this weather pattern is not normal, and we're looking forward to breaking it.

 

The FLASH FLOOD WATCH is still in effect until tomorrow morning. By then, the upper low that's brought us the wet weather will weaken a bit, decreasing the chances for heavy rain. But today, we can expect an additional 1-3 inches of rain with isolated higher amounts. Keep it right here on FOX 4, we'll keep you 4-Warned! Stay safe, and dry!