They were two little rabbits that seemed to be frozen right there in the grass.  I’m not sure if they were resting or enjoying the cool breeze that was blowing that night but I stared at them for a long pause and then called quietly for my daughter to tip-toe to the front door to see this little surprise.  Naturally, she stomped to the front door a little more loudly than I would have liked, but thankfully the bunnies didn’t budge. 

 “Claudia,” I said, “Look who came to visit you on your birthday… two little Easter rabbits.” I picked her up and we watched as the rabbits sat in the yard, perfectly still.

 She asked if the rabbits were real and then maybe, if they were lost.

 “Yes they are real,” I said.  “But I don’t think they’re lost, maybe the Easter Bunny sent them to you on your birthday to remind you that Easter is coming and that HE loves you.”

 Since she is six now, I’m not sure if magical stories like that still work for her, but she didn’t seem to object and we watched quietly for a few more minutes before we went to bed.  

 Sometimes, I find it very difficult to be happy and hopeful when things don’t appear to be going my way.  That may sound sort of silly or even funny to you, but some of the most important things in my life – according to me – have gotten really messed up.   It seems despite my best efforts, I can’t fix what is broken.  I can’t right the wrongs.  And I don’t seem to be able to repair the situation.  Has that ever happened to you? 

 A friend of mine always tells me that things may not be the way you want them to be – but they are always the way they are supposed to be at this moment in time.  That message didn’t really do anything to make me feel better – but I’ve never forgotten it.

 It’s Easter weekend!  Happy Easter and may you be surrounded by the ones you love.

   Over the weekend many of us were impacted by the wondrous return of winter in one way or another.  And before I even left the city for my great adventure to the Big Apple, I was ready to return to a chance of snowflake bliss, but even the heads up from the National Weather Service couldn’t have gotten me prepared for the experience that lay ahead.   

   The breakdown actually started on Saturday night when the airline I was flying decided to start canceling their Sunday morning departures.  To their credit, most airlines have a way to notify their passengers of potential delays and cancellations and I would think that this service, when utilized, would be quite beneficial.  It’s just that someone forgot to tap me on the shoulder and let me know there would be no plane leaving the airport at 11:16 a.m. when I was originally scheduled to go.  My flight had been canceled. Not only that, but the flight that I was rebooked on for 8:30 that morning  would actually be leaving without me because I was never notified about the original change in the first place.

   So upon arriving at the airport at 9:00am on Sunday and being greeted at the ticket counter with a look of horror my day began.  The only flight with seats available didn’t leave until 6:30 that night.  So, ok… I could read a biography, start my own set of memoirs, learn Japanese, or catch up with every friend I had in North America using my free weekend minutes. A nine hour wait is not so bad, right?

  That cheery attitude got me until about 12:35 that afternoon and at that point, I was fit to be tied.  Not only was every flight headed to Atlanta being cancelled because of the Sunday snowfall, but all the people on those cancelled flights were now being rebooked and going to be riding with me on my “used to be” empty row seat.  I could throw my cozy, stretch my legs out, leisurely ride-back-to-town plane ride out the window!

   Everyone was pissed!  And everyone had a heart wrenching story that would have made a great CBS mini-series on why they had to be in front of everyone else on the stand by list in the event a few of us might be squeezed in a little early.   Have you ever noticed that airplane passengers can be some very angry people when inconvenienced? And for the record, I’m not just pointing the finger. I can be one myself.

   The silver lining in all of this is that the nine-plus hours that I spent in Terminal B allowed me to meet two very interesting women from Atlanta.  One was a school teacher and the other was a mom.  They were both delightful and truly helped to pass the time.  Although not originally scheduled to fly together, because of all the mix ups and delays our paths crossed and I think we were all actually on the same plane getting home.

   The language barrier was between the man serving pizza at the NY airport. He couldn’t understand that I wanted “more sauce.” I guess they’re not big

As I was coming in on 75, I was thinking about some of the craziest weather events that I had been though.  Immediately this one particular storm came to mind – actually instead of storm, I should call it a major rain event.  Some 15 + years ago when I was doing weather in Jonesboro, Arkansas we had this amazing weather system that brought what seemed to be endless amounts of rain.  On the air we were talking about flash flood watches and warnings and how people should be careful and watch for rising waters, etc.  It’s funny how you can “talk” about a weather event on the air all day long, but somehow when you step outside and become part of the weather as it’s happening, it’s an entirely different story. 

Anyway, I had been on the air “talking” about the rain for several hours.  My on air shift was ending and I was asked to take a camera and run up to a small town called Paragould where there had been reports of street flooding. 

What should have been about a 20 minute ride on a two lane road turned into an hour long ride, taking back country roads – literally dirt roads (at this point mud-roads)- to get to this particular part of Paragould that reportedly had “a little street flooding”.

Let me tell you – I was astounded!  The entire area was UNDER WATER.  I had to park at least a mile from that particular part of town and literally wade with a camera on my right shoulder and my left arm wrapped around the recorder bag through a part of this town that I almost didn’t recognize.  I slowly kept walking into deeper and deeper water and sort of forget the danger aspect because 1) I was trying to get the story and 2) it was almost like it wasn’t really happening.

The water was at my waist. I was shooting off the right shoulder and had moved the recorder bag onto my left shoulder. What a day!  People had gotten out of their cars and were sitting on the top of them.  Police were everywhere.  Things were floating away.  Even sitting here right now thinking about it, it just seems crazy.

It took several days for the water to completely subside and before long everything was back to normal. But to this day, I can still see so vividly in my mind all of that water. 

Sometimes I even forget the power of weather, but on days like today, with dark clouds all around , we all need to remember that we should take threatening weather conditions very seriously.  Please be careful when you’re out and about, and most of all, heed the watches and warnings. 

I hope you’ve noticed the wonderful new weather graphics we’re using on our shows now.  Our weather producer and the other folks on the CBS Atlanta weather team have worked really hard to create a fantastic new look and an amazing new way for us to bring you this city’s daily weather story.  And you can see it everyday here on CBS Atlanta.  You’ve got to check it out!

We call it virtual weather and I’ll have to admit, being the “stuck in the 80′s – anti technology , non ATM card using” woman that I am – I was a little skeptical at first… but WOW… what a difference…  That’s all I’m going to say… just watch… and you’ll see what I mean.  Our weather shows are awesome!

So what else is going on with me?  I finished my fall semester at Kennesaw State and have started the new Spring session.  See, I’m in graduate school right now getting a master’s in Secondary Education with a specialization in science.  Undoubtedly my high school classmates would have to be resuscitated if someone told them Laura Huckabee was getting a MASTER’S in Science… but not only is it true… it’s really kinda cool.

Last semester I had a Multi-Cultural Literacies class as well as the HARDEST Astronomy class in the world.   This semester I have two classes with probably the more difficult of the two being Physics.   Challenging and time consuming as they are, I’m excited about what all of my classes are giving me to bring to the table every time I stand up and talk weather with you.  It’s great stuff.  

I made no New Year’s Resolutions… but I am trying to decide where to go for this year’s international marathon.  Got any suggestions?  I’m thinking Peru… more on that another time.  Have you ever run a race in a different country?  I’d love to hear about it if you have.

But on that note I need to keep moving, myself.

Have a great week! Be well.  

This year was a little more exciting because my daughter actually wanted to go door to door this time.  In years past she was typically satisfied with the give outs from the neighbors at the block party.  Now, as a kindergartener she is appreciating the vast number of freebies she can get from if she takes her song and dance to the folks on neighboring streets. 

My daughter’s Halloween career consists of dressing as a tiny tiger when she was not quite a year… a Hershey’s kiss when she still wasn’t able to speak clearly and verbalize her objection — a batMAN at three (emphasis on MAN… she wouldn’t dare be caught in anything “girl”) — Darth Vader last year and this year, a storm trooper.  

We made it home with more of a (candy) loot than the law should allow.  The batteries on her STAR WARS lazer gun didn’t run out and it was warm enough to leave the storm-trooper-uniform uncovered (didn’t need a jacket) — so in all it was a very successful evening.  Hope you were able to enjoy the event with your little ones.

Montreal was a different sort of city… or perhaps it’s just that my expectations were too high.  You see, I knew going up there that most of the people would be speaking French.  But what I didn’t know is that most of those same people would be so unwilling to speak English.  It made me wish I would have paid more attention during my two years of French in high school.   

Most of my time was spent sight seeing in Old Montreal or window shopping in the downtown area.  The children there were delightful.  I always think its amusing to watch a very small child speak a foreign language – especially when they are animated and use their arms, hands, or facial expressions to get their point across.

The coffee and pastries were fantastic.  My trip wasn’t very long so I’m quite sure there was a great deal that I missed.  The marathon was my main reason for visiting the city so most of my attention was focused in that areana.

The best part of the race was the last 1/2 mile when we were directed to run into the Olympic Stadium and make a sort of victory lap inside.  If you saw the finish of the Woman’s Marathon at the Olympics this summer – it was amazingly similar to that.

It was a very quick trip and a pretty good race.  My time was a little slower than I would have liked but I had no injuries and still feel great…and in the end, that’s what really matters.

   It was about this time last year that I went to Scotland to run the Loch Ness Marathon.  The marathon was actually in early October.  I usually run a couple of marathons throughout the year but a few years ago I started a little tradition for myself… run one international marathon a year.  Just pick a place, and go.

   And I have.

   My first international marathon was in Tromso, Norway. 

tromso norway

   It was called The Midnight Sun Run… and to make a long story short, it was amazing!  The Norwegians were delightful – the town was quite small and very remote - in the extreme northern part of the country… in fact, just inside the arctic circle.

   Last year I did the Loch Ness.  This Sunday I will be doing the Montreal International Marathon.  Visiting a foreign country and running a marathon on their soil is a very humbling experience.   Humbling – but yet quite thrilling at the same time.

   I am excited to discover what my Canadian experience will bring…