Wow - I don’t know how to feel when I see this photo.
Sort of a mixed feeling. Sad to see him with a gun like that. Happy to know that he is defending every freedom we have. Worried to know where he might end up in all of this. Proud to him taking steps to make his life better. Concerned for his mom - knowing she will worry. Patriotic for seeing him in uniform. Mixed feelings for sure.
In the end I think I feel more proud of him than I have ever felt before.
You go Dylan!!!! We love you!!!
November 29th, 2009
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Have not had time to really update the blog, Been up at the farm most days and sometimes evenings. Trying to get everything finished - Bobby and his crew have been working hard at getting all of the little things finished. Judy painting - landscapers planting bushes - concrete being poured - Jason/Jess and I have been getting the cameras and weather instruments running - floors are being touched up here and there - Dale and his crew have been installing cabinets and shelves - it is all coming together.
The schedule is calling for everything to be finished this week. Then the cleaners will come in and clean the inside and outside of the house - top to bottom.
I will be so happy when the project is finished. It has definitely been a very long few weeks and months - for everyone. I am sure Tony will be thrilled to have everything finished, as well. Almost there - very close.
Looks like rain will move in on Sunday and then a chance for rain or snow mid-week and again later this weekend. Active pattern shaping up with multiple storm systems to watch.
Thanksgiving was wonderful - spent it at my sisters. Most of the family was there during the afternoon and well into the evening. We missed Dylan who is away at boot camp in Oklahoma. He did get to call, though. I think he is homesick.
I put all of the Thanksgiving photos here
Tony’s niece
Peaceful
Ashton
Tommy and Ashton
Tyler
Daddy telling Tyler how to play Mafia Wars
November 28th, 2009
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It has been a VERY busy week. Seems like every single day has been filled from morning to late at night. I guess that is good. Keeping busy keeps my mind off rushing everything. 
Dylan left the other day for Oklahoma. He flew out of St Louis. We all went up there to see him off. I don’t know if he was nervous or not. He didn’t seem like he was. I think he will be relieved once he arrives and gets settled in. I am sure he is in for a long journey! Hopefully it will be good for him. I know having your school paid for will definitely be a plus.
The house is moving along quickly. Looks like everything will be finished next week - the week after Thanksgiving. Then we clean everything up and move in. Just in time for winter? Looks that way. Hints that winter will quickly arrive on the charts. We will have to see if we can squeeze some snowflakes out of the sky!
Jason and Jess are coming up tomorrow - we are going to do some major work on getting the weather instruments, cameras, scanners, and weather radios up and running. Should be a great day as far as moving forward with all of the weather stuff. I am excited about that - of course!!!!
Click image for larger photos…
Getting ready to leave for St Louis. Chilly Wednesday.
Tyler and Dylan
Tyler - Dylan - Deena at my house before we left
Getting ready to leave
Moving out
Off to St Louis - cloudy and cool day.
Dylan in St Louis
Street performer that met us on the sidewalk outside of where we ate dinner.
At least he said he was a street performer. Tyler liked his song and dance.
Mother Judy and Dylan
Lynne, Dylan, Quinton, and Payton
Dylan and me before he left for Oklahoma
Tyler with the artsy fish
Dylan
Dylan and Deena
Dylan in St Louis
Payton and Tyler
Deena - Tyler - Dylan - Tony
Dylan
November 20th, 2009
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Wow - this week has been crazy. End of the project - everything is coming together. Just a TON of little and big things to finish up. Looks like we are moving along nicely, though. Still looks like the middle of December for the move in date. Perhaps we will know a bit more after this week. We shall see.
Dale Watson has been working on getting all of the kitchen cabinets together - also the living room pieces have arrived - along with the library units. Looks like another 8 days to complete all of that. Could be a bit longer - unsure.
Bobby and his crew have been working on a little bit of everything. Trim - painting - benches on the third floor - sun room - steps - endless list.
Tony was up several times this week checking on everything. He is good at finding problems areas.
Jess saw six deer today - I think she can see better than me. I saw a couple. There were a bunch out today - guess they were eating whatever was left from the combines.
Jason and Jess came up today to help with some of the shelving units for the weather room/media closet. Trying to start to pull all of that together. Hopefully we can get the web cams running next week - we shall see. Would also like to get the weather instruments up and running. One step at a time. Still going to be a bit longer before all of that is ready. Might be able to get the weather web site finished by December.
Jason is coming back next week to see about getting the cameras going. I will be anxious to see all of those in action. We will be able to follow the deer around with the Sony cameras.
Precision Audio has been pulling together some of the tv sets and electronic equipment. They are moving right along. ADS has also been working hard to get everything finished.
Some photos from the last few days
Solar panels are ready to be placed. Concrete should be dry by now.
Lot of people working the last few days - most I think we have ever had up there
Master bedroom - ready to hang tv set
Third floor - getting things unpacked for the family room
Weather room
Dale Watson - working on kitchen cabinets
Tony Crouch - pretending to install a light 
Reed Electric installing lights
Bobby and Tony
Tony C - these big lights will illuminate the house when there is something
interesting like - SNOW - falling from the sky!
Reed Electric - installing lights
Dale Watson and crew installing kitchen cabinets
Bobby Reed - installing one of the big lights out front
Reed Electric
Kitchen cabinets are moving along
Rusty from Precision Audio - installing a tv in the weather room
Kitchen
We are putting lights on top of the observation deck - third floor. Then when
it is snowing or raining I can turn them on and watch it :) Or when we do
something in the back yard.
Time to start on the media closet. We got the internet running - well
Tony got the T line working
Reed Electric
Tony working on the media closet
Reed Electric working on the lights for the top of the house
Beautiful Friday the 13th
Kitchen
Installing the farm sink in the kitchen
The farmers sink we got in Tennessee
One of the tv sets has been hung in the weather center room
Halo
Click for large image
Trenching for some more wires - front yard lights
Kitchen
Weather center room - three monitors are up for WPSD - ABC - CBS
These will come in handy during severe weather outbreaks.
Time to bring up the back up power supply units
These are the big lights on top of the house - back. Will be awesome
during snowstorms.
Media closet will soon fill up - all of the
OEM and weather instruments will run
out of here.
Jason and Jess Darnall helping to put together the shelving units for
the computers and back up power supply units.
Jason Darnall helping to pull
together the weather center
Jason Darnall
And it is coming together. These units
will power the computers when the power goes
off - before the generator kicks in or in case
the generator doesn’t kick in.
Click for larger image - evening at the farm.
Click for large image
November 14th, 2009
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Busy few days up at the farm. Got up this morning at 5 something - got everything ready and headed to the farm. The floors are dry - today was the first day back in the house. It has been a couple of weeks. :) The floors look awesome! We love them. They did a great job.
Dale Watson from Watson Woodworking brought the kitchen cabinets up today - also the fireplace and the library shelves. All of that should be installed in the next couple of weeks. Probably going to take 8-10 days to finish. Depending.
Concrete work will start tomorrow - and that will be finished next Wednesday.
Also the weather center is slowly being put together. When Jason gets back home next week we might start working on some of the cameras and weather instruments - get the internet running.
Lot going on! Moving along quickly.
Some photos from today - click on any image to make it larger.
Jason Hark with MAAPS - solar panels
Jason Hark with MAAPS - solar installers
Jason Hark - digging the hole for the solar panels
Installing the pole for the solar panels
Jason Hark installing the solar panel pole
Concrete arrives
Today was the first day back in the house - exciting
The floors are finished :) Click for larger images - master bedroom
Dining room and kitchen
Third floor family room
Weather room - ready to get going on the monitors
Living room
Downstairs
Weather center
Dale Watson and Leann arrive - Watson Woodworking - delivering the cabinets and library
Kitchen cabinets
Kitchen is filling up
Library shelves
Living room
November 11th, 2009
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Today is mother and Deena’s birthday :) SO - HAPPPPPPPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!
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Mother and Joey
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Dylan walking downtown Paducah
November 3rd, 2009
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October 2009 - One for the record books.
- Beau Dodson
Absolutely stunning numbers for the month of October. I don’t believe that I can ever recall an October that produced such widespread heavy rainfall. And it wasn’t just one or two systems - repeatedly the storm track brought persistent moderate to heavy rains to a large portion of the central and southern United States.
October is normally one of the drier months in western Kentucky. Far from it this year. Many area farmers will be happy to close this chapter of weather history.
KFVS Channel 12, WSIL TV 3, and WPSD TV 6 all reported widespread heavy rain totals from their viewers and weather watchers during the month of October. Frequently the rain was either a top news story or a headline during the news broadcasts. Forecasters ran out of descriptive superlatives for the weather. More often than not, news anchors used the words "broken record" to describe the ongoing precipitation events.
In Massac County I recorded 5 events that produced between 1-2"+ amounts. A total monthly rainfall of 11.35". Quite amazing. The Paducah, Kentucky NWS Office recorded a total of 10.55" of rainfall. This was 7.10" above normal. Preliminary monthly data report from the NWS Office in Paducah, KY.
Some other rainfall totals from around our region included: Carbondale, Illinois reported a total of 9.80" of rain. Evansville, Indiana reported a total of 8.21" of rain. Cape Girardeau, Missouri reported a total of 10.38" of rain. Poplar Bluff, Missouri reported a total of 13.23" of rain. Owensboro, Kentucky reported 5.47" of rain.
At least a trace of rainfall was recorded on 15 days during the month of October at the weather observatory in northern Massac County! Many other days were cloudy. Residents of the region regularly complained about the lack of sunshine. Farmers were forced out of their fields while they waited for drier ground conditions. Moist conditions left corn and soybeans, as well as other crops, molding in the fields.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the combination of a late planting season and an unusually cool, wet fall caused one of the latest harvests in recent memory. On October 26th, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said just 20% of the corn crop had been harvested in the major corn-producing states, compared with 58% on average by this point in 2004 through 2008. Farmers also had brought in just 44% of the soybean crop, versus 88% on average over the past five seasons. - sourced at link above
Not only was the month of October wet, it was also unusually cool. Although we did not record a freeze, here in Massac Couinty, we did have frost on two occasions. The cloudy sky conditions during the month kept temperatures below to well below normal.
October 2009 will go down as one of the wettest Octobers at the National Weather Service Office in Paducah, Kentucky. It was the 6th coolest October on record. The National Weather Service Office in Paducah, Kentucky recorded 10.55" of rain. This precipitation total shattered the old record of 7.37" which fell during October of 1998.
Other National Weather Service Offices summarized the month as quite extreme. There are simply too many stories to post.
I recorded rainfall during a 24 hour period starting at 9 am and ending at 9 am on the following dates:
October 2, 0.42"
October 5, 0.05"
October 7, 2.32"
October 9, 2.38"
October 10, 0.61"
October 14, 0.41"
October 15, 1.31"
October 16, 0.02"
October 17, 0.03"
October 18, 0.01"
October 23, 0.98"
October 27, 0.11"
October 28, 0.96"
October 30, 0.42"
October 31, 1.35"
The recording station in northern Massac County
Very little in the way of severe weather was reported in the KPAH forecast region. One date - October 8th - had 1 wind report logged on the SPC storm report page. That report came from Trigg County, Kentucky. Damage to outbuildings and trees on a farm were logged by the NWS Office in Paducah.
—–
Storm Prediction Center - Storm Reports for October 8th
A tornado watch (#761 for the year) was issued prior to the report. Thankfully no tornadoes were reported in our local counties.
TORNADO WATCH #761
It is unlikely that we will experience an October quite like the October of 2009 for some time to come.
Some of the impressive climate data maps from the High Plains Regional Climate Center. Although these maps may not be exact - they do give you a general idea of just how extreme this month was.
The above map shows total Precipitation for the month of October. You can see the large area of green and yellow. Most of that area recorded record or near record rainfall totals for the month.
The above map shows precipitation totals over the central United States for the month of October.
Our region experienced widespread 6-11"+ amounts. Portions of southern Illinois have recorded more
than 50 inches of rainfall so far this year (reported by Jim Rasor of WSIL TV 3). According to record keepers this is the second year in a row for totals that high. Reportedly, this is the first time that has occurred in record keeping history (for some locations in southern Illinois).
The above map shows precipitation totals over the southern United States for the month of October.
Some areas of Arkansas experienced more than 20 inches of rainfall during the month of October.
Numerous flash flood warnings were issued for large chunks of Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Texas, and Louisiana. This wet weather came on the heels of a September record flood event in the Atlanta, Georgia area.
Several of the precipitation events, during the month of October, were influenced by the remnants of tropical activity that spread into the United States from the Pacific Ocean (Olaf and Rick). Very little in the way of Atlantic tropical weather influenced the rainfall totals over the central and southern United States.
The above map shows the departure of precipitation from normal values. The green, blue, and purple areas are anywhere from 1-16+ inches above normal.
This map is zoomed in on our region. You can see the extreme departure numbers. Rainfall totals were anywhere from 3-7+ inches above normal. Quite amazing to see such widespread above normal precipitation totals. This has caused many rivers and streams to flood. Again, quite unusual for October of any year.
This map is zoomed in on our region. Once again you can see the extreme departure numbers. Rainfall totals were anywhere from 3-15+ inches above normal.
An even more amazing map is the percentage departure from normal maps. This map indicates what percentage areas are above normal in the rainfall department. For an area to be 40-50% above normal in rainfall would be considered significant. Areas on this map are anywhere from 100-600%+ above normal. Not only is that incredible it would likely be nearly impossible to find anything quite like it from recent record keeping.
Equally significant, on this map, is the widespread nature of the above normal percentage areal coverage. Extreme.
The same map zoomed in on our local region. Rainfall totals of 150-300% above normal.
Areas just south of us are even more wet. Extreme percentage totals such as this are causing a lot of concern about upcoming flood potential during the winter and spring months. If weather patterns continue to produce above normal precipitation then it is possible that the flood season of 2010 will be one to remember. Let’s hope not.
Long term drought indicator blends - from the National Drought Mitigation Center
Not to forget temperatures. Another important story of October 2009. A large section of the United States recorded below to much below normal temperatures. This was partially because of the number of precipitation events that kept cloud cover at a maximum. The lack of sun produced below normal temperatures.
There were several notable early season snow events across the Rocky Mountains, the Northern Plains, and even the Northeast United States.
The above map shows departure from normal temperatures. Widespread -1 to -10 degree departures were recorded. A monthly temperature departure of negative or positive of 2 or 3 degrees is considered quite significant. To see such a large area of below normal temperatures is impressive.
In looking for a comparison year, Meteorologist - Larry Cosgrove, posted this map on his winter outlook. October of 2002 appears similar in terms of temperature departures for much of the United States. Although, there were some other upper air differences that year.
—-
October of 2002 had similar cold conditions over the United States.
Temperature departure maps zoomed in on our local region. Much cooler than normal conditions prevailed for much of the month of October. Nineteen days of below normal temperatures were recorded at the Paducah, Kentucky National Weather Service Office.
Temperature departure maps for the southern United States.
Temperature departure maps for the central United States.
And finally one last map from the Agriculture Department. Widespread above normal streamflow
conditions are being reported over a wide area of the United States. Again, this is a concern for
upcoming flood potential during the winter and spring months.
- Summary by Beau Dodson
Other reports -
Top 5 coldest Octobers on record for Kansas City
Springfield, Missouri - WET
Omaha, Nebraska - coldest/wettest/snowiest
Des Moines, Iowa - cold and wet
Chicago, Illinois More
Near record wet in Illinois
Twin Cities, Minnesota - one for the record books
Goodland, Kansas - coldest
November 1st, 2009
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We had a blast last night at Deena and Tony’s house. They had a going away party for Dylan. Also a Halloween party. There was a bonfire, hot dogs, cookies, candy, popcorn balls, cup cakes, and a bunch of other food! Not sure how many people were there - a lot! Everyone had a great time. Deena and Tony’s new house looks awesome. They moved in pretty fast!!!! Hope I can move in that fast.
Tony took the kids on a hay ride - well actually a blanket ride as there wasn’t much hay on the back of the trailer. Dylan dressed up in a gorilla costume to scare the kids.
We didn’t get home until after 2 am! I think I finally got to bed around 3:30 in the morning.
Dylan is going into the military this month. He will leave around the middle of the month. It will be awhile until he will be able to come back home.
Mother making cookies for the party
Danielle with one of her ghostly cookie friends
Tyler and Bubba - Halloween 2009
Deena getting cookies out of the oven
Lynne - Deena - Payton
Lori - Lori’s niece - daddy at Dylans going away party
Tony getting ready to take the kids on a hay ride
Tony pulling the kids behind his 4-wheeler
We had a gorilla jump on board about half-way through the ride.
I think the monkeys name was Dylan
Hay ride - errr monkey ride
Danielle with some of her friends - including Payton on the lower left.
Our friend Denise and her family.
Tommy and Dione made a guest appearance
I won’t name names
Everyone had a great time at the party!
Someone had to cook dinner
Daddy and Lori getting ready to make some dinner
Lori and daddy roasting hot dogs.
Daddy - Lori - Lynne - Payton
Dylan with one of his friends at the party
Denise and her family - Tony and Deena on the back right.
Tony with his parents
Bon fire - camp fire
Quinton and Dylon Hillebrand
Denise helping Joey with his errr well done hot dogs.
Tony with Rob and Shanna
November 1st, 2009
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