My apologies for not having blogged lately.  It can certainly be applied any day for us "newsies", but I'll say it...I've been busy.

One of my not-so-recent entries was on my move to Brazos Valley This Morning.  Time has flown by, and I've loved most every minute of the new gig.  But we have been hard at work behind the scenes to make sure what's on your screen is something worth watching.

First and foremost, I have to say that Shel Winkley has been a fantastic addition to News 3.  It has been a daunting task in recent years to follow in the footsteps of the last morning weather guy.  Travis Herzog had to follow Roger Berry.  Shane Motley had to follow Travis.  Rodney Harris had to follow Shane.  All were amazing and continue to be amazing at what they do (all but Shane still in the TV business).  Now, Shel has settled in, and we love having him.

Barbara Smith is easily one of my favorite people in the world.  I think I let her know that daily.  She's the show's rock, and there's no one I'd rather co-anchor with than her.  Now, I just need to get her blogging again ;-)

So I think we've got a good mix of people, and I hope you think so, too.  That means making the content we bring you as good as we possibly can.

We are not a major metropolitan area.  Most of us that live here like it that way.  That also means we don't have massive, breaking stories that happen overnight.  Again, I think most like it that way.

Here's my philosophy on what a non-major-metro station's morning show should be: your forecast for the coming day, any news that took place overnight locally or anywhere, a look ahead to what's coming up, an adequate recap of the last day's events in case you missed them, discussions with newsmakers on issues affecting us and our world, and features that educate and/or entertain.

Sound like a lot?  Sound like a lot for just 90 minutes?  I'd say it is.  Now, try finding the right balance of all of the above on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis.

In just the last few months, we've gotten commitments from Congressmen Chet Edwards and Kevin Brady to talk to us every month.  Once opponents (if any) are determined for their respective 2010 races, we'll effort them monthly.  The Twin Cities' top officials are slated to come on each month.  We've hosted a forum on one of the biggest issues in the region: College Station's red light cameras.  We've featured a week's worth of discussion on healthcare, including talks with AMA President James Rohack and Senator John Cornyn.

In the future, here's who we're working to have, some regularly: A&M's new president and A&M System officials, the candidates for key positions in the upcoming primaries, and CNN's Roland Martin (an Aggie who interned at KBTX).

We've also got other features in mind, some that could debut as early as early January.

And we launched a Facebook fan page with exclusive videos from after the show.  We think they're a fun look into the behind-the-scenes work we do and the fun we have.

This, I hope, is a bit of insight into what we think Brazos Valley This Morning was, is and will be.  As I wrote last time, morning shows aren't the reason you wake up in the morning, but the best ones are always part of your routine.  Our commitment is to make sure that we're part of yours.

Please send me your input...I'd love to hear it.

May everyone have a very happy new year, and we hope we're a part of it.