news update and every- hour of that. >> more of a turkey guy. white or dark, i eat it all. >> i will resist comment. thanks for hanging out. we will see you tomorrow. good morning. breaking news. dramatic new video of that string of tornadoes touching down in texas. funnel clouds tossing tractor trailers into the air like toys. more than 600 homes destroyed, and the threat is not over yet. al's there live. locked up. mitt romney wins all three primaries in wisconsin, maryland, and washington, d.c. making it virtually impossible for any of his challengers to take the gop nomination. as president obama levels his first direct criticism at his likely challenger. is the general election on? and seacrest. between "american idol" and his entertainment empire he's one of the busiest men in hollywood. but does ryan seacrest have his

eye on something else? we'll ask him when he joins us live "today," wednesday, april we'll ask him when he joins us live "today," wednesday, april 4th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> and i'm ann curry. a lot to get to this morning. first, take a look at the widespread damage in north texas this morning caused by more than a dozen tornadoes described as large and extremely dangerous. and matt, when you see the destruction you've got to wonder how is it possible that no one was actually killed or even seriously hurt. >> that's right. the sheer power of the storms was captured live on television as one hit a trucking company. huge tractor trailers were lifted hundreds of feet into the air. coming up we'll get the very latest in some live reports from al roker and lester holt and

we'll talk to a family, they found shelter in their bathroom as the tornado hit their house. >> that's right. they were lucky. and also lucky was a woman who, after a car plowed into a store, she was narrowly missed by that car, as she stood at the checkout counter. you can see the pictures are dramatic. we're going to have -- oh, my goodness and it backs out and she barely gets out of the way. we'll have more about that coming up. plus what made him change his mind? donald trump has now reversed a decision by his miss universe organization, and they will allow a transgender contestant to compete for the crown. we're going to be hearing from both sides, and as you might imagine that one is making some headlines. and as we mentioned, much to discuss with ryan seacrest. he's here for a live interview. he'll even be answering some of the questions that you have been tweeting us. so we'll get to that in just a little while. >> let's begin with those tornadoes, however, in texas. we're going to check in with al in hard-hit arlington in just a moment. first let's start with nbc's lester holt who is in lancaster, texas. lester, good morning. >> ann, good morning to you.

the scene of cars inside a house, that tells you everything you need to know about the power of the tornadoes that came through the town of lancaster. one of 13 tornadoes that hit dallas yesterday. lancaster one of the places hard hit. there have been injuries. ten in this community. not nearly as many as people would expect. because the folks knew they were coming. as folks saw some of the most dramatic moments including those trucks being tossed into the air on live tv. dramatic amateur video provides this rare, up-close look at the strength of the violent tornadoes that ripped through the dallas area. >> look at it! >> i can't believe this. >> reporter: the scene on tuesday unfolded on live television as the massive funnel cloud moved through. those objects being thrown in the air -- big rig trucks. >> it's throwing 18 wheelers. >> it's not unusual to get tornadic storms in the southern

plains in april, what's unusual is that these storms found that tiny little spot of land where 6 million people live. >> reporter: the tornadoes missed the city of dallas but cut a destructive path across the metropolitan area. the fourth largest in the country. more than a dozen people were injured, including two residents of this arlington nursing home, after swirling winds clipped the building. >> sounded like a train. >> reporter: no fatalities have been reported but this aerial pictures show the extent of the damage. debris as far as the eye can see. and residents left to pick up the pieces. >> our whole house is gone. >> my son could have been upstairs in his room. that room is gone. i don't know how you go on. i'm sure you will. but, i mean, look at this. there's not a wall. >> reporter: the strong, fast-moving storm blasted the schneider national trucking operating center in an industrial section of dallas. littering its parking lot with overturned tractor trailers.

air traffic at dallas-ft. worth international airport was grounded. over 600 flights canceled. more than 110 planes were damaged by severe hail, the size of softballs. >> right over here behind us is the cedar valley christian center. there were a couple of dozen kids inside of this place. >> reporter: the storm struck at lunch time, sending area schools into lockdown mode. and anxious parents in search of their frightened children. donny walker lived in this house in hard-hit lancaster, texas, for his entire adult life. he rode the storm out in his bathroom. >> in the bathtub, underneath this ironing board. so that if anything fell, the iron board will cushion it. >> reporter: his house was destroyed by the storm. though still in disbelief, he feels blessed that he's okay. >> forgive me if i'm trying to read these messages from my family members.

>> reporter: during live coverage on msnbc, anchor tamron hall was messaging her family in the dallas area, in the line of the storm. >> my brother's bank of employment, as well, on lockdown. >> reporter: and mike napoli, the catcher for the texas rangers, tweeted this video taken from the rangers dugout, as heavy winds and rain blew the tarp across the field. a state of emergency was issued in arlington, where this amateur video captured the ominous scene from the ground. wes stevens was on his way to a meeting when he saw the first sign of the storm coming. >> pulled over. i thought well, gosh, i better film this. >> reporter: as folks come out to survey the damage, they'll talk how to talk about what went right. including the reverse 911 system here that allowed the authorities to send out prerecorded messages to people, warning that a storm is approaching and to take cover.

we noted a number of communities hit hard. also arlington, texas, al roker is there to tell us about the damage there and other bad weather that we should be watching there. al? >> that's right, lester, thanks so much. here in arlington, this is the martin high school area. these folks were renovating their home and were living in a mobile home in front. well, obviously, their house has been damaged and their mobile home destroyed, so that's a big problem. 150 homes in this area alone, severely damaged or destroyed and the reason for that -- these outbreaks of these strong storms. in fact, later this morning, the national weather service will send out crews as we show you what's going on as far as how many tornadoes we think may have touched down. national weather service will send out three crews to actually confirm whether these tornadoes or not. here's what happened, big low upper low pressure, really that was dynamic, plus in ahead of

it, very warm moist air. lot of energy there. firing up those tornadoes. today that system is moving to the east, the risk of strong storms. not as strong as we saw yesterday. we have to keep an eye on this. because we have the same ingredients. we have the risk of strong storms stretching from new orleans up to lexington, we're talking about hail and damaging winds and a lot of heavy rain. we'll continue to track that as we watch it move through the area over the next five, six hours. right now, things better for all of these folks here in arlington. now back to you, ann. >> that's good news. one of the tornadoes went through the home of lisa and ben. they're joining us now with their two young daughters. good morning to all of you.

>> good morning. >> lisa, i understand you were at home with your two girls when you heard the warning, how did you hear the warning and how much time did it give you to prepare? >> well, i saw the news that was something was coming. i had about three minutes to get inside. i went into the bathroom where the girls had already prepared a kit in there and i knew what i was going to do, i grabbed the girls and i grabbed some pots and pans to put over our heads. three minutes it hit our house. >> describe riding out this storm with your two little girls, lisa, in that bathroom? >> it was the most terrifying thing that i have ever been through. i grabbed on to both kids, so hard, i had no idea what was going on, when it hit our house, i heard a loud thud, a crash,

and all of a sudden, wind was coming through our house. i was in the middle of the house in the bathroom. i held on to those girls, put a pan over their heads, blankets and just parade. >> you mentioned the survival kit in the bathroom, did it come in handy? >> yes, i had baby bottles, i had diapers. i had snacks. i had flashlights. everything i needed for a day. we use a lot of the stuff in that kit. thank god i had a plan. >> ben, you have a very smart wife, first of all, she knew where to run, where to be prepared, having a survival kit already in the bathroom, how did you first hear about this because you weren't at home at the time sf >> i was at a meeting in a large office building and we had started our meeting at about

10:00 in the morning. and even to the point we had lunch brought in and we never left the room, there was no windows access, tv, or anything, we didn't learn about the storms until after 1:00. i'm from texas, grew here. we're used to the storms. lisa is from massachusetts, she's only been here for a few years, she's been through one or two, but nothing like we had yesterday. i ran and got my phone. i got ahold of her and you know, she remembered from some of the stuff that we had talked about after a couple of other storms came through, very happy that she put the plan in action. >> ben, and lisa, rebstock, you got your hands full but you're feeling very lucky this morning. thank you so much for joining us. good luck. >> thank you. it's 7:11. once again here's matt.

let's turn to politics. the gop presidential primary race. mitt romney scored a clean sweep on tuesday. he has 573 delegates. more than half of the total needed to secure the republican nomination. abc's peter alexander is in milwaukee with details. peter, good morning. >> reporter: that strong performance in the eyes of most observers cemented mitt romney's likelihood of the nominee. he captured the attention of president obama. >>. >> reporter: extended his lead in the delegate race. mitt romney is looking ahead to the next set of primary race next month. >> i'm asking the good people of pennsylvania, new york, rhode island, delaware and connecticut to join me. join me in the next step for

that destination of november 6th. >> it's great to be home. >> reporter: for his part rick santorum is already in pennsylvania. the state's former senator defiantly insisting that the republican race has just reached halftime. >> the clock starts tonight. we got three weeks to go out here in pennsylvania. and win this state. and after winning this state, the field looks different in may. >>. >> reporter: he focused his attention on the president, trying to turn the tables claiming that mr. obama is the one who's out of touch with average american. >> surrounding adoerg staff of true believers tell that you're great and doing a great job, you might become a little out of touch with that. >> one of my potential n competitors mitt romney. >> reporter: the president for

the first time addressed his likely challenger. >> it is really an attempt to impose a radical vision on our country, thinly veiled social darwinism. >> reporter: the president even referred to romney with sarcasm to drive his point home. >> he even called it marvelous which is a word you don't often here when it comes to describing a budget. it's a word you don't often hear generally. >> reporter: but bloggers quickly pointed out that the president has used that word, too. >> it is right for us to celebrate dr. king's marvelous oratory. >> reporter: and for their part, neither newt gingrich nor rick santorum has indicated any new plans to get out of this race. even after mitt romney's speech last night, his advisers continued to go after the president. one strategist telling us that mr. obama's re-election team is more obsessed with mitt romney than creating new jobs. >> peter alexander in milwaukee,

wisconsin, this morning. peter, thanks a lot. a lot of other top stories to get to. savannah guthrie is in for natalie this morning. good morning. >> good morning to you. topping our news, at least three nato service members have been killed this morning in a bombing in northern afghanistan. nearly 100 nato service members have been killed so far this year in afghanistan. more than half of them americans. back here, a frightening accident in midtown manhattan. a massive crane snapped and crashed to the ground killing one construction worker and injuring four others tuesday night. investigators are looking for what caused the 170-foot crane to crack into two pieces. several workers had to be rescued from the construction site 60 feet below ground. five students in california were sent to the hospital tuesday night after campus police at santa monica college used pepper spray on protesters there. some 200 students were demanding to be let into a board meeting to protest tuition hikes. students call it excessive

force. campus police are investigating the incident but say that controlling the crowd become an issue of safety. the fda is investigating a salmonella outbreak that has sickened 90 people across 19 states and the district of columbia. no deaths have been reported, but at least seven people have been hospitalized due to the outbreak, which may be linked to sushi. investigators are focusing on six groups of restaurants in texas, wisconsin, maryland, rhode island, and connecticut. let's get to wall street now. cnbc's courtney reagan is at the new york stock exchange for us this morning. courtney, good morning. >> good morning to you, savannah. moody's has downgraded credit rating on general electric by one notch to double-a-3. moody says this new rating better reflects the risk profile of ge. ge, however, says that its capital and liquidity have never been better and it's simply a change in methodology. general electric is a part owner of nbc universal. elsewhere the fda has found

versions of the breast cancer drug avastin and is warning hospitals and doctors to only use approved products. savannah? >> courtney reagan in washington. thank you so much. the baylor lady bears finished a perfect season last night, beating notre dame 80-61 to take home the ncaa title. that victory makes baylor the first college team, men or women, to complete a 40-0 perfect season. and a close call in connecticut caught on tape. a suspected drunk driver came barreling through the door of a convenience store monday night. that is janiah peterson at the register there with some very quick reflexes. she jumped out of the way as the suv reversed, and then backed out of the store. the driver is now facing charges. it's 7:18. back to matt and ann. she was actually buying a lottery ticket at the time. >> i hope she wins. >> but she's lucky to be alive. >> she takes one step back at the wrong time there, that ends completely differently.

what a terrible story. >> meantime, go baylor. >> that's good. 40-0, huh? the lady bears. good for them. congratulations. let's go back right now to arlington, texas. al has been down there covering these tornadoes. what parts of the south under the gun today, al? >> well, matt, we were talking to the area east of here, mississippi southern georgia, they're getting hit pretty hard already. nothing quite leik that. let's show you what's happening as far as today is concerned.e as we look at what's going on. you can see down in new orleans, on into pascagoula and the p panhandle of florida, heavy rain falling. some areas picking up 2 to 3 inches of rain before it's all over. flash flooding. parts of i-10 have been closed. we'll continue to watch

good morning to you. chilly start, zmirts 40s. woe should ever should move mostly into the 50s this afternoon. 50s around the inner bay, redwood city. closer to 60 around san jose for this afternoon. may see an isolated hilltop shower to the north bay or east bay hills. we will stay cool through friday. warmup to start the weekend. more clouds start to arrive. maybe far north bay showers there late on sunday. >> and that's your latest weather. with these outbreak of tornadoes and we have seen in the last few weeks, you might thinking, seems a lot more of these than we're used to and you would be right. an act of nature with horrific effects. 18 wheelers blown around like leaves. >> this is something i have never seen before. >> homes lived in for years,

flattened in an instant. >> these have been my roots, my family's roots and it means something to me. >> reporter: in a typical year the united states sees about 800 tornadoes. this spring has been hardly typical. >> so far this year it has been pretty busy. we're running about 50% above average for the number of tornadoes thus far this year. >> reporter: the power of a tornado develops when the energy of a thunderstorm gets stacked into an upward spiral. as the column of air stretches between ground and sky, wind speed can reach up to 250 miles per hour. >> oh, my god! >> we've had record heat, so often, and so that warmth is a big ingredient that provides the instability for the storm. >> reporter: in their path, tornadoes have been taking a devastating toll this year. from texas to illinois. dozens of fatalities, millions of dollars in damage, and still months left in the tornado season.

as total as the devastation these storms may seem, what they lay bare in their survivors is just as powerful. when henryville, indiana, was blasted in march, one courageous mom protected her kids with her body. it cost her parts of both legs. a price stephanie decker was willing to pay. >> i love you. the biggest reason i fought for is for my children. and i'm just so thankful that they lived and they didn't have a scratch on them. >> that's one expression of mother's love, that's for sure. and you know, last april, we had a record-setting month for tornadoes. 758. hopefully, we don't repeat that again this month. >> exactly, al. thank you so much for that. and just ahead we want to mention that it's been a pretty doctoring morning around here on tuesday as you may remember with

sarah palin as our guest host. some reaction, in fact a lot of it in fact has been mixed. we're going to tell you all about that. >> also ahead, ryan seacrest. he's already got a couple of dream jobs. does he want something else? we'll talk to him about his [ male announcer ] a car is either luxury or it isn't.

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good morning, everyone. time now is 7:26. i'm jon kelley. the suspecting in monday's deadly shooting in oakland is heading to court this afternoon. family and friends coming together to remember loved ones. tears to be seen everywhere. faith and city leaders sharing words of comfort including oakland mayor jean quan who made a plea for peace and healing. families of the victims say that they are not sure how they are going to move forward. >> told me that -- i know that i don't want to cry.

>> so sad out there. police say that the suspect, one goh, shot and killed seven people at oikos university in oakland monday. right now they are still searching for a gun. chilly start out there. check in with rob mayeda to find out what's happening on your monday. >> good morning. speaking of chilly, how about 30s. 46 san jose, oakland, san francisco. reason why things are going to be chilly today, even if the sun is shining, cool air mass settling into the bay area. maybe a hilltop shower here or there around the north bay or east bay hills later on in the afternoon. shouldn't amount to much. everyone will see breezy and cool conditions today. warmest places south of san jose, low 60s and upper 50s to near 60 in the tri valley. you can see here, in the forecast, we are going to see cool temperatures through friday. then just the time for the weekend. we will warm up some. more showers early next week. >> all right. south bay folks, northbound 101 has the longest strep of the slowdown. capital expressway all the way to the airport.

608 southbound at capital expressway. also an accident there. clearer to the median. and 85 northbound at stephens creek boulevard. an accident there off to the right hand shoulder. not so bad as far as the volume here. southbound 808 starts to slow past both bridges out of hayward and fremont. down to about auto mall parkway for the speed into the 40s. live look out there shows you oakland and northbound on right heading past the coliseum. not a big deal. we will get big volume change in the next hour or so. so far the only slowing is at the toll plaza. >> thanks, mike. for the latest traffic and news updates, go ahead and jump online and check us out at nbc bay area on facebook. back back with another local update in one-half hour. [ female announcer ] if whole grain isn't the first ingredient in your breakfast cereal, what is? now, in every box of general mills big g cereal, there's more whole grain than any other ingredient. that's why it's listed first on the side. from honey nut cheerios

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7:30 on a wednesday morning. that was the scene on tuesday when sarah palin was here, she made herself comfortable. taking over matt's name in that dressing room. what is going on in there this morning? >> well, you know, obviously i decided not to -- >> oh, wait a minute. >> ryan seacrest in the house. who apparently has his sights set on that same dressing room. we'll find out if that's a temporary or permanent situation when we -- don't look in the drawers, don't do that. >> looking in your briefcase. a bigger problem.

>> that's a misdemeanor in most states right there anyway, we'll talk to ryan seacrest about a lot of things happening in his life, his career. also, a surprising new tell all from a swimming great, amanda beard. been on this show a lot of the times. competed in her first olympics when she was 14 years old. now she's talking about her struggles with eating disorders, cutting, and drug abuse. we'll talk to her about that. and nadya suleman will be here tomorrow. the mother of 14, including octuplets. she's been having a hard time supporting her family as a single mom and now she's taken some dramatic steps, including going on welfare to pay her bills. she'll be talking about that and what her life is like now tomorrow on "today" but, first, let's turn to something else. another story. not often that donald trump backs down, following an outcry, he decided to lift a ban on a transgender woman from entering

his ms. universe competition. mike tie abby has the latest. >> reporter: this dustup over whether a transgendered beauty queen is generating a lot of publicity. no problem, of course, for donald trump. she is 6'1", statuesque and striking and had completed in transgender and transsexual beauty pagents. 23-year-old jenna telakula told a reporter from the pageant she knew from the time she could think she was not the male she was at birth. >> i knew since i was about 4. >> reporter: really? >> and i started my hormone therapy when i was 14, and then i went through with the surgery when i was 19. >> reporter: it was sex reassignment surgery. and her sex is listed as female. but she was disqualified from the ms. universe because she was

not a naturally born female. an online petition drive drew 20,000 supporters, and donald trump said she can compete, provided she meets the legal gender recognition requirements of canada and the standards of other international competitions. >> we need a clearance, not a wimpy, wish washy, type of answer. >> reporter: later, tmz, trump said it clearly. >> we go by the law and based on the laws, she is able to compete if she wants to. >> reporter: trump, center stage in other pageant controversies. >> she made some very, very bad choices. >> reporter: giving second chance to 2006 ms. usa tara connor after a cocaine and under age drinking scandal. and that started the controversy with rosie o'donnell.

and trump harshly criticized usa runner up carrie prejean. now it's the first transgender to go for the ms. universe crown. >> letting people know she's proud of being transgendered certainly makes her a pioneer. >> reporter: as for jenna. >> i never asked for any special consideration. i only wanted to compete. >> reporter: we should note, the ms. unskrers pageant is a joint venture between donald trump and m nbc universal. all the controversy has ramped up interest, and ticket sales, and in his words, not the worst thing in the world. let's go back to texas for a check of the weather from al.

>> and we're talking about severe weather, spring-like storms, we have to talk about winterlike weather in the pacific northwest. we have winter storm watches and winter weather advisory, northern california, washington, oregon, idaho, all the way into montana, where we're talking about rain and snow moving onshore today. again, not widespread, but scattered and it will leave from six to eight inches of snow in the cascades and sierras. a quarter inch to half average of rain along the pacific northwest coast. plenty of sunshine. mild conditions in the great lakes. clouds in the pacific northwest. in new england, with a few snow flurries. the risk of strong storms on the mid-atlantic coast and back through the mid mississippi and lower mississippi river valley. windy conditions continue in

story around the bay area this morning, chilly temperatures and some clearing skies. still in the 30s right now. napa, santa rosa, fairfield, 46. san francisco, oakland, and you saw the national map. the active weather just off to north, sort of sitting on the outer fringe of the colder pocket of air that's going to bring a slight chance of showers. i think for north bay hilltop. may be the east bay hills. isolated showers with that. cooler and breezy. then trending warmer as we kick off the weekend. saturday and sunday with some mild temperatures. >> we still have a lot of severe weather going on around the country. so you might want to check in with the weather channel. either weather channel on cable or weather.com online. guys, back to you. >> all right, al, thank you so much for that. so governor sarah palin was here on tuesday as our special guest host. and there has been a lot of reaction. >> mm-hmm, there has been. >> some of it coming from our friends on other television programs. for example, mr. jon stewart spent some time discussing it. take a look.

>> it's sarah palin co-hosting "the today show"! and she was there performing a medley of her greatest hits from, i don't read newspapers, to i write on my hand. to that old chestnut i passive aggressively hate matt lauer with every ounce of my being. >> how's it going so far, governor? >> it's great. thanks for letting me crash your dressing room and now that i have your hair products. >> technically i didn't give you permission to be in there. >> thanks, mr. stewart. for the cross promotion there. we really appreciate it. >> i think the twitter verse has blown up, al. it's been insane. there was some negative responses. karen acre on twitter said, i can't believe that the "today" show had sarah palin on as a guest host today. i've watched the show for 20 years. i am disappointed. >> we also got some positive tweets, one that says go sarah, you're doing good and kicking butt. and then i love the name of

these tweets, pond lizards, from a mama gator to a mama grizzly, i love you, sarah palin. >> al, i thought that was your title, pond lizard. >> no. >> but -- >> have you -- >> i thought she did a good job. >> i did, too. it was fun to have her here. >> the thing about it is that, you know, she came ready to play and she was really, you know, she was really easy to work with. >> pretty self-deprecating character. >> totally. i know she wanted to move -- >> the only problem was -- the only problem is she tried to track jim bell our executive producer, she thought he was a bear. [ laughter ] >> mr. roker, we'll see you in a little while. >> all right. okay. anyway, coming up next we're going to be talking about a controversial recommendation, why a growing number of doctors want overweight teens to undergo weight loss surgery. we also have, of course, a live interview with ryan seacrest. na. ♪

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you have unusual changes in behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver disease and before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. simple pleasures shouldn't hurt. talk to your doctor about cymbalta. depression hurts. cymbalta can help. [ shark 1 ] uh, steve. [ shark 2 ] yeah, the guy. with steve i tasted peanut butter and uh snickers.

yeah, that's it! steve had just eaten snickers peanut butter squared. ohhhhh! steve was delicious. [ male announcer ] if you like peanut butter and chocolate, you'll love peanut butter and snickers. try snickers peanut butter squared. we're back now at 7:41. this morning on "today's health," the newest attempt to address the soaring rate of obesity among teenagers. while some doctors preach healthy diets and exercise, a growing number of doctors are recommending weight loss surgery. nbc's tom costello has details on that. tom, good morning. >> matt, good morning. this is a bit controversial, because while a third of the population is overweight or obese, the attitude until now has been kids need to cut the junk food and exercise more. but some doctors now say weight loss surgery is the best way to save obese kids from a life of potentially deadly diseases. early morning at nationwide children's hospital in columbus, ohio, and 17-year-old megan huffman is preparing for surgery. >> it will take about 20 minutes

to get to sleep. >> reporter: gastric sleeve surgery. since she was a little girl, megan has been overweight or obese. her weight peaking at 300 pounds. now, prediabetic, a very nervous megan says the surgery is about reclaiming her life. >> i get teased a lot. so made me decide to do something about it. >> teased in school? >> yeah. >> reporter: that can be hard. >> yeah. >> reporter: but this is major surgery. on any patient, removing a portion of the stomach is not without risk. so is it appropriate for a teenager? >> they're not only not going to lose it on their own, they're not going to keep it off for a long term. >> reporter: pediatric surgeon dr. mark mikulski says for patients 100 pounds overweight there are no other realistic options. the obesity related health risks can be just as great in teenagers as they are in adults. diabetes, high cholesterol, blood pressure, even liver, kidney and heart disease. doctor mikulski just authored a new research study that

concludes bariatric surgery is a safe and effective treatment option for morbidly obese adolescents. >> at the end of the day that boils down to a shortened life span somewhere in the neighborhood of about 10 to 15-year shorter life. >> reporter: with diabetes in the family, megan's parents felt surgery was the right choice. >> i love her no matter how she looks or weighs or whatever. but for the health reasons, i think she's making the right decision. >> all of this part of the stomach is going to be removed and you're going to be left with basically a very long tube. >> reporter: removing 80% of the stomach takes two hours. while weight loss surgery has become common for adults, performing it on teenagers is relatively new. here in columbus they weren't doing any bariatric surgeries on teenagers ten years ago. five years ago they did five. this year they expect to do 25 to 30. >> i would be at school and go

to the bathroom and cry because of kids making fun of me. >> reporter: another megan, megan muncie, was just 14 and weighs 345 pounds when she had the surgery two years ago. now 16, she's lost 150 pounds, and says her life has changed for the better. >> i have more energy, i'm a lot happier. i have a lot more of a social life than i used to. >> reporter: minutes before megan huffman's surgery, her mom said she hoped the surgery would give megan a better future. >> i hope that she goes to college. gets a good job. finds the right guy. has kids. >> reporter: but for megan, there is a much more immediate goal. >> to fit in my prom dress my senior year. >> reporter: that's important? >> yeah. >> reporter: the teenagers who are chosen for the surgery must convince doctors that they are determined to change their eating habits and their lifestyles. and very often that means big changes at home for the entire family. and they admit it's not easy for anyone, especially teens, who face constant temptations from junk food.

matt, back to you. >> all right, tom costello thank you very much. dr. nancy snyderman is nbc's chief medical editor. >> hey, matt. >> how do you respond to someone who says wait a second, at 16 or 17 years of age, isn't it too early for these kids to reach an option of last resort? >> well, that's just the problem. they've run out of all options. diet and exercise don't work, their hormone levels have changed so they're in a state of perpetual disease. and obesity, it's linked to heart disease and liver disease and their cancer rates go up, you're talking about young adults. who really only have surgery as an option. >> tom mentioned in his piece that the risks are the same for teens and adults who suffer from obesity. what about the risks of surgery? are they the same, as well? >> they are the same, except that once you stop absorbing nutrients and vitamins and minerals that happen from the surgery, and you're still growing, you have to really think about supplements. we talked to carnie wilson yesterday about the fact that she had gone through surgery before. and it didn't work well for her. the first time around. and now she's having a second

run. and i think one of the things for teenagers, these kids have to approach this with an adult brain. this is the beginning of a new future. so, diet, exercise, the whole family being involved, this isn't just a one-off and then you can go back to eating pop and mac and cheese. >> and are doctors becoming better at handling both ends of the equation? >> absolutely. >> we're not just going to fix you physically we're going to also make sure you get the counseling you need emotionally? >> and it starts right, being able to say to somebody you're not ready for this. or there are other options for you. and then it's psychological training. it's social work. it's getting the family in. it's diet. it's exercise. it's everything. surgery is a component of the rest of the life being changed. and then the kids have a chance at a real life and frankly not dying young. this is the disease that is going to cripple this country if we don't get our arms around it. and this is just one tool. >> all right, nancy, thanks. appreciate it very much. nice to see you. it's 47 after the hour. still to come, ryan seacrest live in our studio. he'll talk about everything under the sun. but first, these messages. didn't realize that i shook

so many hands in a day. since the surgery it's a little painful. so i'll be all right. but heavy lifting, matt, at the gym. >> you got to have -- >> you got to have girth to host the show. >> how did you -- >> i tore a tendon by overtraining and i didn't slow down. so i had it operated on. i can still hold the results card on "idol." should be okay. >> does that interfere with your

other part time job, scooping ice cream? >> it's a yogurt machine. >> you mention "idol." you have to get back? >> i do. i spoke to the producers last night, and they said, you're where? i said, new york. we have a two-hour live show this evening in los angeles. >> but a rehearsal -- >> the rehearsal at lunch time. >> you don't need to rehearse at this point. >> somebody can cover if i get there a few minutes late. randy would be great up there onstage. >> i know you're used to life on a plane, aren't you? >> yeah. i travel a lot. but i'm also used to juggling a bunch of different things. i find that exciting. >> funny you bring that up. because we're going to be talking about your plans for juggling. >> have you heard about any of my plans? >> i've read some headlines. we'll be talking about that -- >> what are you talking about? >> what are you guys talking about? >> much more with ryan. by the way, if you have a question for him, and i've got a couple, you can tweet us @todayshow/seacresttoday. >> sounds like a lot of time for this i.erewvi

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good morning, everybody. time now is 7:56. i'm jon kelley. gas leak in san jose keeping workers busy throughout the night. crew just finished repairing the gas line an hour ago. that leak started when a car slammed right into a home. that ultimately broke a gas meter. three homes had to be evacuated while pg&e tried to shut off that gas. one person suffering minor injuries. i'm guessing a lot of people around the bay area needed gas. heat is going this morning. rob is telling as you crisp, cool start. >> chilly outside. you can see 30s and 40s around the bay area this morning. good 10 degrees cooler than we were at this hour yesterday. we have clearing skies after some overnight rain and still slight chance of isolated showers here in the north bay hilltop for the afternoon. our temperature today running

quite actual. start off in the 40s and those upper 30s. finish the day for the most part no matter where you are in the mid to upper 50s today. about same story comes tomorrow. as you head towards the weekend we will see temperatures starting to dlim climb. high pressure building in. >> good morning. advisory for the bay and richmond bridges. backup by the toll plaza because of the metering lights. let's take a live look at oakland. we see congestion continuing a little bit here. 50s and 40s as you travel up from 238 to downtown oakland. back to the maps and show you what things are like in the south way and northbound 101 still slowdown. 280, 880 interchange. 85, all your northbound routes generally coming down towards 40s and in some spots 20s. that's where you seed the red. >> appreciate it, mike. for the latest traffic and news updates make sure to check us out on nbc bay area facebook. back in one-half hour.

8:00 now on a wednesday morning. it's the 4th day of april, 2012. there is one of the busiest men in show business. you know him from "idol." he's got an empire going. he happens to be a terrifically nice man. that's ryan seacrest and he is in new york today before getting back to los angeles for "idol" this evening. we're going to talk to ryan about a lot of subjects. his future plans, even that incident on the red carpet with the dictator. coming up in just a couple of minutes. he handled it so well at the time.

what do you think he was really feeling about that? >> that's a good question. a lot of people speculated about that. i guess we'll get the real answer in a few moments. >> out on the plaza, i'm matt lauer along with ann curry. and a huge spring crowd behind us. and what -- sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. and what else do we have coming up? >> also coming up we're going to be hearing from amanda beard. of course she's the olympic swimmer who has really been amazing medal winner. she's written a book called "in the water they can't see you cry." which of course is intimating how much the pool has been a rescue for her. against all kinds of difficulties, including depression, bulimia and drawing abuse. this morning she openly shares her story. >> all right. also i want to mention, al is not here because he's down in arlington, texas. also coming up, 13 years after the blockbuster hit "american pie," the kids are all back this time at their high school reunion. we'll catch up with the cast a

little later in the show. >> sounds like fun. >> let's head inside. savannah guthrie filling in at the news desk while natalie is off. good morning. >> good morning. at least 19 tornadoes touched down tuesday, causing extensive damage in the dallas-ft. worth area. hundreds of homes were damaged or destroyed. the storms so powerful, big rig tractor trailers were lifted high in the air. however there were no reports of any deaths or serious injuries. mitt romney is adding to a convincing lead in the republican presidential nomination, sweeping the wisconsin, maryland, and district of columbia primaries on tuesday. with that commanding delegate lead, romney is now in general election mode, trading jabs with president obama. lagging in the delegate count, former pennsylvania senator rick santorum insisted the republican race has only reached halftime, hoping to win big time in his home state of pennsylvania three weeks from now. a terrorist attack in mogadishu this morning has left at least ten people dead,

including the president of somal somalia's olympic committee. a suicide bomber debt natured explosives just as somalia's prime minister was about to make a speech at the country's new national theater. the prime minister was unharmed. the al qaeda linked group al shabaat has claimed responsibility. emergency officials in colorado acknowledged tuesday that people who called 911 last week about smoke from what started as a controlled burn were told the fire posed no threat, and were not given evacuation orders. sheriff's officials now say they didn't realize the fire had blazed out of control. one of the 911 calls came from an elderly man who was later found dead on his property, along with his wife. a surfer in hawaii says he used his board to fight off a ten foot shark that bit him on the foot. 28-year-old joshua hole li was paddling off oahu's north shore when officials say a ten foot shark, bit his left foot, left go and bit him again. hole li is scheduled for surgery today and shark warnings have been posted in that area.

now let's look at what's trending today. our quick roundup of what has you talking online. his acrimonious firing friday by current tv has keith olbermann trending on google. last night david letterman asked olbermann if he blames current's co-founder former vice president al gore. >> is former vice president al gore, does he know what he's doing on tv? >> i screwed up. >> if you buy a $10 million chandelier, you should have a house to put it in. >> you're the chandelier? >> i'm the chandelier. >> olbermann has said he plans to take legal action against current tv. a provocative article by british journalist samantha brit has set off an explosion of resentment online. the 41-year-old wrote in the daily mail about the benefits and burdens of being beautiful, and says she can't wait for wrinkles and gray her to help her blend in. brick even posted photos of

herself so readers could judge her beauty for themselves. and sarah palin is hot on twitter and has the blogs talking for her guest hosting stint right here on "today" on tuesday. palin made herself at home, taking advantage of our ample supply of newspapers, and even crashing matt's dressing room. and taking advantage of his ample supply of hair products. it's now 8:05. back to matt and ann. >> this is getting a workout. >> savannah, thank you very much. let us get a check of the weather now. al is down in arlington, texas, where that area got hit hard by those storms yesterday. al, good morning again. >> that's right, matt. thanks so much. 13 tornadoes estimated to have touched down here in about a two-hour period. there's a home right here. they were renovating it. they were living in a mobile home. that got destroyed. there are actually people as you're looking from aerial shots just in to us, you're looking at homes along here, there are cars

parked along the street, there are actually people sleeping in their cars, to try to, you know, at least keep some semblance of their property around and keep an eye on it. but, it really is kind of devastating. on the other side of the street, almost no damage. so it's -- it really shows you the randomness of these tornadoes. let's show you what's going on for today. we do have a risk of strong storms again, today. our pick city of the day, indianapolis, indiana. nbc 13, showers, mild, temperatures in the mid 60s. and here's what we're looking at for today. afternoon temperatures, getting up into the 40s and 50s around the great lakes. 40s in new england. 40s and 50s in the pacific northwest. where we'll be looking at some snow in some of the mountains. the sierra, and the cascade. risk of strong storms, lower mississippi river valley up into the mid-mississippi, and tennessee river valleys. that's what's going on around

we're seeing some chilly temperatures outside. now into the 40s in fairfield and napa. you can see on the satellite radar view, we have got some showers up near the coast. some of that is going to try to spill toward the bay area, sometime during the afternoon. maybe around the east bay hills, might see abafternoon showers. we start to warm up for the weekend. your latest weather. matt, ann? >> all right, thanks a lot, al. hey by the way, you're going to be talking to ryan seacrest. looks like he's in your chair, matt. >> i can't catch a break. >> coming up right after this. i'm good about washing my face.

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we're back now at 8:09 with ryan seacrest. between "american idol," his production company and his radio show, he is building an entertainment empire. he's managed to find time to make his way to studio 1a this morning. we appreciate that. ryan, good to see you as always. >> well, thanks for having me. it's been fun roaming around here for the last hour or so. >> what do you want to start with? there's a lot going on about you. let's start with first of all just how you're finding time to mix all this stuff together. >> i love it. i think the key is that every morning when the alarm goes off, i'm excited about what i get to do. and i've got an incredible team of people that i work with at the company. and i've worked with for years. so the people make it happen. the people around you. >> with all you've got going on right now where do you see

yourself in five years? >> same height. but hopefully balancing everything that i've been able to build, and doing a good job at it. you know, i may not be the fastest person on earth, but i like to be pretty good at hosting. you know, i'm not a great actor i try to be a good conduit to pop culture. >> you've made some headlines recently. and my name has been involved in some of them, as well. a lot of those stories deal with this idea that you could eventually take this job. so i'm going to deal with this the way i would deal with anybody i'm interviewing. i'll ask direct questions. what kind of conversations have you had with nbc about joining the "today" show? >> oh, they didn't tell you? >> that's why you're here. >> i've worked with the e! network for years. and nbc universal and e! are the same family. and so the plan is for me to join the nbc family, and continue to have a role at the e! network.

the first assignment will be to join the prime-time team for the olympics on nbc. >> you didn't answer the question. so the question was, what conversations have you had with nbc officials about joining this program? >> just conversations -- >> and i want names and dates. >> the conversations with four people to your right, who are on the floor. but they were mostly about filling in to do weather. >> so al should be doing this interview? can you see yourself doing a job like this? >> you know, i -- i don't know. i see you doing this for as long as you want to. so, you know, maybe the question is, how long will you be on the "today" show? >> well -- funny you mention that -- >> because fans and myself included think you should be here for years to come. >> can i say something i think is important to just say real quickly? first of all, i think you'd be great at this job. >> and secondly. we have discussed -- ryan and i are friendly. we have talked about this.

we've joked about this. there is no tension here. >> there's no tension. matter of fact, when the story came out, you and i spoke and had dinner right after that. >> yeah. >> there's nobody better than you. >> and by the way, i bought dinner. which i thought was completely inappropriate. "american idol," what is this 11th season? >> yes, this is the 11th season of that show. >> what's your future there? >> i plan to stay there. i think i'll have an official announcement very, very soon. but i expect to be on the show. it's a great, great program. it's a circus to run and i enjoy it. >> you don't want to make that announcement here? >> i tried. we're not quite there. >> not quite there. >> but we're almost there. >> i was reading in the "hollywood reporter" and it said when it comes to reality television you are the most powerful man in hollywood. which is great. it's a huge compliment. you've got the kardashians and the spinoff from that show and all the spinoffs. where do you see reality tv going, ryan? >> you know, it's all about great stories. great story lines.

these families, as you've seen, are very interesting. there's never a dull moment with the shows that we produce. i don't think it's going away. it's also, it's less expensive to produce. >> right. >> so there's clearly an appetite for it. and it makes a lot of financial sense, as well. >> do you, though, get an alarm in you that goes off when a particular story line, maybe even the kardashians, comes close to jumping the shark as the expression goes? >> i don't know that i obsess about that. you know, the power of young girls, and the power, as you know, of women, they latch onto this. the sisterhood of those girls, and have for so many years. but we're always trying to take look at what's next. we have a new show coming out on cmt with melissa and ty. we've got sunset. we've got the kardashian franchise. and we're still looking for the next thing. >> you've got a knack for show biz, no question. you have a knack for getting some publicity. you got some on the red carpet not long ago when "the dictator" spilled an urn of ashes on you. outwardly you were a great

sport. inwardly -- >> i actually heard what you said the next day, and i think you commented that he -- he took it in stride but he was probably a little upset in the moment. i did not know that was coming. i was completely caught off guard. but -- you roll with it. you know. it's not the end of the world that my lapel had a little dust on it. >> will you treat him differently the next time you see him or do you think he will avoid you down the road? >> i don't know that he will avoid me. i think i'll be -- i'll certainly have a second jacket. i'll be aware. i always have two jackets, and it came -- it came in handy at the oscars. >> a boy scout, be prepared. >> that's right. i like it. >> you're joining the nbc family. we'll see you in london, which is great. >> yeah, i have to tell you, it's been something that i've been very much looking forward to. and we're doing a lot of fun things at nbc, and this is a fresh start at the olympics. thank you for having me. >> it's good to see you. and in terms of other announcements, watch this

stage -- not this stage, but watch this stage. >> all right, matt, thank you very much. coming up next, olympic swimmer amanda beard opens up about her struggles away from the pool and her quest to make it to london. that's right after this. ♪ [ upbeat ] [ barks ] [ announcer ] all work and no play... will make allie miss her favorite part of the day. [ laughing ] that's why there's new beneful baked delights.

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back now at 8:19 with u.s. swimming great amanda beard. she's competed in four straight olympics, winning seven medals and breaking several world records along the way. and she's ready to come back for more. but the road hasn't always been easy. we're going to talk to her in just a moment. but first, a look back at amanda's incredible journey. >> amanda beard wins her fourth olympic medal. >> period does it! olympic record time. >> at the tender age of 14, amanda beard made her olympic debut in 1996. >> i honestly didn't think of it as much more than just a normal swim meet that i'd been going to my whole life.

>> reporter: she left atlanta with an impressive collection of hardware, a gold, and two silvers. but it was her traveling companion that stole the show. >> it was hilarious that it was just this big bear from my sisters, who take a teddy bear with me and it blew up. >> if this was in the hands of the russians it could ruin our chances. >> amanda beard slips in there for the bronze. >> going in to the 2000 sydney olympics i had zero expectations on myself. honestly, i was shocked and surprised i even made that team. >> reporter: but beard managed to take home a medal. >> it is to this day my favorite medal because it really was out of nowhere. >> reporter: four years later in athens, expectations were once again high and beard delivered. >> after i won my gold medal in athens, it really is this kind of relief, and overwhelming excitement that all this training has kind of paid off in that little short moment. >> reporter: the olympics made amanda a star.

sexy magazine covers made her an icon. the media blitz took its toll. >> i was trying to be successful so much outside of the water that i started to lose myself in the water. >> reporter: the 2008 beijing olympics marked her fourth consecutive games but it ended quickly in disappointment. >> i didn't even get a second swim. it was a very unsuccessful olympics for me. >> reporter: now 30, married, and a mom, to 2-year-old son blaze, she's got her sights set on london. >> i do have very specific goals for the london games. but i keep everything pretty secretive as far as that goes. >> despite her success, amanda beard was not the same person in private as we just saw in public. she writes about her personal struggles in her new book, it's called "in the water they can't see you cry." amanda beard. what a pleasure. good morning. >> good morning. >> the title itself, in the water they can't see you cry, seems that the refuge that the pool was for you. and it's interesting to note

that you write about the beginning of your parents divorce you say, even though i was only 12 years old, and my mother had left, i wasn't the kind of person to start falling. it's not the beard way. so you cried in the water? >> yeah. i mean, it was one of those moments where i had a difficulty showing any sort of emotions outside of the pool. as soon as i jumped into the water, put my goggles on, i felt like i could let everything go and cry my eyes out, have those emotional moments. and it was my way of kind of meditating and dealing with them. >> and because of your talent, you were thrust into circumstances that a lot of young people aren't, for example at 14, you were at the olympics, and -- and there isn't a real chaperone system for kids at the olympics. and so you're -- you're really by yourself. and you had too much time on your hands and you started alcohol for the first time you tried it. >> yeah. unfortunately, i was 14, and that was my first taste of alcohol after the olympics. and yeah, it kind of just

started something, i guess. >> you became bulimic in college. and you write that even if my purging had hurt my swimming i wouldn't have stopped. i wanted to be a great and fast swimmer but more than that i wanted to be pretty. you ultimately beat that addiction. but what was it that drove it? >> oh, man. a lot of things. just trying to constantly feel worth something, i guess. >> but you were an olympian. how could you not know that you were worth something? >> and that's the thing. it was one of those things where i felt like an idiot, i guess, saying that i was struggling so much on the inside, because i was an olympic athlete, i was having a great career. i had my own home. i -- you know, there are all these great things going on in my life. on the inside i was hating everything about me. i would show up and feel ugly and stupid and just awful, and i struggled with it, because i felt like i couldn't let that out for people to see because they'd be like, well, you have all this success, how could you

possibly feel that way? >> and there was depression, there was drugs, there was as i mentioned, purging, and then it became hard. and a young man you were having a relationship with said you need to go get some help. and that man became your husband. >> yes. >> he became your knight, really? >> we joke that he's my knight in shining armor. but he really was. he's my best friend. he's the person that i could totally lean on. and expose everything about myself. and he still stood by me. and that really impressed me and knew that this person loves me no matter what. >> so, what motivated the girl who could not cry, because it was not the beard way, to write this book that says all of this, and to be here this morning, and speak honestly about your struggles? >> well, honestly, i talked to a lot of young athletes and a lot of females, and i want them to know that my life hasn't been rainbows and butterflies.

i've had this crazy, hectic, roller coaster of a life. and i have found a point in my life where i'm happy, i'm healthy, i'm having fun, i'm really just enjoying myself. so to all get to that point, and so many people are going through the same things that i've been through, and i just want them to know, you're not alone. we all experience all these kind of dark demons, and it's not something to be embarrassed by. go so another reason to cheer amanda beard. you're going after your fifth olympics in london. good luck in that. >> thank you. >> and you even said you're going to try to go after a sixth and make a big breakthrough record. amanda beard. such a pleasure to talk to up. can't to wait to see you in the olympics. the book is called "in the

8:26 right now, i'm laura garcia-cannon. police say the suspect, one l.goh said he tossed the gun in annest ware. the murky water made it impossible for searchers to actual see anything. one l. goh is suspected of killing seven people on monday. he's expected to make his

appearance in the court this afternoon. >> want to check the morning commute with mike. >> for most of your routes here, actually 85 looking a little better. 87, guadalupe park way, a little tough. southbound, 80 slow out of hayward and into fremont, an accident just before you get to the dunbar on the bridge. the wind is actually lifted for the san mateo. interstate 580 is slow now. >> we're going to have another local news update for you in about a half an hour or so. -dad, why are you getting that? -that's my cereal.

is there a prize in there? oh, there's a prize, all right. is it a robot? no. is it a jet plane? nope. is it a dinosaur?] [ male announcer ] inside every box of heart healthy cheerios are those great tasting little o's made from carefully selected oats that c help lower cholesterol. stickers? uh-uh.

a superhero? ♪ kinda. [ male announcer ] and we think that's the best prize of all. ♪ 8:30 now on this wednesday morning. it's the fourth day of april, 2012. a huge and wonderful crowd we're really glad to have here saying hi to their friends and family back home. they're out on rockefeller plaza. camera time. allow me to talk really slowly. meantime, i'm ann curry alongside matt lauer, savannah guthrie. by the way, they are back!

>> that's right. 13 years after the original "american pie" movie, the cast has gotten back together for the latest installment in that very funny franchise. this time, they are going back to a high school reunion. we've got four members of the cast sitting in our studio right now. we'll talk to them in just a couple of minutes. >> all right, as you know about this, guys, but there is a trend now for people for mothers to vent online about the frustrations of parenting. people saying, all kinds of things. and sometimes they're saying things that really raise some eyebrows. this morning we'll be talking to a woman who started a blog that turned into a website where people are venting and also some perspective on whether it's a good idea, bad idea, maybe people go too far. >> all right. also easter is this sunday. a lot of us are content to go to the drugstore, buy the stuff, dip the egg in the dye and call it a day. martha stewart is not one of those people. she is here. she has easter eggs, i don't know, on steroids. glitter eggs, confetti eggs.

she's going to show us how to do it. >> can i tell you something? those are actually covered in gold leaf. >> wow. real gold leaf? are they valuable? >> yes. don't sit on them. >> grab some eggs and run. >> that's what we're going to do at my house, too. let's get a check of the weather. mr. roker is in arlington, texas, covering a pretty story down there. al, good morning again. >> hey, good morning, guys. we had a little bit of a technical issue so we're on the phone right now. but you can see, it's like -- it's like marconi. in any event, we've -- we've got a -- a beautiful sky today. that's the good news. and the good news for folks who are finally going to -- oh, we've got our microphone back, who are going to be doing a lot of cleanup today. let's show you right now we're looking at a risk of strong storms making their way from the gulf coast into the mid-atlantic states and we've got some pretty decent weather out to the west. showers in the pacific northwest. sunny skies through the plains.

and a crisp start to the morning right now, let me show you what we're watching for you, as we go through the afternoon, we have got a few showers offshore. watch what happens there. napa and fairfield, maybe some isolated showers there in the north and eastbound hills during the afternoon. and a nice night tonight. in the 50s for most places, and on the weekends, we warm up some, temperatures in the 60s on saturday. , thank you so much. batten down the hatches. the original cast of "american pie" is back for a reunion for "american pie reunites." we're going to catch up with them. but first, this is "today" o [ mom ] to me, chex is not just a little bowl of cereal,

it's kind of a big deal. to find nutritious and gluten-free cereals my whole family actually loves? well, the word "wow" comes to mind. and then a friend told me chex has five flavors that are gluten-free. even a cinnamon one the kids love. a nutritious cereal that makes everybody happy? like i said, wow. [ male announcer ] chex cereal. five flavors. good and gluten free.

we're back now at 8:35.

it was nearly 13 years ago when we first meet the teenagers from smalltown michigan in the raunchy comedy "american pie." it earned $100 million, millions of fans and spawned seven more movies. apparently raunchy sells. now "american ee runyon" is about to hit theaters. chris klein, alyson hannigan, and eugene levy. welcome back. who had to be convinced, who ran to come back to this reunion. >> i came sprinting. >> did you? >> wait for me. >> i had to be talked into it. >> really, why? >> because i was hesitant. you know, i'm on a show, and i was like, i'm happy. i've got my family. then i met the directors who also wrote it and they had fantastic ideas, and once i read the script i was like, okay, sign me up. >> how about you tara? >> i wanted it and i was so excited. >> yeah. with me it was sex, sex, sex. and i thought you know what, i'm

just -- i'm tired of it. i'm tired of being a sex symbol. you know, i want to do something else. >> you're only one man. >> i'm only one man. that's all i can do. i'm doing my best. >> it's been 13 years. who's changed the most? >> i feel like i have, because i have -- well, a kid and one on the way, and i just feel old. >> i feel like that, not because she's old but because she has a family. >> yeah, you know. i'm very happy. >> when you get back together on set, and now it's a high school reunion, that's the whole premise of this -- of this movie, do the guys on the cast immediately regress to high school days? >> absolutely. >> do they? >> they need to all wear cups when they're together. >> guilty. guilty. he's our ringleader. >> yes, i love a good high jinks. you know, the thing is,

everybody -- here's the thing with me, you know, on the first "american pie" the one thing i noticed about this group of extremely talented young actors was how professional they were on the set, and of course, 13 years later, they're still the most professional people to work with. on the set. so i haven't seen any high jinks. >> personally? >> i think people straighten up when eugene is around. we want to impress him. >> yes. yes. >> what is it about these characters, do you think, tara, that had people coming back for seven movies and now eight? >> i think they're so available. this is a movie where if you watch the movie, there's some character for someone. everyone can relate to the characters from eugene and his relationship and her relationship to her husband's relationship. i think there's a little bit for everything. there's something there that makes you understand each other. >> i think it's the characters, that have been created by these people. and of course the original

writer adam herz that created the characters but it's what these guys brought to the characters i think the audience has a great deal of affection for these characters and that's why we're here. >> one of the great goals of the writer directors of this "american reunion" is they wanted to bring back what resonated from that first film. that nostalgia for the late '90s. and remembering why we fell in love with these characters in the first place. and i really think that they did a phenomenal job. >> without giving anything away in the story here. you're supposed to be the adult here. which is weird in the first place. and yet you in this one end up needing some life advice from one of the younger characters. >> yes. >> what have you gotten yourself into here? >> well, you know, my -- my -- my son right now, without giving too much away, but i am -- i am now a kind of a -- a widower, and it's my -- which was a great

kind of a story point that they introduced into this movie because it opened up a lot of potentially very funny avenues here. and one of them is the kind of the role reversal where my son now actually has to give me advice and give me a pep talk on how it's okay to get out and start dating. again. so that was kind of an interesting relationship twist that i had. >> and we got to a part where he sort of is acting as his wing man which is hysterical. >> do you not also, and i could get in trouble for this, don't you also get stoned with stiffler's mom in this one? >> well, you know, we used to refer to it as getting high. from what i read, back in the '60s, yeah, there are, you know, the introduction of two characters with no name, jim and

stiffler's mom. it was like an unbelievable teaming of these two characters, and i did get to have a lot of fun working with jennifer coolidge, who plays stifler's mom. so yeah, we got to party a little bit. >> we're happy to have you guys back together and on the big screen. alyson i know you're going to be watching a segment later in this half hour with great interest because you revealed to martha stewart a second ago that you were building a crash room at home. >> i just -- yes. i want to just take her home with me. >> you may have to hang out for this segment. >> thank you. >> guys, congratulations. good to have you back. >> thank you. >> it's 8:41. "american reunion" from our sister company universal opens on friday. up next the good and bad of pare parenting, real moms share their confessions. [ man ] did we get anything good?

sweetie i think you need a little extra fiber in your diet. fiber makes me sad. oh common. i dare you to taste one hint of fiber in fiber one. oh, i'd be able to tell. why don't i just eat this bag? and how can you talk to me about fiber when you are eating a candybar. you enjoy that. i am. [ male announcer ] fiber beyond recognition. fiber one.

back now at 8:43.

this morning on "today's moms" confessions of a scary mommy. being a parent is fulfilling but can also be frustrating. sometimes you have to laugh at yourself. we spoke with three moms who have plenty to say anonymously about the ups and downs of raising children. >> it's a really, really much harder job than i ever thought it was going to be. >> don't come near me the kids are walking out the door going to school. because if you haven't done everything i asked you to do 16 times -- >> sometimes by the time i drop off at 8:15 i feel like my day is done. i have nothing left to give anybody else, because they've sucked the life out of me. >> am i cool? yes. my kids, very fair. but there's a fine line, it's called parenting. >> some of the things that drive me crazy as a mother, is the word no absolutely means nothing. no means, i'm going to nag you

and whine and torture you until you change and say yes. >> i'm the cook. and i get this wind to cook on a sunday night and then i just don't. i just want to read like "us magazine." >> i love to kiss my kids good night and open up my bottle of pinot grigio. and sometimes i don't close it. >> i think i feel guilty all the time. it's a saturday and i just want to go get my nails done rather than running to the park with them. i don't think i'm ever doing enough. >> motherhood is being a militant person who knows her schedule, who knows that it is exactly one minute till the kids get up, so get the coffee down quick because after that there's no turning back. >> i go away twice a year with my husband. i don't feel bad. as soon as that plane door closes, i have a cocktail. guilt free. i've earned it. >> jill smokeler is a mom of three and the author of

"confessions of a scary mommy an honest and irreverent look at motherhood, the good, the bad and the scary." and mother of two lisa bell kin is a senior columnist of life, worth and family. good morning to both of you. this blog you started four years ago inviting women to confess their emotions about parenting. has ballooned into this website called scarymommy.com and gets 1.5 million hits a month. what does it say, then, about the need for women to really express their frustrations? >> well, i think it just says that moms, you know, we're not perfect. and we want to put on this front of being able to do it all effortlessly and glide through motherhood beautifully and it's not. it's dirty and it's frustrating and it's hard, and i think it just says we're ready to admit that and get some help, and support from other mothers. >> admitting it is clearly part of the trend. is parenting tougher today than it used to be? or are we more willing to vent our feelings about it? >> i think it is tougher. every trend from the perception

that kids are in more danger to the competition to cross the finish line, to college, to the fact that many more mothers are working and have the dual pressures. yes, i think parenting is harder. but i also think that mothers, fathers have always had frustrations, and this is a place to them. this didn't used to exist. the frustrations did. but this safe place didn't. >> you write that you do have a favorite child. you do write that your husband has turned into one of your children. are you still married? >> unbelievably, yes. and my favorite child differs by the day. i mean it's whoever is annoying me least at that moment in time. so it can be any one of my three children throughout the day. >> you know, the interview allows us to say to a large number of people, even what we don't know, what we used to want to say to our small circle of girlfriends. the question sort of arises, in this desperate need to express our emotions and be healthy about our emotions are we

potentially crossing any kind of line where there could be repercussions? is there a danger here? lisa? >> there is a danger. and are we crossing lines? i think we've already crossed a lot of them. the question is when this becomes the new normal, when people have lived lives where everything is public, will saying these things in public have the same consequences? and i don't know. that's going to be interesting. but yeah -- >> i was -- i'm proud of the type of mother i am. and i feel like it's healthy for my kids to see me as this imperfect, flawed parent who, you know, really has no idea what i'm doing but i love them and i do my best. and there's no reason for them to see anything but that. >> i wonder if sometimes if we allow ourselves to be imperfect it might take away some of that struggle that they -- >> and i looked at my parents as perfect. it made it harder. so my kids will never think of me as perfect. >> don't say it. >> that's good parenting.

>> well the book is called "confessions of a scary mommy" and i'm certain there will be more confessions to come. thank you so much for your perspective. coming up, make sure you stick around because we're going to be decorating eggs for easter. talk about perfection. martha stewart is here with help from "american reunion" alyson hannigan. first, this is "today" o c.

martha on "today" is brought to you by macy's. the martha stewart collection is now available only at macy's and on macy's.com. ♪ happy easter happy easter ♪ >> this morning on "martha on today" easter eggs the martha way. martha stewart is here to share some creative ideas with alyson hannigan and the rest of us. straight from the pages of "martha stewart living" magazine. good morning. happy almost easter. from 15 years of working with me you know i was born without the crafty chromosome. >> i know. >> alyson is going to take my part. >> alyson is having her second child and she's a crafter. >> i know. first you have to blow out the egg. >> it helps if you're going to do things like glitter because you don't want kids eating a glittered egg. and they're so pretty. >> show alyson. >> do you have one of these? >> of course. so you have one of these and this blows out the egg. watch this. see the egg comes right out. and you can use the egg for scrambled eggs.

>> wow. once you blow out the egg then you can color them and here they are all colored. >> lovely. >> and then you glitter them. you can do this. paint the shell and glitter them with one color of the glitter. >> just regular? >> regular elmer's glue. just white glue. and then we have these eggs, too, which are colored eggs that are wrapped with string, and just a little dot of glue. this is a beautiful glitter twine. i love how that looks, too. and that's on the cover of our magazine. i love how that looks. >> that's a neon color. >> aren't they great? >> oh, hello. >> glittering. now they're not gold leaf. >> come on alyson. because this is something to learn. >> how did you do this? >> well, you can spray paint the eggs by putting little dots on them. these are the little craft dots. and you can just put those on your colored eggs. >> right. >> and then spray paint in a box like this, in a well -- do this in a well ventilated spot. i won't spray here. then when you pull off the dots,

look at that. you have a golden egg with really cut little polka dots all over it. >> you do like the little stickers with letters? >> oh, sure, names, everything. and they're very cute. they really work very nicely. >> you could have a sign there that says how i met my mother on it. that would be good, right? >> well, if you want to gold leaf you can buy an inexpensive gold leaf. it's like a foil. and you can cover the eggs with that. it's very easy. >> and are they really expensive? the real gold? >> the real gold leaf is like $70 for a pack. >> very heavy, i imagine? >> oh, no, no, no. now these are very cute. because just with colored eggs, and a little bit of issue paper and a pen and a little dot you can make these cute little bunny. >> this looks like a high degree of difficulty. >> oh, no, no, no. it's so easy. take your little egg. a little bit of glue. the glue right here. and you're going to place the egg somewhere on the head. you know, you figure out where you want the -- >> like a crown here?

>> no, that's to set it in. >> oh. >> if you want to put crowns on your bunnies you can do that, too. but look how cute. they stick right on. these are just crepe paper ears. >> oh. >> and then you draw a little face. we have a little pen. >> little eyes. >> and a little puffy tail. >> a little cotton tail and a little cotton nose. >> where do you get these little pieces of crepe? >> you cut them out. you just do that. >> i need to know every step, martha. >> see how cute? and then this is the -- you have to wait for it to dry, of course. >> oh, yeah. my ears keep falling off. >> talk on the phone for a little while holding this like this. >> mine keep falling off. >> we've got this -- >> then quickly put the little tail on the back. >> yeah. >> and you have the cutest little bunny rabbit. >> they're adorable. >> and you can make carrots like this. >> i love the carrots. >> daffodils! >> we could give some of these to alyson as sort of a shower

gift? >> that is so cute. >> and one more. >> who wants to -- >> you like confetti. >> i love confetti. >> put your hand out. oh -- >> so easy. just make a big hole in the egg, and fill it with all this confetti. and then to cover up the hole i filled this one already, use a little bit of your glue, and just put a piece of tissue paper the same color as your egg. >> oh. >> that's fantastic. >> kids would love that. >> cover this offer. >> you do it. >> okay. >> don't you even get near me with that. >> here -- >> whoa! >> oh! that went right for the face. >> you break it -- >> alyson, what are you going to be doing? >> i have all of martha's stuff, and i'll be doing easter eggs. >> good.

>> and the stuff like band camp, right? >> congratulations, by the way, on the baby. meantime, much more coming up still ahead with martha and alyson. it is 8:56 right now. yahoo will start laying off hundreds of employees today. it will cut about 2,000 jobs, saving the company about a

million dollars. the company has been struggling with the evolving internet landscape. >> the forecast looks a lot cooler than it's been over the last few days, temperatures upper 50s to near 60, that trend will take us through friday, but this weekend, we're seeing a little bit of a warmup, should see 60s and 70s coming up. another local news update coming your way in just 30 minutes. [ female announcer ] this is the story of joycelin...

[ joycelin ] it was a typical morning. i was getting ready for work, and then i got this horrible headache, and then i blacked out. [ female announcer ] ...who thought she had reached the end of her story. [ joycelin ] the doctor told me i had two brain aneurysms and that one of them had ruptured. [ female announcer ] fortunately, she was treated at sutter health's california pacific medical center. [ joycelin ] the nurses and doctors were amazing, and they were like a second family to me. and now i'm back to doing what i love. [ female announcer ] california pacific medical center and sutter health. our story is you. sweetie i think you need a little extra fiber in your diet. fiber makes me sad. oh common. i dare you to taste one hint of fiber in fiber one. oh, i'd be able to tell. why don't i just eat this bag? and how can you talk to me about fiber when you are eating a candybar.

you enjoy that. i am. [ male announcer ] fiber beyond recognition. fiber one. we're back with more of "today" on a wednesday morning. the 4th of april, 2012. it's a very, very pretty morning here in the new york area. going into the 50s today with bright sunny skies. and a nice crowd out here on the plaza. m matt law eveuer along with an currie and tamron hall. tamron is here while al is off. and some are terrible struck that area yesterday. arlington, texas, and we saw

them lifted into the air and tossed around. dozens of homes destroyed, but unfortunately, fortunately, no one has been reported killed in the wake of these storms. al and lester will have more in a couple of minutes. >> the takeaway from that, the warning got out and people protected themselves. >> the reverse 911 system worked well. >> and on that point, and we'll tell you about how to clean up your credit score. a lot of people have terrible credit scores, because of the shape of the economy, and now they want to buy a house. how can you clean it up? great advice coming up. >> and something else pretty cool. a new segmented called busted. a peek at what some not so savvy criminals do, from a man busted taking a school bus. why would you do that? on a wild ride. to "bohemian rhapsody" in the

back of a police car. and you can't make this kind of stuff up. and busted on camera. >> the power of surveillance. >> all right. lots to get to. natalie off this week. savannah guthrie with a look at the headlines. in the news today, the damage is extensive around dallas and ft. worth, following tuesday's severe weather. lester holt in hard-hit lancaster. a lot of devastation there. >> savannah the house behind me is typical of what you will see in lancaster. about 300 homes damaged. what could be as many as 13 twisters that came through the dallas area. about lunch time yesterday. people saw it playing out on live television. twisters as they moved across this region. a rare site in a metropolitan area this size. the fourth largest in the country. and the tractor-trailers being tossed around this is what

neighborhoods in arlington and lancaster look like this morning. a lot of homes badly damaged as we noted. not a lot of injuries, and that's a credit to an amazing warning system here. reverse 911 calls, and, again, people watching, it playing out on tv, knowing it was coming, 1,400 people spent the night there, most flights canceled. a lot of flights canceled today as well. if your travel plans are through, bring you through dallas-ft. worth, check the website of your airline to get the latest status. right now, savannah, trying to get the power on across five counties that were largely hit by these storms, the tornadoes and lots of hail. back to you. >> lester holt, amazing images. so happy to hear nobody was hurt. okay. we'll turn to politics now mitt romney celebrating wins in all three of tuesday's primaries. maryland, wisconsin and the district of columbia. romney how has more than half the delegates needed to win the republican nomination, and he appears close to sealing it up. one worker dead, four others

injured, following a crane collapse atanhattan construction site. officials trying to find out why that massive crane snapped in two. as many as 30 students pepper sprayed last night in santa monica as they proposed tuition hikes. the group tried to get into a meeting of the board of trustees. health officials investigating a salmonella outbreak that has sickened at least 90 people in 19 states and the district of columbia. the outbreak may be linked to sushi. a stray bear cub is doing well after it was taken in by a canadian couple who found it abandoned last week in a ditch. they have been caring for the cub, even bottle feeding it. conservation officials hope to put it in a wild life preserve in a few months from now. and a royal unveiling this morning in london, today, madam tusseaud showed off a wax

rendition of will and kate to mark their first anniversary, april 29th. remarkably lifelike. 9:04, back to al with a check of the weather in arlington, texas. good morning, al. >> well, good morning, savannah, and you get the capriciousness of tornadoes. this house has had some damage on the outside, nothing too terrible. the garage door injured. broken. but you look across the street here, just across the street and this house is a total loss. completely destroyed, the garage is left standing and that's about it. and that's what you see all throughout this part of arlington, texas, over 150 homes destroyed, just in this community alone. let's see where we've got the risk of strong storms today. and that's going to be in the lower gulf coast. here is what's happening. we've got warm, moist air coming up from the south. we've got very vigorous cold core low pressure system, upper level low and that's going to create more strong storms.

so the risk down through the lower gulf into the mid mississippi and tennessee river valleys, the rainfall won't be that big of a deal. we're talking maybe for some areas, about 1 to 3 inches. we have had flash flooding throughout parts of southern louisiana, and mississippi. we'll keep an eye on that. but the big story, of course, the risk of -- although low, still a risk of tornadoes in that he is veer risk area stretching from the gulf to the mid mississippi river valley and good morning to you, we're seeing sunshine, cool temperatures, but a gorgeous view across to the bay right now. we have got clear skies, cool, 55 in san jose. may see an isolated shower in those hill tops, in the north bay and east bay hills early in

the afternoon. cool days for friday and the weekend. more sunshine and we start to warm up. >> and that's your latest weather. savannah. savannah? ♪ call 911 >> now now to today's money 911 where we tackle your money's questions. today we have jean chatski, author of "money rules" and david back of "debt free for life" and our personal finance contributor. sharon, you have to write a book so i can mention it. >> big payoff. >> fair is fair. right to the first question. monica on skype in toronto, ontario, canada. monica, what is your question? >> my question is this. my house was paid for in my 30s, and since then, i've taken out a line credit which i used as a down payment for preconstruction condos. the bank doesn't like me doing this because they feel it's too

risky what do you think? >> it's a good question. >> i agree with your bank on this. if you're not putting any real equity into these properties, i think it may be too risky. let me ask you, what sort of other retirement plan, what sort of other investments do you have besides this real estate? >> well, actually i'm self-employed so this is sort of my retirement plan. i was hoping have condos -- >> i would just say spread it around a little bit. because you're self-employed, you have the ability to put additional money away from your retirement, stocks, bonds and other things. take it a little slower, amass a bigger down payment, and then buy those condos. you can have an i.r.a. and real estate in it, but establish the i.r.a. first. put stocks and bonds in it, a

great idea to have some rental property. >> she's self-employed and has no debt. that's a huge luxury. >> feel good about that, monica. next question. pat on the line. and good morning. what's your question. >> caller: hi, thanks for taking my call. my husband and i are retired and have only $9,000 cash savings. $30,000 in a 401(k), no credit card debt. $5,000 in pension and social security payments coming in each month, and we are able to pay our bills. we have about a year and a half left on our mortgage on which we owe about $17,000. should we take our 401(k) and pay that mortgage off? >> david, should they? >> no, you shouldn't. look, the good news here is that you're in a position to pay your bills with your pension money. what i would recommend is this. you'll be debt free in less than two years. that is fantastic from a

retirement standpoint. keep doing what you're doing, don't change anything, i don't want pulling from the 401(k) plan. but i would take that 40 1 k money and do an i.r.a. rollover. i would do the paperwork, move it from a 401 kf 0 01(k) plan t i.r.a. and take that money overtime. that honey will continue to grow while you're retirement. >> and an e-mail question next. amber writes, my husband and i would like to buy a house in the next fwoo two years, our credit scores are not quite 600678 the debt we have is from unpaid bills that we have from creditors. if we pay them off, would be get a better score? also, would we get a better score if we own open a line of credit? >> first of all what you need to get the best mortgage is at least a 760 credit score. a long way to if you know that already and you will plan for that. paying off the debt in collections definitely, that's the first place to start.

but, remember, that still will be a negative -- a blemish on your credit report for some time, but less important over time. the key things to do when are you trying to raise your credit score, we always talk about it. pay your bills on time and use less than 10% of all of our available credit. they want to see you using less than 3 0%, but if you use less than 10%, you may be able to raise your score. i don't like the idea of a line of credit that might be misused and put her in even deeper problems. she really needs to talk to a housing counselor at a nonprofit credit counseling agency. and we talk about them all the time. and make sure that you get a report of your credit score and your report to see what's in there. >> and the credit score, we need a masters in credit scorology. thank you all. coming up next, we bring you some not so smart criminals, caught on tape. and the scotto family prepares a

special easter dinner for us. first, these messages. ♪ ♪ ♪ grande caramel macchiato. iced grande caramel macchiato. make that iced. actually, hot, please. [ male announcer ] come into starbucks for the espresso drink you love, hot or iced. same as becka's science fair... another mini-wheats day coming up! ummmm...you rock. right here! [ female announcer ] kellogg's frosted mini-wheats cereal is packed with fiber and nearly a day's worth of whole grains to help keep your kids full and focused.

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four nutritious grains and two big fruit flavors to make your day bunches better. back now with a segment we're calli ining busted. nbc's jeff rossen is here with more. jeff, good morning. you can't make this kind of stuff up. and i can't believe what people are caught doing on camera. >> the best part of the segment happened just before we went on the air when you started singing bad boys. the cops theme song. these are caught on tape moments. we watch it all the time and i think the message here is video cameras are always rolling and don't get busted, because if you do something wrong, you probably will. >> before we start, i'm not in any of these videos. let's get to the first one. someone stealing from the elderly? >> yeah. >> come on. >> this poor 80-year-old woman from florida, we actually have a picture of her for you, drew ackerman, she actually doesn't look 80 years old, but she is. so she just had hip surgery, she

was recovering and her doctor cave her prescription painrelievers, but those pills kept going missing. you see she's holding a little web cam in her hand. she set that up inside of her house to see exactly what was going on. and this is what she saw. roll that surveillance tape. that's one of her neighbors. that's her neighbor who comes in the house, walks over, grabs the pill bottle, starts counting out pills in her hand, watch what she does next, though, after she has the pills. she wipes her fingerprints with her shirt. now, the 80-year-old -- >> that's crazy. >> was the door locked? >> she just walked in. they're friendly, they're neighbors, so they have open access down in florida and she was very trusting. the 80-year-old woman turned her in, gave over the tape. this is the neighbor, arrested. by the way she pled guilty to petty theft. busted on camera. >> that's crazy. >> by an elderly woman. >> up next, mcdonald's break-in. we know that there's a hamburgler, used to be. >> this is the real hamburgler, one hungry thief.

this guy was apparently driving around late at night. he was hungry. nothing was open, so this is what happened. he climbs in through a mcdonald's drive-thru window, breaks the window. climbs in. does he go for the cash register? doesn't go for the money. he goes for the freezer. he's rummaging through, that's a bag of hamburger patties he grabs out. you can't have a hamburger without fries so he makes himself some fries. >> he made fries? >> and now he's over at the condiments, getting some ketchup. off camera he ends up eating all of this at the mcdonald's. police called him the hamburgler, went to the local tv stations, put the tape on local news. he saw himself on local news and ended up turning himself in. the best part of this is he pled not guilty in court and his reason was that he was intoxicated at the time. that was his not guilty plea. >> okay, next this run away school bus. sounds pretty scary. >> it is scary. it's important to note there were no children on this bus at the time.

i don't know why you would steal a school bus but this man wanted to and police were rolling when they tried to get him off the road. there goes the police chase, and there is the school bus. so look, they set up spikes down on the road to blow out his tires. you can actually see the tires flying at the police cars. very, very dangerous. the next thing they want to do is try to knock him off the road but the problem is he keeps going and he's on the rims. he's driving on the rims. >> it's like the movie "speed." >> police car tries to knock him off. car versus bus. the bus wins. so police bring in a bigger police cruiser to knock him off the road and that time it worked. they go in shooting. by the way, they're not shooting bullets. that's important to mention here. these are bean bag bullets, not meant to kill him. meant to just stop him and slow him down. they dragged him out of the bus and then came the next part. he's wearing only boxer shorts. >> oh, my. >> don't laugh. he's been caught doing this, too. driving only wearing boxer shorts. and by the way he was arrested for eluding police and

assaulting a police officer and the fashion police actually came a short time after that. five minutes later. >> the last one on your list is the one we were talking about. just last week. >> yeah. >> a singing bandit. >> this video went viral. we had it on the "today" show. this is a man from canada. he was pulled over for drunk driving and instead of saying to the police officer, i didn't do it, you've got to let me go, he started singing bohemian rhapsody. not for four minutes or five minutes. but for six straight minutes. ♪ you just gotta get out just gotta get out of here ♪ >>you can listen to it all day. we found out who this man is, he's a 29-year-old man, robert wilkinson. i want to show you some photos from his facebook page which we found. there he is. he is unemployed. he enjoys karaoke and brews his own beer. on his facebook page he also likes being a viking apparently. he likes saving the world one beer at a time is what he says.

and aren't we all. >> yes, yes, yes. >> tamron, you escaped "busted!" this time but we are looking. >> good job, jeff. i like this. >> thanks, tamron. >> coming up, party planner to the stars colin cowie gets inspired by spring to dress up your table. hi! i brought champagne. wow! the best in the world. ...some chocolates swiss! ah...the best in the world. oikos greek yogurt from dannon. really? wait until you try it. so creamy thick and fresh tasting dannon oikos berry flavors beat chobani 2:1 in a national taste test. mmmm... this may be the best in the world. oikos greek yogurt possibly the best yogurt in the world.

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all those veggies and beans, that's what may help lower your cholesterol and -- well that's easy [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. you know who you are. you can part a crowd, without saying a word. you have yet to master the quiet sneeze. you stash tissues like a squirrel stashes nuts. well, muddlers, muddle no more. try zyrtec®. it gives you powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because zyrtec® starts working at hour 1 on the first day you take it. claritin® doesn't start working until hour 3. zyrtec®. love the air. we want to take a moment now to say hello to jessica saint

claire and london. stars of the new show premiering tonight. we were talking about having best friends and this kind of show. the characters on the show have your same names. >> yes. >> and what else in common? >> london and i are also real-life best friends. >> so this was a real stretch. >> it's a real stretch. >> so we're just playing heightened versions of ourselves. >> and since we wrote it that's sort of where the idea came from. >> so give us the scenario. you move back in together after having been roommates. >> we used to live together. we've been best friends since college. we used to live together. then i'm getting a divorce. i got fedexed divorce papers by a horrible man. >> this is the show, not real life. >> he sent them two-day ground. couldn't pay the extra $3. >> and we're skyping at the time so i'm hearing this, i'm thinking she's getting murdered by the fedex man. >> because she saw a lifetime movie. at any rate she says done and done you're moving back into the

apartment we used to share. in the meantime london has moved in the man that she is going to marry and the three of us have to learn to live together. >> aka three's company. >> exactly. >> so but it's kind of how your writing process works. you have an unusual process where you just chat. you record it and then that becomes a script. >> we're usually in our sweat pants in one of our living rooms. >> london looks like a stranger to me right now because she has lipstick on. and we record ourselves, we do -- london, we play all the parts. she plays a lot of the men. >> i'm a very good man. >> she says some very row monthic things to me sometimes. she says things i wish a man had said to me. >> isn't that always the way. >> no those jeans don't make you look fat. >> exactly. she says all the right things. >> exactly what your friend needs to hear. >> then we transcribe it and that becomes the script. >> i love it. you're not holding anything back. putting it all on the table. >> and putting all of our friends stories on the table, too. >> and you've got some great

other supporting characters. >> oh, my gosh. >> so thank you both. congratulations. >> we recommend it. best friends forever. >> right here on nbc. coming up, billy ray cyrus is singing his achy breaky heart out. actually create those micro fine scratches in the denture, and that's where bacteria can grow and thrive. these are the very bacteria that can cause bad breath. dentists do recommend that you soak your denture in polident. polident doesn't scratch the denture surface, and it kills 99.9% of bacteria that are responsible for causing bad breath. by using polident and soaking your denture every day you can feel confident your dentures fresh and clean. . . . . . . ♪ small change, big difference. that's why i take doctor recommended colace capsules.

[ male announcer ] for certain medical conditions where straining should be avoided, colace softens the stool for effective relief from occasional constipation. go to colacecapsules.com for savings. a suspect in monday's deadly shooting spree. this has families of the victim coming to remember the victims. the city leader sharing words of comfort. and mayor kwan prayed for both peace and healing. poli >> i don't want to cry for her. >> police say the suspect one l.

goh shot seven people on monday, right now they're still looking for the gun. crews just finishing repairing that gas line early this morning. that leak started when a car slammed right into a home on elrose avenue near dushaun drive. one personuffereduf minor injuries. we'll have a look at the weather and traffic right after this break.

40s and 50s right now at this hour. we have a frost advisory going into effect for the north bay tomorrow night. which meanings you may see some low 30s by tomorrow. those northwest winds and maybe a slight chance of a hill top shower. otherwise it's going to be a cool day around the bay area, at

least through about friday, we'll have these cool afternoon temperatures and we start to warm up just in time for the weekend. >> we're cooling down as far as the commute goes, except for this one key spot. the east shore freeway has some typical slowing from rich land into berkeley. but 580 is jammed up where an accident has two lanes blocked. the accident here, the disabled vehicle is cleared up on 880. san mateo bridge, no more wind advisory, they're just telling you do not text while you drive. >> thank you very much for joining us, i will have another local news update for you in got one-half hour from now.

everything i do, i everything do. or it goes into the house. >> that of course is nadya suleman who gave birth to eight children back in 2009 who earned her the name octomom. the mother of 14 will be here tomorrow to tell us how she juggles it all right here on "today." >> so unbelievable. when you think about her life in her own words incredible. just ahead -- if you're planning on having family over for dinner, celebrity party planner, colin cowie how to celebrate to dress up your

dinner table. then, what would look better on one of those tables. >> italian feast. >> yes, the first family of italian cooking. scottos. >> we fast for a week around here when the we know that the scottos portion of the show and then we're going to go a little bit of country. billy ray cyrus coming out with a new album. a little later he's going to sit along kathie lee and co-host the fourth hour of today. let's get a check of the weather. hey, al, good to see you again. >> reporter: let's show you what we got going on for today. a risk of strong storms making their way up from the gulf coast, we're also looking at clouds in the pack northwest with a mix of rain and snow. partly sunny skies making their

way through southern california. plenty of sunshine tomorrow. making its way into the northeast. we are expecting more risk of strong storms down through the southeast. that's watching some of those showers dropping down the coast during the course of the stay, that may bring a chance of an isolated shower to the hill tops and the north bay. what you will notice tonight, very cool temperatures at least through friday, a mild day saturday, there may be some showers into the north bay, later on east sunday. >> all right, al, thank you very much. up next, celebrating spring with inspired designs for your table from the man who always inspires us colin cowie. mommy's got a surprise for you. [ rattling ]

wanna see what's in it? yeah! whoagasp! whoagasp! whoagasp! you put it in here? yeah. and then you wanna take this... are you making them for the easter bunny? no, you. ahhhhh. [ female announcer ] this easter...bring a tradition... out of its shell. [ cheering ]

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♪ every little thing has meaning ♪ ♪ i woke up to a light bulb on ♪ every little thing is possible now ♪ [ female announcer ] we've added a touch of philadelphia cream cheese to our kraft natural cheese to make it creamier. so whatever you make isn't just good, it's amazing. ♪ life is amazing with the love that i've found ♪ [ female announcer ] and to make a creamier sandwich, try new kraft touch of philadelphia slices. this morning on "today's home," bringing your table to life with the colors and textures of spring. celebrity event planner colin cowie is here to share a few ideas on how to create a perfect tablescape for entertaining family and friends. colin, good morning. >> good morning, savannah. >> these are works of art. >> they are beautiful, aren't they? each one almost has a personality. i think that a table like this is kind of maybe for the graphic designer, an architect >> yes, exactly.

or the earthy type because you've got a lot of green. this is contemporary. tell me what you've got. >> kind of contemporary meets woodsy, organic feeling. the foundation starts with this moss and i've covered it with gift wrap which gives us a beautiful pattern on the table. >> this is real moss? >> yes, real moss. and then for the center piece, this is really more like found objects, the rattan bowls, the moss balls, using them, and arranging them in different shapes. and to give it an element of life, first we used wheat grass. i like the idea of the quail eggs. it's fun for that new beginning. good for easter. and you look over here, from our guests -- >> tell me, am i invited? >> savannah -- >> it's beautiful. it comes to life. >> the beautiful cutting boards. i use them with chargers to give a nice foundation on the table.

>> and your flat ware. >> wooden. and the wooten handles as well. this is really beautiful, fun, contemporary and elegant. >> if you're going to do that to a plain plate. this is our coloring pattern. >> this is for the girl who is a cuban italian girl from south beach. >> you do a lot of daydreaming when you create these. >> of course, absolutely. so blue is in about 70% of homes in america. by giving it a shot of pink is like a shot of b-12 to the table. i love the idea of mixing the pink together with the blue. we use the foundation which is a fabric i found here very inexpensive. we folded it to make a runner. love these plates, found these at crate and barrel. and for flowers, i like to have one type of flower working in one vase with one color. you can also use carnations or gerbera daisies, and of course

the candles are wonderful fun. >> nice to see the color combination. it's a little off the beaten path. >> that's what summer is all about. making people feel welcome in our homes. >> our last table you call the flowered, bright colored. >> this is for the fashionista. tangerine is the most fashionable color this season. so we worked with that as our foundation. and these pieces of slate, some river pebbles, as well. cut flowers tend to fall rather quickly. so i give you the plants that will last several weeks at a time. i love mixing the gold, very fashion forward, as well. and then to balance the table, using the river rock with your name written on it. >> now very a pet rock. >> exactly. >> a little party favor out of it. colin cowie, these are great ideas. very inspiring. >> thank you very much. >> all right. coming up next the table is set now for a nice easter dinner with the family courtesy of our favorite family the scottos. i'm here with karen and her bffs

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♪ ♪ the best part of wakin' up ♪ is folgers in your cup [ chuckles ] isn't easter fun, red? [ grunts ] not from my perspective! ♪

"today" celebrates easter is brought to you by m&ms. bring m&ms home this easter. >> this morning on "today" celebrates easter, sunday dinner with the scotto family. >> and here to celebrate are mary and anthony and alana. good morning, scottos. >> good morning. >> how are you? >> of course you brought plenty of things to make. >> i'll start with you, marianne. >> we're doing risotto today. this is the beginning part. you've got to do this also with tender loving care, and you've got to keep stirring. >> oh. >> i thought that was all butter -- >> no, no, no. we do put butter in but we start with the olive oil and the onion. can you help me ladle? >> of course i can. >> that's a seafood broth. >> this is hard --

>> oh, okay next time i'll do it myself. oh, lord. >> oh, no. >> you're supposed to be the nice one. >> i know. >> wow. >> we don't have enough time! are you kidding? okay, so this is stirred for 20 minutes. here it is with the magic of television. it's 20 minutes later. now we're putting in the butter. >> that's what i was hoping for. >> yes, we are. and we are putting in the shrimp. >> uh-huh. >> and you put the shrimp in uncooked? >> yes, it cooks in two minutes. >> oh, my gosh. >> this is about tamron today. i love it when you're here. >> she loves you. and i was wondering if it's -- >> no, no. >> don't wonder. no. >> wonder away. >> okay. >> yes, momma. >> so anyway, put the butter, this cooks for about three

minutes until the shrimp turns color. >> okay. >> and then you know, voila. >> okay. >> and you know, we always have our easter bread on the table. >> nobody eats it. it's got to be there. >> we'll move on. >> we're making lamb osso buco. >> ham is usually traditional during eastern. you can have lamb shanks. but we thought a little bit boring this year, let's do some lamb osso buco. we're taking these off for a second. we're using the rendering of the osso buco that we're doing. we also did a little bit ahead of time, a little bit of frosh outo, and rendered that off, too. we're going to add our vegetables, celery, carrots, a little fennel. always a little fennel, it's italian. we're just going to cook it off and let it kind of melt down and

get gooey. once we've done that, we're going to take all of this, we're going to add it to this baking pan. >> good thing you didn't ask tamron to do that. >> we're going to add -- >> i'm sorry. >> oh you are -- put the osso buco back. we're going to add all our liquids now. it's very important with the liquids. we're going to add a little beef stock in. and we're going to add a little red wine in. tomato sauce. >> can i add that? >> absolutely. >> here, tamron. >> and you want it nearly covered. also important is you want a little lime and lemon. a little bit of seasoning. you cover it tightly, tightly, tightly. 2 1/2 hours. let it cool. unbelievable. cream polenta. a little peas for spring. >> love it. >> all right. >> this i've got. >> this is the story. this is our kind of dessert. we are marinating oranges. and this is how we're going to do it. some cinnamon sticks, vanilla

beans, star annise. and i don't know about you, when i need vitamin c i want to cover it with grand marnier. >> momma is in the kitchen with oranges. >> we're going to do this overnight, 24 hours. gets the party going. >> okay, okay. >> and then here we have our lovely oranges that we've taken out. we're going to couple it with some ice cream or gelato. and then our little sauce on top is simply -- >> oh. >> can you do that later? >> this is just orange sauce -- orange juice, sugar, a little butter, and then we take that marinade, again, and put it in. >> ooh. >> and it's very refreshing. adults only. and a little chopped walnuts that are roasted. >> love it. >> and you have a nice light and refreshing dessert. >> that's amour. >> wait, wait. >> five seconds.

>> this is italian quiche on steroids. you have to have this. >> unbelievable. >> prosciutto, eggs -- >> grab it. >> scottos. >> really too busy? >> what can i tell you. >> scottos, thank you so much. happy easter. the recipe is on our website. >> up next billy ray cyrus live in concert.

the toyota concert series on "today," brought to you by toyota. >> musician, actor and father billy ray cyrus can now add the title of morning show co-host to his repertoire -- i'm country. i can't say it. he's filling in for hoda kotb this morning. >> but first he's going to perform a new song for us from his upcoming album.

thank you for coming back. how was yesterday? >> it was a lot of fun. looking forward to today. it's -- blessed to be here. absolutely blessed. >> how do you balance all of this? and you look so good. >> well -- >> i like your hair. >> thank you. you know, it's just fun, different challenges, doing different things. and again, it's just been a blast being with kathie lee. and hoda's always been fun to be with. being here singing some new music today from this new album called "hillbilly heart." >> and you've got a little bluegrass in it? >> a lot of bluegrass. a lot of rock 'n' roll. this album encompasses all of my roots from the very beginning. >> congratulations on keeping it going. >> thank you very much. >> the song is called "hope is just ahead." >> that's correct. >> billy ray cyrus, take it away. >> okay, you got it.

♪ wonder who has the blues so i turned on the evening news ♪ ♪ children running from their school because of some damn fool had no morals ♪ ♪ another kid lay in the blood another town drowned in the flood ♪ ♪ just a tragic trail of tears lessons not learned through the years ♪ ♪ come and save us from our sins ♪ ♪ hope is just ahead sorr sorrow's just behind us ♪ ♪ from what the good book says

the truth will never bind us ♪ ♪ we shall tell what we shall find i guess the proof will show in time ♪ ♪ ♪ keep the dreamer's surely hope is just ahead ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ oh, you've got to be believe got to keep your faith ♪ ♪ you get on your knees

oh, you got to believe ♪ ♪ people fighting in the streets millions with no food to eat ♪ ♪ how much longer can we last have we learned nothing from our past ♪ ♪ these are the questions that i ask ♪ ♪ hope is just ahead sorrow's just behind us ♪ ♪ from what the good book says to truth will never bind us ♪ ♪ we shall tell what we shall find ♪ ♪ i guess the proof will show in time ♪

♪ till then let's keep the dreamers fed for surely hope is just ahead ♪ ♪ till then let's keep the dreamers fed ♪ ♪ 'cause surely hope is just ahead ♪ >> billy ray cyrus. "hope is just ahead." a beautiful song. you wrote it after columbine. >> i actually wrote it the day after columbine, and then recently was reminded of the tragedy up in ohio, and then just this past week up in california, and just seems like it just keeps happening over and over again. but, surely hope is just ahead. >> but there is hope ahead, too, you're sitting with me for the fourth hour.

good morning to you.

divers will be out at the -- one l. goh says he tossed it in the water before he told the clerk what he'd done. he is suspected of killing seven people on monday. yahoo will begin laying off people today. the company has been struggling with management changes and the evolving internet landscape. >> we are seeing cool breezes, so it's probably not going to warm up that much, maybe near 60 in some cases.

we're looking for some popup showers in the north hills. between tomorrow and friday, it looks cool. it should warm up on saturday, now mike's got a look at a real slow commute on i-80. >> we had a stall and a backup here. look at the traffic going by the coliseum. you'll see from 238 all the way up to 29th, the impact what those two blocked lanes have had. that's your issue use're heading through the east bay. south bay we have a chemical spill on 880 at 280.

>> for the latest traffic check in the nbc bay area. those three little words:ar chevron with techron. care for your car.

captions paid for byn. nbc-universal television from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb. live from studio 1a in rockefeller aza. it's winsday wednesday, april 4th. this is not hoda woman. this is hoe day ray. billy ray cyrus, very handsome and talented. back with me for the second day. thank you for yesterday. >> so much fun. a big difference today because he's having red bull and cranberry, right? that's your drink now.

our facebook fans yesterday loved our pantyhose polo. >> i didn't get to see it. i heard a lot about it. >> this is fun. >> that is called wrong. >> on so many levels. >> talk about the case of the droop by ball. oh, my god. i could have done that all day long though, it was so much fun. we didn't go over the line though, watch. we're very competitive around here. >> if i don't get the viagra endorsement, i never will. >> like you need more money. you know what we want to do? >> i do actually that red bull works, doesn't it? we started writing a song. we didn't have time to finish it. i said to billy ray, you know

what? we both love to write. let's see if our facebook fans can help us finnish the lyric. because i was going to -- you'll see. let's start it. >> okay, okay, you ready? ♪ you wear the leather ♪ you wear the lace >> hit a cord. ♪ we'll get together ♪ and you can -- >> finish that song! all right. from barbara. ♪ begin the chase from melissa ♪ lick my face from monica "make my heart race ♪ jeel lee says ♪ invade my space >> here's the second one. ♪ i'll bring the wine, babe ♪ and i'll bring the liquor ♪ we'll get together and -- ♪ see who gets sicker

♪ there's nothing more tough and tender than when leather and lace get together ♪ now finish that song, everybody. we'll let you finish the chorus. >> that's going to be a tough one. >> you think? there's never. there's forever. >> together is a tough rhyme word. >> no! never? forever? that's all you need in a country song. four cords? >> two cords. >> i like that leather and lace thing. we could be -- you could be hank williams and i could be tammy why not. >> is this what sonny and cher got started? >> no. it's what broke them ap you can put that guitar down, part. darling, for now. until the end of the show. you're going to sing your new hit with it. what's it called? >> "hillbilly heart." you know that's the name of my book that comes out this fall. the album, too. the album and the book come out this fall. >> okay. >> both called "hillbilly heart." just a coincidence.

nobody trying to tie the two together. >> they should go together. that's what you are. you are a hillbilly and you've got a good heart. >> the book is about the music. i started writing the book. i had written all these songs. i started making the album. i go, i got to stop on the book for a minute because i'm not done with the music. i finished the album. now i'm going to finish the book. as soon as i leave here i'm catching the flight. >> we're going to finish the show if you don't mind. we make a lot of news around here lately. lots and lots of news. sarah palin whom i thought was sensational yesterday. in person this woman is so drop dead beautiful. did you meet her yesterday? >> i met her. her husband is such a nice guy, too. >> a sweet guy. another sweet guy was here today. ryan seacrest sat down with matt a little earlier. >> that was a sweet moment. >> speaking of rumors, take a look at these boys. i think they're having a bromance. >> what kind of conversations have you had with nbc about

joining the "today" show? >> they didn't tell you? >> that's why you're here. >> i've worked with the "e!" network for years. nbc universal and "e!" are the same family. the plan is for me to join the nbc family and continue to have a roll at the "e!" network. the first assignment will be to join the primetime team for the olympics on nbc. >> you didn't answer the question. do you see yourself doing a job like this? >> you know, i don't know. i see you doing this for as long as you want to. you know, maybe the question is how long will you be on the "today" show? >> well, funny you mention that. >> because fans and myself included think you should be here for years to come. >> brilliant. >> boy, can that boy dance. >> i thought they were going to kiss. >> they aren't french. there's nothing to worry about. >> the way -- the chemistry between the two. >> palpable.

>> they start off, i thought there was a confrontation. all of a sudden are they going to hug? it was like -- >> it's a love fest. >> two brilliant men. that was quite -- that was a moment. you know, i was in there. >> i agree. we're all watching -- not the dressing room. the makeup room. don't tell us about the dressing room. apparently more news was made last night. because my old pal regis just fresh back from a slow boat to china was on jimmy fallon's show last night. i hear he mentioned me. >> really? >> imagine that. >> what did he say? >> i don't know. >> ladies and gentlemen, we present to you two brains working as one. the first brain providing the answer. the second brain revealing the question! it's time for a brainstorm! >> a bottle of red, a bottle of white. >> what did kathie lee and hoda

have for breakfast this morning? >> whoa. >> hysterical! >> that is. >> he is actually just back from the -- from a big long trip to china. i'm going to see him this weekend. i'll have all kinds of regis news next week. he didn't sound thrilled to be on the boat after five weeks. okay. the other woman making news, this woman cannot stop making news. i tell you, i want some of the scripts she says no to. the amazing betty white has a new show "off their rockers" here on nbc at 8:00. at 7:00 central. it premieres -- it's the second time around for it. it premieres again tonight. it's hysterical. let's take a look. >> let's do it. >> i hope my bag hasn't come out yet. i partied for three nights in vegas, and i'm so wasted. oh, my god. i have such a hangover you wouldn't believe.

you ever done that? >> yeah. >> here comes my bag. oh, my goodness. okay. okay. oh, it's good to be back in reality. in the real world. you know, you party and you party. but there comes a time when you have to -- oh, my goodness. when you have to get back in the real world. bless you. thank you. >> sister mary katherine. >> that's a hit. >> very, very funny. tell me, do you think this is going to be a hit, billy ray? there was never a group like the beatles. i'm older than you are, but you know the impact the beatles had in the world. all of them have had children. there's an idea their offspring, a member -- a kid from each beatle will sort of form a

beatle 2 band. james mccartney says he, sean lennon, johnny harrison are on board. the old holdout is zack starr. ringo. that's not his real last name. his brother jason might do it. question is, good idea? bad idea? >> you know what? it sounds like a good idea. >> really? but they're going to take the inevitable comparisons. who can compare to the beatles? >> if they just -- you know what they need to do is -- not that i know anything about anything. i would suggest just make their own music. thaek mayor dads proud to do their own thing and evolve into their own musical journey themselves. >> that's what we try to tell our children anyway, right? be the best you you can be. >> nancy lee, who was ringo's girlfriend, she took the photos for my album cover and the book.

"hillbilly heart." >> ringo is now married to -- >> yeah, yeah, yeah. nancy was years and years ago. >> we got fan updates. >> she just took the photos last week. >> for the new cd and the new album? the new book? >> yeah. don't bring it up. >> do you wear your hair like that on it? >> some. some, i did. >> those aren't extensions, are they? they sort of look like extensions. >> pull it. >> this is real hair. this is real hair. >> it's connected to my head. >> what you got there, sara? >> i have some fan questions for billy ray. the first one is from angela. what is your favorite song right now? >> i like -- >> "hillbilly heart." >> you're psychic. i like "hill by little heart." there's a song called "think about changing my mind" on the new alum. the one i just played, "hope is

just ahead." >> good songs. got one minute to tell you all about something that's very, very serious. i've been involved with a group called child help for over 20 years. and this is an amazing organization that battles child abuse and neglect. and they lobby congress to change laws. indomitable ladies that started it, sarah and yvonne, they're down in washington, d.c. right now. because every first wednesday in april is the day of hope down in congress and around the world. april is child abuse and prevention and awareness month. they light a candle right there in the halls of congress to commemorate and mourn, really, the five, now, children a day who die from child abuse or neglect. talk about a national scandal. five children every single day. do the math. die from it in our nation. and the statistics are getting much worse. when i started, billy, all those years ago, it was two candles. it was two wicks on the one candle. now it's five.

the statistics are going the wrong direction. and for all the abuse that we hear about, it's actually three times more that goes undetected and unannounced and -- yeah. >> early on, in the early -- '93, '94 i wrote a song about child abuse. enough is enough. enough tears have been shed. enough hurt has been hidden. enough bled has been bled. enough is enough, let it rain, love and trust till the steel fist of rage has fallen into rust. enough is enough. child abuse has to be stopped. >> i'm so glad you said it on this particular day. that's awesome. send that to my friend, sarah. that's beautiful. >> we'll get down there. >> you get going. i've got hoda woman coming back tomorrow. she's afraid. >> we could get to washington and back. if we go to washington then i've got to catch a flight to l.a. i got to be back in the morning. >> who cares? >> you're right. no one cares.

up next -- i do care. i love it. i think we got a hit with "leather and lace." finish that, baby. up next, an honest and irreverent look at motherhood. the good, the bad and mostly the scary. right after this. honest and irreverent look at motherhood. the good, the bad and mostly the scary. right after this. tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. and celebrex is not a narcotic. when it comes to relieving your arthritis pain, you and your doctor need to balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naproxen, and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death.

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jill started an online journal where women could anonymously share their secrets. now jill has a new book. the good, the bad and the scary started as an online journal. and? that's where you read. >> jill's here along with lisa. >> lisa belkin. >> she's the senior columnist. >> yes. of what? >> of the huntington post. >> no. actually of life work and family at "the huffington post." by the way -- you dads have your moments as well, right? >> that's right. i'm writing a book called confessions of a scary daddy. >> it comes out right after "hi "hillbilly heart." humor is the one thing that gets me through the day no matter what. especially as a parent. tell us about how all this came about. >> it came about as a baby book

for my three kids. and just evolved into this parenting community filled with people who just see parenthood as the honest, you know, down and dirty way that it is. and not the rainbow and butterfly and perfect experience that some people, you know, portray it as. >> have you ever been completely and totally shocked by what somebody confessed to you? >> yeah. i've been shocked a lot. >> by what? >> oh, i mean, just things about people's spouses and mothers-in-law and a lot of interpersonal stuff. but they're funny ones. there are really funny parents telling, you know, their kids that the ice cream truck when it plays music is actually out of ice cream. just feeding their kids mac and cheese way too often. using the tv as a babysitter. hiding out in the bathroom. doing the things we do to survive. >> hiding out in the bathroom? i've made the kid go there and hide out. why would i want to -- if your

kid is in the bathroom it's quiet where you are. >> you can't lock them in there. that is scary. >> this book would have been really handy when i had little ones. if you can give me a copy of it, i'd like to take it home and read it to miley tonight. >> good luck with that. >> it's really good birth control, i hear. i will absolutely give it to you. >> yeah. i've never excelled at that department. >> you've been dying to say something. what do you want to say? >> well, i read the book. and i wouldn't read it to your children. but -- >> older ones would understand. >> jill has tapped into something. she's tapped into sort of the confessional. the online parenting confessional where you say the things that you might not say aloud. i'm intrigued that you say it started as a baby book. you started out writing these things to your children. >> i really did. originally when i started the site it was really as a way to

keep track of little stories and little pictures. >> instead of your mother on the phone. >> exactly. i didn't want to be that annoying person who sends 500 pictures a day of her friends and family of her children. >> she hit a nerve. >> she hit a huge nerve. parenting is ugly and messy and sometimes depressing and makes you want to scream. >> and it's the greatest job on earth. >> yes. and you don't want to say certain things to people you actually know in real life because they might turn you in. >> like i have a favorite child. which is the one that's actually doing what you want at the moment. >> the one who's pissing me off least at any moment in time. >> it's going downhill. i can tell you this. you can find an excerpt of "confessions of a scary mommy" at klgandhoda.com. >> i can't wait to read it.

honestly. i think it's going to be great. >> on his way to promote you know what. sara's got those funny photos that are going to have you saying "what the what?" right after this. ♪ special k protein shakes and meal bars. with 10 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber each... they satisfy your hunger longer so you can stay on track. [ telephone rings ] ♪ satisfaction. what will you gain when you lose? love your lunch with special k protein shakes and meal bars.

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all righty. it's that time when we take a look at all those photos you send in that make you say "what the what?" >> "what the what?" >> yes. and from what you hear -- it's what you say. >> here's sara haines. >> here we go. our first photo is from rachel watson from clinton township, missouri. at least it has tv. this is obey wife or live here. ray's doghouse. >> he's got satellite tv. >> he thought it through. if you're going to be out there you might as well have entertainment. >> why is it ray's doghouse? >> because ray is stuck there most of the time. >> who's the ray? >> you're hoda ray. >> our next photo is from suzanne carter from new york. why hasn't anyone thought of this before? husband day care center. >> need time to yourself? need time to relax? want to go shopping? leave your husband with us. we'll look after him for you. >> you only have to cover his tab. >> you only pay for his drinks.

>> that was outside a bar which i thought was awesome. it's so true. drop the husband here. the next one is from brittany grim from erie, pennsylvania. should i be worried if i got a job here? cool off with creamy shakes and parfaits. now hiring losers. it was now hiring closers. that just doesn't read the same way. >> what is a closer? >> the late shift. the one that closes the place down. >> oh, i still wouldn't have gotten it. >> i always wondered how to spell parfait. there it is right there. >> that's not the funny part. i love that they got parfait right but closers -- >> closers they can't get. it's a french word. >> the next one we have a photo from patricia west from watertown, massachusetts. mr. happy crack says, a dry crack is a happy crack. >> i'm taking that down. >> we had to find a crack one. once kathie lee says crack, she

says crack a hundred times. >> remember -- over mind. okay. still ahead, guess who's here, everybody? torii spelling is coming up. a darling new entertaining book. and how much do you really know about easter and passover? we're going to find out. and unleash your inner party planner and entertain friends and family. it all starts with new 48-hour nivea extended moisture nivea. touch and be touched. now bring the world a touch closer. join our million moments of touch movement and be entered in nivea's daily date night sweepstakes. join our million moments of touch movement we're as passionate about cheese as you are. so we've created three new parmesan dishes. new grilled chicken parmesan, chicken fresh off the grill as well as grilled shrimp or grilled steak. all with a parmesan crust. passion for parmesan for a limited time, only at olive garden.

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an out of control gas leak kept crews busy after a car slammed into a house on elmwood. crews spent several hours making repairs to the line. we'll have weather and traffic right after this.

some showers here on the north coast, it may drop into the north day. it will only be in the 50s, toward 60. may see some showers out there toward the north and east bay hill tops. then we warm up on sunday. >> the middle northbound 880 a stuck on the offram. things are still pretty tough. remember the giants play in the city this afternoon. >> we won't forget, coming up on bay area news at 11:00. and yahoo cuts hundreds of

jobs. we're back our weekly trivia game we call "who knew?" this weekend is a double dose of holidays. we're going to celebrate. we're going to test your easter and passover knowledge. billy ray is filling in for hoda today. he's across the street at the nbc experience store ready to hand out those dollars, yeah, those dollars to people who get the answers correctly. and for those lucky losers who don't, they get a copy of one of my cds. everybody's a winner. here to help me out is mary kate mcgrath.

senior editor at "real simple" magazine. >> good morning. >> let's get right over there to billy ray. got your first question ready? >> i'm ready to go. you ready? according to old superstition, what does the practice of wearing new clothes on easter bring? a, wealth. b, happiness. c, health. or d, good luck. >> we'll say "d," good luck. >> the answer is -- what's the answer, kathie? >> go ahead. >> the answer is good luck. correct. >> they didn't win my cd. they get the money. billy ray. give her the money. good luck. where did that come from? >> it started in mid-1800. if you wear new -- your easter finery on easter you're guaranteed good luck for the

rest of the year. easter bonnets, pastels and everything and you should have a good year. >> good luck with that. billy ray, second question? >> all right. how many glasses of wine -- kathie, you're going to know this one. how many glasses of wine are traditionally drunk at a passover seder meal. a, one, b, two, c, three, or d, four. >> we'll go with one. >> and the answer is "d," four. >> yeah, billy ray, it's seder. i think we should give him the money. >> what's the consolation prize? what? >> nevermind. mary kate, what's going on with that. >> it's four glasses of wine. you might not know how much you drink during a normal holiday. but during passover, seder, four glasses of wine. >> it's a long event. you sit at your table for -- it's a beautiful, beautiful experience. >> it's a gorgeous event. everyone's welcome at the seder table. four glasses.

>> so pace yourself. billy ray, what's the third question? >> okay. the third question -- i'm falling apart here. the third question is, according to the old superstition, what does -- oh, wait a minute. i already read this one. >> give it to me again. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. okay. how much money do americans spend on easter candy each year? a, $1.9 million. b, $2.5 million. c, $1.9 billion. or, d, $2 billion. >> wow. >> that's what i say. >> that's a tough one. i'll say 1$1.9 million -- billion. >> and he's right! give him the money. >> kathie lee's cd. you get the cd and the money. >> mary kate, what's going on? >> very impressive. i'm glad he knew that. americans -- you think halloween is the candy holiday. easter is a close second at $1.9 billion in chocolate bunnies and

peeps and all the good stuff. >> peeps and all those things. speaking of peeps, billy ray, quickly, we have time for one here. >> here we go. how long is the shelf life of the original peeps? six months, one year, two years or five years? >> d, five years. >> no, nope. sorry. give that kid my cd. he's going to love it. >> yeah, you get the cd. >> i think he was right. >> it's two years. which is incredible. these things are, you know, they're -- can last forever. >> check with the ingredients and see why. >> they're really delicious. don't think about that. have a few this easter. >> thank you, billy ray. get on over here. >> i'm on my way back. >> hustle back because tori spelling is throwing herself a party right after this. there she goes! [ female announcer ] new tide pods three-in-one detergent. pop in the drum of any machine...

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reality star tori spelling has been keeping very busy. t she has number four on the way. she stars with her husband in oxygen's story "home sweet hollywood." also author of five books. the latest is called "celebratori." >> easy for you to say. >> i'm doing billy ray. i'm doing double duty here. he says he can tell which baby you're going to have. >> first of all, pretend you didn't hear. i'm supposed to tell you first on this one. >> since you lied to us last time. >> klg, guess what? >> what? >> i'm pregnant. >> i'm happy for you. what is it? is it a boy or girl? >> we don't know. we don't know. we didn't find out with the last one. we're not going to find out with this one. >> you're going to find out today. apparently he has got the -- >> is this true? >> he knows how to do it.

>> it requires some time. >> it's a little bit personal. >> it's okay. i'll close my eyes. >> are you sure? okay. it's a boy. >> really? >> that's what you want, right? you'll take a healthy baby but you would love to have a boy. >> it would be nice to have two of each. >> i'm pretty sure it's a boy. >> how do you know that? >> it's just a feeling. >> yeah. i wouldn't count on it. >> don't start making wagers. >> don't start decorating the nursery. >> i wouldn't decorate yet either. >> you send the most beautiful flowers, the most gorgeous wines. what have you got for us today, darling? >> one of my party tips. budget effect. diy setup. it's great for parties. it's interactive. today i did a champagne bar because i know you don't like hard liquor. a little champagne bar for you. you can kind of put out your own stuff. make beautiful crafts. i'm a tag girl. people love the personalization. make your own tags with twice.

you have your champagne. and then you have your juices. we have some red bull for you. >> thank you. >> some passion fruit for me. put your fruits out. herbs. let people go around and make their own drinks. i always believe in two signature cocktails to reflect the host. today there's three of us. there's going to be three drinks. here we have the achy breaky red bully me. nonalcoholic. >> this is red bull? this is cranberry juice? >> what am i getting? >> broadway berry fizz. >> broadway berry fizz, baby. we're going to see "newsies" today. what are you having since you're pregnant? >> passion fruit pregger. not alcoholic, of course. >> congratulations. >> thank you. >> just naming them makes it fun, doesn't it? that's the whole concept. >> people love it. >> have fun with it. >> it should reflect the host of the party so it's great. this one is great because i put some ginger in it. during pregnancy you have the

nau nausea and morning sickness. god bless i don't have any this time. >> then it's definitely a boy. >> you think? >> you're doing a craft show. >> i'm doing "craft wars" for tlc. i'm really excited. >> you are one of those crafty, crafty people. >> i am. first i got to show you my eggs. minis and appetizers. for easter. super easy. hard boiled eggs. deviled egg reinvented. reconstructed made into chicks. the nose is orange pepper. or you can do it with carrot. black eyes are olives. >> true or false. chickens lay eggs. >> you're kidding. >> do chickens lay eggs? >> yes, true. >> female hens do. >> darn it! >> have a bite. the chickies about to go down. >> yesterday i ate the chocolate covered bruins. today boiled eggs. now i'm catching a flight to l.a. >> i feel sorry for the people on that plane. >> me, too. >> i love interactive stuff at a party. this is something all the guests

can participate in and make something for the host. if it's a wedding, it's great. put art out. pick the colors the host will have. they add to it and make a painting for the host. >> a beautiful book. tons and tons of ideas in it. all the best to the family. god bless, sweetheart. happy easter. happy passover. up next, do you really want to go out in that? dressing tips and tricks that will make you look thinner. we promise. right after this. [ male announcer ] to prevent toilet rings from building up, you'd have to clean your toilet every time you flush. that's over thirty-six hundred times a year. [ ding ] who would do that? it's scrubbing bubbles toilet cleaning gel. just stamp it in. its formula is flush-activated to prevent buildup of lime scale and hard water that cause toilet rings. and it keeps working, flush after flush. scrubbing bubbles toilet cleaning gel. the freshest way to keep a toilet clean. [ toilet flushing ] flush after flush. [ female announcer ] s.c. johnson. a family company.

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we are back with ""today's" style and fashion tips and tricks to make you look slimmer no matter what your size is and your shape. >> luckily for us, we've got a style expert here. michelle horner, great to be with you. >> we all do stress out or something, don't we? >> we do. it's not just about looking thinner. it's about finding clothes that flatter your body type. >> what are you going to show us? >> first we have faith.

faith has this nice pear-shaped look. sometimes she wears clothes that are a little bit looser, not as fitted. it's not very flattering. we put her in this charter club dress by macy's. florals are really big for spring. if you're going to wear florals, you want to pick one solid color, preferably in dark, and a medium-size pattern. too big of a pattern makes you look bigger. too small your eyes are all over it. >> you look like a sofa. >> you can look head to toe without your eye stopping. it makes her look longer and leaner. >> and emphasizes her waist which is the tiny part of her. >> exactly. the top part is fitted. the bottom is filler. make sure the fuller starts right below the stomach otherwise it makes you look big. >> we have alex. a slender and petite lady. >> alex is very thin. she complains sometimes about not having enough curves. the jeans she had on gave her no shape and nothing. these are g star. an amazing grand.

they created these jeans with a 3-d technology fit in them. hold up the normal pair of jeans. they're flat. >> those are jeggings kind of. >> no. they're real jeans. if you hold them up they've got this 3-d technology. fits naturally to the shape and curve of your body gives you a lot of style and shape and curves which is what alex complains about. >> that's beautiful. what do those cost? >> about $160. denim is something you want to invest in. you can wear these from season to season. find something that fits perfectly. the top is ann taylor loft and completes the look perfectly. >> beautiful. thank you, alex. mora lee has a very curvy body. welcome to my world. >> mora is a mom. she complains about what all of us complain about. stomach never goes right back to its perfect shape. i don't know if you remember kate winslet. she was seen in the stella mccartney dress with the black side panels. this is the idea. an optical illusion. makes your sides disappear and brings your focus into the center.

wear a darker color. nice draping at the top. deep v-neck. it's a little looser and flows on top. covers the stomach area. zara pants nice and fitted to highlight her skinny legs. >> billy ray, you like? >> i like it a lot. >> you seem to be liking this one. >> you talked about the denim. i invested in some denim. then i wore this oversize harley t-shirt to hide my fat. >> what i will see about you, your leather coat. that's an investment piece. you want to wear that -- >> i did invest in this. because i wear it every time i come to new york. >> you're good. >> i think we have one more, don't we? thank you so much. we have zia who has a very athletic frame. >> she's athletic. the before look, the skirt, it just doesn't hit right. the whole outfit is not working for her. here we've got an a-line skirt from banana republic. the nice thick waistband. a little higher to cover your stomach. the top is very fitted. she's a little bustier, chesty. >> nothing wrong with that,

right, billy ray? >> that's wonderful. >> find a shirt that fits. otherwise you look big and puffy. a little tip is to tailor the sides. it's really inexpensive but makes for a perfect fit. >> thank you, michelle horner. we've got a performance from billy ray himself. guess what he's going to sing? "hillbilly heart." but first this is "today" on nbc. you are going to sing it. you will sing.

the tie owe ta concert series on "today" brought to you by toyota. >> billy ray cyrus's two-day as cohost is coming to a close. before he signs off he's going to treat us to a new song. guess what it's called? "hillbilly heart." here's billy ray cyrus.

♪ born down in the holler, down among the hills ♪ ♪ never had a lot of luck, but i had some thrills keeping it country ♪ ♪ keep it country all the time, i said country is as country does, country is why country love ♪ ♪ walking by the river, down along the track, always trying to look ahead, a lot of love looking back ♪ ♪ keeping it country, yeah, keeping it country all the

time ♪ ♪ well, i've been this way from the start, i got a hillbilly heart ♪ ♪ he's got a hillbilly heart >> i bet you got a hillbilly heart, too, girl. >> i don't know this song. but i don't care ♪ hey ♪ ho ♪ hillbilly heart ♪ keeping it country ♪ keeping it country >> woo! let me tell you something. ♪ lord, i love the guitar, love to hear it loud, if you don't

like what you hear, you should leave this crowd ♪ ♪ we're keeping it country, keeping it country all the time ♪ ♪ well this southern twang, it is my art, i got a hillbilly heart ♪ ♪ he's got a hillbilly heart ♪ i love my truck ♪ he loves his truck ♪ love to drive it fast, if you don't like the way i drive, you can kiss my ass ♪ ♪ i'm keeping it country ♪ he's keeping it country ♪ keeping it country all the time ♪

♪ i've been this way from the start, i've got a hillbilly heart ♪ ♪ i've been this way from the start ♪ ♪ he's been this way ♪ i got a hillbilly heart, a hillbilly heart, hillbilly heart ♪ >> thanks to billy ray for helping us out the last couple of days. hoda's going to be back tomorrow for ambush makeovers plus everyone has a story. have a great winesday, wednesday, everybody. god bless and thank you, billy. wednesday, everybody. god bless and thank you, billy. we got a hit! -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

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