from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb from studio 1 a in rockefeller plaza. >> hello, everybody. by that, i mean you. it's try day friday, december 13th. we're delighted you're with us today. >> we have a fun show for you. we have the italian trio. il volo. we love when they perform. >> i think they are here like every week now. >> did they sing with barbara streisand?

>> yeah, yeah. they have grown up. they're going to sing a lovely christmas carol for us. do you think we should return to the old-fashioned dating habits? because nowadays kids don't know what it is like to get flowers. >> i know. >> they don't know what it is like to do all of those things. >> wait for a telephone call. >> is he going to call? that wasn't so great but the waiting thing, we didn't have such an instantaneous world. >> and the dressing up. so catalog.com came up with a list of old-fashioned dating habits that they wished would come back. the first example is dressing up. if you go to new york and go to broadway and some people wear shorts and flip-flops and ugg boots. especially now. jeans. >> wow. >> or remember, to get on a plane? people would dress to get on the plane. now you are in your cozy. >> we are guilty of that. especially if it is a long flight. yeah, i kind of miss --

i am not dating. >> really? >> haven't had any offers. i can't imagine going back into the dating world like you are in. >> receiving flowers is a great one. >> my husband sends me flowers. i always love that. i love that. >> that's great. >> the best thing ever is when they pick flowers for you. >> oh, my god. no one has ever done that for me. >> and people go clubbing now but they don't know dancing. the slow dancing. that was the beginning of something with me and frank. >> slow dancing. >> we went to a party. there he is. we went to a party. i had broken up with a guy that i had been off and on again for two years, good guy but one of those roller coasters. he said you are going to hang out with me until you are over this guy because he is not right for you. there was a party that everybody was going to, where we worked.

he wasn't in town so i said i'm going with somebody tall, dark and handsome. about a half an hour later he says i'm coming back. i'll take you. so we go to that party. and i wasn't expecting anything. i really wasn't. he said he was going to stick with me. >> you said you were going to go with someone else. made him jealous. >> i had nobody in mind but i wasn't going to sit at home alone. that's for sure. we danced that night. >> slow dance. you know what? >> this guy has been my friend for four years, never been anything there. >> you were going to go with someone else and he came running back. >> but you know what? it was old-fashioned romantic. >> just the slow dancing. there is something about someone asking you to dance -- >> it is better than twerking. >> yes, it is better than twerking. >> here is the thing, kids, if you are listening. >> they are not, but what? >> it is so much sexier than twerking. it is so much sexier. >> they don't get it. >> you guys go straight to home base before you get to first. >> you have to go to first and then second.

>> look who's talking. oh, my god. >> round third. >> no need to show that photo again. >> but it does -- there is something about it. >> it builds the excitement. >> now everyone dates online. and there will be a time, i think later where people say you met that guy in a bar? how did you know anything about the guy? it's got to go backwards. >> the pendulum has got to swing. >> okay. >> we are now called a post-human society for the first time ever. we are more comfortable with machines, technology than we are with fellow human beings. we are going to pay a price for it. i'm not going to preach anymore. >> important topic. are women hard wired to be catty? do you think women are hard wired to be mean girls? before we answer the question, we want you to look back at one of the iconic movies of all time, "mean girls." take a look. >> let's go out.

>> i'm on the other line with gretchen. >> don't invite gretchen. she is driving me nuts. >> hold on. >> okay. hurry up. >> it's regina. she wants me to hang out with you but she does not want me to tell you. >> do not hang out with her. >> why? >> you don't want me to tell you. >> you can tell me. hold on. >> oh, my gosh, she is so annoying. >> who is? >> who is this? >> gretchen. >> right. >> hold on. >> oh, my god, she is so annoying. >> i know. just get rid of her. >> i did love that movie. tina fey wrote that movie. >> we've forgotten that. >> i don't think women are hard wired for it. i think human beings are. i have heard men be just as catty. i don't think it's gender specific. >> i think there are mean girls and girls who are not mean girls. >> guys, too.

>> if we're stillicking with th whole women thing. i think there are some women who love making other women feel bad. they will make a comment about something you are wearing. it sounds like it is funny but it is kind of mean spirited and keep doing it and doing it. it is a cruel thing that they do. there are others who have been the subject of that. you know like when you are a kid. >> all of it is bullying whether a man doing it or a boy or girl doing it it is bullying. >> have you ever been done something like that? >> no. i haven't. i would like to -- i have that little jiminy cricket that sits on this side and says -- >> don't do it. >> even if i want to -- i have done unkind things, i'm sure, but not on purpose. that's the difference. some people wake up in the morning and did not have a good day unless they screw up everything else's. to them that's a successful day. >> i think the personality of

the kind of person who makes a really biting mean remark and laughs, i find that to be the worst kind of offense, because they're masking it. they're like, i was just kidding. you're like, okay, it's not cool. it's try-day friday. that is a big day. we have a guy here named josh allen. >> he has been standing there for 15 minutes. he wall street wondering when these women are going to stop talking. >> these are something special. >> hi. >> what are these exactly? >> pretzel croissants. how exciting. >> that means they're like a cross between -- >> it's sort of a cross. it is all butter that we put through our lye bath. it goes through a sodium hydroxide bath, which is what makes a pretzel, but then it bakes off. and then we have pearl sugar on top, so it mimics the look of salt. >> oh, my god. >> i bet they were hot ten minutes ago when we started talking.

>> they are so delicious. >> they are not too sweet. i was going to use the word we use sometimes, moist. >> you are a friend of ours' cousin, we understand. >> i'm andy's cousin. >> does he favor andy? >> i would hope so. he is a handsome man. >> these are $40 a dozen. where can people get them? >> companion scl.com. >> is it an escort service? are people going to get confused if something else comes to the score? >> we'll do whaefr we need. i have five kids to put through college. >> delicious. i like them because they're not gooey sweet. they are delicious. >> thank you for having me. >> i like try day friday. time for friday funny. >> that's such a mercy thing. from facebook fan charlene jernigan. thank you so much. an american rancher went to

australia on vacation. while there he met a local farmer and asked for a tour. of his farm and field. the farmer said, sure. when they got to his property the american looked around and said my fields back home are twice as big as your property. next the australian shows off his herd of cattle. i have longhorns back at home, and they are three times as large as your cattle, says the american. finally kangaroo comes hopping across the field. wow says the visitor. the australian says don't you have grasshoppers in america? [ laughter ] >> i don't get it. >> jason, i saw what you were doing. >> i don't get it. >> thank you everybody for your kindness to me. >> i don't get it. >> was there something that i'm not getting? honestly 679. >> it is time for today's johnson baby announcement where we celebrate new moms and the aadorable new additions to their families. >> our first baby is shiloh

marie laurensy. born on november 4th in sleep will hollow, new york. her parents say baby shiloh is the most amazing gift they have been given. >> until their next one. and then -- >> yeah. our next one is adilynn. louise silotto from clinton, indiana. her parents say she loves to kick. so they're predicting she could make a great soccer player, like a little mia hamm. now to francis bennettt ohprecio. her parents say their son is a strong boy already trying to hold the bottle on his own. good for him. >> our final johnson's baby of thee is gianna brielle o'rourke. this is theirs first child, so they're treasure you aring every moment. please do. you will not believe how fast it is gone. congratulations to all our babies. >> if you want to appear in our johnson's baby of the week go to the website for details.

bobbi thomas is here with hair tricks you can do for yourself, >> check out what happens when we stop by mariah carey's house. yes, you heard me right. mariah carey's, right after this.

mariah carey's all i want for christmas is you is one of the most popular christmas songs heard this time of year. it gets everybody into the holiday spirit. >> speaking of holiday spirit, mariah invited us to her house for a little holiday cheer. can you believe she wanted us at her home? >> we had a lot. >> take a look. >> this is what we call an apartment. >> i love it already.

>> yes, baby. this is how the big stars live. >> hello! >> going to be a casual event. >> merry christmas. >> sorry, fancy. >> once in a lifetime. first cheers and welcome to our home. >> thank you. merry christmas. >> are you comfy in the kitchen? >> i am so comfy. >> either i am dressed like this or hard to get me out of a robe. >> a robe or a gown. >> this is just fun and festive. it is what it is. it was a special occasion, so i thought why not throw on a frock? you guys were coming i said why don't we cook? >> what are we making? >> we don't have a name for this. what should we call it. sorry about that. >> they are pretty awesome.

>> we feel kind of disappointed. >> i did my best to be appropriate. >> we have a nice prisoner population that would have had a merrier christmas had you worn something a little more revealing. >> next time we will have a revealing moment and have a routine. >> we are making hot cocoa with butterscotch schnapps. anybody lactose intolerant? >> drink up. >> so we're going to drink it on up. have a special moment with that. ♪ where oh where has my butterscotch gone ♪ this doesn't have sugar in it. just because i have a sweet tooth. >> so far we have hot chocolate with raw sugar in it. >> i'm looking for the booze. a little help, please. this must be it.

i was about to die in there. santa, if you really want some i will try to find another glass for you. >> what is santa doing here? >> i don't know. he is helping. if you want to top it off with whipped cream. >> who wouldn't want to? >> why in the sam hell would that we? [ laughter ] >> you got it. stir. >> thank you. >> this is a beautiful thing. >> you have -- whatever. i get a little blast of that. >> i think we should sing a carol. ♪ we wish you a merry christmas ♪ ♪ we wish you a merry christmas ♪ ♪ we wish you a merry christmas ♪ ♪ and a happy new year >> can we sing all i want for christmas is you? >> we can put it in the background. somebody hit it. ♪ i don't want a lot for christmas ♪

>> this is us leaving now. no more clinking. >> if you can't compete with my merry mix i'm so sorry. >> nobody can compete with your merriment. >> you are so welcome. >> merry christmas. >> hope you feel better. >> your arm. >> as long as i can hold up my drink i'm all right. >> merry christmas, santa. >> santa, have a safe flight. >> can you escort the ladies? i'm concerned they've had too much. >> yeah, we've had too much. >> happy new year. >> bye, ladies. you're not taking them with you. >> no, no, get us out. bye, ladies. ♪ all i want for christmas is you ♪ we'll meet three of the handsome hunks from ultimate survival alaska who will teach us a thing or two. if you know what i mean. >> and then a performance.

and then bobbie is all abuzz with her holiday hair tricks. coming up right after this. [ female announcer ] we eased your back pain... ♪ ready or not. [ female announcer ] ...so you can be up there. here i come! [ female announcer ] ...down there, around there... and under there for him. tylenol® provides strong pain relief and won't irritate your stomach the way aleve® or even advil® can.

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you know what it is time for? bobbie's buzz. holiday parties are the perfect 4 excuse for your best dress and makeup and head out on the town. >> you cannot forget about your hair. today's style editor is here with quick and easy ways to change your do. >> sometimes when i put my hair up when i put it in this faux bob, we get lots of e-mails asking if i cut my hair. here is my secret. it is a wrapup. she designed this for the up do if you turn sideways, there is another way to use it by taking your long hair, rolling it under to create the illusion of a very

hot and sexy -- isn't that cute? >> i love it. >> we can make it look hot, though. you just pull it out and make it a little bedroom sexy. and then the messier it will hide the imperfections. >> next is a cool idea if you want to get quick curls. which means i have to take my hair apart. basically you take pieces of your hair, twist them and take a flat iron and move the heat up and down to get the beachy wave without curling and setting. now, andrea has helped us

model this perfect tool for a french twist. it is a cone. all you have to do -- i'm going to undo hers. you have a couple of bobby pins at the ends. basically you clip your hair in the barrette. i know we are short for time. i think this is a clever idea. so you just roll it around. you can use this if you have shorter hair. i am going to put online the braids. don't be intimidated. it will take two seconds. >> thank you. what does it take to survive in the most extreme arctic conditions? >> three rugged guys show us what to do. >> after your local news. they're very cute. don't you go away.

we're back on this try day friday with more of "today." can you imagine trekking through miles with only gear in on your back. >> today we are here with three guys who have done that and lived to tell about it. they make up a team of military geologists on "ultimate survival alaska,." they are here to show us how it can be done. >> even hoda and i can survive it. >> it is a real survival tip. if you use alcohol you can use it as a fire starter or numb the pain of hanging out with these guys. >> was it really difficult -- i can only imagine with just the stuff on your back what is some of the most difficult stuff you had to endure? >> him snoring.

>> the most important is maintaining the attitude that you will live to see another day. >> that is easier said than done in some instances. what was the most heart hair harrowing experiences. >> grizzly bears and glaciers. >> a glacier ate he and spit me out. >> he went through a hole in the glacier. >> we were all attached. we pulled him out. >> how heavy are the packs you are lugging around? >> this is not that bad. it's only about 60 pounds. when we started the expedition about 80 pounds. >> how much land would you cover during that time? >> overall about 1500 miles. >> in a day how much would you do? >> it depends on the terrain. sometimes it was so slow. >> stop for a sushi lunch along the way. >> sal monday were running.

>> tell us what you put in your packs so we can get an idea. >> military what is so important is readiness, right? to be ready for survival or emergency situation like a fire, power outage, earthquake, even terrorist attacks, we use go bags. it is made of durable and waterproof material. inside you need these basic pieces of equipment. first of all, medic kits. >> always. >> you have to know how to use that stuff. >> it all has multipurpose. you have shelter. this is signaling here. >> this is not much of a shelter with the temperatures you went through. >> fire making is absolutely paramount. >> and cuddle with your buddy. >> we don't judge. >> we have water and then you have rations. they all can work together with training, innovation and most important --

>> take your little kiddy pool with you. >> tell us about the fishing. >> everything that we use has multipurpose. i'll give you an example. my boots that i am wearing they they have crampens. >> we have heard of those. >> another thing because everything we have has multiple purpose. this is a regular water bottle. we made it into a method to fish. so you take the fishing line and unspool about 15 or so yards. you attach your fly and your hook and your weight to it. and all you do is you give it -- point it in the right direction, give it a spin. >> into your kiddy pool. >> we only have a couple of

seconds left. what happens if there is a bear? what do we do? >> make yourself big. make yourself big. we have a bear. >> do you like them in the eye? >> no. what do you do? >> stand your ground. >> and then what? >> make noise. >> we made these. we used these dingers. they work just fine. >> if he does attack, pull out your whiskey and head for the hills. >> no, you know what you do? , you go, hello big bear. >> even if he has bad breath. >> that's exciting. congratulations. >> very exciting. the new season of "ultimate survive alaska" -- >> premieres this sunday night. >> who is next? >> you think you're the only three hunks we have here today? they are going to sing a christmas carol for us.

>> nice the

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when you are busy getting food ready the one thing you always seem to run out of is time. >> here with kitchen gadgets is the host of america's test kitchen and editor of "cook's illustrated." our own chris kimble. >> i'm your own? >> you're on the cusp. >> what do we have? >> cookie press for sprits cookies. it is easy to clean which is nice. there we go. >> works great. >> christmas trees. >> a lot of these don't work very well. this is easy to fill and clean and it works. >> is the price right? >> $29.99. >> okay. >> can i try the cookies? >> yeah, they're no-cal.

>> pie weights are used when you prebake a crust. you have to put this in the oven for 20 minutes and the pie weights. it is messy and hard to do. >> what? i don't know what you are talking about. >> i'm never heard of that. >> you prebake it so it sets. i have never heard of that. >> this are ceramic balls which you put in over tin foil. this is a ventilated pie weight which means forget that. >> you just put this in like this. it stops the pie dough. >> you leave it in there. >> then you take it out. don't take it. >> like with a key lime bake, you have to prebake it. >> so here is the problem. you have a bottle of white wine. it is warm. you want a glass or two. so you want to chill it fast. this does it in 15 minutes. you put the wine in the bottle. this has an insert which you can

fill with ice. and then put that in. put the top back on like that. >> and this is what i want for christmas. >> i'm observing. and you put it up as it were. then you have a glass of wine. it takes about 15 minutes to chill this to 50 degrees which is about where you might want it. >> what if you put the bottle in the freezer for 15 minutes? >> the freezer takes quite a long time and then you risk the possibility of leaving it in too long. >> i'm going to let that one slide. >> so this is when you want to take the temperature of something at a distance. this is the i-grill. this hooks up to your iphone or ipad. you can set a timer on it and set an alarm to go off when it hits a predetermined temperature. if you were doing a steak, for example you might set it at 120. this is a pork tenderloin you might set at 140 or so. when it reaches the temperature the alarm goes off.

and you have it with your iphone so you can be hundreds of feet away in your house depending how big your house is and the iphone says go back to the oven. these wires come out of the oven. >> this -- you put this in the oven with the meat and the probe. seems dangerous to me. >> this is remedial gadget training. >> you have this wire that comes out. the door closes on the wire. >> that is what i asked. or you can put it on the grill and do the same thing. >> seems like sparks might fly. this is the american innovative. my favorite timer. it has four things you can time at once. you can set them like this. one, two, three, four. then you use the outer ring to set the minutes you want. and it has come it is finished, these are the four timers that will beep different colors. >> my head would explode. >> that's a good one. >> i just don't understand it. >> i do understand it. >> four things at once is easy to see. >> how about just watch it. like the old days. >> when you wake up in the morning and find this in the

kitchen. >> that means your kids are home from college. >> that's true, all eight of them. this squeegee gets it off. >> i like that. and when you put this in the dish washer it does a better job of cleaning than if you have little bits of food. the bread or bun warmer can be heated in the toaster or oven for about ten minutes. >> it is an old concept. and this you would put in the bottom of the bread basket. >> that's a nice hostess gift. >> this would be very hot for 15 minutes and warm for about 45. >> thank you. >> low tech. >> like you. things are getting cooking. >> the italian trio is here with a special performance right after this.

so you can see like right here i can just... you know, check my policy here, add a car, ah speak to customer service, check on a claim...you know, all with the ah, tap of my geico app. oh, that's so cool. well, i would disagree with you but, ah, that would make me a liar. no dude, you're on the jumbotron! whoa. ah...yeah, pretty much walked into that one. geico anywhere anytime. just a tap away on the geico app.

since coming together in 2009, ilvolo have performed all over the world. >> the italian trio is here to perform a christmas carol off of their new album. >> il volo. they are all here. >> jean luca, pierro, and ignacio. >> we love having you guys here. you were terrific on barbara's pbs special. that was fantastic. >> my, what a beautiful song. >> singing christmas songs you always make things your own. how did you go about doing it for these songs? >> we love christmas. christmas is the only one time of the year we can stay with family. when we sing the christmas song "i'll be home for christmas" we

feel home. >>. ♪ we'll be home for christmas >> you know who wrote that? >> mel tomorrow torme. >> you are a shadow of your former self. we are proud of you. >> he is the same. >> he didn't change me. i am the same. >> what are you singing for us? "o holy night". >> here they are, everybody. il volo. ♪ off holy night ♪ the stars are brightly shining ♪ ♪ it is the night of the dear savior's birth ♪

♪ long lay the world in sin and error pining ♪ ♪ until he appears and the soul felt its worth ♪ ♪ a thrill of hope the weary world rejoices ♪ ♪ for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn ♪ ♪ fall on your knees ♪ oh hear the angel voices

♪ oh night divine ♪ oh night when christ was born ♪ ♪ oh night divine ♪ oh night ♪ oh night divine ♪ noel ♪ noel ♪ oh night

♪ oh holy night . ilvolo, that is beautiful, guys. we'll be back with a special guest. thank you, more on nbc.

so many of you have stepped up to help needy children through our toy drive. >> we want to thank each and every one of you. and he is here with another generous donation. thank you so much. >> so glad to be here. >> how important is music to any generation? >> critical to children's development and helps bonding with their caregivers and parents and -- >> when funding is cut that is

one of the first things to go. >> it really hurts. >> people don't realize how much music learning supports all learning. >> tell us what you are donating. >> we giving reportings and song books to thousands of families and including these sing along story books. >> fantastic. you wrote one of the songs didn't you? >> i wrote this song for the 40th anniversary of unicef. a long time ago and we put it in the program. it's bhk a wonderful song. >> thank you so much. thanks for all you do. >> on behalf of all the children. >> our toy drive continues through december 20. you can donate on the plaza, at the nbc experience show. or just go online for details. next week big week. michael buble, mary j. blige. >> actor justin long, the winner of "the voice." >> finally.

>> have an awesome weekend. everybody, be safe. bye-bye. >> i'm here to help. you and i will get through this together. ♪