we're back on a friday morning, it's the 24th stay of september, 2010. some canadian folks intown. this is actually a very big crowd. in the first couple of days of fall, to have these people here, a lot of them probably here because tamron hall is joining us this morning. >> this is my entire extended family, aren't they lovely? separated at birth. >> natalee is on assignment, mr.

roker joins us as well. and do you know who else is here? a lot of people have experienced the challenge of turning a nursery into a big kid's room. georgia is going to answer the wishes of a special young lady and transform her room into something she loves. it's fun. >> you go from that preteen thing. instead of changing just a room, how about moving into a new house. our resident real estate guru barbara corcoran is here, from a four bedroom home in tennessee. really surprised at how far your dollars can go these days. >> and bobby brown will stop by. i remember the first time i wore lipstick in front of my dad, i think he feinted and resurrected in front of me. we have got some advice on age appropriate makeup and some tips

from the inside out. let's go inside, ann curry is standing by at the news desk. >> good morning once again to everybody. in the news this morning, hundreds of people have been forced from their homes because of flooding in wisconsin and minnesota. in wisconsin the national guard has been called in to help. the good news is that the rain should be easing "today." in colorado, a third big wildfire this month has burned at least two buildings including a home. there are however no reports of any injuries and it's not clear yet how that fire started. a woman who hired two men to murder her husband and his stepson to collect on a life insurance policy was executed last night in virginia. teresa lewis was the first woman to be put to death in the united states in five years and the first woman in virginia in almost a century.

today the european union denounced as outrageous and unacceptable an assertion by iran's president mahmoud ahmadinejad that forces within the united states government were behind the september 11th attacks. he made a speech on thursday before the u.n. general assembly. ahmadinejad said the 911 attacks were -- meantime sarah shourd spoke out on this broadcast this morning about her ordeal and called again for iran to release fellow american shane bauer and josh fattal. she was held in solitary confinement and was only allowed to see the other americans for about an hour a day. >> why whole day was centered around waiting for that moment because it was my only human contact, my only time and, you know, as the hours grew nearer to my time outside, i would pace

the room, wringing my hands, often just like tears streaming down my face and seeing them was my only relief. and they're wonderful people. every time i felt like i was really slipping away, they brought me back, they're the reason, shane and josh are the reason that i'm able to sit here "toda today and advocate for them with all my strength. >> she hopes to meet with president ahmadinejad to talk about josh and shane's release. and a woman celebrated her 90th birthday this week by suiting up and jumping out of an airplane. the sky diving instructor -- thank goodness she looks happy. there she is. anyway. you don't see that every day. four minutes past the hour, let's get a check of the weather from al. >> let's see what's going on as far as our weather is concerned. we have got tropical storm matt to worry about.

it has 50-mile-per-hour winds, it's moving west at 16. this one's going to cause some problems for us, it's forecast to move onshore nicaragua and honduras over the weekend. but then the models diverse, we're not sure what's going to happen, may stay on land, may move out into the eastern caribbean sea. as my director joe michaels says, jo dammar early satellite image shows gray areas that you see west of town and also eastern shore. some fall will be burning off later this morning and t

and in "today's" real estate, homes across this country for sale for $220,000 or less, from a sleek town in wisconsin, we have got something for everyone. our resident brick house, barbara corcoran. >> nice introduction. >> first up we're going to go to heath, ohio. it's about 20 miles from columbus, a three-bedroom home priceded at $189,000. >> it's near ohio university. you can tell a guy owns this house because it's all brown outside, and inside, only a man would have a brown house. it's a hard to find moderate house. all the rooms are open and modern, clean modern lines define all the space, super high

ceilings throughout all the rooms. there's also a very large lounge area on the second floor above this kitchen. there's that beautiful modern kitchen, nice and clean and neat and seems appropriate for a modern house. there's that loft i was just referencing, it looks down on a beautiful backyard. the backyard is very, very pretty, with a nice deck, pretty enough nicely man cureded backyard, that's a good house for $289,000. >> and there's a nice barn on the property. does that add to the value of the property? >> some people will take it d n down, you can sell that old wood. >> and in seattle, priced at 289,500. . seattle has the best educated population in america. it's unusual. it's got a character of its own. not only typically put in front of the house, but somehow it

works. >> it almost looks more like a backyard than a front yard. >> there's that big, open living room, all the floors have been totally redone, i like the archways, i like the wood working, the wainscotting, that's the living room, but i would rather have too little furniture than too much turn your, and at least it's a big sunny room with big windows. yellow usually works, it doesn't work now. but it's got nice open cabinets. the back deck has plenty of room to sit, i like to see a few friends sitting on that long lonely bench. a beautiful view of downtown seattle and you can even see mt. rainier on a really sunny day. >> national, tennessee, a four-bedroom home, this one's also priced $299,900.

>> what i love about this house, the neighborhood does the mowing for you. it's just an arrangement they have for you. it's a traditional house in every way, a good starter home. what it has there is a nice living room. i can't find anything wrong. >> it's got a little bit too much furniture? >> a little bit too much. but at least you can look at that room and say i would be comfortable there. look at the kitchen. it's kind of an awkward layout, this kitchen, you could switch it around and put a big table in there. who's the guy that had to decorate that media room? he should be shot. you can tell a man had his hand in on this one. let's move on to a better picture here, there's the backyard, the woman is back decorating, she bought those pink umbrellas, i'm sure. there you have a barbecue, with big trees so you don't even see your neighbors. >> you've been doing a little

man bashing during this segment. >> you get me that way, al, you're making me angry about guys. i don't know why this has happened. >> let's try to get barbara a little calmer here before she goes home to her husband. let's go to austin, texas. $312,400. it's got two bedrooms. >> this is a town that young people like, in fact it's the youngest city in america, it's the live music capital that you just referenced. this house is actually a town home, but it's as close as you're going to get to having a town home that really feels like you're living in a single family home. i thought that tv was a wood bumping fireplace, but it's a tv. there's the kitchen as modern as the living room. all new appliances, stainless steel. nice cabinet try.

this bedroom looks comfortable there. >> this yard desperately needs something. >> in redding, california, we have got a home at $319,000. >> this is 100 miles from sacramento. it's been recently updated. there's a driveway that should definitely be steam cleaned, easy thing to do. the whole house looks great, but somehow that detracts from it. this is a house that's wide open, it's a great home for in fact an older couple who wants everything on one level. it's a totally one story house, all the doorways are oversized. you could wander around that house and not run into a thing, even in the dark. there's a kitchen, looks a little dated, actually it's a new kitchen, just their choice of cabinetries, a little on the

dark side. the dining room is adjacent to the kitchen, you can see clear through to the living room. nothing is on instrubstructing s in any part of the house. it's one of the most expensive parts of the nation, for $319,000 that's the best part of the house. and there's the backyard, look how big it is, this is a great house and a vagreat value. >> and no more man bashing. >> we're not going to talk about men anymore. and coming up next, transforming a baby room into a big girl room for one special young lady, we're going to tell you how you can do it in your own home. >> you know her best as the white house party crasher, controversial real housewives star michaela salahi is here. you don't want to miss that. and it didn't have to be between 9 and 5 --

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this morning on "today's" home, turning a nursery into a big girl's room. but the premier of his new show, george to the rescue, george transformed the room of one very special little girl. >> every once in a while we're lucky enough to help out those in need, which is what brought me to coram, new york. i've come to rescue you. from the outside, they're the picture of a happy, healthy family. happy, yes. but healthy, no. their 3-year-old daughter katie suffers form a genetic disorder which causes tumors on her brain

and spine. >> the tumors on her brain, in particular the one on her optic nerve has caused her to lose all of the vision in her left eye. >> we're trying to save the vision in the right eye, so prevent the tumor from moving into the right eye, we're using chemotherapy to stabilize it. >> with most of their time and money spent on katy's treatments and doctor visits, home improvement has gone by the wayside. >> she really wants it to be a girl's room. >> that's where i came in. what is your favorite thing in this room? >> pink, pink, pink. >> i think i know what color to start with. with the help of expert contractors and designers, we were able to give katie the big

girl room of her dreams. >> thank you! thank you! >> and even throw in a surprise for two for mom and dad. >> it's a new house, it's a completely different place and better in every imaginable way. >> there really are no words to express how you feel when someone is giving you this gift, you know, of time and effort and labor. >> i love my job. >> i imagine you do, george. good morning. >> good morning. >> how this works is pretty amazing because these people send letters to you, you go through them and find one and you've been -- this is just one of families you've been helping. >> thus far, we're starting our fifth rescue. it's all families like from your own community, your own neighbors that something has happened to, whether their child is sick with cancer, or their

husband has had a stroke, something out of their control. everybody buys a house and they're going to fix this and this and this, and all of a sudden home improvement is put to the wayside and you focus on your health or your family's health. >> and people donate all these goods and as you were just telling me, not sleep for a couple of months to get this work done. but you can actually get this done, in a room like katies, in three weeks? >> we have been doing these things in three to four weeks, so we can get to the next job. but it's really a team effort, our designers, they're working the late shift, the early shift. we put the families in hotels so they don't have to get disturbed by the construction. basically we're doing the home improvement things that they always wanted to do, but they can't do. they can't afford it or they don't have the time. >> this is an example of a good bed to choose if you want to move into sort of a big girl's

bed? >> if your kids are growing up and they want to start changing their room, there's a lot of easy fixes you can do. there's a lot of neutral colors. these are details, they're stickers. >> and you can take them off eventually. >> when she gets out of the flower stage and into the rock 'n roll stage, you can put some rock 'n roll posters up there. and your bedding, also, easy fix, new bedding, adds color to the room and it will just change the look of a room. >> and you talk about you like having a basic floor, a wood floor. >> i am a huge fan of wood floors and throwing a rug down, and doing away with wall to wall carpeting. a wood floor, you can sweep it up, clean it up and then throw a rug down. >> easy to clean and when you want to change the room when she's a teenager, you always have that option. >> you can always put carpet

over a wood floor, but i'm a big fan of a wood floor. you can change the look of a room by just changing out your curtain. i don't care how handy or unhandy you are, curtains you can change. >> let's talk about the closets. >> organization is the key in closets. laundry baskets, make sure you organization, make sure you have a place for everything and everything in its place. >> you've made this very monochromatic. >> you can pull these bars out, you can move this around, when she gets gowns or dresses, whatever clothes she's going to have, you can change it around. >> george to the rescue, or you can email us at george@msnbc.com. getting that fresh faced youthful look from bobby brown. but first these messages. we chose symbicort to help control my asthma symptoms. [ man ] symbicort improves my lung function...

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still to come on "today," the secret to beauty inside and out. lifestyle tips for young women from bobby brown. and three healthy recipes. >> but first your local news and weather. what if clean sheet day became clean sheet week? new ultra downy april fresh has scent pearls that give you a whole week of freshness with just one wash. ♪ and from day 1 to day 7, ultra downy april fresh lets you climb in to more freshness than this other fabric softener. so why settle? get more. feel more. activia is better than ever! so why settle? hey, you guys. want to try activia's great new taste? isn't this the yogurt that, you know... helps regulate your digestive system. ooh, i think i'll pass. no, no, no! trust me. it is beyond tasty. mmm! wow! i can't believe it, i love it! mmm, this is really good!

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>> good morning. satellite imagery showing low clouds and fog, a tendency toward breaking up a little bit. our day to day will be mostly sunny. kind of hot and somewhat humid. southwest winds, five to 15. southwest winds, five to 15.

♪ you make me smile like the sun ♪ ♪ fall out of bed >> our two love birds, "today's" wedding couple melissa and jeremy reuniting at the airport after being in afghanistan for seven months, you can see he has returned and you've been picking out all the details from the rings to the dress and on thursday morning, he hasn't seen the dress, thank goodness for that, bad luck. this couple is going to be getting married live on our plaza.

it's been easy to fall in love with that couple. and we have got a lot more coming up, we have got two great people sitting with us, we have got lester and amy and what else? >> and melissa, bride-to-be may want to listen to a few wedding day tips. bobby brown is here with techniques to help you show that youthful glow. it's about feeling good inside because that's what you project outside. >> we try to limit dessert when it comes to our kids. this morning we have got three healthy recipes your kids can dive right into without all the guilt and basically make a couple of switches to healthier ingredients, so it's the same stuff they love, just made a little bit differently. also coming up, i'm real excited because i have seen a movie it's called "mel's last dance." this is one of the best movies i have over seen, it's about this

young man who grew up in terrible poverty, because of great teachers became one of china's best ballet dancers and we got t when he got the chance to come to america and learn and get a scholarship, he faceded ed a re struggle because he had fallen in love and didn't want to leave. it was a very dramatic, dramatic story. the real person that the movie portrays is here in our studio, so we're going to meet him this morning. also, we have got the two of you, as i mentioned earlier, and you have got a lot going on, lester. >> people thought we were ornaments but we're here for a reason. >> i know you have had that problem all your life, but you've got a job to do this morning. >> we do want to tell you what's coming up this weekend on "today," we'll kick off education nation, with a look at education plaza. plus detroit has gone hollywood, find out why film and tv makers have found their new home and are turning motown into movie town. and then a 55-year-old man

suffered severe burns to both of his hands in a 2006 fire, he is only the third double hand transplant in the country and he's going to tell us how he's doing live on our show. and the premiere of "snl," "saturday night live" starts it's 36th year, can you believe it, this weekend. what can we expect from the not ready for prime time players? we'll have a preview right here on "today." before we get to that, we have got a lot of heat "today" and tomorrow? >> we have got warm weather along the eastern seaboard, sizzling in the southwest, showers in southern texas and it's going to be hot in the southeast. and then sunday, heavy rain along the southeastern atlantic coast. warm to hot weather f

>> some fog in the area this morning but the more persistent cloud cover will be further north, along with rainshowers activity. we have a dry forecast but a and of course, it's friday, that means we have to tell you about the biggest night of the week, sunday night, football night in america. that's right, this sun, rex ryan, taking his diet down to miami to the sun life stadium, 40% chance of showers as the jets take on the dolphins. this is a big one, kids, temperatures 80 to 84 degrees.

it's nothing if it's not sunday, football night in america. ann? >> do you feel better. >> no, i hurt myself. i need a truss. while you heal, we'll be talking about beauty and we have got some beauty rules for the younger set from bobby brown after this. i really need the reliability that the corolla provides. i am a bookkeeper, and also a prep chef, so i need to be driving around from place to place. for the initial down payment, i'm six months out from when i get to go in and buy the corolla and get the keys. [ male announcer ] share your toyota story on facebook.com/toyota. [ female announcer ] only roc® retinol correxion deep wrinkle night cream is clinically proven to give 10 years back to the look of skin. diminishing the look of even deep wrinkles. 10 years? i'll take that!

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simple life lessons for your teens and 20s. >> we all still feel like we're still there. >> you really identified a lot of your childhood with this

book. >> right, right, because i think that i understand what they're going through, i know what it feels like to not think you're all that. it's too bad that they don't understand that they are that. >> when you get older, you'll see what we're talking about. when you look back at those years, you're going to say what's wrong with me? my hair was actually okay. >> a lot of parents get a little afraid when you start talking about makeup. >> but with teens, it's not like i'm telling 3-year-olds to wear makeup, even though they like to play with it. but these guys makeup is different for their personality. >> the lovely sky. >> she's 11. >> she loves makeup. i'm sure she would wear red lipstick if i would let her. so all we did is add a little bit of sparkly purple. sheer colors. >> and it keeps it whimsical and fun. >> it's not like oh, my god, you look so much better afterwards. but it's fun.

she's absolutely beautiful. she's a doll. >> and you want to focus on the beauty inside and out. >> it's the clothes you wear, it's your hair, it's how good your grades are in school, it's part of a big picture. >> and our next beautiful model is leanna. she's a little older. >> yes. >> and you were able to do a little bit more experimenting with her. >> she loves color. and i was able to do a little more color first. >> let's look at a before picture. >> beautiful before. >> beautiful and fresh. >> and how old are you again? >> 14. >> so she's older than 12. two years are a big difference. she's very sophisticateded. she wanted the eyeliner, we just popped on a little bit of pinky lip color and gloss. >> i have on black eyeliner and i thought that was for grown women. >> i thought so before i started writing the book, but i realized

girls like eyeliner. so it's better to show them how to do it. and she's sophisticated at 14. >> and she's got a little blurb on here as well. >> we started with concealer. no foundation. >> she's not too young for foundation? >> you know what? it's heredity. she wouldn't be wearing it every day to school. >> chloe, who is -- how old are you, again? >> 12. >> and what bothers chloe is her eyebrows. so she did what many girls did, she tweezed them herself. >> is she too young to tweez? >> she did it herself. there are no rules about when. it would have been better for her and her mom if she would have said i want to see someone and her mom brought her to someone. >> look at the difference and it's not about doing, you know, a brow as i would on an adult, but it's just kind of filling it

in so it looks like we haven't touched them. >> i want to show her before picture. this is the oldest of our models. that's her before picture. >> this is the prom look, this is the dressed up look, that's why she's got sparkles, she's got shine. and for her, it's really fun, she did a little bit of the white sparkly under the eyes. and you can apply the shadows with her fingers. >> how old are you again? >> 15. >> this is not her school look, by the way. and if she closes her eyes--pretty in pink. >> you look great. and once again, the book is beauty rules. up next the amazing story of a chinese dancer who followed his passion to freedom in the u.s. right after this.

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michaele baryshnikov wasn't the only one to defect from his own country. lee sing sing also decided to leave his homeland behind to dance. he shares his story in his 2003 best selling memoir, "mao's last dancer" and in august, it became the basis for a film. >> what's wrong? >> my father work very hard, have $50 one year. and you spend $500 one day. why you do this? >> li, good morning to you. you are the real person that this movie is made about and you grew up the sixth of seven sons in a peasant family, often

starving. and it seemed as though a miracle at the age of 11 happened in your life. >> yes, it was a magical moment, really. i was discovered, how i was discovered to go to study ballet. ballet was absolutely nowhere near my life, we were starving, we were struggling from day to day and all of a sudden i was plucked from a peasant country life and says you're going to dance because you've got a good body and physical talent. >> and at first you actually hated ballet and then you met this teacher whose name was mr. shiou. he inspired you to not only love ballet, but to make you want to be one of the best that china had ever created. what did he say to you? what did he do? >> well, he was passionate about ballet and he empowered his passion for dance on to me. and if he challenged us to become the best we could possibly become in what we did.

so on a daily basis, he motivated us, challenged us, nurtured us and that was the turning point of my life. >> and then another turning point, another miracle. a man named ben stevenson from houston, he was the artistic director, he comes to china and he decides to take you back on a scholarship to learn. and you fell in love, not just with america. >> that's the best part, i fell in love with american culture, american people, and also i fell in love with this beautiful girl who it was my first love and it was amazing to have the freedom to love somebody, to follow your heart strings. >> and you realized when they wanted to send you back to china, that you couldn't go and so you -- it gets very dramatic in the movie, what happened to your life, how difficult it was for you to stay in america, not being able to see your parents, to see your life all of this from the age of 11, this

critical time in your life. on screen as we're now watching. how has that been for you? >> it was a struggle. there's no doubt about that. it was a hard struggle, but it's filled with passion and following my dreams and trying hardest to make my dreams come true and even though once i nearly lost my life at the chinese consulate when i was held against my will there. >> and nevertheless, you did persevere, the actor there, i think he does a fantastic job, his name is chi chow. >> he's actually the son of two of my former teachers from the beijing dance academy. >> how ironic. >> so bruce said do you have somebody to play you and he was the person, i said yes, i think he can dance like me, he also looks a bit like me too. >> well the movie is so inspiring, it is one of the best movies i have ever seen in my

life. it makes you laugh and it makes you cry. the detroit news apparently agrees with me because it has written, grace, passion win out in "mao's last dancer." >> i'm so pleased the american people embrace this film. we have such a wonderful success at the american box office and the people resonated with my story, which i couldn't be happier. >> well, good, i hope that you continue to enjoy that great success. i know you're a motivational speaker now and as people see this movie, they'll see where you got it all. thank you so much for being with us this morning. and the film is called "mao's last dancer." some healthy d

good morning on "today's" kitchen, always a challenge trying to get kids to eat something healthy, but of course, kids love sweets, so hot chef kathy mccord, author of the website nutritious recipes for kids. >> your typical rice crispy treats. >> these are brown rice crispy treats. we have got some brown sugar. you heat this for two minutes and then you're going to pour it. >> so it gets rid of the marsh mellows, we're trying to get protein and carbohydrate, healthy treats for kids from day one. instead of getting weighed down by the marsh mellows, they're going to get energized. >> sun flower butter, a lot of

schools are nut free. so sun flower is a great alternative. >> if you'll act as the part of my son "today.. today. >> so easy a 4-year-old could do it. >> once it's totally combined into a lightly crease -- greased pan. >> you pat it down, this way you don't get peanut butter all over your couch. >> and then you let it cool and you cut it into these squares. >> you can do squares or balls, because kids like texture. >> those are great. >> home made graham crackers. >> for the mom that's scared of cooking, this is graham cracker home made dough, you make it in a food processor, get everything dumped in. >> and then you slam them on there. how long do you bake those for? >> you can bake them for about 15 to 20 minutes.

i like to cook them on a pad so the bottom doesn't brown. >> these are brownies? >> i like to make them with agave and honey. by the way, eat the dough because there's no eggs. you've got all kinds of healthy sweet streets, the kids will enjoy, hopefully mom and dad will enjoy. >> coming up. tax on everything you buy?

that's in andy harris' unfair tax plan. 23% sales tax. a 23% sales tax will cut my business in half. would be devastating. andy harris' 23% sales tax absolutely makes no sense. 23% sales tax would really make things unaffordable.

that's too high for the average american out here. i don't know how we would manage it really. don't like that idea. we can't afford andy harris' idea. i'm frank kratovil and i approve this message. >> the sun burning off some of the fog and it will also start to burn us up, unusually hot

with highs in the low to mid 90's. the record is 95. humidity, it is up in little bit today. warm today. not quite as warm over the not quite as warm over the weekend and by sund bob ehrlich pretends to be for the working guy... but he's not on our side. i thought i knew bob ehrlich, but then i found out... he raised property taxes on every maryland family... and business. he increased college tuition... by 40%. 40%. and i thought i knew bob ehrlich. he was against raising the minimum wage. made $2.5 million... working for a lobbying firm. $2.5 million? he's not really on my side. with this tough economy, we really need a governor on our side.