black on this friday morning, the 23rd day of march, 2012. another summerlike day here in manhattan, and we have got a happy friday morning crowd hanging out here just starting the weekend off early. meantime, i'm ann curry, out here on the plaza. willie geist is in for matt. great to have you here. >> great to be here. >> we've got savannah guthrie and we're all here to tell you good morning and also tell you that coming up after six weeks of speculation we've got some very serious news to get to. which is, reports have come back to tell us how whitney houston has died. >> that's right. we've heard now from the medical examiner. the coroner released an official cause of death on thursday, an accidental drowning. he did say heart disease was a

contributing factor and that cocaine and other drugs were found in houston's system. we'll have more on that and hear from her family just ahead this morning. >> all right. and also ahead, if you are in the market for a new home, we will show you what you can get for less than $300,000. barbara corcoran is here. she's got homes in texas, minnesota, down south. some really good deals. >> and we've all seen the long lines, the teenage girls screaming and swooning, willie included, for "the hunger games." we're going to show you how to trace the steps of its stars on the set. or how about going and visiting the lush hawaiian views from the descendents or walk the banks of the seine like they did in midnight in paris. how we can live the hollywood lush life. >> wow, that sounds like fun. >> or walk the seine like midnight in paris, that would be cool. >> i know. we can talk about it. i love the guy who played in that movie. also back inside and find out what's in the news from natalie

morales. >> good morning to you guys once again. good morning, everyone. we do begin with the official cause of whitney houston's death. nbc's craig melvin has the latest on that coroner's report. craig, good morning to you. >> natalie, good morning to you, as well. this is the beverly hilton where whitney houston was found drowned in her bathtub back on february 11th. yesterday the coroner told houston's family how she died. he also released this preliminary one-page report. this report confirms what so many feared and so many suspected. drugs helped kill the superstar. toxicology reports show whitney houston used cocaine before she collapsed and drowned in her hotel bathtub. >> it appears that the cocaine had been used in the time period just probably immediately prior to her collapse in the bathtub at the hotel. we know that when she slipped under the water she was stale live. >> reporter: although the

official cause of houston's death is accidental drowning, a spokesman for l.a. county's coroner says cocaine combined with a heart condition played a key role. >> chances are had she not had the pre-existing heart disease and cocaine use, she may not have drowned. >> reporter: other drugs were found in houston's body including marijuana, xanax, benadryl, and a muscle relaxer. but these are not believed to have played a role in her death. the coroner's office did not say how much cocaine was found in the 48-year-old's body, but said there was evidence of quote, chronic usage. >> you don't have to take a certain amount or a minimum amount of cocaine to actually die from an arrhythmia, cardiac irregularity. >> reporter: the doctor is the chief of autopsy at ucla medical center. >> i think what's unusual and what complicated this case was that whitney houston happened to die in a bathtub. but she might have died, you know, even if she weren't in a bathtub. >> reporter: houston's soaring mezzo-soprano propelled her from church choir to international

superstar. but her admitted drug use had long been cause for concern. her family released a short statement saying we are saddened to learn of the toxicology results, although we are glad to now have closure. in 2010, during her comeback tour houston struggled to hit those notes that she used to nail with ease. ♪ houston's daughter bobbi kristina talked about her mother's legacy in a recent interview with oprah winfrey. >> everything that people are saying about her, you know, all that, all that negativity, it -- that's not my mother. that's not who she is. >> reporter: now investigators did not find any traces of illegal drugs at the crime scene back in february. there was a report swirling yesterday that someone had removed drugs, illegal drugs, from the hotel room, and that

that same person was supplying whitney houston with the cocaine. i asked a spokesperson for the beverly hills police department about that report. all he would tell me was that he could neither confirm nor deny the report but said that the investigation was still open. natalie? >> all right, craig melvin in beverly hills. thank you, craig. florida's governor is appointing a new task force to investigate the shooting death of unarmed teen trayvon martin. nationwide outrage at martin's death has prompted thousands to rally, calling for the arrest of neighborhood watch captain george zimmerman, who says he shot martin in self-defense. meantime, the local police chief is standing by his agency's decision not to arrest zimmerman. but says he is temporarily stepping down a move martin's parents say is not enough. army staff sergeant robert bales will be charged with 17 counts of murder for allegedly going on a shooting rampage in two afghan villages earlier this month. this according to a u.s. official. this as another assault case surfaces from bales' past. a washington state police report from 2008 describes the quote

extremely intoxicated bales forcing a woman to grope him then punching and kicking the woman's boyfriend. charges were not filed at that time. bank of america is testing a new program that gives homeowners facing foreclosure a new option. the mortgage-to-lease program would allow customers to stay in their homes by becoming renters, transferring their home's title to the bank. the program will only be available to about 1,000 customers while in its early testing phase. a florida man will plead guilty to hacking into the e-mail accounts of scarlett johansson, mila kunis, christina aguilera and other celebrities. christopher cheney could face up to 60 years in prison. he gained access to private information and naked photos some of which were leaked to the internet. the heir to the british throne is a good sport, but he is no king of the court. prince charles visited a youth center on thursday during his first official visit to sweden. after watching skate borders do their tricks, charles hit the

basketball court. he did make at least one foul shot, but let's just say the prince is probably better at polo. it is now seven minutes past the hour. you're up to date right now. let's go back out to al with a check of the weather. >> thank you so much, natalie. we've got a lot of wet weather down south. a risk of strong storms, large hail, damaging wind gusts in the ohio and tennessee river valley. looking at tornadoes, as well. into the central gulf. you can see we've got a deep low back over oklahoma. that is spinning around, and bringing all that moisture up out of the gulf, where we're talking aboutanywhere from 3 to 4 inches of rain. we've got talk of flooding right now in parts of southeastern mississippi, and on into louisiana. also, one to three inches of rain making its way all the way up into indiana over the next 24 hours. >> not as much fog as yesterday.

we have an advisory until 10:00 a.m. for these shaded areas and that's your latest weather. savannah? this morning on "today's real estate," what you can get for under $300,000. today's real estate contributor barbara corcoran is here with some great homes on the market from new york to texas. barbara, good morning. >> good morning. >> we're going to start down south near new orleans. >> we sure are. this is a custom one level nome a gated golf community. nice enough that even if you don't play golf you're going to one to live here. neat as a pin facade out front, desperately in need of a tree, i think. but it also has a leaded glass entrance door. the open floor plan makes the

whole interior light and airy. the living room has gleaming wood floors. i don't know how the heck they make them shine like that and high ceilings. the kitchen is painted tiffany blue with corian counters, breakfast bar and an open breakfast area. the formal dining room has a trayed ceiling, chair rail and wide base boards. the charming office is probably my favorite room in the house, clever use of a little window nook. you could write the next great novel there. and there's a private backyard with a brick patio planted for really easy maintenance. >> that looks very beautiful. next how is in bainbridge, new york. 1.2 acres of land. >> you're not going to believe it's only $249,000. it looks like a million dollar house. it was built in 1927. has only two owners, which simply means that there's less wear and tear on this pretty house. the parlor has built-in, hand crafted oak shelves and cupboards and a brick fireplace. who gets a parlor anymore? it's been substituted with a

little foyer today. the huge eat-in kitchen has a window sink overlooking the big backyard. the formal dining room has a double set of french doors and long windows. the oak paneled office has a sturdy desk with built-ins and book shelves surrounded everything. and the house sits on beautifully kept ground with a simple brick patio out break. only $250. unbelievable. >> very picturesque. next one is in st. paul, minnesota. twin cities. >> what's wrong with twin cities? it's often called the arts and culture capital because of the midwest because of the festivals, museums and performances that are everywhere in this town. this is a town home that has a big bay window out front and dormer windows gracing that roof up top. the living room is full of light from the bay windows and has blonde wood floors, dove gray walls. seems just right for the space. the all-white kitchen looks spic and span with its great counters and glass front cabinets. the open dining room has big, sunny windows. the family room has a gas

fireplace, wet bar and lots of natural light. looks like a great room for dancing. the master bedroom is huge enough to roller skate yourself right into that bed and has a big picture window overlooking the backyard. >> looks great. calvert, texas, this next house has a little bit of history. >> it has a lot of good history. calvert is like a sleepy old town. most of the homes are old. it's only 30 minutes from texas famous a&m university. very popular area to live. the home has a big, welcoming porch and jinter bread trim. it's a flawless split wood staircase in the front entry which gives the whole house a lot of character. there's a long galley kitchen with cherry wood custom cabinets and a ten foot long granite island. the formal dining room has glossy wood floors, fancy millwork and leads to one of two first floor parlors that come with the home. the master bedroom has high ceilings and an elegant wood-burning fireplace and this frite covered porch is made for sipping lemonade on a hot, texas

afternoon. what's wrong with that one? >> that looks idyllic. our last one is in lexington, south carolina. you say they've got a special deal in addition to a low price. >> these are very clever owners and people should be more like them. they're offering a $10,000 cash incentive to buy this house. kind of like a take my house and take my money. you could use it for your down payment or closing costs or i'd just pop it in my pocket. this home has an open floor plan. a cathedral seeing and hardwood floors. the kitchen has a granite top breakfast bar and counters. you just get a peek of the dining room, hardwood floors, extra wide crown moldings and a single column on the left side sets the room apart. the back of the house has a pergola and stone pavers. there's a stone firepit and seating area and the house comes with access to the nearby lake murray for the whole family. >> all those homes under $300,000. >> what a deal! why aren't people snapping these up? >> i don't know.

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actors. a star unto herself is here with some great destinations that serve as backdrops for popular films. >> good to see you. >> it's funny. this never even dawned on me that you go and visit these places where they film these movies. >> it's a great way to see a destination that you're almost kind of familiar with. >> so "the hunger games." big, big movie. >> opening today. people are i'm sure standing in line somewhere right now. >> oh, yes. >> so the area around asheville, north carolina is home to where the film was done, and so, they've done a really interesting thing. they've put together 12 places to experience "the hunger games." so you can go around and go to the du pont state forest where some of the arena scenes are done. and the trail where some of the bloodiest action takes place. >> oh, good. yeah. >> of course they're not there anymore so you're safe. >> that's pretty cool. >> the cool part is that you can stay at the hotel indigo which under $200 a night. that's where the cast stayed. you really will be tracing their

foot steps. they do a lot of stuff with activities in the area like ziplining and water rafting. >> let's go to hawaii. everybody loved seeing george clooney in "the descendants" running down that hill. >> there's a lot of running in that movie. a lot of anxiety. i think hawaii was just as much of a main scene stealer as george clooney. they're both good to look at. so it's a win-win. >> down girl. >> they shot that movie for eleven weeks in kauai and oahu. the cast stayed at the saint regis, a beautiful resort. another running scene where he's running on the beach was at that hotel. a great, affordable place is the waimea plantation house, under $200. >> we like that. >> it's a great look, a way for you to go wandering around. it's a former plantation house, and they've transformed into a

place to stay. >> good family place? >> great family place. under $200. great value place. >> oscars. another great movie. viola davis and octavia spencer. >> they're both fantastic and they both were in greensboro -- i'm sorry in greenwood, mississippi, which is where the film was shot. 160 cast and crew members descended on this town and took over basically running the joint for awhile. and they were -- they stayed, a lot of them stayed for $195 a night at the regis. and what i love about this town is it has the feel you would expect. >> are they kind of pointing out where they shot the movie? >> just about $40 more than the $195 a night they will give you a dvd, a poster, a self-guided tour and will leave a snack turndown. i love any kind of snack. >> okay.

a little more exotic, twilight, but it was supposedly in the pacific northwest. you're not taking us to the pacific northwest. >> this is the dramatic honeymoon, breaki ining dawn pa one they went to paraty in brazil. it's a beautiful, incredibly preserved colonial destination. and this is the house you can actually stay in for a lot of money. but we chose something a little bit more affordable but also very charming. for $191 a night an 18th century colonial house that has a spa, a courtyard. it's beautiful fruit for breakfast. and no vampires. >> woody allen. >> oh, dreamy. woody allen is known for doing movies like manhattan where he celebrates a place like manhattan. same thing for midnight in paris. this is like a love letter to

paris. >> where do you get to stay? >> you'll be well located and welcome to do everything you want to do. $245 a night. >> okay. coming up, what you should do to get a better night's rest. before heading thome a party we've got some smart snacking ideas. ooh everybody loves to snack. a? pretty sure... sfx: truth phone rings hello? pretty sure? consider this yor wake-up call. everybody has a price guarantee. but only sears guarantees the best price on all top 10 brands, because only sears carries them all. with experts who know them all. it's called the top 10 advantage. boom! what was that? me dropping some knowledge on you. thinking about buying appliances somewhere else? think again. sears.

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>> area will burn off shooter. -- for not sooner. this storm system comes in over the weekend. today, we stay rain-free. one

♪ i bet you want me back now >> don't you don't you ♪ >> the savannah guthrie theme song. kelly pickler was on "american idol" six years ago and she got a recording contract right away and she is just putting out hit records, and more importantly, co-ho co-hosting with hoda kotb on the fourth hour of today as they wrap up country week. >> it's been fun. meanwhile in this half hour the best states for women. ivillage conducted some interesting research about the quality of life for women across the united states for affordable health care and quality health care and job opportunities.

which states ranked the highest? we've got the top five. >> and also ahead what you should eat before some of your everyday activities, like before a workout or before a job interview. or even before a snack. well we've got some snacking ideas. >> oh, hey now! >> joy is going to tell us -- well we're going to find out in just a few minutes. >> but first -- >> lester hold and amy robach are going to be here with a very quick preview. >> yes. >> well let me tell you we got a busy weekend. the trayvon martin investigation. it's been nearly a month since the unarmed teen was shot and killed in florida. since then there have been rallies from coast to coast. the police chief has temporarily stepped down. ear going to have an update in the case. then lionel richie's greatest hits with a new twist. he goes a little bit country for his latest album. he rerecords some of his best known songs as duets. i talked with him about this new project. >> and then we'll look at "mad

men." the highly anticipated drama set in the 1960s is back this weekend after a 17-month break. you're going to hear from the stars and the show's creator about what fans can expect. and the office fridge can range from overcrowded to completely gross. we're going to have tips on keeping your workplace refrigerator clean and lay out the rules for fridge etiquette. that and more when we see you this weekend here on "today." i guess people steal other people's things. you have to put your name on it. >> stays in there for quite awhile. >> lester and amy say wow, we've got a quick check of the weekend forecast for us. >> thought that was apple juice. >> oh! >> what? what? >> oh. >> anyway -- >> for the weekend -- slight risk of strong storms in the southeastern atlantic coast. rain in the pacific northwest. record highs in the plains. plenty of sunshine in new england and sunday, sunday, more rain alone the northeastern and mid-atlantic coast. heavy rain moves into southern california all the way into the

pacific northwest coast. we're looking at plenty of sunshine, mild conditions from the plains all the way down through texas. >> good morning. we have a dense fog advisory council 10:00 a.m. this morning. the fog is not as widespread as >> and that's your latest weather. >> all right, al, thanks. up next from finances to family the top states for women. -hold up. -why are we stopping? just need to refill my walgreens prescription. [ speaking native language ] i don't know what he's saying right now. he says you're gonna get frostbite in under 30 seconds. won't take me that long.

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the aches and pains and fatigue. depression hurts. cymbalta can help with many symptoms of depression. tell your doctor right away if your depression worsens, 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. and the cravings begin... again. for nights like these there's special k chocolatey delight cereal. an unguilty pleasure. what will you gain when you lose? "today's woman" is brought to you by neutrogena naturals, pure, natural skin care. real results. >> this morning on "today's woman," the best states for women. from health care to child care, education and economics,ated to ares at ivillage.com examined

every state to come up with a list of the top female friendly states. and kelly wallace is chief correspondent at ivillage and she's here to reveal the list. >> good morning. >> what criteria were you using? >> we looked at a range of factors. the most important issues for women, health care, the economy, how many women have health insurance, what's their median income, what's the poverty rate. we also look at what laws were on the books supporting parenting, parental leave, breast feeding. costs of child care, politics. representation at the state level. in the governor's mansion. in the congress. we looked at what laws were on the book supporting access to abortion and contraception coverage and also education. how many women in the state have a college degree. >> took you all a couple of months. very busy over there. let's get right to it. the top five and they are first off, the first state is connecticut. >> right. drum roll. >> number one. and why did you find it to be the highest ranking? >> our rankings here it ranked in the top five in more categories than any other state.

90% of women in connecticut had health insurance. more than a third have college degrees. that's above the national average. >> great. >> it also has one of the highest median incomes in the country, of $46,000. for all those reasons, all those top rankings, it earned the number one spot. >> where could it do better? >> it has some more to do, connecticut. when it comes to representation because it has a seven-member congressional delegation. only one woman, so it has some work to do there. >> also child care. expensive. >> yes, it's expensive. >> second highest honors went to hawaii. and i understand nearly a third of all businesses there are owned by women. >> exactly. just saw a report yesterday, in fact, that women-owned businesses in hawaii grew 55% over the past 15 years. women are in owning businesses from construction to tourism, to employment. and they're probably now getting some help from their lawmakers. the state's two congressional members are women and more than a third of the legislature is

made up of women. so more women in office, more women supporting businesses. >> one of the areas of improvement is the cost of child care there. >> exactly. what we found across the board, we found states with some of the highest median incomes and highest college graduation rates had some of the highest costs of child care. low median income, low graduation, had low child care costs. we want child care costs to be low. but it does seem to be that the costs are a factor of how much people are willing and able to pay. >> third on the list is maryland. why is maryland attractive for women? >> a lot of things going for it. 36% of women in this state are college graduates. it has the highest median income for women, more than $47,000. one of the lowest poverty rates. also ranks number one in the category of women's owned businesses. one-third of the businesses in maryland are owned by women. >> next up, is massachusetts. and here, 96% of women have health care. and health care being the reason because governor romney.

>> exactly, it's a law, it's a retirement. you're required to have health insurance. it's ironic former governor romney doesn't want to talk about it but it's because of this that puts women in the state in a really good spot. nearly 85% of women in the state are getting their regular mammograms and pap smears. it's the highest screening rate in the country. obviously makes them healthier. also has one of the highest median incomes in the country. more than $46,000. >> child care i understand is also one of the most expensive in the nation. >> one of the most expensive. again, that does come to a factor that we sort of need to do, don't we all agree, moms with kids. >> that's right. >> and in new york we need to do more to bring those costs down. fifth on the list is california, and what laws have been created there to support women? >> gets sort of an a-plus from abortion rights groups when it comes to laws providing access to family planning services. victims of sexual saturday it's a requirement that they get emergency contraception when they go to the emergency room.

also right to choose is part of the state constitution. interesting thing we found, states where they had great representation in office, california, two senators are women, and sent more women to congress than any other state and had some of the best laws on the books when it comes to reproductive rights. >> put more women in congress. kelly wallace, thanks so much. and still to come this morning if you're looking for a food that will put you in the mood we're going to tell you what to eat before hiking into the bedroom. go joy bauer. i'm good about washing my face.

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progressive saved me so much money on car insurance, this baggage fee is on me. did you check that bag? houston? well, welcome to savingsville. did you pay $25 for that bag fee? -yeah. -you did? with all the money i saved on progressive car insurance, i'll take care of that bag fee. you're so kind! thank you! you guys just landed in savingsville. [laughs] yes, we did! you made my day. do you want to pay our college tuition, too? back now with the school shooting in washington state last month that sent a third grader to the hospital in critical condition. >> amina corner bowman was hit by a single shot when a

classmate brought a gun to school. >> nbc's miguel al figure spent time with amina and her parents in seattle. >> what do you really want for your birthday, honey? >> reporter: amina kosher bowman turned 9 years old monday and though she remains hospitalized there's reason to celebrate. just last month the third grader was sitting inside a bremerton, elementary classroom when she was critically shot. >> it's heart wrenching. >> reporter: her parents, terry and john bowman were told their baby, their little girl, was close to death. >> when we saw her, i was like she's going to get through this. i know she is. and then i told her, i was like you're not going to quit. you're a bowman. we never, ever quit. >> reporter: amina's classmate, a 9-year-old boy brought the loaded .45 caliber handgun from his mother's home to school. when the gun accidentally discharged in his back pack amina was hit by a single shot. the campus went into lockdown as amaina was life flighted to harbor view medical center. how close was this to being a

fatal gunshot? >> extremely close. >> reporter: the bullet shattered her elbow, went into her abdomen, penetrated her liver, pancreas and entest ien. >> it's a very high risk of injury. >> reporter: today the shell casing is still lodged near her spine. >> she's looking at several months of problems with this intestine. eventually she should get back to a relatively normal life. >> reporter: she pulled through six surgeries in less than a week. the 9-year-old knows she was shot, but like her parents, doesn't understand how this could have happened. so how you feeling, sweetie? >> i was shot. >> reporter: the third grader who brought the gun to class pled guilty to three criminal charges and agreed to testify against his mother and her boyfriend. both felons, they pled not guilty to assault charges. the boy's lawyer says he's no village. prosecutors argue the adults must be held accountable for allowing easy access to the gun. >> we still want to see -- >> reporter: the day amina was shot she was wearing her father's dog tags. the navy veteran who was

deployed to iraq, has cried himself to sleep some nights. >> i've seen some stuff out there, you know. and this, i mean, that never prepared me for seeing my daughter laying there, you know, just so helpless. it hurt. >> reporter: though she's still weak and still suffering today, doctors hope amina will soon be back on her feet. and back on the basketball court she loves. like her father, amina hopes to join the military. and like her mother, she's proven she'll never give up. >> and she's still here. and we're so happy that she's still here. >> reporter: for "today," miguel almaguer, nbc news, seattle. >> such a tragedy on so many levels. thank goodness she's doing better. her family has set up the amina bowman trust fund with the bank of america. all donations will go forward the medical expenses and recovery costs. if you want to find out more

logon to our website at today.com. we're back in a moment. first, this is "today" on nbc.

this morning on eat smart today, smart snacking. planning what you eat before you head to the gym or jump into the car for a long ride could save you a lot of time, a lot of calories, too. nutritional joy bauer is here. >> hi, savannah. >> i guess with a little planning you can save yourself some calories. >> but also catapult yourself to the top of your game and increase performance depending on what activities you're going for. >> our first activity is exercising. so should you eat before you exercise? >> joy, i think this is going to surprise a lot of people. really the truth is, if you're moderately exercising, that's about an hour or less, your body doesn't need to fuel up beforehand. >> it's my favorite excuse. better eat that pizza. >> especially if you're exercising in order to lose

weight. very counterproductive. but if you like to have something small before and you feel energized i would say go for a banana. it's totable. you can pop it in your bag in the morning. it's light. about 100 calories and loaded in potassium. potassium is something we tend to become depleted in but we sweat a lot from physical exertion. also think about a coffee or a tea. because caffeine if you have it about 30 minutes before you work out helps us to push our bodies longer and stronger during a workout. >> drink that water, too. because doesn't the caffeine dehydrate you? >> a little bit. >> for the late night snackers. >> so the best natural mild sedative is going to be tryptophan. that's an amino acid that helps to produce the brain chemical that makes us drowsy. the trick is you want to combine it with carbs. so a rice cake has carbs. and the cheese has the tryptophan. >> okay. >> so this is a perfect p.m. snack. >> that just looks delicious, joy. i've got to tell you. >> i have one of these.

this has a little bit of cinnamon on it. it's really good. >> okay. >> or you can have part skim ricotta with strawberries and this one is just reduced fat cheddar. also consider a soothing cup of chamomile tea. relaxes you. great for slumber. >> does make you a little bit sleepy, right? >> yes. >> the next activity is going to a cocktail party. i thought you're supposed to go to the cocktail party to eat and drink. >> the tip here is to eat before you eat so that you sort of squelch hunger pains, take the edge off and you don't show up at the party and gobble down all of the delicious appetizers. so i'm showing hummus with a whole tray of vegetables. because the combination of fiber and water starts to expand in your stomach and it's going to give you more resolve to say, maybe not. not so many when you get to the party. >> a little snack before you go. >> right. >> our next one we're talking about what you should do before a long car ride. to stay awake i guess. >> right. so you're going to go for that high octane fuel. i'm showing a skim latte, because again it's about the

caffeine. you want to wake up. if you don't want coffee you could also go for tea and the longer you steep your tea bag the more caffeine is going to end up in your cup. a couple of handfuls of nuts or roasted edamame because it helps to stabilize your blood sugar which is going to keep you alert and up for that long drive. >> you've got almonds. are all nuts created equal? >> all nuts are great. but those unsalted almonds are unbelievable. try one. >> really? >> mm-hmm. >> let me see. mm-hmm. >> i keep them in the freezer. >> i could just drive forever. >> really delicious. >> all right, joy, let's get to it. what you should have before sex. the joy of sex, with joy bauer. >> to get new the mood i am choosing soft chocolate covered strawberries first because they are luxurious and decadent and romantic. but they also have libido boosting compounds called flavonoids which help -- >> ooh, flavonoids. >> flavonoids. okay. and they help you --

>> and drink heavily. >> and it's going to increase blood flow to all parts of the body. of course a glass of champagne always helps. >> let's change the subject. what to eat before a job interview. nice transition. >> when you're looking to enhance your concentration you want to stick to protein. protein helps you sort of activate and wake up all of your brain cells. so i'm showing first a protein smoothie. i'm using nonfat free yogurt because it has more protein than traditional yogurt. i mixed it with berries and skim milk. and protein packed scrambled eggs and i threw in some smoked salmon because salmon has more protein but also the omega-3 fats. >> they're supposed to make you short. >> they don't help instantaneously but they help with long-term brain power. so if you score the job you'll be ready for your first day on the job. >> love it. i'm going to bring in some strawberries -- >> that's one way to get the

job. >> coming up, kelly pickler sit something in for kathie lee. >> and adorable easter fashion show for two. >> have a great weekend.