>> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with matt lauer, and savannah guthrie. live from studio 1-a in rockefeller plaza. and good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> good morning. i'm savannah guthrie along side al roker and natalie morales. that's a good party trick for bono. not that he needs one since he's a rock star. >> former president clinton commented it must be easy to make fun of me. it's a good one. no question about it. >> spot on. >> meanwhile, look at what's happening on capitol hill. senator ted cruz still going at this hour. this is an effort to defeat funding for obamacare. technically this is not a filibuster. i think it's a talk-a-thon. >> it's been going on for a long time. i noticed at least one change of outfits and maybe a shower in there as well.

>> very fresh and clean this morning. >> exactly right. >> let's get to the top story. kelly o'donnell is in washington. she has the latest on this. kelly, good morning. >> good morning, savannah. it's been going and going and going all afternoon through the night and here again this morning. it is a talk-a-thon the official term of washington today as senator ted cruz has railed against the law known as obamacare trying to persuade some of his republican colleagues and many of them were not happy with this tactic. >> reporter: a late night endurance test. >> this is life and death. >> reporter: ted cruz began railing against the healthcare law at 2:41 p.m. eastern calling out fellow republican senators that say they don't have the votes to block it. >> if you vote to give that power to harry reid to fund obamacare then you are responsible for it being funded. >> reporter: earlier it was bedtime reading dr. seuss to his doctors who were watching on

c-span. >> i do so like green eggs and ham. thank you, thank you sam i am. >> reporter: as the night moved on cruz moved off topic even referring to the wisdom of duck dynasty. >> so i want to point out a few words of wisdom from duck dynasty. >> when you turn on the "today" show he'll be right there doing this same thing. >> reporter: a scene predicted by brian williams on nightly news. new york brought together hilary clinton and two presidents. >> they each married far above themselves. >> reporter: together to pitch the healthcare law's benefits and encourage enrollment which starts next week. >> i think it's important for you to tell the people why we're doing all of this outreach because this only works, for example, if young people show up. >> reporter: and president obama

acknowledged it's been tough. >> well, let's face it. it's been a little political. this whole obamacare thing. >> reporter: back in the senate, gop leaders and senator rand paul privately urged cruz not to stage his marathon. >> and my question to the senator from texas is does he want to shut down the government? >> reporter: ted cruz has been talking all night. got a little help from friends like marco rubio, mike lee and rand paul but he had no bathroom break and nothing to eat and will keep going as long as he can stand. not technically a filibuster because this won't stop today's vote. that is still expected to go on but he has made his point and outside conservatives and conservative groups have been cheering him on. savannah, matt. >> thank you very much. chuck todd is nbc's political director and chief white house correspondence. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> obviously a lot of people are talking about ted cruz this

morning. he's getting the attention he wanted. a lot of people tuning in right now wondering how long he can keep his eyes open or stay on his feet. is there anything real behind this political theater? >> so far, no. nothing but the world's longest ted-talk. but the issue is a real filibuster you are trying to disrupt the business of the senate or delay the business and what cruz decided to do was he was trying to walk this line of on one hand keep talk -- prove to house conservatives that there was some action behind his words. there's a lot of -- there's a lot of skepticism about cruz, even among some of his fellow conservatives that think ted cruz is only out for one thing, ted cruz and the advancement of ted cruz and the presidential campaign in 2016 of ted cruz. so he wanted to show, no, he was willing to do something but it's risk free. he's not disrupting a vote or

delaying a vote so you look at this and you just wonder, all it is is maybe the longest speech ever before the iowa caucuses. >> where is this going? at what point are the sides going to get to the point? with a government shut down a real possibility, what point is it going to happen? one side is going to have to blink. >> in this case, we're not going to have this clash, matt. there actually is some conversations going on behind the scenes. you have a bunch of senate republicans that are working and talking with chuck and harry reid, the two democratic senate leaders. they're not going to shut down short-term. there's not going to be a show down or anything like that. now debt ceiling or something at the end of the year, that's a whole other story. >> chuck todd in washington, thank you very much. meantime, the death toll is rising after the massive earthquake in pakistan. good morning to you. >> good morning, guys. a devastating toll from the major earthquake in pakistan.

more than 200 people were killed when the 7.7 quake flattened villages and injured hundreds and left thousands homeless. that quake was felt 700 miles away. california has a new law cracking down on paparazzi that try to photograph children of celebrities. the bill was signed into law tuesday. berry told lawmakers her daughter has been intimidated by photographers. paparazzi that take pictures of children without their parent's permission face a misdemeanor charge with up to a year of jail time and fine of $10,000. now to wall street and what is moving the markets. courtney reagan joins us again this morning. a lot driving the markets. >> that's right. investments are hyper focused on the economic data points. it includes new home sales. the better economic data the sooner that the fed will pull back on it's bond buying stimulus measures and when that happens, investors want to be

ready. separately, samsung's galaxy gear smart watch is available for the first time today ichlts a smartphone for your wrist. you can make calls, surf the web, take photos but it doesn't come cheap. the retail price is $299. thank you. a new crew heads to the international space station with a twist. they will receive the olympic torch and light it and send it back to earth so it can be used in the final relay of the winter olympics in sochi. oracle team usa hopes to complete the biggest come back ever in the history of the america's cup. they kept winning and came back from an 8-1 deficit to tie new zealand. today's race is winner take all. coverage is at 4:00 p.m. eastern time on the nbc sports network. this is a way not to finish

a race. the brakes on his porch suddenly locks up. he hits the barrier. goes airborne, flips, lands upside down in a watery ditch. the driver was able to walk away without any serious injuries. that is unbelievable. nice car, though, until that happened. >> yeah. >> thank you. mr. roker, what's happening weather-wise? >> well, we still have rain in florida and we're still looking at showers and wet weather and mountain snows to talk about up into the pacific northwest. we are going to be talking about winter coming. we've got winter storm watches, winter weather advisories anywhere from 6 to 12 inch of snow in some spots. some areas picking up more in the upper elevations and then as we get down into florida, that stationary front continues to cause big problems and then the other thing we're looking at, low pressure develops along this front. what that's going to mean is more rain but it's also got this low that's going to be tracking

up the coast and we may see some coastal problems over the weekend. we'll keep an eye on that. we do have flood watches and flash flood watches in effect for central florida. rainfall amounts anywhere from about 1 to 3 inches. ♪ [ male announcer ] reveal light bulbs from ge. ♪ [ dog barks ] ♪ unlike ordinary incandescent bulbs, they filter out the dingy yellow tones... ♪ ...bringing the true beauty of your home to life. ♪ reveal light bulbs from ge. forecast, but first the next 30 seconds and this message. good morning. i'm storm team 4 meteorologist tom kierein. right now high clouds over the

metro area. temperatures chilly and down into the 40s. patchy fog along the blue ridge and shenandoah valley. watch out for that. later today some clouds in and out. highs reaching mid to upper 70s by mid-afternoon. another gorgeous day tomorrow, and as we get towards the weekend sunshine on friday. highs upper 70 and that's your latest weather, savannah. >> al, thank you so much. now to the situation in kenya where authorities began the gruesome task of recovering the bodies left behind after a four-day standoff at a shopping mall came to an end on tuesday. ron allen has the latest in nairobi. good morning. >> good morning to you, savannah. we now know that three four of the mall collapsed. it's unclear how many bodies are buried under the rubble. we're hearing occasional gunfire but we're told that is kenyan soldiers firing into the air before they enter blind areas of the mall as they begin piecing together how all of this could have happened.

>> reporter: kenyan troops mopping up at the still smolderring westgate mall. this is some of the first horrifyi horrifying moments after it began. here a family including a child plays dead until help arrives. a bloody operation reportedly planned for months. sources say the militants stashed weapons inside the mall in advance. during the attack, more than a dozen heavily armed militants stormed the building using at least two entrances, opening fire and barricading themselves in a super market. >> as a nation, our hand is bloodied but unbound. >> reporter: five mill tanlts from al shabaab were killed and 11 others were in custody. he said nothing about the fate of the hostages. it's unclear how many escaped or died. as the nation begins four days of official mourning, burying

the dead, caring for the wounded, searching for the missing. forensic experts from the u.s., u.k. and israel are insisting in the investigation. it's still unclear whether any americans were involved in carrying out this attack. >> ron allen, thank you. meanwhile, some of the americans that were in the mall have started to return home after the terrifying ordeal. tom costello caught up with one of them who is now back home in washington. tom, good morning to you. >> good morning. she is a 30-year-old harvard educated lawyer working for the world bank who went to the mall on saturday and is grateful to be home and alive. >> you're safe, baby. you're safe. >> reporter: overwhelmed we motion, back in her parent's arms. >> i love you too baby. >> reporter: for her mother, the last few days of waiting have been one never ending nightmare. >> i could have lost you. >> reporter: working for the world bank, she had only been in

kenya since july. on saturday, she was meeting a business colleague at the westgate mall for lunch when teams of terrorists suddenly began attacking. >> people are screaming. lots of running. you hear gunshots or explosions. it's complete chaos. >> reporter: desperate to get away, she and her friend crawled into a home furnishing store and hid with 15 other people in a back room. they could hear the terrorists just one floor above. >> i could hear more machine guns and shooting in the background. that's when i realized this was a serious situation. >> reporter: after more than five hours she says out of nowhere a security team showed up looking for her and her colleague. she is certain they were american. >> this american security forces guy came back and said if you want to get out, we understand it's dangerous but this is probably your best shot. >> reporter: as they ran from the mall, more gunshots and

explosions. >> we were walking out of the store and all of a sudden all of this gunfire starts on the first floor and there's just bullets. we start walking about 20 feet and then, like, within like 30 feet of us two grenades are thrown. that part was the worst. we thought it was over. we're out of the woods. >> reporter: while hiding she texted her father. in an active shooter situation, please pray. back home, her mother terrified had written it all down. >> and i love you both very much. and i wrote it because if anything did end up happening to her at least i know that she was thinking about us, that she cared about us. >> are you okay?

>> no. [ crying ] >> reporter: 72 hours after being rescued in nairobi, she was home in washington. >> we want you to be safe. >> yeah. >> we want you to be safe. >> reporter: she isn't sure if she'll ever return to kenya. as for the security team that rescued her we checked with the pentagon, the state department, and the world bank, all of them say they didn't have any security teams on the ground. so it's not at all clear who rescued her and exactly how it all went down. guys, back to you. >> powerful interview. thank you very much. >> good to see that reunion. amazon's ceo is a billionaire that isn't known for doing a lot of interviews but he's been in the headlines recently. he used 1% of his personal fortune to purchase the washington post. kate snow sat down with him and caught up with him at amazon headquaters in seattle. >> good to see you. he had interesting things to say about the future of newspapers

but the reason he invited us to seattle is because it's almost holiday shopping season and today amazon has a new line of kindle fire tablets to sell. >> this is our new top of the line, $379 this is the kindle fire hdx 8.9 inch. it comes with a brand new feature we call mayday, the mayday button and it's on screen tech support. >> like mayday, mayday. >> and a tech support person will appear on your screen and can draw arrows to show you what to do. >> the man that's trying to hook us all on e-books spent 250 million of his own fortune to buy a throw back, a traditional newspaper. >> do you see a day when there is no more print version of the post. >> some day. i don't know how many years in the future. it could be decades. but i think printed newspapers on actual paper maybe a luxury item. sort of like people still have horses but it's not their

primary way of commuting to the office. >> reporter: the washington post is just a small part of his growing empire. amazon fresh is how he wants us to buy our groceries. >> people want to know if you'll do to super market what is you did to bookstores. >> we try to make the best service we can. something that we hope customers will love and then customers choose. >> reporter: between amazon and his own personal ventures he invested in everything from space travel to energy to a giant 10,000 year clock being built in a texas mountain. >> part of the reason that i do that is i think those things are important and i want to make sure that they happen. most of what i spend my time on is because i find it exciting. >> you don't have boring days, do you? >> i don't. i have four kids. >> right. >> no answer on when we can expect an amazon phone on the market. he did say they're working to get same day delivery service to more area of the country.

watch out ups and fed ex this guy has big dreams. he told nbc one of his personal goals is to travel into space and by the year 2018 he wants all of us to be able to travel in sub orbital space. >> and how soon can the amazon packages into space be far beyond that one. >> you know why he wants to travel into space? he has four kids. >> he has his own transporter. >> kate, thank you very much. >> we want to check in with carson in the orange room. he has more on the impersonation everybody is talking about. >> hit online late yesterday. bono from u 2 in town this week for the clinton global initiative. we know how talented he is as a singer but who knew he had such a spot on impression of former president bill clinton and everybody has been watching this, take a look. >> when i first met bono, he walked into the oval office and actually i thought it was a member of his own road crew.

he wasn't really dressed right. actually i felt like the rock star on that occasion. >> spot on. the president was a good sport. he is a very easy target to make fun of. coming up at 8:00 while i have you here, should you argue in front of your kids? one survey says you should. what do you think? go to today.com and let us know. tweet us your thoughts #orangeroom and we'll talk about that coming up in a bit. >> thank you so much. coming up, we have a story that's making a lot of headlines. a big change in army policy. some soldiers may not make the cut just because of their tattoos. it has some fuming. live to the pentagon for the story. >> and you know the blind spots on your car, well, the government was supposed to do something about them and they haven't. now some families are going to court after losing loved ones. jeff rossen has their story. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad. for 30 years i've worked as an obgyn, my job is to protect the health of women. so i'm particularly offended by ken cuccinelli. cuccinelli wants to make all abortion illegal ... ... even in cases of rape and incest. ... even to protect a woman's health. i want a governor who's focused on schools and creating jobs, not someone who wants to do my job. who's ken cuccinelli to interfere in the lives of women across virginia?

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7:26 is your time now. i'm eun yang. let's check the commute with danella sealock and your first 4 traffic. danella, good morning to you. >> good morning. still delays on i-270 because of an earlier crash at west montgomery avenue. it was blocking the entire left side of the roadway. now just down to the left shoulder lane. at west montgomery avenue still seeing delays, from german town 43 minutes to reach the capital beltway. crossing over the 14th street bridge, watch out. broken down car off to the right. shoulder lane, delays on 395, slow from the beltway to the 49 14th street bridge. >> thanks. tonight is your chance to see how terry mcauliffe and ken couple nelly plan to boost virginia's economy. they will face in a debate in mcclean, focusing on the economy and issues facing virginia. see it live right here on nbc 4 and on nbcwashington.com

starting at 7:00. our northern bureau virginia chief will be on the panel. a look for a cass anothino harbor. the resort official said he features an elegant building featuring glass, brick and stone. mgm is fais competing

good morning. another chilly autumn morning. temperatures in the 40s in much of the region. patchy dense fogg fog around the shenandoah valley and plus ridge, parts of virginia and west virginia. later today, partly sunny and highs upper 70s. do this again tomorrow. beautiful

brush your gums, you don't want to get gingivitis. >> get out of there. it's almost dinner time. you'll spoil your appetite. >> i'm batdad, this is "today" on nbc. >> he's got a way with words. that's one way to teach your kids a lesson. the 29-year-old father of four calls himself batdad and we're going to meet him just ahead. 7:30 on this wednesday morning. it's the 25th of september, 2013. i'm savannah guthrie along side matt lauer, al roker, and natalie morales. do you think that wuould work. >> they would listen to batdad. >> he would be matdad. >> yeah. let's take a look at what's making news today. senator ted cruz of texas took to the senate floor on tuesday afternoon. you know what, nearly a day

later, he is still there talking. this is his attempt to block funding for obamacare. >> a four-day standoff at aiken ju -- a kenyan shopping mall is over. >> and the jackson's battle with concert promoters. >> and we have jeff rossen here with an eye opening report. why isn't the government doing more to prevent the devastating accidents where kids are caught in your blind spot with tragic consequences. there was supposed to be a fix required years ago. what's taking so long? jeff will look into it. >> plus, what you think about fighting in front of your kids. head to today.com and use the #orangeroom. you might be surprised by what the expert versus s have to say it. >> you may have gone to war with your kids over tattoos but now the army is drawing the line

when it comes to body art. jim has the latest on this story. good morning. >> good morning. since world war i soilders and their tattoos have been skin tight but over the past decade military tattoos exploded and the army said often good body art can mean bad discipline so they're preparing a crack down on over the top tattoos. >> at the l.a. cats tattoo party outside fort benning, georgia he says the soldiers tattoo is more than a piece of art, it's a personal statement. >> it's a badge of honor. >> reporter: for the past 12 years as the u.s. fought two wars the army was so desperate for recruits regulations on tattoos went largely ignored until now. to regain control over the widening world of military body art, the army is preparing to strictly enforce old rules and impose several new ones. in the name of good order and discipline, tattoos that are

offensive or obscene will not be permitted that goes for any sexist or racist. soldiers can have no tattoos visible on their face or neck and for the first time none below their elbows or knees. his tattoo commemorates his father and is above the elbow. >> it really, i don't think has anything to do with where you get it. it's just what the meaning of it is. >> reporter: fellow soldiers are up in arms, tattoos and all. in a virtual town hall meeting on facebook, soldiers needled the chief of staff. one warned you're going to run a lot of good soldiers out of the army. >> a tattoo doesn't make or break a soldier. if you're a good soldier, you're a good soldier. doesn't matter the tattoo you have on your body. >> reporter: he worries it will drag down the soldiers' morale.

not to mention his business. the army is also about to crack down on female soldiers and a trend toward fashionable hairstyles, make up, and fingernails which may look stylish on a fashion runway but not a military one. as one official put it, after all, this is the army. >> jim, thank you very much. let's get a check of the weather from mr. roker. >> let's show you what we've got happening today. in the mid-section of the country, nice big warm up. high pressure bringing up the clockwise flow of air so temperatures warming up clockwise flow of air, and so temperatures warm up nicely today. minneapolis you'll be 76 degrees. six degrees above norm a. 93 in medlin, dallas 93 degrees, seven degrees above normal. nature hates a vacuum.

a trough of low pressure bringing rain, missoula and 20 degrees below normal. you can see where we've got the rain and snow where the temperatures are a lot chillier. windy in l.a., sunshine and 73 degrees. 92 in dallas. beautiful day here in the northeast of new england with temperatures in the low to mid-70s. boston, you'll see a high in the mid-60s and look for more rain down in florida. tampa today rain and 84. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. good morning. i'm storm team 4 meteorologist tom kierein. high clouds and some chilly temperatures this morning. some patchy fog as well around the shenandoah valley and the blue ridge, so watch out for that as well as out in the mountains and we'll stay in the 40s and low 50s for another hour and then quickly climb into the upper 60s by late morning. mid-to upper 70s by this afternoon and don't forget. get that weather any time you need to. go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com. thanks al, coming up next,

danger in your blind spot. hundreds of people, mostly children are killed every year in back over accidents. some people say the government is dragging it's feet protecting your children. what's the hold up? we have an eye opening rossen report. >> and an honest michael j. fox on his return to television. what he learned working on his new show. but first, these messages. [ phil ] when you have joint pain and stiffness...

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let's go against the grain. this way, that way, even up that way. let's measure this, and how-to that. let's save, and then, let's get down to it. let's make your home feel like this, and make you feel like this. let's do this. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. right now handscraped saratoga hickory, 99¢ a square foot. this morning, on rossen reports, the devastating mistake killing small children. parents getting in their cars and not seeing the kids behind them and backing up over them. there's technology that can prevent the accidents. why hasn't the government required it? today jeff rossen is here with an eye opening report on that. good morning to you. >> good morning. this is happening a lot more than you would think.

so far this year dozens of kids have already been killed. we were talking about the huge blind spot when you go into reverse. we do it. we go to work in the morning and get into our car in the drive way and check our mirrors, of course. look at this rear-view mirror right there. it looks completely clear back there. my side view mirrors, turning around, don't see anything. i would go in reverse but look at what's really back there right now. actually a bunch of children. we have five kids right there all under four years old standing behind my car but you can't see it in any of the mirrors. i go in reverse and perhaps back into them. that's why years ago congress passed a law saying this problem needed to get fixed with things like reverse back up cameras in all cars but that still hasn't happened six years later. so this morning safety groups are suing the federal government to get action now. >> reporter: it happens this

fast, 18 month old sky jordan ran out of the house one day to say one more bye to her daddy. he was already in the car. put it into reverse, checked the mirrors and didn't see her in the drive way. he backed right into her. >> i remember just screaming and crying and saying there was no way that this could be happening. >> sky was rushed to the emergency room. >> when i got to see my little girl she was -- she had cruises all over her face. >> the doctors told you she's probably not going to make it. >> yeah. >> amazingly, sky survived, though, still undergoing surgery for her eye and she is not alone. on average, 18,000 people are injured each year in backover accidents. nearly 300 are killed. >> everything we need to fix this already exists. >> reporter: janette was president of the safety group kids and cars.

>> we know if you put a rear view camera in these vehicles that you can see what's behind you. >> reporter: why don't all cars have them? back in 2007 congress passed a law requiring better rear visibility and gave the department of transportation a 2011 deadline to get it done but the d.o.t. keeps delaying and delaying now saying they need until 2015. >> these delays are outrageous and unacceptable. >> senator richard bloomenthal says it's bureaucracy. >> what's to stop them from delaying this again and again? >> the president of the united states saying to his department of transportation you must act now and if there's no action now heads will roll. >> reporter: in a statement to nbc news the department of transportation says more research is needed to ensure the most protective and efficient

rule possible. they acknowledge cameras may help save lives and encourage auto makers to install them but that's not good enough for victims families and safety groups. this morning, they're filing this federal lawsuit demanding the d.o.t. finally require those cameras. before any more kids get hurt. >> i want to get this implemented so that we can prevent this from happening to any other family. >> reporter: we asked the auto makers what's the hold up here? they say they offer back up cameras on most cars but critics say they're usually bundled into expensive option packages. they want cameras to come standard in all cars. that's what the lawsuit is about. matt, really this lawsuit is being filed this morning in federal court. >> if you don't have one installed in your car can you e retro fit one. >> believe it or not, if your car doesn't have one, go to the

store, they'll sell you one for a few hundred dollars. they'll give you a monitor for the front and install it for you too. >> let's make sure everyone understands these children were never in danger during any of this. >> the car was off and the key out of the ignition. these children never in any danger. >> thank you. up next, the guy taking over the internet, batdad strikes again. >> if you don't chew with your mouth closed i'm going to take the nutrigrain bar away. >> no. >> we'll meet the man behind the mask and then shelton, one of the big stars behind the voice will stop by and reveal the big stars behind the voice will stop by and reveal something about himself which if yand you're talking toevere rheuyour rheumatologistike me, about trying or adding a biologic. this is humira, adalimumab. this is humira working to help relieve my pain. this is humira helping me through the twists and turns.

this is humira helping to protect my joints from further damage. doctors have been prescribing humira for over ten years. humira works by targeting and helping to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. for many adults, humira is proven to help relieve pain and stop further joint damage. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal events, such as infections, lymphoma, or other types of cancer, have happened. blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure have occurred. before starting humira , your doctor should test you for tb. ask your doctor if you live in or have been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. tell your doctor if you have had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have symptoms such as fever, fatigue, cough, or sores. you should not start humira if you have any kind of infection. ask your doctor if humira can work for you. this is humira at work.

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now that's smart. the new kfc $9.99 6-piece deal. 6 pieces of chicken... 3 biscuits, and one large side just $9.99! today tastes so good. well, all week on born today we have been taking a look at all aspects of parenting but now a lighter side. a father in georgia has become a super star on social media with his take on parenting. what can you tell us about batdad. >> here he is. he is 29-year-old blake wilson from georgia. he bought the mask and started posting videos on vine and now he has 4 million views and counting. take a look. >> thank you. can i have some too. >> i'm just a normal dad with four kids and a wife having fun with them. >> he looks like a regular dad. but blake wilson has an alter

ego. >> i'm batdad. >> it started as a family joke but batdad is now on a mission. >> you don't want to get gingivitis. >> reporter: sharing parenting tips one vine video at a time. >> if you don't chew with your mouth closed i'm going to take the nutrigrain bar away. it's an interesting twist on parenting. >> hurry up, we're going to be late for the bus. >> we live a very normal life. >> congratulations, here's a potty pop. >> every day stuff that parents go through. >> benjamin, tables are for glasses not [ bleep ]. >> no daddy. >> i like to think that i can be a fun dad. it's not all fun and games all the time. this is the real batdad.

>> kids, get out of the bushes, it's time for dinner. >> are those ribs good. >> uh-huh. >> would you like a wet nap? >> reporter: sometimes he drives his wife, well, batty. >> i feel bad for her. >> make sure you watch my pajamas. >> i know i can be annoying. >> jen, but your seat belt on, you're breaking the law. >> she loves it. >> it's hilarious. >> jen, what's taking so long. you were supposed to be ready 20 minutes ago. >> while it's happening i feel -- >> makes people smile because it's so stupid. >> there's batdad.

that could be a new sitcom on nbc. he struck a huge cord with parents. emily wrote i will only settle down and start a family if i can find someone like batdad. nathan adams writes this is exactly the type of dad i want to be one day. you met batdad now officially. >> humor in the lessons learned. thank you. coming up, what would you do if you found a wallet on the street? people across the country put to the test. people across the country put to the test. whic the baby's in there?

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good morning to you. i'm eun yang. as you get ready to leave the house, danella sealock is here with your first 4 traffic. danella, good morning. >> good morning. some good news, and, unfortunately, there's also bad news. let's talk about the 14th street bridge. the earlier disabled is still gone. bad news still seeing delays. sluggish across the 14th street bridge and delays start 395. look at the travel speed. 18 miles per hour. northbound slow from the beltway northbound slow from the beltway to the 14th street i was honored to serve as governor of virginia. we brought folks together in richmond to focus on creating jobs and getting results. that's the virginia way. and that's why i'm backing terry mcauliffe for governor. terry won't let ideological battles get in the way of making progress. terry will work with democrats, republicans, and independents to create jobs and move virginia forward. it's important for virginia that we elect terry mcauliffe as our governor. i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad.

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some patchy dense fog south and southwest of the metro area. across parts of virginia into west virginia in morning. still a chill in the air approaching 8:00 in the morning. temperatures now near 50 in the nearby suburbs. later today climbing into the 70s by mid-afternoon and partly sunny and partly cloudy. at times more of the same and friday and saturday afternoon highs in the 70s and morning lows in the 50s. a few more clouds around first part of next week and a

it's 8:00 on today. coming up, surprise, a good samaritan is stashing cash in unexpected places. >> i opened it up and $100 bill fell out. just like that. in our special series born today, advice for exhausted parents. and the stars stop by as michael j. fox and blake shelton join us, today, wednesday, september 25th, 2013. hope you're being good for grandma back in alabama, mom and dad are having fun in new york city. >> i want to say hi to our grand children across wisconsin. love you guys. >> we love blake shelton. >> happy birthday silver fox, we

love you. >> oh, wow, yeah. and welcome back to "today" on this wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer along with savannah guthrie, al roker, and mr. carson daly. in the background you hear some music in the plaza but speaking of music, we have blake shelton coming in just a little while. he has a song honey bee. he'll be here talking about the voice, talking about music. talking about other things. we look forward to that. by the way, we're throwing a party on the plaza. >> which explains the music you're hearing. we have expectant moms and one-year-olds for their birthday. two of our expectant moms that were supposed to be here today went into labor last night. >> as part of our born today series. >> right on queue.

congratulations to them. >> matt, willie, carson, myself going to open up about our experiences as dads. >> that's right. what we learned from our dads and who chosanged the diapers. >> in your family it would be? >> 50/50 down the line. >> then you became a slacker, okay. natalie is inside. good morning again. >> good morning to you guys and good morning everyone. a long winded protest over president obama's healthcare law kept the senate open all night long. kelly o'donnell joins us live from capitol hill. >> good morning, he is still on his feet. ted cruz has been talking since about 2:00 in the afternoon yesterday protesting tobama healthcare law which is supposed to begin it's enrollment next week. he will not be able to prevent a vote to fund the healthcare law but he is trying. meanwhile in new york vpt obama was joined by president clinton

to try to sell the law and push back against the protests. there is a deadline looming. possible government shut down is getting closer but this is a protest rallying conservatives here in the senate but it may not change the ultimate outcome. ted cruz has been on his feet unable to take a bathroom break or eat anything. he's still going. >> that's what you call stamina. kelly o'donnell on capitol hill, thank you so much. kenyan army troops searched room to room overnight in the ruins of a nairobi shopping mall where a four-day terror siege came to an end. more than 60 civilians died during the attack along with at least 6 soldiers and five gunmen. forensic experts from the united states will help kenyan authorities with their investigation. a man whose blue skin made him a recluse and then viral sensation passed away. paul karason was on this program several time. he turned blue after using

preparations that contained silver to treat a skin condition. he suffered a stroke and died on monday. he was 62 years old. an amazing feet on the water. 28-year-old british adventurer is the first woman to row solo from japan to alaska. he boat capsized five times. completing her journey she said she is exhausted and called her trip bril yanliant and brutal ae same time. >> finding money can make anyone's day. especially when the surprise n win -- wind fall was put there on purpose. >> somebody is taking a page from charlie and the chocolate factory. >> i opened it up and a $100 bill fell out. >> $100 bills are showing up in

every day products. >> there were three boxes left and i turned them over and there was another $100 bill. >> and ice cream cones. >> when we got home, they were getting their ice cream and they were like we found $100 and i was like this can't be real. >> and yes, even a chocolate bar. just who left the money repairs a mystery but the $2,000 that's found so far is helping every day people in need of luck like phil who is making daily visits to his sick girlfriend at a local hospital. >> it's come at an opportune time for me. >> as the sweet message of simple acts of kindness reaches beyond the candy aisle. >> my kids and i are going to do something with it so pay it forward. >> store managers say they don't know where the money came from but they confirm that the $100 bills are real. well, good news we all need. it's 8:05 right now. let's go back outside to al for a check of your weather.

>> a good mystery. thanks so much. we have this born today birthday party going on. right now, the z brothers performing for a bunch of 1-year-olds. they're having a good time. we have cupcakes over here. they are in the shape of a one here and we have moms who are expecting their children coming up. are you excited? >> yeah. >> you guys are just about due. >> any day now? >> pretty much any day. >> well, we have momtinis for you. what is this? >> a blueberry fauxito. enjoy. >> blueberry faujito. and wunsies for all of you, our born today wunsies. let's show you what's going on as far as your letter is going town. they are getting hammered and it will continued. flood watches and rainfall over the next 24 hours. up to 3 inches of rain in central florida. the rest of the country look for

rain, mountain snows in the pacific northwest and a gorgeous day in the northeast. mid-section of the country, today in minneapolis, going to get up to 78 degrees. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> rather chilly still. good morning. we have some high clouds passing over the region. also still some patchy dense fog lingering parts in the shenandoah vale around the blue ridge and into west virginia, and temperatures still generally in the 40s to around 50 degrees, but we should warm nicely into the 70s later this afternoon as well as tomorrow. then on friday more sunshine. highs reaching upper 70s. highs mid-70s over the week and that's your latest weather. >> you did well with the bubbles on your face there. didn't bother you one bit. >> just a regular saturday night at my house. >> coming up, text stops. one state's unconventional rule to curb texting while driving. >> and if you are going to

fight, do you do it in front of the kids? surprising new advice from experts. >> and michael j. fox on what changed his mind after thinking >> and michael j. fox on what change[ woman ] if you haveking the audacity to believe your financial advisor should focus on your long-term goals, not their short-term agenda. [ woman ] if you have the nerve to believe that cookie cutters should be for cookies, not your investment strategy. if you believe in the sheer brilliance of a simple explanation. [ male announcer ] join the nearly 7 million investors who think like you do: face time and think time make a difference. join us. [ male announcer ] at edward jones, it's how we make sense of investing. ♪ oh dear. i need a little help here. ♪ i'm sorry. i don't have a usb port. oh snap. you have a real keyboard too? this isn't going to end well for me. is it.

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of our proud university of phoenix network. that's right, university of phoenix. enroll now. we've got a frame waiting for you. >> we are back at 8:12 with what's trending today. >> it's an emotional victory for halle berry and jennifer garner. they have been the most outspoken supporters of a california bill meant to stop the paparazzi from getting too close to their kids. >> i love my kids. they're beautiful and sweet and innocent and i don't want a gang of shouting, arguing, law breaking photographers who camp out everywhere we are all day every day to continue traumatizing my kids. >> well, the legislature agreed and the governor, california's governor jerry brown just signed

that bill into law. it imposes harsher punishments on photographers convicted of harassing celebrities children. media critics say the law is into broad and worry it might get in the way of legitimate news gathering. >> i live near jennifer garner in california and i have witnessed what happens. i bring my family to the same park and until you see these guys in action, this is going to be a good law. because they're all over the children. >> and if you see the -- if you see the video tape of halle berry, i think it's in an airport trying to get her kid into the car and the crush of media around it, it can't be good for the kids. >> i wonder if it's going to happen in new york. >> we'll see. meanwhile, one state's unconventional approach to stop texting while driving. the dangers of sending text messages behind the wheel, if you're driving in new york state you can pull into a text stop.

they're rest areas designated for drivers that can't wait to send a message. they'll also put up bright blue signs to let you know how many miles stand between you and your next tweet. probably good ideas. good reminders if nothing else. >> a lot of the electronic signs, the huge ones that say do not text while you drive. >> more need to get on with that as well. trending from reader's digest t world's most honest city. the folks at the magazine decided to conduct a little experiment. they had their reporters drop wallets in 16 cities around the world. there was a name, a cell phone number, family photo and $50. the wallets were dropped all over the city. which cities do you think had the highest return rate? any guesses guys? you know the answer. >> we do know. >> most honest, finland. 11 of the 12 wallets were returned there. least honest was portugal. just one wallet was given by, and given back by a tourist once

again. you know new yorkers get a bad wrap but our fair city actually returned 8 of 12 wallets. >> all right. not bad. >> my husband left his wallet in a cab in new york city and twice it's been returned. pretty good. >> i dropped my wallet when i was biking and somebody mailed it to me. >> wow. >> no money taken. >> everything in it. >> intact. >> very nice. >> all right. >> what else do we have? >> all right. well, talk about no hard feelings, steven colbert is celebrating a big win. not only did he get the emmy for best variety show but he snapped the ten year winning streak in that category by john stewart from the daily show. so like the true gentleman he is, he called his old friend to gloat. >> well, the only thing left to do right now is to give john a call and wish him a sincere bite me. okay.

there we go. >> hello, steven. you guys are awesome. i just stopped by to congratulate you. >> john, why can't you just be upset, okay? it's really important to me that i have crushed you. >> i would, but i can't because i'm an executive producer on your show, so i won again, [ bleep ]. >> that's great. >> they deserve it clearly. >> thanks to our audio editing people. >> that was close. >> we know what he said. >> meantime, trending from the wall street journal this morning, the family that fights together stays together. this was an interesting article. it was about parents that bicker in front of the kids. some experts say in certain

situations with certain limits it can help with a child's development so i guess that begs the question, did your parents argue in front of you when you were kids? >> yeah, they did. >> yeah. >> loudly. >> are they going to break up, i don't know? >> i remember that myself. a lot of fights but the ones that there were, i remember. carson you asked viewers what they said about this. >> pretty split. i'll show you the result in our poll that we put up. you think that it's -- let me show you the numbers here. one of the interesting things that people said that you have to be careful if you're going to fight in front of your kids is if you want the schools to know your family business because kids talk. that's interesting take on it. also it really depends on what you consider to be arguing. if it's healthy and fair and balanced then it's okay. here's what we asked. do you argue in front of your kids. 63% said yes and 37% said no but it feels from reading your tweets that it's 50/50 and depends on how you define arguing. some people thought it was healthy because it's good to let

kids know that you can agree and agree to disagree but it's all in how it's done. that's the result. thank you guys. back to you. >> thank you, carson. >> we want to continue the conversation with a child psychologist at nyu's child study center. good to see you. >> thank you. >> do you buy that there can be constructive fighting that takes place in front of the kids. >> yes, i think they can teach problem solving skills and conflict resolution skills. one of the things we want them thinking about is where to cut themselves off. there's certain skills they can use with their kids and they can use in their own relationships down the line. >> it's important for the parents not to fight in front of their children and go into the silent treatment for days on end afterwards. >> nonverbal communication can be just as powerful and verbal communication. if you're slamming the door and throwing your hands up in the air you can send important and

negative messages to your children. >> is part of the argument that being silent or having this thick tension in the air that never gets resolved also has a bad effect potentially on children. >> yeah. right, exactly. when we're talking about the power of verbal communication and nonverbal communication and the effect that that has on children we really want, in place of that, we want children to learn important problem solving skills. >> so here are the tips for parents. set an anger cutoff point which is self-explanatory. avoid triangulation which means? >> so what that means is sometimes parents include children in their arguments. say a mom and dad are having a fight and a mom says didn't you hear your dad say that earlier this morning and they try to pull the child into the argument and that takes the child out of their role and almost puts that child at the parent level and that can be really confusing and that can cause a lot of problems between the child and the parent down the line if the child models those skills. >> we also talked about skip the

silent treatment. there's some issues that are off limits. you should never fight about certain things with the kids, right? >> yes, those types of things are personal to the marriage and to the relationship. some parents feel like it's very difficult to talk about financial issues in front of the children and then i think discipline strategies are critical to think about a head of time and not decide those things in front of the children. >> thank you so much. good to get your perspective and we want to thank our friend tat the wall street journal for the topic. >> coming up, blake shelton will stop by but now to michael j. fox. >> willie geist got to spend time with him on the set. >> the show titled the michael j. fox show, fox plays a guy going back to work after taking time off to focus on his parkinson's disease. for fox it's a familiar story line and familiar to me. my father also has parkinsons. >> reporter: he burst on to our tv sets as alex keaton on family

ties. and then road to movie super stardom in back to the movie. >> i'm looking at it. >> reporter: now, michael j. fox is making a full time return to television in the nbc comedy the michael j. fox show. >> the kitchen in family ties was so iconic and where so much of the action happened. do you think about the circle of your sitcom career. >> yeah. i do all the time. i was a kid on that and then i was a young adult on spin city and now i'm a middle aged father. >> reporter: more than a decade after spin city and 22 years ter his parkinson's diagnosis he play ace family man and tv anchor returning to work five years after parkinson's put his career on hold. >> we love you. >> thanks man. thanks for man. >> people are saying this is michael j. fox's big come back.

are you ready to be back in the public eye like this? >> it's flattering that people give it the attention and on some level people are excited about it. it is weird to have low key for a few years and -- but i was always around doing something. >> but when you walked off the set from the final episode of spin city given your medical condition i think some people thought maybe we've seen the last of michael j. fox on tv. >> i thought it was the last. >> you did? >> fox began to dip his toe back in the water with a number of guest starring appearances. now he is diving in as a headliner. >> can i have a personal victory right now? we're starving. >> what has it been like to have a 14 or 16 hour day? is it more than you thought it would be or less? >> it's more than i thought it would be but i handled it better than what i thought i would. it's what i do and what i've done for years and what i enjoy

doing. >> reporter: it wasn't always so easy to laugh at his condition. >> you got your diagnosis when you were 30 years old. young on set parkinsons. you were flying high. family ties, three back to the future movies. it must have flattened you. >> it came with a prognosis that i would have maybe ten years left to work. that's what was said to me. i was just married and my son was just born and my father just passed away and there was all kinds of stuff going on. it flattened me. >> for people living with parkinson's the status quo isn't good enough. >> reporter: but he picked himself up and became the defiant face of parkinson's giving strength to the 1 million americans living with the disease. my own father among them. >> the greatest compliment i can pay you is that when my dad was going through this decision of whether or not to be public with it i could point to you. i could point to miebchael j. f and say look what he has done

with it. he is on television all the time and working every day. this isn't something to shrink from, it's something to walk into. do you even have a sense for the way you have inspired people? >> well, i don't look at myself as a leader. i took at myself as part of the community. i'm a visible member of the community and if i can let them know you don't have to with draw or pull in. it doesn't have to be life shattering or life ending. just be a new thing that pushes you to a new place. and so like doing this show, it's like why not? why can't i? why can't i? >> aside from the show, fox is very active working with the michael j. fox foundation for parkins parkinson's disease. i've been on the board since my dad announced he had parkinson's a year ago. it will premiere at 9:00 eastern

time here on nbc. >> at his age, he's already a legend but i also -- i think he should be a little bit more embracing of the fact that he has inspired a lot of people. >> he has inspired an entire community. a million people in america with parkins parkinson's all inspired by that. >> thank you very much. coming up, the voice coach blake shelton talks music and tattoos. but first your local news.

we have breaking news right now at 8:26. chopper 4 is over a school bus crash right now. we'll try to get you that video as soon as we can. in waldorf, maryland, just outside davis middle school. police tell us it happened about 20 minutes ago. the bus and suv collided. there are some injuries on the bus, and we're looking to learn if any are serious. let's get an update now on your commute with danella and your first 4 traffic. danella, good morning. >> good morning. still checking delays on i-270 earlier this morning at west montgomery avenue that blocked the left side of the roadway. delays, that accident is long gone. in germantown you are slow. 32 minutes to reach the capital beltway. luckily on i-270 southbound and northbound no accidents. over to pumpkin coffee for the morning and i've got my pumpkin k-cup packs

for at home. now i can have my pumpkin coffee anytime i want it. pumpkin's perfect. it's dunkin' with the press of a button. hurry in for pumpkin k-cup packs, only at dunkin' restaurants. america runs on dunkin' coffee.

good morning. still a chill in the air. temperatures around 50 degrees later today into the mid to upper 70s and partly sunny. more of the same tomorrow. four-day outlook, this awesome weather continues. saturday and sunday. a slight chance of a shower perhaps on monday and highsner 80s and into the mid-70s

8:30 on a wednesday morning. it's the 25th of september. we've got a lot of smiling faces starting the day with us. we're happy to see them. good morning, i'm savannah guthrie along side matt lauer, natalie morales, al roker, carson daly. we'll introduce this guy in a moment. >> we're going to get to you. >> do you know who else is here? blake sheldton is here. he's the winningest coach in the history of the voice. so the big question, can he make it four out of five? we'll talk to blake in a few

minutes. >> also ahead, what sleep deprivation does to new parents. makes us batty. >> and willie and i will be talking about what it's like to be a dad today and the biggest lesson we learned from our dads. >> first to be super -- what's going on over there? >> what's happening? >> it's all about him, right? >> robert frank is here. he has a new show, the life of the super rich -- the 1% is the -- >> we all dream of being rich. many of us wonder what goes on so we take you where no cameras have gone before inside of the biggest mansions, private jets, cars, and this is amazing. it's not to make you feel bad.

we have a lot of fun. there's crazy moments. >> you're channelling your inner robin leach in this but you take us inside the much talked about mansion built by the people that then lost everything. >> that's right. they have now gotten back everything. versailles, 90,000 square feet. that's one and a halftimes the white house. it's 11 kitchens, 13 bathrooms -- i'm sorry, 30 bathrooms. you can use a different bathroom every day of the week. when jackie was showing me the house she got lost and couldn't remember what certain rooms were for. i tried to run the length of the house and ran out of the lengte house and i ran out of breath. >> also to look forward to. series premiere of "secret lives of the super rich" tonight at 9:00 on cnbc. mr. roker let's check the weather. >> that's what's going on around the country and here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. temperatures around the region just past 8:30 on this

wednesday morning. we have some patchy fog and still lingering parts of the shenandoah valley into the blue ridge and into west virginia. most of the region now beginning to climb low to mid-50s and should quickly jump to near 70 by noon and into the mid to upper 70s for an hour or so by afternoon. partly cloudy and partly that's your latest weather. what's up uncle willie? >> have a good time. bring your friends and laugh and sing, happy birthday to you. catherine is from new orleans louisiana, 100 years old today. loves ice cream. has it every day. carl schumm from convoy, ohio. a happy man at 100. he takes care of a fruit orchard. that's where johnny appleseed used to have his sources. we have louise senna, 112 years

old today. a beautiful lady and i mean she gives incredible advice. people come to her from all over. morris goodman from west heartforheart hartford, connecticut. 100 years old today. happy man and his favorite thing in life is turner classic movies. tcm. we have elva webster. 100 years old today. milk with every meal. put a little mustache like that commercial. i believe in milk. pure butter. real, 2%. milk. whole milk from the cow. naples, florida. it's the home of henry and sarah kaufman and they have been married for 75 years. they love each other very much and love to watch games on tv

and like to play games, too. that's it. that's all. we have been playing games here for 50 years on the "today" show, or is it 60? i lose track of time. back to you. >> thanks. still to come on born today. the changing role of dads too. our dads weigh in. >> also blake shelton and you've seen, a new season of "the voice" and he might reveal new body art. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad. for 30 years i've worked as an obgyn, my job is to protect the health of women. so i'm particularly offended by ken cuccinelli. cuccinelli wants to make all abortion illegal ... ... even in cases of rape and incest. ... even to protect a woman's health. i want a governor who's focused on schools and creating jobs, not someone who wants to do my job. who's ken cuccinelli to interfere in the lives of women across virginia?

in season five of the hit nbc reality competition "the voice," the original coaches are reunited. that's one of my favorite songs. especially when blake shelton and adam levine compete for contestants. >> i think he's a great artist adam. that's why i hit my button

because i believe in him. not because i was curious of what he looked like or what the noise was he was making or how he configured his bow tie to make weird sounds out of it. i believe in this guy. >> good morning to you. >> i was really getting on to him there, wasn't i? >> you were. >> makes me happy. i live to make him feel bad about himself. >> you're encourageable. >> i don't know what that means but okay. >> let me ask you a question, have you ever won the show? >> it seems like the last three times or something. >> yeah, you have three out of four seasons you've won? isn't it boring if you win again? >> no it's not. it maybe to you but it's very exciting to me. >> not so exciting for your fellow coaches. >> screw them. screw them. that's my competition. i don't care if they like it or not. >> is it getting to the point where now -- you guys are supposed to be fighting over the contestants but are the contestants wanting to choose you because you have a good record? >> i had a hard time getting

people to come with me this year on my team and adam had good points about -- he threw out stuff about the nba and about how nobody ever won four of anything in a row. i can't remember what the stats were but he actually got in some of these people's heads and, man, stole a lot of people. i had a hard time putting my team together this year. >> you and adam, you do seem to have a special relationship. a little bit of tension there. >> tension? >> i don't know what kind -- >> like a little -- >> i don't know. what would you say? >> i would say where there's smoke, there's fire. we're very attracted to each other. but i'm already married. so it's never going to work. >> in another life perhaps. >> right. right. >> you got cher as one of your mentors. i don't think anyone would naturally put you two together but she said she had a great time. >> i love her. she is exactly -- looking back on all the movies and things she has been in, she's just playing herself. because being around her she's

that person. she is very -- she doesn't take herself that seriously but she doesn't take any crap off of anybody either. she reminds me -- actually reminds me of my wife a lot as far as she is just a very strong woman and a lot of fun to be around. >> miranda is a very patient woman isn't she? i hear you pester her all the time. >> why would you say that. >> it's just the word on the street, from miranda. now tell me about this tattoo you have. cee lo has a big head tattoo now. >> it's on the back, like, lower back area. >> really? >> no, it's just -- i just have it right here. >> can you show it to us. >> i don't know if i can get my sleeve up that far. >> i'm sure you can. it's a lady bug. >> no it's not. >> what is it? >> it is supposed to be deer tracks. but there's a chance that i had been drinking somewhere in the

vicinity of that time and i had to draw the guy what i thought a deer track looked like so he gave me the tattoo that i drew for him but it sucks. >> maybe he was drinking too. >> yeah. >> every time i see you, i always look and smell just to make sure. >> what is wrong with you. carson just won the emmy. he's still celebrating over there. >> tell me about it. we call him emmy winner carson daly now. >> do you really? >> yeah. >> he likes that i'm sure. he was showing me the trophy. >> three time winner of the voice, blake shelton. thank you very much. it airs tuesday evening at 8:00, 7:00 central here on nbc. up next, the daddy panel talks sleep deprivation and what every parent needs to

and now to our special series born today. the first few days after giving birth can be a whirlwind for first time parents. especially without any sleep. 65% of moms and 37% of dads wish you had gotten more sleep during your baby's first year, even beating out getting more sex. so what is a sleepless mom or dad to do? one young family opened up their home to our cameras day and night. here's peter alexander with the story. >> reporter: for new parents in texas, these first 48 hours have been both exhilarating and exhausting. >> how did you guys sleep last night? >> terrible. >> not enough. >> get ready. it's going to be a lot of fun at home. >> i'm excited. i'm not going to get any sleep but i'm used to that. >> reporter: just back from an 8 month tour in afghanistan, for donnie today is a different

homecoming with two day old lucas in tow. my wife allison and i were in their shoes just two months ago with our little girl ava. it's a juggling act with new gadgets. >> how do we put him in? >> reporter: new outfits and new experiences. >> first time i've been peed on by an infant. >> that did wear a family out. >> maybe we can relax a little bit. >> reporter: by nighttime lucas has his own plans. it's impossible to sleep like a baby. more than 70% of moms say their newborn's sleep effects their own and while adult sleep is linked to the overnight hours, for infants, it's spread throughout the day. surprisingly for new parents the problem isn't sleep deprivation. they actually get an average of nearly 6 hours a night. it's sleep fragmentation,

extreme fatigue caused by constant interruptions. in a first of it's kind experiment researchers are studying the impact of sleep fragmentation. they showed us how it works. young women, not yet moms themselves sleep at the lab but every few hours researchers wake them up with a recorded crying baby and then each woman has to care for the baby doll. for the study subjects it was an eye opener. >> what did it feel like? >> the first time it wasn't too bad. but by the time i got to the third time it was almost like do i really have to. >> reporter: she even admitted getting anger. >> it was almost like trying to counter it was anger and wanting to go back to sleep. >> reporter: their study is still going on with the goal of helping them. >> what can we do to help the sleep they are getting and what can we tell them to improve their sleep hygiene. >> i don't know how many times i was up and down. >> reporter: by sunrise, lucas

is finally out. >> our first night up all night. >> reporter: and mom and dad can finally enjoy their new little man peacefully. >> love, joy, happiness. >> yeah, just a whole new purpose in life. >> reporter: for today, peter alexander, nbc news, morgantown, west virginia. >> well, let's give dads their due. we have assembled four fabulous dads, carson, willie, matt, and al. we have even giving your loungers. >> like a psychiatrist. >> i like that. 73% said they as dads were more hands on than their own fathers had been. show of hands, are you more involved. >> definitely. >> my dad was very involved but expectations have risen. people expect fathers to get in there and get on the ground and have hands on more than they did when my dad was -- >> people were like are you changing diapers?

of course i am. what do you think people's impressions that dad doesn't go near the kids. >> it's almost an insulting question. >> it goes to the fact when you come to work somebody will say baby sitting today? they would never say that to the mom? >> do you think there's the expectation now that it's 50/50 with moms? >> it's probably not quite 50/50 but there's the expectation. you have so many more women working now so you have dads at home and the idea of moms at home with the baby and dad is at work is not true anymore. it's close to 50/50. i like to think and hope we're pretty even. one thing my wife always says is no keeping score. just respect each other. when she needs a hand help her out and when i need a hand she does the same for me. >> you all talked about what a great example your fathers were. >> keep in mind and we're a little older than these two but my dad was a 1950s dad. it was mad men. it was career driven. it was guys that showed their masculine side not as much their

touchy feely side. i took the responsibility side. he was the most responsible guy i ever met but now we're able to show our caring, emotional side. >> my dad was a hugger. he was a big hugging guy. you met him. i would go to visit my other male relatives and i'd go to give them a hug and they'd like be like a handshake here. and i've been able to build on that. >> any of you keep more traditional daddy roles thinking i like that about the traditional dad role? >> i was blessed with two dads. i lost my dad when i was five. my son is at the age when my dad passed away and then i got a great step dad and i remember my stepdad i could hear his feet every day on the hardwood floor and he lived by example. i got my work ethic from my step dad. he never said a word but provided for us. and living by example is

something i try to do. >> my dad wasn't a big talker, let's sit down and have this talk about the birds and the bees. he lead by example and i watched his humility and work ethic. >> you all had exciting lives with fatherhood, does anything else compare? >> i just think of the word priorities. it changes them. >> people say it changes your life and you're scared by the idea of your life changing or being tired but it's for the better. >> we know you'll continue this conversation on twitter. if you have a question for our dads submit the questions and use the #orangeroom. coming up next, pau

this morning, what's for dinner, we're making pasta three ways. growing up in georgia jamie deen's mother paula cooked dinner for her family every single night. he shares it in his new book called jamie deen's good food. good to see you. >> good to have you. >> let me ask you, how is your mom doing. so much we had on this show. an interview with her. the situation she has been through over the summer. how is she doing? >> she is doing fantastic and we have tremendous love and support and we would do anything for mom. it's been an interesting summer but we've been through challenges before and it will be fine. >> what has it been like as a

son watching this. what's it been like watching this as someone that loves her? >> it's tough. we're in, you know as well as anyone you're in this business and people will take shots at you and you accept that with the opportunities that it allows you but personal attacks on your mom is never an easy thing but we know who mom is and people that know us and love us know. >> mom wrote the forward for this book. >> of course she did. she's proud of her boys. this is a fun week to be here. >> you have two. 7 and 2. >> yes. i'm at both ends of aggravation. >> my kids love pasta. >> all kids do. we're going to sneak in a little bit. this is a roasted eggplant. if you want to drizzle this with oil. we peeled it and cubed it. a little bit of olive oil. >> a lot of people might fry it. you like to roast it instead? >> i don't fry much and it's also a good meat substitute. we'll get this into our pan and

cover it with a simple tomato sauce. so this has the meaty quality and texture without the fat and all of that. >> nice hot skillet. >> of course and we'll put fresh basil in here. you can put it together quickly and it makes really nice left overs. >> that's as easy as it gets right there. >> still got the homemade flavor. the roasted eggplant gives it a lot. >> do you also like it because it holds a lot of sauce? >> yeah, it's big. boys like it. my son when he was a baby would put it on the end of his fingers because he would put it on his finger and eat it. >> you undercook it in there so you can cook it the rest of the way in the pot. >> don't break it down too much. i don't mind a little bit of the water coming in so it will break the sauce down. let me get the rest of these in here. my son jack is on the back cover and my mom gave me a cookbook when i was seven or eight so i'm

so proud to get the kids in the kitchen. >> does he care about how the food is prepared? or does she just like eating it. >> we spend so much time in the kitchen that matthew and jack want to know what's going on in there. they love to stir and put things together. it's being there as a family. >> so start to finish, this is a 15 minute dish? >> there's some things in this book where you can spend a couple of hours but for the most part this is for busy families that have to eat every night. >> you got it in a baking dish and you'll add four different cheeses. >> we have fresh mozzarella that the boys and brooke and i love a lot. we're going to fold this in and we have ricotta cheese we'll dial up in. >> can i add this one here. >> yes, please. >> what is that? >> that is fontina and we'll finish with parmesan. >> when you put the cheese on, we came running. >> and then this goes in the oven for 15 or 20 minutes just to melt all the cheese. this is a healthy serving.

we'll pass it down the line. >> while you're serving that tell me about this dish here. >> this is a pasta salad. we do this a lot at our house. jack loves wagon wheels. >> wagon wheels. >> oh, yeah. >> you can get in vegetables and protein and your dairy. >> thank you. >> we love this. it's something we do a good bit t the house. it's something that we do a good bit at the house. >> jamie, thank you so much. >> my pleasure. thanks y'all. appreciate it. >> looks good. breaking news at 8:56. chopper 4 is live over a school bus accident right now. this is in waldorf, maryland, just outside davis middle school. the bus and an suv chided. injuries on the bus and one person is being flown to a nearby hospital. let's get an update now on our commute with danella sealock and your first 4 traffic. >> good morning. still seeing a lot of delays in the air y.around the beltway very slow. 66 slow as well inside of the

beltway. we'll talk outside of the beltway all the way slow. from heymarket and making your way towards 234 and jamming on the brakes at route 50. the brakes at route 50. those delays continue to the i was honored to serve as governor of virginia. we brought folks together in richmond to focus on creating jobs and getting results. that's the virginia way. and that's why i'm backing terry mcauliffe for governor. terry won't let ideological battles get in the way of making progress.

terry will work with democrats, republicans, and independents to create jobs and move virginia forward. it's important for virginia that we elect terry mcauliffe as our governor. i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad.

we'll check your forecast when we come back. stay with us. good morning many i'm storm team 4 meteorologist tom kierein. temperatures mid up toer 50s. a lot of fog into the shenandoah valley and west virginia later today. partly cloudy and highs reaching upper 70s. more of the same tomorrow and then sunshine each day friday through the weekend.

>> announcer: from nbc news, this is today's take with al roker, natalie morales, and willie geist, live from studio 1-a in rockefeller plaza. welcome to today on this wednesday morning, september 25th, 2013. i'm willie geist along with al roker, natalie morales and america's got talen judge and spice girl mel b. hanging out with us all week. >> yes i am. >> we're going to talk spice girls in a minute. we'll get to the bottom of one of the lyrics. >> i heard about this. >> america and the world at large have been waiting. >> dying to know. >> oh my god. >> we're going to talk about that in just a second. first, we want to point you to an interview that bill clinton did yesterday. he was asked which role his wife hilary would prefer, president or grandmother and president clinton said if you ask her i think she would say grandmother but i found it best not to

discuss that issue. the rest of it is out of his hands. chelsea is 33 years old and been married for three years. some people including one of the newspapers here in new york say the heat is on. get busy. >> get busy. >> natalie you flagged this one. >> yeah, because i mean as a woman there's a lot of pressure on us already but when you get married and if you go a couple of years -- we were married five years without children. i was getting started in my career and people start asking questions and it starts getting personal. what's wrong? why aren't you guys having kids and the pressure is on. >> people don't take into consideration, we had trouble conceiving. >> so did i. took us four and a half years. >> yeah and there maybe other reasons why people aren't having kids. >> and people can be very insensitive and it's cruel when you think about it. >> i think there's always a bit of pressure, when you're engaged everybody is when are you going to get married.

when you get married, everybody says when are you going to have kids. when i got married to my husband i already had two kids. i waited five years on purpose to enjoy my kids i already had and my marriage. >> yeah. >> so there's nothing wrong with having a kid right away but we waited four years as well and those were four great years for us where we lived together and got to know each other better and decided to have kids. >> and people make the decision they're not going to have kids and we look at them like what's wrong with them? why don't they want children? >> is something wrong in their relationships. >> and sometimes in the middle of a diaper or sick kid you think those people are amazing. >> you wouldn't give them back. >> i wouldn't give them back, because you can't. no, seriously, seriously i wouldn't. >> did you get the heat from your own family did you feel like? or was it your circle of friends? >> it was more exterior. the friends, the circle.

my family knew we would get to it when we get to it plus my career was starting to take off and there's timing issues to think about, contracts and all that. >> you had to have a contract to have a kid. >> yeah. >> agent brokered it. it was romantic. >> tough negotiation. let me tell you. no but with luke we did have problems as well and then medical intervention was necessary and people ask really personal questions. >> they sure do. >> and nowadays you get tweets all the time are you pregnant? and you're like no. even if i was, would i tell you on twitter. >> i like when somebody says are you pregnant and you're not. >> no, men know never to ask. >> i did that once outside. >> that was bad. >> if you have to ask, the answer is no. >> don't ask. >> plus i wouldn't even tell you. >> nine months pregnant and i don't say anything. >> no, exactly. >> just in case. >> had a burrito dinner that

didn't go down well. >> i'm bloated and people are like she must be pregnant. >> i never got pressure from my parents about having kids but my wife and i did find once, my parents were putting an addition on their house and we found a sketch my mom had made of the addition and she scrdrew a stic figure of herself on the porch cradling the baby. oh, nothing, just in case you ever have children. >> this is my dream house. >> and a picture of your mom is actually -- she is a stick figure. >> yeah. that's a whole other topic for another day. speaking of bill clinton, his clinton global initiative is in new york this week and bono one of his friends pulled out his bill clinton impersonation. >> so good. >> when i first met bono, he walked into the oval office and i -- actually i thought it was a member of his own road crew. he wasn't really dressed right.

actually i felt like the rock star on that occasion. >> pretty good, huh. >> if you closed your eyes you would think that is bill clinton. >> he got the moves too. >> to pull off that accent is pretty impressive. >> can you do any impersonations mel b.? >> don't even ask. >> can you do an american? >> no. i am married to an american and i cannot do it. this is it. this is what i've got for life. >> yeah. >> it's working out pretty well for you. >> al, you've got impersonations. >> come on. >> no, no. >> come on. >> you do the scottish very well. >> well, i like to think that sometimes they come out and who knows what's going to happen. i'm telling you. >> that's not bad. >> get in my belly. >> i love that scene. >> all i can do is mel b.

>> you're nuts. >> that's why we have you here. >> got a little bit of guinness in you and look out, it's a party. >> oh my god. >> like i said, al can do impersonations. >> a simon cowell impersonation. he's in the news. the x factor judge talking about -- >> getting me a size 5 t-shirt. >> okay. so simon's pregnant girlfriend is ready to have a baby later this year. so he was asked by ryan seacrest in an interview where he would be during the birth and he said -- >> will you stand above or below the equator for the delivery. >> oh, do you mean am i going to see it? >> yeah. >> are you out of your mind? i mean, i know this sounds awful but it's a little bit like you don't want to go into the restaurant while they're making your dinner. >> oh, right. >> i just think there's certain

things you shouldn't see and that is one of them. i mean, i'll be very close by but i think -- i won't do that, no. >> i was with simon cowell and his lovely lady last week and i have to say they make a lovely couple. regardless of how it all came about they are actually very, very in love. now what he just said -- >> wow. >> he brings up a good point. a lot of men maybe don't want to see that other end because then it kind of changes things. >> terrified. >> changes things a little bit. >> wow. >> what a way with words. >> don't want to see the other end. >> they don't want to see what's going on. >> is that a deal breaker in the contract? >> that's an out clause. >> if i have to go down there i'm not going -- i'm not coming back. sorry. >> did you all stand right there. >> yeah. >> on that side? >> well, deborah had to have an

emergency c-section so they had to wait -- but i have to tell you, when they reach in, it's like, hey, rocky watch me pull arab bit out of my hat. that's amazing. it's like oh my god. >> we had a strict north of the border policy. i was there with her holding her hand her leg, we made eye contact. >> you were holding her leg. >> yeah, you hold their leg up. >> i didn't get to do that. >> nurse holds one leg and dad holds the other one. >> it was fine for me not to see what happened. the baby just came up and appeared magically. >> i can't understand, though. if i guy does see what's going on down there it can be disturbing. there's a lot. >> it sticks. >> that was my concern, mel. >> but you have done okay. >> he didn't see it. >> i didn't see it. >> north of the border. >> why did you do that? so inappropriate. >> south of the border, north of the border. >> let's draw a stick figure.

>> oh my god. >> i went north of the border and they put the baby under the french fry lamp when they're done. just went with the baby. >> they put up this curtain. >> yeah. >> oh my. >> you know they ask the woman if she wants a mirror because they can roll a mirror so that you can watch. >> no. >> people do that, though. >> no, i mean, i think that's great. we actually recorded luke when he was born because he was going to be a scheduled c-section. with josh i had an emergency c-section i was knocked out but they brought my husband in because it was such an emergency situation they wanted to let him know the baby was okay. so he came in and he sees the baby is doing great. he looks at me i'm passed out and guts out and he's like baby's okay but what about her? talk about that imagie staying with you.

>> yeah. >> let's make a smooth transition then. we have to hear the song really quickly. >> a spice girl song. >> this is a spice girl song wannabe they had the 100 pop culture references that resinate most. one is the lyrics of the song wannbee, there's one term we need to define which is zi ziga zig ah. >> sing it for us mel b. >> you didn't even know it. >> what does it mean? >> we always maintained this, it means what ever you want it to mean. >> okay. >> i feel like having it right now. >> exactly. >> i don't buy it. >> it could mean anything. to me it means obviously

something else. >> what does it mean for you. >> it's morning tv. that wouldn't be appropriate. >> okay. does it have anything like that or what? what is this? a little bit of this? a little bit of that? hey, now; it's like michael jackson's -- you don't know exactly what it means. >> you did that really well. >> thank you. >> i practiced it all morning. >> i'm going to go to the weather now. >> s what's goi y down f today. for of that. >> it's atci6y moun michael jackson's i'm usain, i'm a macu-son. >> i'm going throu thet=p on. >> here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> high clouds and a bit of a chill in the air around the washington metro area. temperatures in the mid to upper 50s.

fog around the shenandoah valley and blue ridge and into the mountains on this wednesday morning. later today partly cloudy and highs reaching mid to upper 70s and poverty same on thursday. friday, a beautiful day, sunshine and 50s in the morning. afternoon highs and upper 70s and great weather for outdoor activities. and that's your latest weather. >> all right, al. coming up next, law and order ♪ [ female announcer ] no one says to wake up and touch or see or taste or hear the roses. they say to wake up and smell the roses. because scent makes us feel like nothing else can. inspired by the best feelings in the world.

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when you hear this sound you know exactly what you're watching. >> i love that. >> law and order svu set to kick off it's 15th season. easily make it one of tv's longest running series ever. >> and mariska hargitay is back

as the no nonsense detective. >> 15 years congratulations. >> i can't believe it. i'm like wait, what, how? when? >> did you ever think when you signed on that 15 years later you would still be olivia benson. >> no but i have to tell you i'm happy being here. >> you look gorgeous by the way. >> thank you. so do you. >> it's a different look when u start off and you have been kidnapped. how tough was it doing this role this time around? >> it was without a doubt the most difficult episode i've ever shot in 15 years and it was unlike anything i've ever done and i have to tell you, after 15 years, to be nervous and scared and excited to go to work -- >> that's good. >> it's a pretty great thing. >> we don't want to give too much away but we have a clip of what you're talking about so people can understand why it was so difficult for you. >> oh, come on, don't be shy.

we're past that. you were so sweet when you were knocked out. another drink? why don't i take off that tape so you can say yes. one thing, you scream again i'll shove your own gun right down your throat. >> shoot me. >> is that hard for you to watch. >> yeah. sure it is. it was -- it's hard to shoot when you're acting your body doesn't know the difference, right, of acting or being in reality. you try to keep it real. so it was tough. >> what do you go through in your brain for that? >> i think you pretty much play the what if game, you know? it's about believing it. that's what you study your whole life to be focused and present and, for me, you know, with the work that i do with joyful heart, you know, i've had the opportunity and the pleasure to work with -- side by side with

so many real life survivors and know their stories that it's an honor to -- and the -- the bar is set high to keep it real and have integrity about how scary that would be. >> a lot of times, especially in a long running series actors have to make the decision do i stay, do i go? what is it that keeps you coming back year after year? >> great writing. i have fallen deeply in love with this character. that's what i was saying about after 15 years people say i can't believe you're so invested in your character. i love this show and i love this character and now with the work with joyful heart that i do, this foundation has sort of found my life's work. my other life's work. this is the no more symbol and it's just -- it's our -- the easiest way to describe it is after, you know, 40 years, this is the first time in history that the sexual assault and

domestic violence movements are coming together. it's like what the pink ribbon did for breast cancer or red ribbon did for hiv/aids. it launched on monday and we had 40 celebrities activities tors, athletes, people like yourselves come up and join the calvary and say no more. >> do you think about what role you want to play next or are you happy with olivia benson right now. >> i want to do comedy. >> you are funny. >> hilarious. but so we do that sort of begin takes on the show. people come over and they're going why is behind the scenes like a sitcom? >> you hear that and serious mode hits. >> do people say olivia and think they know you. >> mariska hargitay always great

catching up with you. >> thank you. >> good luck. by the way, you can catch the season 15 premiere of law and order special victim's unit tonight at 9:00, 8:00 central here on nbc. >> still ahead, one-on-one with michael j. fox and his battle >> still ahead, one-on-one with michael j. fox and his battle jamie to checkout, please.uch there are lots of "jamies" out there,... huh? but that doesn't mean we're all the same. just like greek yogurts. that's why i prefer activia greek. you got that right jamie, there's nothing like it! exactly, because activia greek is the only greek with exclusive probiotic bifidus regularis, and it helps regulate your digestive system. i love its thick creamy texture! mmm! the greek nonfat yogurt that helps tummies smile! activia greek... like no other greek yogurt. ♪ dannon with an ultra-thin coating and fast absorbing advil ion core™ technology, it stops pain before it gets worse. nothing works faster. new fast acting advil.

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of finances including their internet connection, driving and their pet. if you plan to head home for the holidays kayak.com says now is a good time to book your flight. you'll find the cheapest fairs now through the middle of october. for thanksgiving you'll get the best deal if you fly on monday or tuesday that week. for christmas travel it recommends flying as close to december 25th as possible. >> $100 bills are turning up in unexpected places. hidden in cookies, ice cream, even in a chocolate bar. when shoppers get home and opening their packages they're finding the money. just who is leaving it is a mystery but the $2,000 is money helping a lot of people that need it. you're up to dad. back over to willie, al, and mel b. >> coming up is it ever okay to argue in front of the kids? why some experts say it may help argue in front of the kids? why sone day, i want to win help the science fair. and? and then go to college and study science. way to stay focused!

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hi again, good morning. it's 9:26 on this wednesday, september 25th. i'm anke goff. right now learning more about a school bus crash in waldorf, maryland. 36 students were on the bus when it collided with the suv. four students suffered cuts and bruises and the driver of the suv was medevaced with serious injuries. we'll continue to keep you updated on nbcwashington.com. let's check in with danella to find out what else is happening on the roads. >> with folks traveling i-95 northbound seeing delays still in dale city now because of a broken down tractor trailer. it is blocking your left center lane. can you see it right here, and you are slow as you make your [ female announcer ] these are the crescents you love on a holiday.

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good morning. temperatures now around 60 degrees. we have a few clouds coming through. partly cloudy for the afternoon. highs reaching mid to upper 70s and more of the same on thursday and then beautiful weather into the weekend. friday, saturday and sunday, sunny each day. afternoon

welcome back to today on this wednesday morning september 25th, 2013. i'm willie geist along with al, natalie and mel b. important parenting question. tvs in the kids bedroom. >> no absolutely not. in the play room but not the bedrooms. >> i made that mistake with courtney who is 26 now. we put a tv in her room and it was a big mistake but when we were kids that was a big deal to have a tv. back in the day when they had just gotten color -- >> back in my day. >> back when the radio had pictures, i remember that. yeah. it was fantastic. >> there's a popular website cafe mom put the question would you put a television in your kid's bedroom. one mom posted we have enough problems with them doing their homework without adding a tv into the mix. >> although it's different now because they can get so much

video on their computer. you don't even have to have a tv in the room. >> we do have a computer in my oldest son's room but not a tv. >> i have an area off the kitchen where the computer is there so i can see what they're looking at. >> when they get older and up to high school age they probably need. >> what about tvs in your bedroom. do you have that? >> no. >> we do but we barely turn it on. with our hours, yeah. >> oh, yeah. >> oh, yeah. >> that's in the contract. >> it's all part of the deal. >> yeah, with my hours, come on. >> dad wants mom, come on. i don't want to watch tv. >> now it's getting weird, bringing batdad into it. >> come on, natalie. >> do you think he wears that mask? >> i think he does. >> we took a mask? >> i think he does.

>> taken a sharp right turn. >> whoa. >> let's do the weather. bat dad. >> let's bring you the weather, even as we speak. a lot of rain now. continually pelting florida. a stationary front that's not going anywhere and add to that low pressure developing along this thing and as that develops what we'll be looking for this weekend this, system is going to get itself together and make its way possibly up the coast. we're not talking about any sort of a nor'easter, but it is going to cause some problems if it stays along the cost. whereas florida, right now river flood warnings into the weekend. rainfall generally about 1 to 3 inches of rain, but the good news is things will dry out for our floridian friends later on late this weekend on into next week. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> partly cloudy now. temperatures around the metro area generally upper 50s to around 60, but it will rapidly warm. in fact over the next hour we

should be in the mid-60s and by noon near 70 and during the afternoon we should peek into the mid-to upper 70s. much of the region mid-afternoon and mostly cloudy tonight and 50s tomorrow morning and partly sunny on thursday and highs upper 70s and then on friday bright sunshine returns. and that's your latest weather. >> all right. reverse back to the regular al. thank you. well, this week michael j. fox is making his much anticipated return to television. >> he plays a family man who goes back to work after taking time off to focus on his parkinson's disease. >> it's a story out of fox's own life and a story near and dear to me. as some of you know, my own father has parkinson's. >> there he is. welcome home my friend. >> it is a homecoming of sorts for michael j. fox and for the character he plays on the michael j. fox show. both are returning to television. >> we love you, bro. >> thanks man. thanks for man. >> reporter: fox plays mike

henry, a family man that goes back to work as a local nbc anchor, five years after being sidelined by parkinson's disease. >> there's a scene in the first episode where your character breaks the news to his family, i'm going back to work. take me inside the moment when you broke the news to your family that you were going back to a series sitcom. >> i said to tracy, what do you think about me going back to work? and she thought i could do it but they were like you have to do something. because you're just hanging around the house. >> there's a line in the show that moved me where your character says what if i'm not the guy they remember when i go back to work. was he speaking at all for michael j. fox. >> yeah at a point in my life. the disclaimer is i have gone through a lot of stuff -- i didn't wake up and be in this place of poz activity and hearts and flowers and unicorns. i went through a lot of stuff. >> reporter: when he was 30 years old, fox was diagnosed with parkinsons. he was told his career had 10

years left. >> set the table. >> reporter: that was 22 years ago. >> do you think you've lost anything as an actor or comedian because of parkinson's disease? >> it's changed me. it changed the way i worked. i can't rely on a quick eyebrow lift or express myself in a certain way facially. i just feel stuff more. what comes out i have less control over but it tends to be more honest. >> do you get tired of people saying michael, how are you feeling? there's a look people have. i've seen it with my dad too. they feel sorry for you. >> i have come to realize that those people and i have nothing against them, it's all coming from a good place but that's their own fear. oh, i really hope i don't get what you have. >> right. >> i'm in much better shape than you. >> egg me. >> everybody has their own -- >> can you not have a personal victory right now? we are starving. >> we were like what is this show about? it's about control. we don't control.

>> oh, that's good. >> reporter: fox may not always be in control but he's hell bent on not letting parkinson's control him. >> i have difficulty running and i can't turn sideways when i'm moving and talk. it's just a thing i can't do. we shot a scene in the park with the football and i ran 20 yards out and caught it over my shoulder and kept running because i said to myself i'm not going to tell myself i can't do this. i'm just going to do it and if i ball hits me on the side of the head and i fall down then that happened. >> you're not self-conscious at all. i don't get the impression that you are at all. >> no, vanity is really overrated. when i was 20, teenage girls had my picture on the wall, i don't need to be more than who i am. i just am who i am. >> natalie was one of them. i did. i had a back to the future poster in my room. >> i did too. >> in addition to the show that comes out, fox is active working

with the michael j. fox foundation for parkinson's research. i'm on the board of that foundation. my father came out publicly with the disease last year and i joined the board. the michael j. fox show premieres tomorrow night at 9:00, 8:00 central here on nbc. what an incredible attitude he has about this. it's easy when you have parkinson's to shrink back and not want to put yourself out there. he is the exact opposite. he runs into it. >> he was so good in spin city. he kept that comedic timing. welcome back michael. glad to have you back. >> the question most parents asked themselves at some point. sit okay to fight in front of your kids? >> we'll talk to some parents and find out what expert versus to say on the issue. that's coming up right after this. mom, dad told me that cheerios is good for your heart,

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[knock] no one was at home, but on the kitchen table sat three insurance policies. the first had lots of coverage. the second, only a little. but the third was... just right! bear: hi! yeah, we love visitors. that's why we moved to a secluded house in the middle of the wilderness. just the right coverage at just the right price. coverage checker from progressive. it's inevitable spouses will argue. but is it ever okay to fight in front of your kids? >> that was the basis for a wall street journal article we saw yesterday that sparked debate so we hit the streets around rockefeller center to find out what you had to say. >> we don't fight in front of our children only because it usually causes them to fight as

well. so we usually do it after they have gone to bed. >> the minor argument is fine but if it's out of control and cursing match i would say no. >> if you're arguing about the kids themselves or something that's distressing in a personal adult private context it's not appropriate. those are adult issues. >> if we do have a disagreement we don't raise our voice. we spell things out. >> i think kids will naturally go through problem solving as they grow up. fighting within the family unit, i don't think that adds to their life skills. >> no, i don't think it's appropriate but it's going to happen so i think as long as you're not name calling and being vicious about it. >> so here to weigh in is family psychologist jennifer and david is a father of five-year-old twin boys and the author of the daddy complex and sarah miller is a mom to a three-year-old and the managing editor of

huffington post. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> what is arguing as opposed to fighting? >> and that's a really important question. arguing might be a bicker, a short disagreement but fighting is when there's much more emotional involvement. things are escalating. might be bordering on disrespect interactions because our emotions are running the show. those things you don want to do because the arguing is happening. >> it is inevitable. completely honest, how often do you raise your voice in front of your kids and fight with your spouse. >> depends on who has the remote but fights happen. it's unrealistic to think that they don't or you can hide them from kids. my wife and i try to -- we don't hide it but we also try to keep our heads in the game and know what's going on and make sure that we're not saying things that -- my rule is don't say anything you wouldn't put on facebook. >> okay. >> that's good. >> i think i agree. my daughter is only 3 years old

so we're coming out of that phase where it felt like you could say pretty much anything in front of her and she is kind of -- whether it was something that was maybe inappropriate for her to hear for other reasons or because we didn't want her to pick up on certain habits like biggering or arguing and now she is like a sponge. anything we do whether it's a attitude or type of conversation she is registering that. >> jennifer, but it's not just about the tone. it's also about the hostility in the air. even if you're giving your partner the silent treatment. kids are sensitive and they pick up on that stuff too. >> absolutely. they are sponging. there's research that shows that infants can pick up on just that angry tone and it changes the activity in their brain. so kids are picking up on whatever emotional vibe is going on around them. if you're giving your spouse silent treatment your child knows. if you're talking with your teeth clenched they know. being able to put it out there and resolve it in front of them so they knee how to resolve the conflict, super important to see

that it's possible to love someone, be mad at them, and move on. >> i would think it gets harder as your kids get older. i remember as a teenager my parents having a knockdown drag out and thinking they're going to break up. >> kids will do that. that's why the resolution part of it is so important. they need to see you can fight and get past it and make up and still love each other and be okay. >> what's most important is kids want to feel like they're in a safe and secure environment. if they feel like the situation is scary in anyway. >> all right. jennifer, david, and sarah, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> appreciate it. >> coming up next, she is back with two busy moms who turned great ideas into their dream with two busy moms who turned so ally bank really has noam hidden fees on savings accounts? no hidden fees. it's just that i'm worried about you know "hidden things." ok, why's that? well uhhh... hey daddy, what's your job? daddy's a uhh florist. are you really a florist? dad, why are there shovels in the trunk? there's no shovels in my trunk.

i see shovels... you don't see no shovels. just am. well, it's true. at ally there are no hidden fees. not one. that's nice. no hidden fees, no worries. ally bank. your money needs an ally. new kellogg's raisin bran® with omega 3 from flax seeds. plus plump juicy raisins. flax seed? who are you? i still got it. [ male announcer ] invest in your heart health with kellogg's raisin bran® cereals. [ male announcer ] invest in your heart health what if we could keep that much plastic waste out of landfills each year. by using just one less trash bag each month... we can. and glad forceflex bags stretch until they're full. so you can take them out less often. it's a small change that can make a big difference. and for continuous odor neutralization... use new glad odorshield with febreze.

served on a toasted pretzel roll, our new bacon avocado chicken sandwich comes with fries and your choice of soup or salad. it's just one of chili's delicious lunch break combos. more life happens here. woah! what? it's called a smoky eye. [ female announcer ] you may not be the best at new trends but you know what's best for your kids. so we listened when you said gogurt should have only natural colors and flavors and no high fructose corn syrup. thanks, mom. a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion 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. celebrex can be taken with or without food. and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should 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. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, like celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions, or stomach and intestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. don't take celebrex if you have bleeding in the stomach or intestine, or had an asthma attack, hives, other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat,

or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history. and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. we're back now with two mothers who turned small ideas into big business. we reached out on our website and to soleil moon frye's community and found moms wanting to share. >> host of season three of homemade simple on the home network. good morning. >> good morning. >> a momma to be. >> i know my belly is getting bigger by the moment. >> we found great momprenuers. one mom, we found her on our website today.com. take a look. >> erin is proof that good ideas come to those who wait. pregnant with twins, she spent 62 days on bedrest in 2000.

with time on her hands she created custom thank you cards from her home printer. friends and family started asking her to make personalized stationary and holiday cards. one turned to three, turning her children's play room into a makeshift office. today she operates out of a 40,000 square foot facility and boasts over 100 employees and 1,000 customers every two days. >> and erin joins us with her products here. congratulations. >> thank you. it's great to be here. >> your story is great because it not only shows what you have done but i think also talks about the power of you have a simple idea and then it's all about like giving back but then also giving them more than they expect. giving the customer more than they expect. you started off when they would request one stationary set you would send two. so word of mouth spread fast. >> i found out quickly how viral paper is. someone would order holiday

cards and order 50 holiday cards and i would think if i give her 100, 50 more people would learn about it. >> that's genius. >> the most valuable was my time. if i already designed it and i'm going to print 50, print 50 more. >> brilliant marketing. >> what is it about this product that sets you apart. i've seen stationary before but i don't think i've seen this kind of stationary and other people succeed the way you have. >> a lot has involved into time management tools and you need to figure out, especially if you have kids at home, i have a little bit of time, how do i maximize that time? i used to put on the coffee pot at 7:30 when i put them down and print like mad. so i would maximize that time. a lot is built around that. >> we love what you have done. >> thank you. >> now, let's take a look at our second story and this one was found on soleil moon frye's site. take a look. >> she started hedgehouse in

2011. a line of linens and throw beds. tired of watching her favorite pillows and couches get ruined she made a few portable ones for her children to play on. she soon discovered she had something stylish on her hands. she sold her goods at craft fairs and now it's sold in 47 stores nationwide. her work, world, and family life are always joined as her bedroom is her office, her warehouse is the garage, and her family, very much a part of the mix. >> and she joins us now. you actually had two failures with companies before this came about. >> 2,000 failures. >> well but it's an important point. some people would give up but you kept going, why? >> i'm insane. but no, you know, it's important. my mother was an artist. my father is an artist. my sister is a jewelry designer. i'm always creating things and

always making things and i've failed a lot and i just keep going. >> i am your biggest fan and when i got her letter, i'm such a huge fan, especially being pregnant this has been a savior for me, how do you put a value on your goods. that's a big question. how do you price your pieces? >> quality number one. everything here is top of the line, the best and versatility. how often you can use it in a million different ways and wa washability. >> and when you have the hard times you get back up again. >> you keep going. >> we're out of times. ladies, congratulations. erin, come on over. we're back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc.

good morning, everyone. it's 9:a on this wednesday, september 25th. i'm angie goffch it's been another chilly start to our workday. let's check this with tom. >> good morning. partly cloudy. fresh and cool. temperatures just now beginning to climb into the 60s. later today we should make it into the mid-to upper 70s by mid-afternoon and some clouds coming and going as well as tomorrow. then on friday not weekend beautiful weather. great for outdoor activities and highs 70s and morning lows 50 with sunshine and just a slight chance of a sprinkle and maybe late on monday into tuesday. danella, how is late morning traffic?

>> our very own kevin williams tweeted with b an accident causing a car fire in tyson's corner. can you see here earlier this is where the fire was, and so authorities are still on scene and luckily it's confined to your shoulder lane. your travel lanes are open but just a bit slower around the beltway in tyson's corner. >> thanks, danella. >> he shed more than 30 pounds to raise money for cancer research. coming up on news 4 midday, a coming up on news 4 midday, a local chef i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad. for 30 years i've worked as an obgyn, my job is to protect the health of women. so i'm particularly offended by ken cuccinelli. cuccinelli wants to make all abortion illegal ... ... even in cases of rape and incest. ... even to protect a woman's health.

i want a governor who's focused on schools and creating jobs, not someone who wants to do my job. who's ken cuccinelli to interfere in the lives of women across virginia? [knock] no one was at home, but on the kitchen table sat three insurance policies. the first had lots of coverage. the second, only a little. but the third was... just right! bear: hi! yeah, we love visitors. that's why we moved to a secluded house in the middle of the wilderness. just the right coverage at just the right price. coverage checker from progressive.

>> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. ♪ in our own little corner in our own little world ♪ we're back upstairs. >> yeah. >> we knew it couldn't last. anyway, it's wines day wednesday. >> but look. >> look who is here to brighten our day. >> blake. you're so cute. anyway, blake shelton from "the voice" have never met blake shelton, my dog. >> in other words, the blake shelton of your dreams has never met -- >> i know it's a little stalkerish that i named him after blake, but who cares? i wonder how it will go.

>> i think it will go well. he seems to be the kind of guy that likes his truck, his woman and his dog. >> he does? >> and his guitar. and his guitar. >> keep looking at him. >> no bambino but kind of cute. >> look at his face. my gosh. >> i think he's prematurely gray. >> no, that's -- his belly is all white. all right. angela, my great dog walker. >> sitting here very quietly and be no trouble at all. >> hey, hey. let's talk about "the voice," though. auditions keep getting better. there were a couple of standouts. they keep getting better. let's take a look. ♪ >> my word! ♪ i had to find you >> blake!

>> i love you. >> oh, my god. >> really interesting voice. ♪ to the east side >> jeffersons? yes! ♪ to a deluxe apartment to the sky ♪ >> i'm so honored to be on your team. >> come on. ♪ ever wonder what he's doin' how it all turns to life ♪ ♪ sometimes i think that it's better to never ask why ♪ >> i think i'm gonna go with adam. >> oh, my gosh. i think that's a good choice for her. that's a good choice for her. >> awesome, that last girl. >> look at -- all of them. all of them just turn around. you know when you know. >> you know what? then when they turn around and they see what goes with "the

voice" it's total confirmation. from jamaica, right? >> team adam. >> "the voice" airs monday nights and tuesday at 8:00, 7:00 central. we open the paper again -- >> oh, my gosh, just exhausted. massive coverage. >> what page was it on? in the middle. >> i think it's marked, hoda, for intelligent people. that's what that means. >> big two-page spread. and tomorrow, we're going to be talking again in the paper, "the daily news." >> i'm not found of the word spread, because it's part of menopause, but i'm happy with it there. we're not trying to save the world. although world peace would be good. >> we're talking about light and frivolous things. >> and will not probably advance your life. probably make you smile, give you a little giggle. >> we each have a little bone to pick.

>> you more than i, because you spend a lot more time there. you live there. >> in our apartment, have you ever been where there's construction going on in your neighborhood? >> they start putting up the scaffolding and nobody really knows what's going on. >> you think when is that going to be over? >> work has to be done. >> across the street. that's fine. i wonder when it's over. >> how long is it going to be? >> oh, work on this project is -- 2017. thank you for your patience. >> you know what i realized, hod? >> what? >> that's in time for my 31st wedding anniversary to my first husband. that's the day. it will be great. >> i cannot believe it's april of -- what year are we in? >> 2013. >> '14, '15, '16, '17. four years, they're going to be digging, or whatever they're doing. >> i know. you have a year-to-year lease, hoda. >> i do? >> you can change things.

>> do i? >> yes, you do. >> do i? >> yes, you do. >> nobody told me. >> i would like to know why your rent is not affected when all of your -- all of the so-called benefits you get from living on that street are incringed and infringed. >> we're not even showing what it's like. >> no. it's a disaster. and it's been that way already for a year, right? >> and a lot of patience. >> it's wines day, so we're wining about that. >> yes, we are. all right. lamar odom has broken his silence. >> yes. >> this is the first time he has broken out since his arrest for dui on the 30th of august. he spoke out via twitter and he was sort of blaming his absent father for his recent problems and crediting the kardashians for helping out. >> he said i have let this man and others get a way with a lot all of my life. his demons may have been the

only thing he gave to me. on the kardashian family, he says -- >> they are a blessing and the only ones that have been there consistently for me during this time, which says a lot, because it seems like khloe always stood by him. >> i've been in touch with kris again through all of this. it is that way. they love him. he is a really, really sweet person. and i think they're all hoping that even if he and khloe don't remain together that he's going to come through this, because he's basically a very good guy. >> good guy. >> yeah. miley cyrus, everybody is speak out. >> he said i only have myself to blame, even though he blamed his father, he said i only have myself to blame, which is not something we're hearing from miss miley yet. >> no. >> and tomorrow is probably not looking good either. >> miley is on the front cover of "rolling stones" and you know that picture is something speci special. is she totally naked? >> apparently. >> she gave an interview and

said while she was getting the words "rolling stone" tattooed on the bottom of her foot -- those are tattoos apparently. >> yeah. >> anyway, she said on her vma performance, no one is talking about the man behind the derriere. it was mileyt twerks on robin thicke never about robin thicke. >> she was the instigator. she was the tease. he is an adult and should know better, too. then again, it is the video awards and everybody has come to expect that sort of stuff. yeah. i mean, i have twerked with al recognizer and to me it's not that big of deal, but it was in front of thousands and thousands and thousands of young kids. >> you're right. but that video does exist, by the way, of you twerking with al roker. it does. >> it was a big moment for me. >> of course it was. >> what does she sayjucht

justin bieber? >> she said i do mentor him in a way and i have already transitioned and i don't think he has quite done it yet. she also warns him not to become vanilla ice. i tell him like you don't want to become a joke. when you go out don't start -- don't come in shirtless but the thing is i think boys are like -- seven years behind so in his head he's really like -- 12, like. yeah, she's transitioned. and sometimes in life that's a good thing and sometimes in life it's an unfortunate thing. >> she's mentoring justin bieber. >> she needs to show that she can be classy again and she needs to start letting her talent speak. >> she's very talented. >> she is a talented girl. what was it cher said? don't show your tongue if it's coated. remember that? >> yes, she did. >> god bless cher. she tells it like it is.

>> i love cher. >> usually i hate sequels, because they're never, ever as good. ever. but this one -- >> let me say it another way. the day after jeff daniels won an emmy, he was back on the set in atlanta, filming a sequel to one of my favorite movies ever, 1994's "dumb and dumber." >> this is the new photo. this one is called "dumb and dumber to," spelled t-o, in case you're wondering. it will be hilarious. that's jim carrey's real chipped tooth. he was on ellen and said it was cracked and that's the way it's going to be. >> when you only get paid $20 million a film, it costs a lot to fix a tooth. i could send him over to dr. larry right now and get that baby taken care of. >> yeah. you know what? >> i never understood why leon, every time he had a fight, he would win $200 million for a fight, never went to the dentist

apparently. i don't understand it. >> works out. you know who did arrive, who has just arrived in the building? we heard a rumor. blake shelton is here. blake shelton is in the building. >> he will not be allowed on our set -- oh, he made it. >> oh, nice of you to join us. >> he made it through the u.n. traffic of manhattan, which is not easy. >> not easy. >> the what traffic? >> the uniteded nati enations. >> the crappy traffic? are you talking about the -- >> that, too. >> we'll talk about blake in a moment. he will also meet my little blake. >> there's going to be, yeah, a very first-time experience. bill hader is here with "chance of meatballs." cute. ♪

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nbc's "the voice," blake shelton has a track record of producing superstar. >> well, i don't want to brag. >> now he is back looking for new talent. >> is this yours? >> no, please, it's yours. >> and together with a gang who likes to ruffle his feathers from time to time. shall we take a look? >> you know who stevie wonder is, right? >> i do. i've performed with him.

you're about to drop some names. >> blake, that hurt my feelings. >> i'm sorry. i'm sorry. >> it's about you. it's about you right now. >> i still have a man crush on you, though. >> wow, you seem to have sexual tension with pretty much anybody. don't you? >> hello. >> it's palpable. >> this is my moment. you ask the questions. i'm just going to listen. >> enjoy. how is the new season going, blake is this. >> yeah, how is it? >> are you kidding me? we're all back together again. so i love that. >> did you say love? >> i love that. >> okay, good. just listening. >> she just likes to watch your lips move. >> how big are my lips? your lips move, my god -- >> i've been drinking since 7:00, so they're a little blurred, if you know what i'm saying. >> so is it fun to have the whole group back together, you, christina, c. lo and adam?

it seems to fit. i like that group. >> the four of us started the thing together, you know. there's still that -- i mean, we just fell right back into that thing again. >> yeah, you did. >> and we love each other and we're very competitive. >> in a healthy way, in a good way. >> in a good way. we really don't give a crap about the other people's performances. we're only about ourselves when it comes to that. >> you know what? i admire your honesty. i really do. it's rare. rare. >> you won -- >> you can say it. >> every one except one. >> and i'm still not sure -- >> you should have won that one. >> that's legally -- >> why don't they all pick you? >> in other words why don't they go with the winner? >> why are they going with the other coaches? >> well, i mean, what would you do? >> i would be gracious and kind and pray for everybody. >> so, you're not very honest,

are you? i don't know. i just have fun. i just have fun on the show. maybe that's why -- >> it works. >> some of those artists come with me. they know they're not going to be -- i'm probably going to be drunk and passed out during rehearsals anyway and they're like, i can do whatever i want. >> you're going to be a blast. >> yeah. >> you have to meet someone. i can't wait anymore. let's see. where is he? >> come here. come here. oh, come here! >> this is a moment. >> oh, my gosh. >> this is really live, happening on tv, meeting. like one of those reunion things where you find a lost family member. >> i know. >> how are you doing, blake? >> there's even more sexual tension now. >> now that's just weird. >> what do you think of him? >> i love him. i've seen so many pictures of him, i feel like i know him. >> he's smelling you. >> give him here. give him here. >> he's smelling you. oh, you are a cute dog. yes, you are. >> do you like that? oh, my god. >> a ton of dogs at home with

your wife, don't you? >> oh, yeah. in fact, my wife just got another dog like three days ago. >> another rescue? >> another rescue. >> what kind? >> i don't know. i don't know what it is. nobody knows. it's a puppy. >> how many do you have? >> i think that's like five or six dogs that we have now. >> are you fostering them or do you keep them? >> i wish to god we were fostering them, but they have long-term like lifetime fostering. >> what's going on here? what is going on here? >> see, he needs a man in his life, hodie. >> oh, my gosh. we're going to take a couple of fan questions. we have people downstairs who want to ask you some things with brittany. >> blake, carrie wants to know what song you like to perform live. >> i really like "lick it up" by kiss. i guess "old red" and "boys

around here." >> let's do the chorus. wait a minute. >> you don't even know your own lyrics. >> how does it go? ♪ those boys around here drinkin' that ice cold beer talkin' about girls talkin' about trucks red dirt roads kickin' up dust ♪ >> trucks and dust don't rhyme. ♪ don't take no spit chewin' tobacco zblrchl chewin' tobacco spit ♪ >> that was a great i hoda song, too. >> yes, it was brit. what else do we have? >> have you ever chosen someone that you wondered why you picked them after? >> and name names, if you're so honest. >> no, i haven't.

>> there you go. >> i mean, there's people that -- we all meet people and eventually wonder why we ever hung out with them, you know what i mean? >> wonder what we liked about them the first time around. what was that? how could i have been so wrong? >> you seemed so cool -- but i don't know. i'm sure that's happened in the show. honestly, when you get down to those last three or four, you've gotten so you're such a cheerleader and you've gotten so attached to them, i haven't had a problem with any of those final people. >> but a lot of people don't have the stamina that it takes to be a winner. they might be able to give one great performance but they don't have the range in terms of -- to go on. >> sure. >> yeah. >> we have time for one more question downstairs. oh, you want to spin the bottle? sorry, brit. we don't have time. you want to spin the bottle? get over there. >> that will work. >> what does this mean? >> can you grab that? thank you, baby.

that means there's a question from me on the back. >> this will take forever. >> no, hoda will read it. beer or hard liquor, box ers or brief briefs, adam or miranda. >> i didn't ask that question. >> yes, you did. >> no, i did not. >> they pay you to ask questions like that? >> boxers. >> do you wear thongs? >> yeah. >> ask miranda. >> just to the beach. >> all right. >> adam or -- come on. >> that's not nice and not funny, joann. >> we love you. >> glad i got to meet blake. >> "the voice" monday and tuesday nights at 8:00, 7:00 central on, you know, nbc. thanks for coming by. central on, you know, nbc. thanhershey's is more than chocolate,

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and we're back with more of wines day wednesday. our game called "who knew?" and in case you didn't know, september is menopause month. kathie lee is having a hot flash. she's next door to the nbc experience store ready to hand out $100 cash to those who get the answers right and those who don't get a kathie lee cd. madelyn fernstrom and nbc chief medical officer. hello, ladies. are you ready? >> sure. >> all right. let's go. >> adorable lady from florida. in "sex and the city 2," what vegetable did samantha overeat in an attempt to stave off menopause? sweet potatoes, yams, eggplant

or carrots? >> carrots. [ buzzer ] >> nope, nope, nope. 14 original songs. it's fantastic. >> correct answer is yams. i remember that from the movie. what do they do? >> it's an old wives tale. it can serve as weak estrogen except it doesn't get converted in our bodies. >> can you stave off menopause with foods or anything like that? is there anything you can do? >> you can help the symptoms with some stuff, with food, but -- >> okay. let's go back across the street with kath. >> this lady is from new orleans, she wants me to say. one of these foods may help reduce hot flashes. which one? not that you would know. spicy chicken wings, iced coffee, champagne or soy nuts. >> it has to be champagne. >> you're wrong, but i agree with you. >> i like her. >> it's not champagne. >> no, it is not. >> you'll have fun with my cd. do you have a grandchild? >> yes. >> perfect. >> the correct answer here, soy

nuts. >> it's a weak estrogen. you have to have three or four servings a day, glass of soy mick or ha milk or handful of soy nuts isn't going to help. caffeine may trigger a hot flash. >> they do? >> you might think caffeine is good, but -- >> i doubt had guy knows anything at all, but he's from massachusetts, so we'll give him a try. which "golden girl" mistakenly thought she was pregnant only to find out she was actually going through menopause? dorothy, rose, blanche or sophia or do you even know who they are? >> i do. let's say rose. >> no, but that would have been funny, too. it's a big day for kathie lee. >> the correct answer is the sexy one, blanche. >> right. >> so the symptoms are similar, is that right? >> in that you lose your periods and people think they're too young, they may be pregnant. but they're really not.

it doesn't just stop one day. it's a process that can take up to ten years. >> okay. back across to kath. >> lovely lady from portland, maine. what is the average age for menopause for women in the united states, 49, 51, 53 or 55 years old? >> 51. >> you got it. >> wow! 51 is the magic number. >> you know what's interesting about that? specific to the u.s. it's 51, but places like india, it's 54. it's a cultural or geographical difference. >> i wonder what explains that. >> i don't have the answer. >> actually, in our country, periods stop at 50, but the official end is one year after the periods so no accidental pregnancies there. >> darn, i was hoping we would get to lian niesen who is sitting here. that's his wife, okay. do you want to stand and do this together? what is a menopot, type of herbal tea, excess belly fat, elastic undergarment or a crunchy snack?

>> you want to take this one, babe? >> sure. i'm going to go with b. >> yeah. >> belly fat. menopot. is that a real term? >> it is actually. estrogen kind of dictates where the fat goes. so you have the apple and the pear. the pear is more the estrogen. when it goes away, it starts to accumulate more in the central region, in the belly and you become apple shape. >> how do you fight that? >> so many things happening. that's a lifestyle thing. eat smarter, less fat, lot of fiber, fruits and vegetables, cut your calories and your metabolic rate, metabolism slows, so get more exercise. the extra fat has to come from where it's coming. just settles. >> smart ladies. thanks for coming to see us. you made us laugh. oh, my gosh. only klg. he made us laugh on snl and now making us laugh in his new adventure. [ female announcer ] introducing quaker real medleys bars and oatmeal plus!

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>> you minute flamingos. >> there's a bunch of shrimp. >> they look like chimpanzees. >> shimpanzees. >> shimpanzee. >> there's a leak in the boat! >> ahh! >> there's a lot going on. >> yeah. >> the plot is kind of hard to follow. >> yeah. >> so nice to see you again. it picks up right where the last one ended. >> yes, yes. >> we enjoyed that thoroughly, even though we're adults with a little bit of intelligence. >> we went to karate kid thing. "karate kid 2" picks up right where "karate kid" leaves off. >> and you accomplished it. >> we did. >> do you enjoy these animated films? >> i do. it's nice. it is weird because you are just in a booth by yourself, screaming your lines. >> and you said you didn't realize how much you use yourd hands when you talk, huh? >> yeah. i do like this with my hands a lot and when we went and saw the

movie, clint lockwood is like doing this. and my wife is like, oh, gosh. i have to deal with that all the time. it's like, we've got to get out of here. come on. we've got to go. >> they videotape you while you're doing, what, 20 takes per thing? >> every line you do the same thing like, barry, we've got to go. come on, we've got to go. come on, we've got to go. like over and over again. >> don't you think people make up their mind? >> in the editing room, they sit there -- >> particular art form, isn't it? and a great cast of people in there with you. >> yeah. anna is back, andy sandberg. >> kristen chenoweth. >> no, kristen shah. >> who plays the little monkey? >> neil patrick harris. >> i get them confused all the time. >> you are not the only person in america. no. i think you are the only person in america. what is neil patrick harris doing here? we asked for kristen.

>> in many seasons that you're not going to be on, how will that feel, turning on the tv saturday night and checking it out? >> i'm excited. we were at seth meyers' wedding, talking about it and now i'm like a fan, like what are the new people like? i'm all excited. >> are you wishing them well or hoping for their demise? >> no. >> oh, that is my favorite. james carville. >> i'm excited because, i mean -- i'm just excited to see what they do. amy poehler said it's like going to your own funeral, watching the first show. i was like what? good. i have that to look forward to. she said it's like watching your own funeral. >> we've seen you on all those commercial. they're ridiculous. >> t-mobile commercials? >> yeah. >> are those your words or theirs? >> no, these guys, adam and dave, canadian film makers did those. some of them, i -- that one i

helped out. that's the one i pitched, what if a guy started to take my phone and he doesn't want it because it stinks and i picked up three other ideas that they very politely said, no. that was one of theirs. that's one of theirs, too. this is based on my real life. that's based on my real life. that's how i met my wife, right there. yep. >> have you gone hollywood since you moved out to l.a. now? i know you try to be a solid citizen, good husband, good father and all this stuff. >> yeah. >> is it all falling apart since you moved to la, la land? >> no. look at me. look how i'm dressed, still wearing new balance. not at all. no paparazzi. it's mostly, hey -- oh. >> good luck with the film. >> thank you. >> had fun. >> hoda didn't like it. >> we all know, we heard her in the screening going, "boo." food can't do that.

>> it's a lot of fun. >> it's "cloudy with a chance of meatballs 2." your little ones are going to love it. >> you're crazy. >> coming up, he's not talking meatballs. we're talking to jamie deen. >> we'll get to business in our [ female announcer ] don't miss out on jcpenney cash days. for 4 days only starting friday get 10 dollars off 25 with your jcp cash coupon. plus, doorbusters friday 3pm to saturday 1pm. like 50% off all sheet sets and 40% off joe fresh kids.

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it is time to headn to "today's" kitchen from a true southern cook, jamie deen. >> his famous mama, paula deen always fixed southern dishes for her family growing up in georgia and today he carries on the tradition. >> new book called "jamie deen's good food." >> good food y'all. look how lucky i am today. who cares about pie? >> you and blake shelton, and

bill hader. >> we were all in houston a few weeks ago and mama and bobby were in dallas i started coming out with "good food." it's tremendous to -- that's right after i said, mama, that's an ugly cry. i did. >> of course you did. >> she's on the mend. >> she is. mama's fantastic. we've been through so many challenges in our life and, you know, it's just one of those things. >> you find out who your friends are and who they aren't. >> quick. we love you guys. thank you for having me. >> you bet. what are we making today? >> best pie you've ever eaten out of the best cookbook ever written. >> sounds pretty good. salty caramel is good. everybody is doing it. we've been eating pecan pies forever. salty caramel pecan pie with a pretzel crust. start with this much. crumble it up. i have that perfectly crumbled. >> and i'm ruining it. i'm trying to be helpful. >> we've got some butter and some sugar and a little bit of

flour that's going to bind this together. like my mama. >> get every bit of it. look, you both have lost some weight. >> we have. can't do anything about being old but i don't have to be fat. that's what i like about this book. i use it so much with our kids, this is kind of what we eat. it's not healthy -- it's not a diet book but it's healthier. good options for us. let's start with the butter and the corn syrup and all the good stuff. >> yeah, yeah. >> press this in here. >> this is what it looks like, all right. >> and we've got our filling going. we're going to add a couple of eggs. now, this is a perfect any time of the year, because we just love pec ans. >> what's in there, chocolate? >> brown sugar, corn syrup and this has the salt in it. this is where the salty comes from. what we're going to do with this, y'all, you press that out, put it in the oven, precook it for ten minutes. we may never get it done. >> i'm not -- you have to work

on that one. >> cooks for 15 minutes. you can do this the night before so it can set up. would you like lemon or pecan? >> i like them both. i'm going to have a little bite of both. >> pecan pie can be runny. give it time to set up. i just love it. this is one of my favorites. all of the guys here, everybody y'all can see is lining up for it. you can't have a southern book without a jell had been o so we have a jell-o salad. he has been waiting. better than rhubarb, brother. i'll tell you that. >> this is your wife's recipe? >> she does that for the holidays. i thought a jell-o salad? it's fantastic. >> i love y'all. >> we love you. kids are back in school. do you wish you were, too? >> great options if you want to learn something new. first this is "today" on nbc. [ mom ] in my family, we're big cereal lovers.

so we just look for this g. 'cause general mills makes over 40 yummy flavors that are 130 calories or less per serving. and they're packed with vitamins and minerals. from lucky charms to cheerios. over 40 cereals. 130 calories or less. [ laughs ] ♪ [ female announcer ] hey ladies. you love it. you've got to have it. cinnamon toast crunch, 'cause that cinnamon and sugar is so irresistible. everybody craves those crazy squares.®

the kids are back in school and you're ready to shake things up but figuring out what you want to do is often harder than making the decision to do. >> we have help to get you started, author of "the adult student," insider's guide of going back to school and sharon epperson is cnbc's professional correspondent. >> a lot of people want to go back to school and that can be a daunting idea for people, can't it? >> it can be. you have to figure out how much time you have in your day, an empty nester versus someone with a preschooler will have different times available. >> whether you can afford it, whether the degree will be worth it, the certificate or whatever you're going back for. >> and technology has probably changed a lot since you went to school last time. you better be up-to-date on those kinds of skills.

>> absolutely. be up-to-date on those kinds of skills and you may choose to take the course online as well. >> you see a lot of those online degrees advertised on tv. are those -- not legitimate but something an employer would look at and say, great, you went there. that's fine. >> certainly in the past they may have -- in the last five years, it's largely been removed, thankfully. state schools and community colleges have programs online and a lot of for-profit online institutions are regionally accredited now, the same standard as a traditional school. >> costs a lot less, don't it? >> less, and what you need to focus on is the skills you need to get. whether you're getting them from an online course, community college, you want to get the skills and show you're marketable in whatever it is you want to do. that's the main point. >> i want to go back and do something. where is there a need for employees? >> there's always a need for health care. all that we're talking about with the changes, definitely a

growing field, technology. then you might think this is a little wonky. accounting. people want account ants. there are creative jobs out there, social media marketing. >> right. can you get loans for school? how do you go about doing that? >> just as you would with traditional college, you can get a student loan. a lot of these online colleges have self funding, 0% interest, which is beneficial. and for traditional education applies for online education. >> same things we tell people to do to apply to college in general you need to do. that main thing is to get that federal form filled out, free application for federal student aid. start there. a lot of the loans you're going to get from the government as well as the institutions are going to come, based on what you put on that form. that's a key place to start. >> we're hearing so much lately about how is it worth the cost of education to get that degree? let's have you back and you can talk about that. >> find the scholarships that are out there. >> thank you, ladies. tomorrow, "parenthood" star,

actor peter kraus is with us. >> and can solve everything but your broken heart.

>> we have live coverage of two stories developing right now. the first happening on cal top hill. ted with the help of fellow republicans has been on the senate floor for more than 20ure hours arguing against the affordable health act. >> we have live coverage from downtown washington where workers are demanding better wages. tony will bring us up to date. i'm barbara harrison. it's september 25th, 2015. we begin with news that is breaking. angie goff has news from capitol hill. angie? >> good morning. af