battle over viral videos, a power wheel upgrade, a backyard roller coaster, we're weighing in on which one we think is the best. >> we have a jazz and r&b singer in our studio to perform later this hour. ♪ [ music ] >> a lot of stuff. let's jump in. we tucker barnes standing by for an update on this morning weather. >> yeah, couple of showers out there to start your day. it will be kind of a humid warm afternoon but let's get right to the radar. showers to the south just west of fredericksburg, can't quite see it there under the banner but we have one or two showers and then just off to the north and west, as well. and these showers, this is a thunderstorm about an hour ago. still some leftover showers there, gotten closer up 270 into montgomery county near rockville and now pushing towards howard county getting showers next. that will be the theme around

here next. warm and humid start. partly sunny at times today just like yesterday. we'll have a lot of clouds around, as well. and we'll see one or two additional showers a thunderstorm later today in the summer heat. 79 right now in washington, 75 ocean city. 69 in hagerstown. you will notice that humidity out there with your sunshine, highs in the low 90s later today. 92 washington and 90 in baltimore. more details on the forecast, good news, less humid air and cooler air on the way. details on that in just a minute. back to you. new this morning d.c. police are investigating a robbery where the victim was attacked with a hammer. this happened around 12:45 this morning at 14th and irving streets in northwest. police are searching for four suspects. the victim's injuries are not considered life-threatening. a 25-year-old chillum man is charged with kidnapping and sexually assaulting two young girls. police say charles amofa abducted the girls from an

thrift store on university boulevard in hyattsville. the first incident happened on july 9th. the second happened on monday when a 6-year-old girl was lured away and brought to a nearby playground. a police officer said he found her in the park with amofa. >> she seemed very desperate and the only thing coming out of her mouth was i want my daddy, i want my daddy. >> scary. turn around and then you don't know where they are and then you can't find them. i couldn't imagine. horrible. >> the father of the 6-year-old released a statement warning parents to watch their children carefully. it only takes the 30 seconds for them to disappear. amofa is held without bond. new this morning, crews are on the scene of a fire at one world trade center. now, this broke out on the 88th floor of the building which is still under construction. officials say there are no reports of any injuries. the skyscraper is being built on the former site of the twin

towers. another big story that we're following this wednesday morning, pepco says they are planning to ask for a rate hike in the fall. >> this despite customers' recent frustrations with especially he could's response to the thousands of power outages following the june derecho. fox 5's melanie alnwick is following the big story. >> reporter: 200 people packed the public hearing most of them expressing outrage for them asking for money for services they didn't receive. this is the first of several hearings. the june derecho was a hurricane like storm without the benefit of a hurricane warning. at one point 702,000 pepco customers in maryland and d.c. were in the dark some for more than a week. pepco said it cost 70 to $85 million last month regulators

rejecting a pepco request or most of it for $68 million from its maryland customers. they only allowed an $18 million increase about a $1.89 increase per customer per month. the company told investors in a conference call yesterday that it intends to keep going back for more. >> plan b is just to keep filing rate cases every nine months if that's necessary and that's what we plan to do. i just think we keep pounding the rate case drum. >> reporter: pepco did not specify how much of a rate increase it would be asking for in the next go-around. last night was montgomery county's customers turn. tonight, it will be prince george's county pepco customers' turn. there will be a public hearing at prince george's community college starting at 7:00 p.m. >> thank you. an escalator at the

l'enfant plaza metro station is closed after an accident yesterday morning. a woman's bag got caught in a metal side panel causing the panel to rip of. metro is investigating the accident. now to a story that you will see only on fox 5. a d.c. man who ordered a flat screen tv online received his package but it wasn't a television. take a look. when he opened the box, he found a semi-automatic rifle. seth horvitz ordered a flat screen tv through a third party seller on amazon.com. the shipping label had his name and address, but the invoice inside the box indicated it should have been shipped to a gun shop in pennsylvania. not sure what to do, horvitz called d.c. police. they came to his house and confiscated the rifle which is illegal in the district. >> they were a little confused at first. they had never seen anything quite like it but they just sort of took my information and

then said, well, we'll handle this weapon because it's illegal to keep here. it's illegal to transport in a car. so it can't be returned. you can't deal with it. we have to take it away. so they took possession of it. >> horvitz says the package was left in the hallway outside his apartment. he says anyone could have gotten hold of it. again, a third party seller shipped the package not amazon. we have reached out to amazon and the third party seller. we are waiting on a response. and we'll definitely keep you updated on this story. in addition to his job as prince george's county executive, rushern baker recently opened up about his other role as caretaker to his wife now. 52-year-old krista beverly was diagnosed with early onset alzheimer's in 2010. now mr. baker and his three children are faced with caring for their mother and mr. baker's wife as her memory fades. rushern baker joins us now live to talk about this and some of the big issues facing the county now and how he is managing to balance it all. welcome to the show. welcome back to the show.

>> thank you, allison. glad to be here. >> if i may speak from the heart, we were all touched and saddened to hear about this -- about this challenge that you and your family are dealing with. let me ask you first of all, how are you doing? >> i'm doing well. i'm doing very well. and my wife is doing well. and we're blessed, you know, and i said that and i think my -- our kids remind us of that every day, that we have a lot of support. i want to thank you and tony and fox 5 for the report you did after we came out on alzheimer's and early onset alzheimer's. one of the reasons my children decided they wanted to do the interview was so that, one, that people would know how much we love -- they love their mother and how much i love my wife, our 26th anniversary is tomorrow. >> happy anniversary! >> thank you. >> yes. >> she is just a terrific person. and the other is to make people aware that we need to do more

research and more help. i have a terrific 17-year-old at home who for the last two years has been helping me out so that i could do my job in prince george's county and so quincy is terrific and they all are. so we're blessed. >> you just revealed this news to the public recently, but this is something you have been dealing with for some time having read the article, uhm, something was different, something had changed with your wife. is that what you are urging people to look for? but you had all the tests and those tests came back negative. what is your message for those who are watching? >> well, pay attention to those little things. it took about two years before we finally got the diagnosis. and the other is, you know, there's a increase especially among african-american women of early onset dementia so we want to be aware. there are great resources out there, that helped my family, the alzheimer's foundation one of the last financial things that my wife did was send in a

contribution to the alzheimer's foundation, which is how i actually got the information and go online and start looking at that time. >> well, we wish your family the very best for years and years to come. you still have the business of handling prince george's county. >> yes, i do. >> and its nearly 900,000 residents. so let's talk about issues facing the county. you're going into the special session tomorrow and right only table is gambling in prince george's county at the national harbor. what are you hoping for? what's next? >> well, first of all, i want to thank the governor for his leadership in calling the special session. i think his bill that he just put out -- we're analyzing the bill now, it will have a set site in prince george's county, table games at the existing site and i think it will bring in revenue and jobs for prince george's county and the state. that's the main thing we are going to tell people in annapolis that this is about revenue, about money coming into the county, it's about money coming into the state but it's also about creating permanent jobs for residents. and i think it's going to be an

economic boom for the washington region. >> any idea about how the public feels? they have the final say should it get to that point. any idea how folks are feeling? >> the feedback i have been get something people want to see us built a facility at national harbor. they think it's an economic boom for the county and for the state. but the important thing that you said is that ultimately the voters will decide whether we do this. so this is just giving the legislature giving the right for the voters to decide in november whether they are going to have this on the ballot. i mean whether they're going to pass it or notful ultimately they will decide. >> let's talk about the school system. you know, school is starting on the 20th, right? what is that, like 1days from now? the search continues for that interim chief and the second deputy, as well. where are you now with that search? where is the school board with that? >> well, the school board put out, i thought, a good plan on how they are going to proceed for a search for a permanent

superintendent. i think they are doing the right thing taking their time looking for a permanen superintendent. i have told them i want to play an active role and as a partner because education is so important, and we will. but we really want to get the type of person that will come into prince george's county and stay for more than four or five years. dr. height did a district job which is why everybody came after him, including our good friends in philadelphia. but we want to see if we can get a superintendent that will be here for, you know, like i said 8 to 12 years like montgomery county or fairfax. >> what happens if that person isn't, you know, identified, the interim person, when school starts? is that a concern of yours for residents? >> it's not an immediate concern because dr. height will stay here through september, my understanding but i think the school board is moving in the right direction. they have identified good candidates as interim superintendent but it's

important to have the right person in there for the short period of time to keep the good work we're doing going and then pick somebody for the long haul. >> we will of course be right here it report when that happens. this is rushern baker. we'll be right back. ♪

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color images from the mars rover named "curiosity" are coming in now. the one ton rover touched down on the surface of mars on monday. initially it beamed back black and white photos but now the cameras are able to send color photos. scientists are examining curiosity's surroundings which include a three-mile-high mountain. the rover will spend the next two years on mars chiseling into rocks and scooping up soil to determine if life evhether i exists on the red planet. >> my favorite images are always these first few images because you first get a chance to really see where you are.

and i think the emotion of those every time we get a new one we all crowd around the screen and watch. >> scientists are examining curiosity surroundings which include again a three-mile high mountain and the rove will spend those year -- i think i'm reading the same thing. okay. let's move to the next story. shall we? the secretary of state is known for her diplomacy but who knew hillary clinton had some dance moves. check her out. she was breaking it down with officials in south africa. it was caught on camera. she is seen there smiling and laughing. let's check her out. and showing off some of her dance moves. secretary clinton was attending a dinner party hosted by south africa's foreign minister in johannesburg last night. she looks great. it is just one stop on the secretary's trip to the continent of africa. >> were they playing the electric slide? [ laughter ] talking to your kids about love and sex is an important part of parenting but it can also be one of the most

challenging parts of parenting. "talk to me first" is a new book that promises to help parents of kids of all ages become the most credible and influential source of information about sex in their children's lives. to talk more about how is the author of the book, deborah roffman, who has written extensively about all of this. thanks for come in. good to have you here. >> thank you. >> here's my first question. it just seems counter intourive. it seems like it would be -- counterintuitive. it seems like it's impossible for your kids to think it's cool to talk to your parents about sex. >> i think when we're teenagers i think that's what we think. i know better. i have been in classrooms for almost 40 years and i know that children and teenagers both need and want adult input especially from their parents, sometimes they have a need not to make it look that way. but they know that it's a big world that they need to be prepared to face the world and this subject is no different.

>> so i would imagine in order to make the kids comfortable talking to you about such issues, you got to start early. how early should you start? >> well, of course, when we're naming babies' body parts for them, that's where the conversation starts. it matters as we use direct terms. knowledge and language sem pouring. then probably for most children about the age of 4, they begin to spontaneously ask questions about their origins and sometimes, we adults misinterpret that. sometimes we think we have to tell them about adult sex. is the child has no interest in that. that's not where the child is. they have no concept of adult intimacy playing out in that way. what they do want to know is how they got here so that they ask -- tend to ask a series of

questions from 4 through 6, first at 4, where did i come from? typically at 5, how did i get out of there? and typically at 6, how did i get in there in the first place? and that has to do not with emotional readiness, which we sometimes worry about, but their thought process, their cognitive development. they are old enough to sudden his grasp at the age of 6, i wasn't always here, which must be a scary realization. it's existential. >> so give me an example of what you would say to a 6-year- old who says, well, okay, how did i get in and out of there? >> well, the first question is place to start, first of all, you grew inside mom. if you have an adopted child or used a surrogate for a pregnancy, for example, you would say, babies will always grow inside their mother in a special place called a uterus. the next year when the child asks how did i get out of

there, what they need to know about is the connecting space. you know, which we call under those circumstances the birth canal. and then at 6 years old, they want to know things like you got started so amazing from two teeny little cells that came together. and a 6-year-old who is very cause and effect oriented is going to want to know -- wait a minute, how did that cell from dad get to that cell from mom? and the answer is really to explain to them that nature, god, however you are most comfortable with, designed male and female bodies to be able to fit together just like puzzle pieces so that that sperm can travel to that egg and i guarantee you if these conversations have happened in a low key matter of fact way, the child will say, oh. >> and that's one of the things not to get alarmed and to start running around the kitchen

going ah. >> and exactly. you have established yourself as your child's go to person so we get to be the primary educators. we get to have our lens be over their eyes and our voice in their head about these issues before somebody else gets there first. >> unfortunately, we are out of time. obviously we can't do justice to this in four minutes so you have to pick up the book, "talk to me first," deborah roffman the author with good sound advice about talking to your kids about sex and for teens, too. thank you very much. we appreciate it. allison, back to you. >> thank you. coming up, major flooding in the philippines as tropical storm ernesto makes landfall. a check of the stories making headlines straight ahead. first, time to check back in with holly. good morning. >> reporter: our birthday party is in full swing as we are live at the national aquarium in baltimore it morning and today is their 31st birthday this morning. margaret is here for the party. coming up we are going to talk all about the macaw encounter

plus we have some special deals. if you have a birthday in august, why this is the month for you to come, too. it's all live later on "fox 5 morning news." stay with us. 

in the philippines, half the capital of manila is under water and the scenes almost look like new orleans after katrina. thousands of people are stranded as raging monsoon floodwaters trap people in homes and on rooftops. the army and rescue crews are trying to get to people who are cut off. the country is still reeling from a typhoon that killed 53 last week. ernesto is a tropical storm. the storm slammed into the yucatan peninsula this morning as a level one hurricane with sustained winds of 85 miles an hour. thousands of people were evacuated from the coastline.

ernesto is expected to regain hurricane strength when it's over the bay of campeche. so far no word on any damage. coming up next, the battle of the dads. we have your backyard roller coaster, we have your power wheel upgrade, you're not going to want to miss she is viral videos straight ahead. >> katie ledecky is back home from the olympics. hear about her experience next. >> a late-night thriller for the nats. they won. espinosa had a two-run homer and in the bottom of the 12th, roger bernadina made the catch in deep center for the final out. the nats win 3-2. go, nats! there it is again. s again. [ male announcer ] in 1996,

president clinton and a bi-partisan congress helped end welfare as we know it, by requiring work for welfare. but on july 12th, president obama quietly announced a plan to gut welfare reform by dropping work requirements. under obama's plan, you wouldn't have to work, and wouldn't have to train for a job -- they just send you your welfare check. and welfare to work goes back to being plain, old welfare. mitt romney will restore the work requirement, because it works. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message.

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look at your televisions. an internet showdown over who is the best dad. 5-year-old evan outgrew his power wheel so his dad made it over. once completed it had metal rims an electric motor and variable speed control with reverse to name a few things. evan completely enjoys his new ride. >> okay. now according to the website, viral, viral video, this is evans' dad's competition. a backyard roller coaster built with pvc. can we did this? pipe, lumber and concrete. the one we showed isn't as fancy as this one. it's complete with a 12-foot drop check it out. as this time built by a father for his little girl. seen in the video. >> all right. >> so... >> i mean -- >> that's cool but can i just say i would not go around

building your own roller coaster. >> so you're going to go with the -- >> i couldn't build either of those. >> i couldn't either. >> i don't think most dads could. >> that's awesome, though, that roller coaster. >> it is. but you have to know what you're doing. safety first. >> we don't know. perhaps he is an engineer. >> maybe. >> now you're sucking all the fun out of it. >> it was cool. it was cool. >> let's just look at the coolness factor. cool wins. >> souped up car is cool. i like that one. >> roller coaster is more unique. >> i'm going with the roller coaster. >> you can only go around and around with the roller coaster. with a car you can go anywhere. >> but it's a roller coaster. >> you know how many kids would want to do it over and over? kind of cool. best dads. >> we don't recommend doing that. >> no. i'm with you on that. as a mom, you know i'm with you. no! >> i tell you, if you wait until 9:30 every day, you get the best advice.

[ laughter ] >> you guys really let loose. let's go to the radar. we got some light showers, sprinkles, one or two spots of thunderstorms that developed here this morning but most of the area gray and humid and warm to start your day here. there is your radar. another flash of lightning here just north and west of the city. that's been persistent the last hour or so. that's 270 so montgomery county, you have had a few showers and it looks like a good downpour there now crossing 270 maybe working up towards sandy spring, columbia in the next hour or so. and then some showers and a thunderstorm here, thank you for moving there, just to the west of fredericksburg and watch that too. that will probably drift across 95 here shortly so you know, check in later today there will be one or two showers, maybe a thunderstorm out there. but much of your day will be just kind of gray and dry with temperatures expected to top out near 90. so it's going to be another humid afternoon. let me show you the satellite and radar the bigger picture and you will see gray skies. here's another look at showers. there's the gray and the cloud cover out there at this hour.

we'll get some peeks of sunshine and it will be like yesterday that filtered sunshine during the afternoon with hazy, hot and humid conditions expected for the time being. off to the south and east some rain showers across the outer banks won't be impacting us here in washington. our next real weathermaker changer is a cold front off to the north and west and that's the going to get in here starting tomorrow afternoon and during the day on friday so i think late tomorrow afternoon we have a better chance of some scattered showers and thunderstorms and then friday, we could be in for a wet one with periods of rain, perhaps some embedded thunderstorms and behind that front, some cooler weather for the weekend. in fact our highs around here by saturday and sunday will only be in the 80s. right now 83 degrees in washington. 83 in annapolis. let's see, dulles is 78 degrees. 79 in manassas. mix in the dew point measurements and it's oppressive. current dew point in washington -- anytime it's above 70 it does not feel great.

it will be humid today. partly sunny, hot, humid, afternoon, south winds at 5-mile-per-hour. then partly cloudy, warm and muggy overnight. overnight lows in the mid-70s so unfortunately the air- conditioners will be hum for the next couple of days. tomorrow not a lot better but better chance of afternoon scattered storms tomorrow. best chance is on friday with a few storms and again some of these could have heavy downpours. friday could be a wet one and by saturday and sunday, back into the 80s. guess what, less humidity, high temperatures only until mid-80s with lots of sunshine by sunday afternoon. looks like a decent end to the weekend. that's weather. tony and allison, back to you at the desk. >> all right. tucker, thank you. in london, a big night for aly raisman. the captain of the u.s. women's gymnastics team won gold in the floor exercise and bronze on the balance beams. wow. gabby douglas finished 7th on the beam after she took a fall. >> awesome. a gold winning swimmer is back home in bethesda

celebrating with family, friends and fans. >> katie ledecky won the gold in the 800-meter freestyle setting a new record for the americans. also she is the youngest member of the u.s. olympic team in london. earlier this morning, we had the pleasure of talking with the 15-year-old about her incredible feat. >> uhm, it's very surreal, just starting to sink in slowly. uhm, but i'm sure it will take a full year probably to sink in fully. i actually didn't feel too much pressure. i was having a blast. this was all the usa swimming athletes and the whole usa team going to opening ceremonies and just eating in the cafeteria with all the other athletes was so much fun. >> well, katie is the second youngest olympic swimming medalist in u.s. history. >> you know what i loved about your talk with her? >> what's that? >> she is only 15. obviously we know it's a lot of work and everything but she had fun with everything. she was having fun. that's great. >> she was in that moment. >> yes, very good.

coming up, new photos of michael phelps' girlfriend and her lifestyle before dating the swimmer. >> plus, find out why joan rivers handcuffed herself to a shopping cart at a costco store. we are checking in with tmz next in the buzz bin. stay with us.  i got the chance to start my own business.

i know what it's like to hire people and to make ends meet. from those experiences, i had the chance of running the olympics. the games were in real trouble. there'd been way too much spending. and in massachusetts i found a budget that was badly out of balance. our legislature was 85% democrat. and every one of the four years i was governor, we balanced the budget. i want to use those experiences to help americans have a better future. we believe in our future. we believe in ourselves. we believe the greatest days of america are ahead. i'm mitt romney and i approve this message.

joan rivers in a one woman protest and michael phelps' girlfriend no stranger to the lush life. >> let's check the latest hollywood headlines with tmz. dax, good morning. congratulations. >> thank you. appreciate it. >> are you super tired now with a newborn? >> you know what? she actually set for like 5, 6 hours last night so i'm doing pretty good. >> so you're ready for our topics today. happy to be with you. let's talk about joan rivers. i personally am probably her like number 5 fan. i love joan rivers. so this story to me, you know,

i get what she is doing but she kind of went off at a costco out there yesterday. tell us about it. >> yeah. it was so funny because it was joan rivers. she is protesting. the one woman protest yesterday at costco here in l.a. and they have banned her book. they don't want to sell her book because there are raunchy jokes on the back cover and it's not right for them to sell. she went to costco and handcuffed herself to some random stranger's shopping cart and began yelling saying that costco was like nazi germany next they will be burning the bible. costco called the cops and they showed up and, of course, they even start laughing because it's so ridiculous. and it's joan rivers and she is hilarious. i think she got her point across. >> i think so, too. >> look at the guy with the book in the box. >> that's the funny thing about the video nobody seems very interested in what she has to say. they just keep shopping. >> i think well here in l.a. people are like it's joan screaming. let's move along. we need to get our groceries.

>> the book is called, i hate everything, starting with me. i think it's going to make me want to buy this book, too. thanks, dax, on that one. michael phelps obviously in the news a lot lately the last week or so and now he has a girlfriend that's -- she is making some news, as well. what's up? >> reporter: yeah. you know, no one really knew he was dating anyone unless olympics until he started going out and showing up to some of the clubs with i am him. her name is megan rossee a vip waitress from las vegas. they met in vegas a couple of months back and now they are going steady. she went to the olympics with him so that's a big step and they have been walking some red carpets together. but a little background story found some photos of her being a vip waitress opens a lot of doors in vegans and we saw photos of her flying in jets around the world hanging around with rich famous people and that opened the door for her to be able to meet michael phelps and they seem happy together.

so good for him. >> she is super pretty. >> super pretty, yeah. >> new papa holt, thanks so much for joining us today. >> thanks, guys. >> okay. >> see you, dad. >> she is really pretty, isn't she? >> yeah, she is. i have seen a picture of her on the internet. yeah. i mean, you know. winning lots of gold medals has its benefits. >> he's a nice looking guy. >> okay. >> you don't think so? >> i don't judge that. so yeah. [ laughter ] >> oh, one of those. i don't have any idea how he looks. >> he's a swimmer and you know. >> are you one of those, men who have no idea if another man is handsome or not? >> no, i'm confident enough to know. >> a good-looking young man. >> he's decent looking. i think the gold medals help. >> and also his work outfit helps too, as well >> that's enough. [ laughter ] still ahead, a big birthday celebration to our north. the national aquarium in baltimore is turning 31. coming up, holly shows us some

of the fung things to see and do. >> and... ♪ [ music ] >> there she is. the soulful sounds of angela stribling in the studio this morning. she is performing at blues alley tomorrow night. but first, she is performing live next right here on "fox 5 morning news." we'll be right back. this is the plan for back to school. introducing share everything, only from verizon. a shareable pool of data to power up to 10 different devices. add multiple smartphones to your plan, so everyone in your family can enjoy unlimited talk and text. the first plan of its kind. share everything. get your student a samsung galaxy nexus for $99.99.

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and harshness of bleach. and free ourselves from worrying about the ones we love. new lysol power & free has more cleaning power than bleach. how? the secret is hydrogen peroxide. it attacks tough stains and kills 99.9% of germs. new lysol power & free. powerful cleaning that's family friendly. another step forward in our mission for health. whether they are finned, feathered or furred, our friends at the national aquarium have good reason to celebrate. this week, the aquarium marks its 31st birthday. >> holly morris is there now with a couple of special guests. >> reporter: not just this week. actually today. it was august 8th, 1981, when the national aquarium opened for the first time. and so today, they are

celebrating in a huge way. they love for you to come on out and get up close and personal with many of their special friends like we are doing right now. liz evans is the manager of animal training. and not that you're not beautiful in blue, but margaret is a knockout. one of the animals you will see. >> you will see our special birthday themed encounter all over the aquarium today. we have special crafts an activities, the backyardigans will be here. >> no other reason, free cake! >> reporter: but speaking of free, this is really cool because if you have a birthday in august -- >> on friday if you have a birthday in august and you "like" us on facebook, you can get into the aquarium for free. tomorrow with the price of admission you get a free movie. we have two different movies going on. >> reporter: there is all kind of freeness going on here so we want to feel free to learn about margaret. >> margaret is a hyacinth macaw and they come from brazil and

specialize in cracking into hard nuts like brazil nuts. they have big strong beaks and they can also chew on wood and destroy things. they very good at causing destruction. >> reporter: take a look at that. that's a strong -- you wouldn't want to get your finger caught in there. >> no. >> reporter: we keep her happy. >> reporter: i know she is eating right now but sometimes she does talk. >> she does. she can talk a little bit. she is just chewing on the wood. she likes to play with it and destroy it. she can say one word. one word vocabulary. >> margaret, will you say hello? of course not. [ laughter ] >> reporter: she is like i only talk when i want to talk. i'm running the show. look at that. the one thing she does say is hello when she wants to. >> reporter: perfect way to start conversation. it's about getting the kids out to talk about the animals. >> it's a way to get an up-

close and personal meet and greet with the animals. we do represent piles, vertebrates, bugs, all kinds of animals. >> reporter: today you have a gift for margaret. >> i do. i'm not sure if she is going to open it. she hasn't been cooperating. >> reporter: stop it. i can't believe that. >> but this is a little birthday present. now she is eating too. you want to mess with the present? no. she is busy. >> reporter: she is the perfect bird to celebrate the birthday. >> she has had 24 birthdays so far. but she can have up to 80 to 100. >> reporter: really? 80 to 100. do they just always -- this is probably a silly question but do they always look like that when they age or do they look older? >> no. they look the same. they are about full grown and fully feathered at about 6 months to a year. and afterna, they pretty much look exactly the same after that. >> can we give her the brazil nut? >> you want to try this? >> i know what's in that gift. i want a different one.

>> oh, yeah. >> reporter: that's what she likes. also, we have leo over there clad with his yellow bow. >> leo the box turtle is out here today celebrating the birthday as well. >> reporter: he also could celebrate anywhere between 80 and 100 birthdays. >> right. they have a similar age span. >> reporter: amazing. what's so special about leo? >> he is a box turtle and what -- how they get their name is they can pull their heads, legs, tail, entire body inside that shell and then close it up like a box. which makes it really hard for predators to ge in. >> reporter: that we need reasons to come back because the place is always fascinating to come to but you have a new exhibit opening in 2013. >> that's the black-tip reese exhibit and it goes where the wings and waters exhibit is now so this is your last chance to see our beautiful stingray exhibit and the animals that are currently in there. calypso will be staying our sea turtle and some of the animals will be going into the new black-tip reese exhibit but

we'll have a whole bunch of new corral, black-tipped sharks, and cool looking sharks. >> reporter: i thought turning 31 was cool but turning 32 looks like it's going to be adventurous, as well. don't you love all the kids taking pictures on the cell phones? i want to just lodge my complaint that i didn't get a party hat but that's okay as long as you supply we with free cake i'm good. [ laughter ] >> reporter: myfoxdc.com is our website. we have a link to the national aquarium. come on out and help them celebrate 31 with all their wonderful friends. back to you in the studio. >> thank you. she discovered her passion for singing at the age of 4 and hasn't stopped serenading fans across the globe ever since. jazz and r&b singer angela stribling has two shows tomorrow evening at blues alley but first she has stopped by our studios. you make me nervous, angela. >> if only. [ laughter ] >> i don't think so. >> we are very glad you're here. tell me about the attire here what you're wearing. >> this is actually a pucci

suit. it's a designer. have you ever heard of pucci? >> i have not. but i'm -- >> in the '60s and '70s, pucci was popular and made a comeback. >> now i get it. it's a theme thing for the shows tomorrow. blues alley. >> it will be pretty much a retro show and i'm thank you to a lot of my vocal influences. a lot are gone too soon. so it's a big thank you to my fans who supported me throughout the years. >> you appear yearly at blues alley, right? >> yeah. i guess about every six months. i love it. i don't want to be performing in d.c. too much where i burn out where every time i try to bring something new. >> there are a few seats still available, two shows tomorrow night. we'll have the information on the screen in a couple of moments. you're going to do a song for us today part of the thank yous and appreciation for us about a dear friend someone i knew as well melvin lindsey. >> absolutely. melvin was a very good friend

of ours. he was my best friend. we used to cohost on bet together and cohosed in baltimore together and it's 20 years ago this year that he passed away. >> oh, my goodness. >> 20 years melvin died of aids in 1992. a heartbreak. so i wrote a song, i was thinking about him and just, you know, just missing him. and i wrote a song and it's difficult sometimes to perform it in live concert. but i always feel good and it always touches a lot of people who also feel the same way about him. >> it's called, i can still feel it. >> i had something i wanted to present to you. >> since it is kind of a retro show and a lot of '70s music, i thought i'd give you some '70s candy. >> some '70s candy? is it from the '70s? [ laughter ] >> a little old. [ laughter ] >> mary janes and firebombs. sugar daddies. >> wonderful! >> very, very nice.

thank you very much. [ laughter ] >> we have your cds here. are you working on something new jersey. i am working on something new. i'm actually at the concert typically i do a lot of jazz. this time, not so much jazz. its more r&b so my next project is going to be a little funkier. >> when you have it ready, come back. so here's your number, angela stribling singing, i can still feel you. ♪ [ music ] when i think about the times we used to laugh, we used to talk,

movies and what... it hurts me to know it's over. what when i think about your eyes and the tears we both have cried because you knew and i knew too it was over... >> i pick up the phone to say your name... ♪ [ music ] and suddenly there's the truth... you're not there... ♪ [ music ] >> i see your eyes, i see your face ♪ i hear the words you say ♪ i can still feel you ♪ i see your eyes ♪ i see your face ♪

i hear the words you say... i can still feel you ♪ people telling me get on with your life ♪ be happy that his pain is over ♪ but you were my best friend in the world, and i'll always be your girl, you inspire me and lift me ♪ [ harry umlaut ] here w we go. [ sally umlaut ] what? the five stages of muller. ah yes... stage one: suspicion. "it's a yogurt, how good can it be?" stage two: revision. "actually, this ain't bad." stage three: surprise! "look at this cool cornery thing! i love this stuff!!" stage four: desolation. "it's gone!" stage five: anticipation "i guess i could always have another"...

"have you been through the five stages of muller yet?" "yeah, just now." [ male announcer ] muller. the european for yummy.

not just between two political parties, or even two people. it's a choice between two very different plans for our country. governor romney's plan would cut taxes for the folks at the very top. roll back regulations on big banks. and he says that if we do, our economy will grow and everyone will benefit. but you know what? we tried that top down approach. it's what caused the mess in the first place. i believe the only way to create an economy built to last is to strengthen the middle class. asking the wealthy to pay a little more so we can pay down our debt in a balanced way. so that we can afford to invest in education, manufacturing, and home-grown american energy for good middle class jobs. sometimes politics can seem very small. but the choice you face, it couldn't be bigger.

♪ i'm barack obama and i approve this message. thunderstorms developing in in mind county and another towards fredericksburg. and montgomery county. there will be showers and thunderstorms in the new york but much of the day cloudy with hot and humid conditions. highs expected to be in the low 90s. there's a real quick look at the five-day forecast. as we