Transcripts For WRC Today 20100208

good morning. how ' bout dat? the new orleans saints are winners over the indianapolis coltand they partied until the wee hours on bourbon street. here we go again. another storher storm takes aim east coast and we could see another foot of snow in areas that already received up to three feet over the weekend. and "today" exclusive. former sportscaster steve phillips speaks out for the first time. the affair with the young co-worker, how she terrorized his family when she broke things off. 45 days in sex rehab and the status of his marriage. he's telling his story in a live interview today, monday, february 8th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a monday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> and i'm meredith vieira. you know, the city of new orleans no stranger to parties, but the big easy has rarely seen a celebration like the one that erupted after last night's super bowl victory. >> this was clearly a victory for a football team, but it was also a victory for a city and a region, a region that's had a very tough 4 1/2 years. >> and they were the sentimental favorite going into last night's game, but the colts were predicted to win, so, saints did a great job. both teams did. it was exciting. >> most importantly it was a really good game. >> a really, really good game. >> exciting game. you always want that in a super bowl. of course, the commercials, we have to talk about those. we'll break down the good and the bad, the downright unexpected, all coming up in just a couple minutes. by the way, we both stayed up to watch this thing in its entirety. >> we did, and ann as well. >> it's rare for a morning show team. anyway, also ahead, on a very different note, just how popular is the potentially deadly choking game among kids in the u.s.? coming up, some startling new information from a survey of teens and what one father who lost his son wants to say to parents who think my kid would never try it. also ahead, is sarah palin gearing up for a presidential run in 2012? she delivered a big speech on saturday at the national tea party convention, then raised a lot of eyebrows with something she said on sunday. we're going to talk about that, coming up. but let us begin on this monday morning with the new super bowl champions, the new orleans saints. how's that sound? nbc's hoda kotb, a form resident of the big easy, is in miami this morning. hoda, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning it sounds really, really good. i'm a little bit partisan. i don't know if you can tell. but i lived in new orleans for about six years it feels like home it was a terrific game. the colts ended up having a pretty good game, too, but in reality, it was all about the saints. and let me tell you something, it was a dream come true. >> they are the super bowl champions. >> reporter: a championship. 43 years in the making. even as the game's final moments unfolded, some still could not believe the saints were super bowl champs. for a while, it was touch-and-go. >> touchdown indianapolis! >> reporr: the saints trailed at halftime 10-6. it's okay. it's okay. >> onside kick. >> reporter: but stunned the colts with an onside kick to start the second half. >> they recovered the onside kick. >> reporter: opening the flood gates. >> he's in and the saints have taken the lead at the super bowl! >> reporter: when the colts powered back to take the lead -- >> and he's in for the touchdown. >> reporter: dir-- the saints wd not give up. >> and the touchdown. >> reporter: when the saints intercepted colts quarterback peyton manning in the game's final minute and tracy porter ran it back for a uchdown, the saints' fate was sealed. the saints had a motto throughout the year -- finish strong. it saw them through the game, the season and through katrina. >> we just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us. >> reporter: after the game, we talked to drew brees, the mvp quarterback who came to new orleans as a free agent four years ago, an active supporter of the city. how's it feel today? does it feel all right? >> unbelievable. >> reporter: really? >> incredible. >> reporter: is it the best? >> i know you were rooting for us. >> reporter: at one point, brees savored the moment with his son, wearing earphones to deafen the thunring noise, a moment that charmed the national tv audience. >> guys, that's what it's all about, drew brees with his son. >> reporter: moments earlier, we had been there when wife britney handed her son up to his father, a proud moment for the brees family. >> i'm so proud of the whole team. the city of new orleans, it' so much fun. >> reporter: a team once called the aints, but no more. in the french quarter, a level of joy almost impossible to define. four years ago, a superdome in tatters, now the home of the super bowl champions. >> way to go! whoo-hoo! we love it! love it! >> reporter: it was pretty incredible. it was pretty incredible. and a great sportscaster friend of mine named jim henderson, and it was such a long-shot for the saints to win, but this was his line -- well, pigs have flown, hell has frozen over and the saints have won the super bowl." and guys, i have some parting gifts for you. lindsey, thank you. sarah, thank you. i got you your own drew brees shirt. that's for matt. meredithyou get some of these -- >> what? he gets a shirt and -- >> reporter: it was so much fun, you guys. i can't -- >> they're very nice. i'm very happy with my gift. some are less appreciative. >> no, no, i'm very appreciative, hoda. thank you very much. >> reporter: meredith, yours cost $2.15. >> we, thank you, hoda, for rubbing that in. >> that's nice. well, congratulations. >> yeah, congratulations. >> all right, we're going to get to the super bowl commercials coming up in just a little while. all right, but now to that powerful storm that blanketed parts of the east coast over the weekend. some places got as much as three feet of snow and another storm is on the way. nbc's tom costello lives in maryland and his neighborhood is only accessible by the biggest suvs. in fact, he joins us now by skype. tom, good morning to you. >> reporter: hi, meredith, good morning. we've got 30 inches here in our yard, and down the street we haven't seen a snowplow yet. we have had throughout this entire region hundreds of people without power, without heat. and so, they've been staying with neighbors, including us. the heat just started to come on for those folks overnight, but up and down the east coast, a lot of people have been doing an awful lot of heavy lifting. from washington, north to baltimore, all the way to new jersey. >> man, this is a nasty snow. >> reporter: digging out from snowmageddon has been an around-the-clock, herculean job. >> i worked i think 22 hours yesterday and i slept for 5 and i was back doing it again, and it's a lot of snow. >> reporter: with neighborhoods up and down the mid-atlantic buried in anywhere from two to three feet of snow -- >> even with the four-wheel-drive, i don't think it could get through. >> reporter: area schools are closed at least through tuesday, the federal government shut down today. >> a lot of snow. oh, my. >> reporter: and highway crews are triaging which roads get cleared first. >> we've had plows on the smaller streets, but first we've got to open up the biggest streets to be able to get to the next smaller streets, then the next ones. >> reporter: the storm has also left hundreds of thousands without heat or electricity, sending families to bunk with relatives, neighbors, even hotels and shelters. >> i've never seen that without any airplane. >> reporter: by mid-afternoon sunday, the crews at baltimore's bwi airport had managed to clear most of the snow off the ramps and runways, while reagan national airport in washington looked like a ghost town with travelers waiting patiently for flights to resume later today. >> it's great. smaller crowds. >> reporter: but for some die-hard enthusiasts on the national mall, the snow provided a perfect backdrop for snow football and some cross-country skiing. the bad news, d.c. is in for even more of this on tuesday. >> it's going to be a mixed bag of almost every kind of winter weather coming our way. >> reporter: several more inches on the way. >> are you kidding? i've had enough snow to last me the rest of my life. >> reporter: yeah, all of us have, i think. you know, the big question is how much this digout is going to cost, because a lot of state budgets were already stretched out, running deficits in many cases. they simply could not afford this kind of a massive digout, and now more snow, they say, is on the way. oh, joy. meredith, back to you. >> oh, joy, is right. tom costello, thanks. be careful with that snow shoveling, too. at snow is very heavy. >> no question. you've got to be careful about that. al will check out now what's coming up next in the tuesday night-wednesday situation. sounds interesting, al. >> it sure does, matt. as you take a look, you can see on the radar we've got some activity going now. this system is going to be getting itself together. a double-barrel low pressure system is going to get together and reform as one system off the mid-atlantic coast. snowfall amounts generally three to six inches, some areas picking up nine inches of snow. here's the path of this storm. it gets itself together this morning, works its way right now over texas and minnesota. the two systems merge and you can see that snow spread into indiana, ohio, on into new jersey, philadelphia, pennsylvania, on into new england with this storm, moving up the coast. more of a classic nor'easter. here's what we've got through dnesday morning as far as snowfall amounts. washington, d.c., we're talking to the west in parts of west virginia, 9 to 12 inches of snow, washington about another 5 to 8 inches of snow. this is going to make its way up the coast, and right now, new york is looking at about five to eight inches, and that extends up into new england by wednesday evening. so, the snow starts in new york late tomorrow night on into wednesday, but washington and the mid-atlantic, you're getting it tomorrow morning on through tomorrow night. matt? >> all right, al, thanks. we'll get your local forecast in just a couple of minutes. let's turn to politics now. as former vice presidential candidate sarah palin planning a run for president? over the weekend, she made it pretty clear she's considering it. nbc's andrea mitchell has more on that. andrea, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. well, she could be serious or she could just be leveraging her commercial and political clout. but sarah palin definitely opened the door to running for president. she's already a star attraction for conservative republicans. sunday in texas for governor rick perry. >> let's send a message to washington. let's get our country back. god bless you and god bless texas. >> reporter: and tea party supporters saturday night in nashville cheered her lacerating, sarcastic attack on president obama. >> now a year later, i've got to ask those supporters of all that, how's that hopy-changy stuff working out for ya? >> reporter: now sarah palin's making it clear this could be the opening round of a race for the white house. speaking to fox news, where she's a paid commentator. >> i would if i believe that that is the right thing to do for our country and for the palin family, certainly, i would do so. i think that it would be absurd to not consider what it is that i can potentially do to help our country. close a door that perhaps could be open for me in the future. >> reporter: in her red meat speech to tea party members, she took direct aim at the president, especially his anti-terror policies. >> to win that war, we need a commander in chief, not a professor of law standing at the lectern. >> reporter: but while taking shots at president obama's speech-making -- >> this is about the people and it's bigger than any king or queen of a tea party and it's a lot bigger than any charismatic guy with a teleprompter. >> reporter: palin was beyond using a handy crib sheet of her own. so, when she was asked her top priorities, she was ready. we have got to jump start these energy projects. >> reporter: so far, appearing with hosts who talk about president palin and friendly crowds who don't question her facts is working f her. that, plus a fox tv studio being built in her kitchen and controlled messages on facebook and twitter. >> i think it may be that sarah palin is the first made for social media president or presidential candidate. >> reporter: whether sarah palin is just increasing her lecture fees or seriously considering a run for the white house, democratic and republican leaders are sure paying attention. matt? >> all right, andrea. thanks very much. andrea mitchell in washington this morning. joe scarborough is a former republican congressman and host of msnbc's "morning joe." hi, joe, good morning to you. >> hi. good to be here. >> so, let's talk about this speech here. critics have weighed in. they said it had a lot of conservative red meat in it but it was short on polic and solutions. here she was speaking to what to her is a friendly audience. how's this fit? >> right. the bottom line is she's a frontrunner right now, if you look at a lot of polls, for the gop nomination in 2012. so, everything she does takes on signicance. what's interesting is, what's being said off the air. republicans are afraid of sarah palin right now. conservatives afraid of sarah palin right now. but behindhe scenes, they're talking about how embarrassing her performance was and the press conference afterwards, not because of any crib notes, but just because she still doesn't seem to have a great deal of substance about her delivery. >> you say republicans are afraid of sarah palin. republicans have a right to be afraid of some of the people she was talking to also. got a guy like charlie crist down in florida in the political fight of his life against the tea party candidate, and so, when she says that she wants to see the republican party absorb as much of the tea party as possible, is that a reality? >> i don't know that that's a reality, and it's not a reality because the perot people in 1992, 1993, 1994, they didn't like the republican party any more than they liked the democratic party. these tea party people are very independent. they are conservative, they are small government types, a good chunk of them, but they are also a lot of people that are just as disillusioned th the republican party that supported big government over the past eight years as they are with barack obama, who supported big government over the past year. >> she talked about president obama, criticized him for his attempts at fighting the war on terror, specifically for the christmas day attempted bombing of that jetliner headed for detroit and the fact that the suspect on that plane was read his miranda rights as opposed to being held for a military tribunal. she said this -- "treating this like a mere law enforcement matter places our country at great risk because that's not how radical islamic extremists are looking at this. they know we're at war, and to win that war, we need a commander in chief, not a professor of law standing at the lectern." now, that received thunderous applause from the people in the room. >> right. >> how's that issue resonating outside? >> unbelievably well. you just heard the applause line of a lot of republican candidates moving forward. scott brown, the day after massachusetts -- we thought it was about health care reform, we thought it was about deficits. his own pollsters said, no. actually, terrorism was rating best. this is sarah palin's best line politically that, again, is going to be picked up by a lot of republican candidates and it's going to draw political blood out on the trail. >> quickly, on "meet the press" on sunday, john brennan, the white house counterterrorism chief, said that on the day, christmas day, when the arrest was made of this suspect, he briefed some top republican leaders in congress and none of them expressed any reservations or concerns about the way this suspect was being handling, so, are there some republicans who are now vulnerable on this? >> no, i don't think so. it does sound a lot, though, like nancy pelosi and dick cheney going back and forth about who said what and when they said it. john boehner came out, said that's not the truth. i think you're going to see the unfortunate specter of the continued politicalization of intel gathering, and it's bad when rublicans do it, it's bad when democrats do it, but it's going to be a huge political issue this year. >> joe scarborough. joe, thanks very much. >> thank you very much. >> nice to have you here this morning. go back to work. >> i shall. >> joe will be going back across the street because "morning joe" airs weekdaystarting at 6:00 a.m. eastern on msnbc. let's get a look at our other top stories from ann at the news desk. >> thanks a lot, matt. good morning, everybody. also in the news this morning, an investigation is under way into a massive explosion sunday at a power plant under construction in connecticut. at least five people were killed. nbc's ron allen's in middleton, connecticut, with more on the story. ron, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, ann. the blast was so powerful, it blew out windows and caused damage miles from here. the workers were testing the gas lines. search-and-rescue operations continued through the night. and this morning, officials say it's still unclear whether everyone is accounted for. the clean energy system power plant was going to be one of the biggest in new england until a gas explosion ripped through it. >> it was like a boom and a shake. >> reporter: people as far as 15 miles away say the concussion shook their windows and jolted their nerves. >> the whole house shook. >> reporter: an unknown number of workers from several different companies inside, perhaps as many as 50. relatives and co-workers converged on the plant, desperate for information. >> it's horrible, man. we got some people up there, they've got little kids at home. we lost them. >> reporter: hospitals treated at least a dozen workers for injuries like broken bones. >> several of them were by report thrown 30 to 40 feet. >> reporter: the plant was almost complete, designed to generate electricity by burning natural gas for nearly 500,000 homes, starting this summer. however, it's now been devastated by a massive, deadly explosion. >> we go to work in the morning, you expect to go home to your family at the end of the day, and there are a whole lot of people out there for whom that's not going to happen. >> reporter: officials believe only a small number of workers was near the site of the blast because the work being done required the area to be evacuated for safety reasons. ann? >> all right, ron all this morning. ron, thank you. toyota says it will now soon announce how it will deal with braking problems on some prius hybrids. the problems affect some 200,000 priuses sold in the u.s. and japan since may. a new study suggests that people who drink two or more sweetened soft drinks a week have a higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer. some say sugar may be to blame, while others say it's unclear whether there is a proven link to pancreatic cancer. the shuttle "endeavour" lifted off this morning. it is carrying six astronauts as well as a new room and observance deck for the space station. let's go back to matt, meredith and al. maybe it's carrying mardi gras beads as well, new orleans. >> that's a room with a view they're carrying. that's going to be nice. ann, thank you. mr. roker, how are you do? unfortunately, our frids out west not doing so well. mud slides in la canada and fli flintridge. as the storm moves in, we'll look at wet weather late tonight into tomorrow. rainfall amounts from half an inch to an inch good morning, clear and cold on this monday morning, now just 22 in washington t teens in the sush you ares. we'll have lots of clouds today with teens -- cloudy tomorrow morning then by noon, some light snow developing. perhaps a few inches on the ground by sunset. then it may snow moderately to heavy. tapering off and strong winds on wednesday of the total amounts as high as ten inches around the region. and that's your latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you. there are now just four days to go until friday's opening ceremony of the 21st olympic winter games in vancouver. "today" national correspondent natalie morales is already there. natalie, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith, from vancouver. and this city, i can tell you, is already buzzing with activity and excitement is building as vancouver gets ready to welcome the world. this glistening city by the sea is getting some extra polish as vancouverites put the final touches on the biggest welcome effort the city has ever seen. flags raised in the athletes village represent more than 80 nations which will compete in these games. >> the reality finally hits, and flags going up is the icing on the cake. >> reporter: in a matter of days, this city of 2.2 million becomes a city of 3 million, and mayor gregoire robinson says vancouver is ready. >> it's been an exhaustive effort. we've really brought canada's best to vancouver to make sure we're prepared on every front. >> reporter: from canada's borders to this working port city, security is tighter than most vancouverites are accustomed to. >> i arrived about an hour before the flight left. usually i arrive about 20 minutes. so it was quite a bit earlier. >> reporter: so far, officials say they have no immediate reason for concern. >> we have the resources, personnel and assets inplace, should we need them. >> reporter: what is a concern is vancouver's unusually warm weather, one of the warmest on record, along with this city's normal bouts of winter rain, has wiped out snow at cypress mountain, just 30 minutes from downtown and the venue for snowboarding and freestyle skiing. but a contingency plan is in place. snow from the mountain's top has been lowered on to a base of hay to secure the location. just over my shoulder here, you can see the helicopters still dropping crates of hay and snow with less than a week to go before the games begin. these last-minute preparations will mean two less days of practice time for the athletes competing here. still, olympic committee members assure this venue will be ready in time for competition. while green on the slopes has been bad, green for the games has been good. vancouver is billing this olympics as the greenest yet. even the 2010 medals contain medal recycled from electronic waste like old cell phones. >> let's do luge -- >> reporter: if ticket sales are a measure of success, vancouver can start celebrating. a record number have been purchased, 1.6 million to date, in spite of one of the worst economic downturns in history. nearly every event is sold out. also selling out, the it item to have these games, canada red mittens. got my pair. the excitement and momentum here is built upon years of hard work. and this city is ready to enjoy its moment. so, just to let you all know the forecast here for the rest of the week, more mild weather as well as rain here. so, not such great news, although i am ready with my little red mittens, as you can see, guys. question is, is vancouver ready for you all? >> uh-oh. >> oh, well -- >> they don't have a choice, actually. >> yeah. >> i think so. have a good time. >> you leave today. >> i leave tonight. >> you'll be there tomorrow, doing the show -- >> tomorrow, yeah. i realized i probably packed all the wrong things. heavier clothes. >> great shopping in vancouver. don't worry about it you'll be fine. >> pick up that thong if you need it. >> you'll have to think about repacking. >> makes no sense. just makes no sense why you would go there. >> theweather, even the little speedo that you love. >> thanks very much. they will be there later in the week. i'm heading there tomorrow. 78 7:26 is your time right now a live look at reagan national this morning. here is the latest information on the cleanup after the blizzard of 2010. the federal government has closed every major school district in d.c., maryland and virginia. more than 50,000 people are without power. most of those are pepco customers. all the metro stations remain closed. at the airport, there's limited flights at dulles, b.w.i. marshall airports and reagan national is expected to restore flights later today. we good morning, clear and frigid, temperatures in the single digits around the region. light snow developing tomorrow afternoon. may snow moderately to heavily at times tuesday to wednesday. how's the traffic, jerry? >> i'm following breaking news with a jackknifed tractor trail lore rereported to you earlier. just an kpavrj of how bad it is out there. again, inner loop at route 5, completely blocked, truck jackknif 7:30 on this monday morning, february 8th, 2010. a happy, enthusiastic crowd gathered outside on the plaza after most of them probably watched last night's super bowl, along with us. i'm meredith vieira alongside matt lauer. and just ahead, we're going to run through the best and worst commercials of the bunch, including this one, which featured dave, oprah, and yes, jay leno in a surprise ad for david letterman's show. i actually thought that was fake when i saw it. >> a lot of people did, but they actually got together in the same room. also ahead, an exclusive, live interview with steve phillips. he is the espn analyst who was fired last fall after he admitted to having an affair with a co-worker. when he ended that relationship, that woman showed up at his house and confronted his wife. he's here to talk about that and 45 days in sex rehab for the first time. we'll talk to steve in just a couple of minutes. plus, how many kids in this country have tried the so-called choking game? you'll be surprised when we reveal the results of a new survey, the first to specifically ask teens that question. we're also going to talk to a father whose son died trying to chaeking game. but before that, we want to get a check of the weather from al. al? >> hey, good morning, guys. i've got to tell you, i've never seen anything quite like this. so, what -- >> good morning, sir. >> where are you from? >> new york. i'm a new yorker! >> you're from new york. >> that's right. i'm from queens. hey, you know. we're new yorkers! this is the place! >> let's take a look. the week ahead, we've got some rain and snow through the gulf and the snow up into the plain states. we've got wet weather out west. midweek period we've got some snow in the northeast, rain down into the southern texas, wet weather in the pacific northwest. and then the late week period, below-normal temperatures for the eastern third of the country on into the southwest, rain in the pacific northwest, more heavy rain through the gulf coast. what part of queens? good morning, clear and very cold on this monday morning. temperatures only near 20 in washington, teens in the suburbs. in many of the rural areas are below freezing today. cloudy tuesday morning, light snow developing tomorrow afternoon. could be moderate to heavy at times tuesday night, endsing with strong winds on wednesday, leaving an additional amount of new snow, five to ten inches across much of the region. main and sleet across the south and east and changing to snow there. that's your latest weather. and any time you need devour weather day or night, go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. meredith? >> al, thank you very much. the new orleans saints may have won the game, but what about the ads? here with a look at the best and worst super bowl commercials is donny deutsch, chairman of the advertising agency deutsch inc. >> hey, guys. >> we should mention that donny's agency produced two of this year's ads. donny, good morning to you. >> the two best, probably. >> overall, rate the ads this year. >> you know, they were ordinary, frankly. i think the overall theme for me, which i thought was strange -- and i know matt and i were talking about this -- i think there were ten ads with guys in their underwear. it was likeen acting stupid. >> some back to back as well. >> for some reason, this was the year like, let's show the american male at his stupidest, acting goofy. there was an ad for dodge and there was an ad with men talking about their miserable lives. i don't know what it was in our society that this year, let's knock the guys. >> and i just want to clarify, we didn't talk a lot about this, okay? let's just get that straight, okay? go ahead. >> a lot of those ads also were negative toward women at the same time, so -- >> just men behaving badly. i don't know where it gets written where, let's on the super bowl do a lot of silly, slapsticky -- that's not what advertising is. and for some reason, advertisers think on this day they have to go for the laugh, even if it's a stupid ad. >> let's talk about the ads that did work. >> okay. >> the biggest surprise was the one that included letterman, leno and oprah. let's take a look at that and then we'll talk. >> this is the worst super bowl party ever. >> now, dave, be nice. >> he's just saying that because i'm here. >> he's just saying that because i'm here. >> see, i said before in the open, i thought that was fake. i thought somehow they had superimposed -- >> it works because it's unexpected. >> exactly. and it holds up to who we are. is there anything more a sign of the times than the late-night wars? for those two guys to go on together to kind of make fun of themselves truly shows both their iconic stature. just a stroke of genius, letterman, leno and oprah. >> it was letterman's idea and i guess leno came to the theater disguised -- >> somebody's thinking out there. >> you loved this one, too, the google parisian love ad. why do you think that resonates? j that was just simple, smart, of the brain. >> the opposite of what you were talking about before. >> exactly. >> they're simple, so simple, elegant, smart. this is an advertiser saying this is who we are. we're not going to behave differently on the super bowl. you go, this is where i use google. this was a brilliant piece of advertising. >> yeah, you remember that it is google. some of the ads you can't remember what it's for afterwards. >> and strategically, it's what the band delivers. it's not just a bit. and it does not assume the american public is stupid. it assumes intelligee on its viewers a viewers' behalf and i wish more advertisers would do that. >> and babies and e-trade. let's look at one of those ads. >> so, yeah, sorry about last night. >> i just don't understand why you didn't call. >> well, i was on e-trade, diversifying my portfolio, taking control like a wolf. >> right. >> what's that? that's volatility in the market. taken care of, wolf style. ow, ow, ow! >> and that milk-a-holic lindsey wasn't over? >> lindsey? >> milk-a-what? >> build a diversified portfolio at e-trade. >> and for advertisers like e-trade, it's not even just about the commercial, it's about the internet use following this, right? >> yes. the focus group here -- everybody just laughed. that's simple, sweet humor and also the product. it says the product, this is a simple product. but i'm a sucker, i have little kids at home. those are lovely ads. they really are. >> there's one that caught my attention for many reasons. we showed a piece before the super bowl and this is what i'll call the betty white ad. let's look at this one. tell me why you like this one. >> mike, what is your deal, man? >> oh, come on. you've been riding me all day. >> mike, you're playing like betty white out there. >> that's not what your girlfriend said. >> baby, eat a snickers. better? >> better. >> that hurt. >> you're not you when you're hungry. snickers services. . >> how do you not like a ad with abe and tackled betty white? i won a match game with her in 1979, so i can't really be objective about that. >> but a brilliant ad. >> yeah, we like that. >> lovely, say. sometimes silly is okay when you're selling a candy bar. i thought a lot of the beer advertisers went too far in their silliness and i wish they would begin to celebrate the american male instead of idioify him, if you will. >> and the vw commercial was yours. >> full disclosure wonderful ad. >> where did the idea come from? >> it's a punch buggy, going back to the early days of the beetle. you'd see a beetle and you'd punch it. it shows the full line of volkswagen with the little bit at the end with stevie wonder. >> why do you think this works, because of the nostalgia? >> i hathink a lot of ads that e great are cross-generational, that a mother or father can watch with the kids and explain. i was watching with a wide range of age audiences last night and everything across the board got it. i think the ones that plug into who we are as a culture are the best ads. >> donny deutsch, thank you -- >> just went by. >> ouch! geez. thank you, donny, so much. up next -- >> now we'll continue with the discussion. >> yeah, right. up next, steve phillips opens up for the first time about the affair with a co-worker that cost him his job and led him to sex rehab. we have an exclusive live interview. that's right after this. we're back at 7:42, and now the sex scandal that surfaced last october involving popular baseball analyst steve phillips. the married father of four was fired from espn after he admitted to an affair with a younger co-worker. phillips is just out of a clinic that treats sex addiction, here for an exclusive live interview. but first, nbc's jeff rossen. >> reporter: brooke hundley has surfaced in california, far, far away from the tabloid sex scandal she helped create back east, having sexual trist with steve phillips, a high-profile baseball analyst for espn and former general manager of the new york mets, no slouch. he's married with four children and admits he had an affair with hundley. she was an espn production assistant. according to police reports, when phillips broke up with his mistress, she w hurt and texted his wife for revenge, saying "i care about steve. i make him happy and we both can't have him." police say the other woman even drove to phillips' house to confront his wife in person. phillips' wife called 911 in a panic. >> wilton 911, what's your emergency? >> please hurry and come to [ bleep ]. i have a crazy woman who is involved with my husband and she has come to my house to harm me and my children. >> okay, ma'am. is she outside? >> yes. she's pulling down my hill right now. she's in a blue prius. she just pulled past me. >> reporter: espn fired both steve phillips and brooke hundley, but now she has a new message for her ex-lover. >> i'm sorry for him and his family. i'm sorry for my family. i'm sorry for everybody involved in this situation. i was 22. i made some mistakes. if i could take them back, i would, okay? >> reporter: with his life in ruin and his marriage on the rocks, steve phillips checked himself in to sex rehab, not just any sex rehab, the same facility at hattiesburg, mississippi, where tiger woods was reportedly treated. >> the facility that he attended is one of the premier facilities for the treatment of sex addiction in the country, but there can be no question about whether this was a move to appease his wife or is he a sex addict, because in order to be admitted to a program like this, you have to meet diagnostic criteria for the disorder of sexual addiction. >> reporter: steve phillips spent 45 days in virtual lockdown, away from the cameras and his family, but this morning he's out, and it appears his wife, who had filed for divorce, has allowed him back home, trying to work things out. for "today," jeff rossen, nbc news, new york. >> and steve phillips joins us now exclusively. steve, good morning. good to have you here. >> good morning. >> with all that's happened with your family, with your career, with the sex treatment facility, you could have come out and you could have gone completely underground and i'm just curious why you decided to talk to us? >> well, it was hard to watch that lead-in. that was sad. there's a lot of sadness there. i think i look at it and i think that what people need to understand, what i want to do is take ownership. i mean, i made some mistakes. and people look at sex addiction as an excuse. it's not an excuse. i'm fully responsible for everything i did and accept responsibility for that. sex addiction is a diagnosis. it's what you recognize, the problem that you have where you have to try to go and get some help, which is what i did. >> jeff rossen just said there is a diagnostic criteria that has to be met. what is that? because people do think, for someone of high profile who gets caught in a scandal, this is kind of a modern-day get out of jail free card. what is the criteria? >> yeah. i recognized in august that i had a real problem, that i was a sex addict and i needed to get help. i started calling facilities in august well before everything blew upnd really before there was a problem and i lost my job. i made a decision to get help on a friday before the sunday when i got fired. so i was going to go get help. i realized i had a problem and i needed to get help. i think it's a compulsion where you can't stop and you understand the consequences. the first step of the 12 steps is you're powerless over your addiction and in your life it gets unmanageable it wasn't anybody else. it was me. i couldn't stop myself from doing the things that i was doing, even knowing the consequences -- married, great job, great career, and i risked all of that, risked all of that to act out the way that i did. >> you said there's a lot of sadness in that piece when you watched it. when you listened to the phone call of your wife, the 911 call, where she's talking about brooke hundley coming to your house. we've already said that she sent text messages to your wife. she actually contacted one of your sons online, pretending to be someone else and asked questions about your marriage. what goes through your mind when you hear those things? >> it's sad. i mean, i think about all my family's gone through. you know, when you talk about victims with all of this, people chose to participate in a relationship, but my wife and kids didn't. and with what my wife and kids have gone through and the trauma that they've faced not only from having a father and a husband that's a sex addict, but the trauma of the incident, the trauma of the media attention afterwards and then me going away for 45 days, they've been through a lot. >> you lost your job, but so did brooke hundley. she was young, 22 or 23 at the time, as she said in that piece, so she's a victim also. although you say she chose to be in the relationship. if you could talk to her -- first of all, have you spoken to her? >> no. >> what would you say to her? >> i don't think it would be appropriate. the way i look at it is that is all in the past. my focus is trying to move forward, trying to save my family. i'm not wishing ill on anybody. i think everybody needs to move on with their lives and try to put the pieces back together. >> talk to me about the process at this clinic, gentle pass in mississippi. it has been reported that tiger woods is there as well. can you share any of what it's like? and in particular, what's it like for the week, i understand the spouse of the person treated is asked to come and be a part of the therapy is it. >> yeah, people who go there are broken people. that's really the essence of the addiction is you're broken inside and you've got a hole that you tried to fill, whether it was with alcohol or drugs, sex or gambling, with whatever. and so, you've got a lot of broken people there that are struggling to find answers. and really, that's what you do is you go there and they try to get to the basis of why did you do what you did, and for most addicts, whether it's alcohol or sex or whatever, it's that you have that hole inside based upon shame and trauma that you've incurred from a childhood -- >> was there an ah hah moment for you during therapy? do you now have a better understanding -- and by the way, i should mention this is not the first time you've gone to a clinic for that. so, clearly, the first time it didn't work. are you able to sit in front of me today and say you're healed, you're repaired, you're better able to deal with it? >> yeah. the first time, back in '98, you're referencing with the mets, when i had another scandal, i didn't go to a clinic. i just got some local therapy and really didn't get diagnosed properly. so, i tried to manage everything on my own. i didn't get in the system, didn't get in a program, didn't get the appropriate help that i needed it was my issue. i didn't realize it back then. i did get to the basis of my issue, that reality that when i made a mistake, it wasn't i made a mistake, i thought it was a mistake, that when i failed, i thought i was a failure, when i disappointed somebody, i internalized it that i am a disappointment. and that hole is something that i looked for some way to medicate and fill. and most addicts that i've been around that's been a similar story. so, i've gotten to the basis that i need to try to resolve those issues on my own. >> i have just a few seconds left, steve. the status of your marriage right now, you and marni, you're together? >> i'm working my tail off to try to save my marriage. i've broken m wife's heart and she's had to deal with so many issues trying to keep the family together. we went to therapy together and we're working hard to try to do that. i don't know what the ultimate result will be, because i've damaged her and our relationship in a terrible way. >> i know it's not easy to sit here and talk about it. i appreciate you coming in this morning. >> thank you. >> steve, thanks. it's 49 minutes after the hour. we're back after this. still ahead, what to do as a parent if one child is overweight and the other is not. 7:56 is your time right now, you are looking at a live picture at bell haven road in bethesda. as you can tell, no plows have been there. good morning, everyone. it's been a rough commute due to snow and ice all over the region. we have some breaking news over the region now. >> it should be a noncommute, this is part of the reason, these pictures taken a short time ago from chopper 4, on the inner loop of the belt way near route 5 in prince george's county. let this serve as an example of what the road conditions are like. at least one lane getting by here the next couple of minutes. but in the meantime, this is a good example of how bad it is. one sheet of ice on that stretch of the capitol beltway. 395 northbound hov lane, a truck is facing the wrong direction, going to need a tow truck. >> meteorologist tom kiron says we are good morning, clear and cold, just near 20 in washington, highs only near the freezing marks, with lots of sun. teens tomorrow morning, some light snow developing tomorrow afternoon. could be moderate to heavy at times tuesday night into wednesday morning. leaving behind a fresh coating of five to ten inches of new snow throughout much of the region. how is the traffic now? >> we'll have more news, traffic and weather in 25 we're back now at 8:00 a monday morning. it's the 8th dayf february, 2010. we did not get the major storm that a lot of people got over the weekend. just a dusting of snow. that's all right, meredith. we know you're out here. however, mr. roker says we could get a pretty good, a substantial storm this week. >> that's right, tomorrow night. out on the plaza, matt lauer along with meredith vieira and al roker. also ahead, they call it the choking game, but sly, kids in the u.s. are finding out it is anything but a game. coming up, we're going to find out how many in this country have died, how many children, and also h1on what one father w lost his son says to parents who say my kid wouldn't do this. >> frightening story. >> it is. and later on, is ere t much salt in your diet? a lot of us, i think the answer would be eyes. we're going to go over the four steps you need to follow to cut down on the salt and lead yourself to a healthier heart. all right, quickly, quiz question. how much do you think americans spend on pots and pans every year in this country? >> oh -- >> $300 -- >> no, total. >> collectively? >> collectively, jerks $400 million. >> $400 million. $6 billion industry. >> get out! >> yes. $6 billion industry. >> wow! >> don't hit me again like that. coming up, we'll tell you how to find the right pots and pans and how to take care of the ones you have, because they're expensive. >> that's amazing. all right, let's go inside first to ann, who's standing by at the news desk. >> all right, meredith, thanks so much. good morning, again, everybody. in the news, federal investigators arrived today at the site of the deadly power plant explosion in middleton, connecticut. the blast killed five workers and injured more than a dozen. officials say the explosion took place when the gas lines were being tested. in haiti, ten americans accused of child abduction and conspiracy go back to court today. we've got nbc's kerry sanders with more now from port-au-prince in haiti. good morning, kerry. >> reporter: good morning, ann. every time the idaho ten go back to court, they hope that this is the end of their ordeal and their lawyer says he believes that possibly something may be worked out. visits to the jail holding the idaho ten were more strictly controlled sunday, this after a note scribbled on a piece of paper was passed from one of the missionaries to nbc news through the cell bars on saturday. the note, in part, says "please, you must listen, we have no way to call. court will not let us have a say with anything about truth for us." complicating their battle, edwin koch, their defense attorney, has now been fired by the idaho ten over a dispute over fees. >> they're sleeping on the floor, there is no ventilation and you can feel the heat coming out of there. >> reporter: their lawyer from the domican republic hopes for better news today but admits the biggest fear the ten face is the haitian court system. here, the accused are assumed guiltynd must prove their innocence. >> we're meeting with the government officials and talking with them. everything is going very well. >> reporter: in meridian, idaho, sunday, at the central valley baptist church, parishioners prayed for their friends. >> though we do not know exactly what transpired in haiti, we know that we care for those that find themselves in this hour of need. >> reporter: there were two names that were not signed on there, laura silsby and her a e aide, carissa coulter. it says "we're afraid." we connected laura's sister to ask about the division in the group and she said she had no idea how to respond. kerry sanders, thank you. toyota says it will make a decision soon how to deal with brake problems on pus cars. cnbc's phil lebeau is live with more on the troubles. is another toyota recall possible? >> reporter: it is possible, ann, and it may not be called formally a recall. it may be toyota saying, listen, we realize we've got about 270,000 prius vehicles where the brakes need to be fixed. bring them in and we'll fix those brakes. so, it may not formally be called a recall, but we expect out of tokyo as well as here in the united states, some type of an announcement from toyota either today or tomorrow on how they're going to address this problem with the prius brakes. >> all right. phil lebeau this morning. phil, thanks. and as we've been reporting this morning, it's a snow day today for federal workers in washington, where plows are clearing away more than two feet of weekend snow. the storm buried half a dodd mid-atlantic states and left thousands of homes without electricity. more snow is expected by mid-week. new orleans will hold a victory parade tomorrow to celebrate the city's first championship. the underdog defeated the indianapolis colts last night with quarterback drew brees named most valuable player. until the wee hours of the morning, new orleans' french quarter swelled with crowds that rivaled those seen on mardi gras. those are some of the top stories at five minutes past the hour. let's now get a check of the weather from al. >> thanks a lot, ann. let's see, it's your sister ruby's 2nd birthday -- where's ruby? she left. 2-year-old and she just got the heck out of here! your sister cori's 13. you're cor snink you're 13. there we go. she's making her way through the crowd. there she is. there she is. oh, and she looks pretty happy about the whole thing. okay. let's check your weather, see what's going on. it's a wacky morning. san jose, nbc 11, partly sunny, 58 degrees. that's where you're from? all right, great! you can see we've got some snow getting itself together down in memphis, all the way up to chicago, we're looking at snow. this system is going to reform, double-barrelow, minnesota into texas, reform along the mid-atlantic coast, bringing storms later today, i should say into tomorrow. sunny sk good morning, clear, very cold, now 23 in washinon, we're in the teens inmont bomb rip county, fairfax and prince george's county, near 20 degrees. sunshine today, highs only near freezing, clouding up tonight, then light snow tonight, ending wednesday, with an additional of five to ten inches throughout much of the region by the time it ends on wednesday. that's your latest weather. our station manager, leslie -- i just want to show, leslie almost looks like this lady here. don't they look kind of alike? >> separated at birthday. i like it, all right. why don't you button your coat? >> i'm about to. come on. i'm about to take it off, actually. i'm about to. all right, mr. roker. when we come back, we're going to talk about a serious subject. it's called the choking game. how many kids are trying it? we're going to talk to a father who actually lost his son to it. it's a cautionary tale. ♪ special k protein shakes -- ♪ a truly great-tasting breakfast shake. with 10 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber, it's the creamy, delicious way to satisfy... your hunger to help you lose weight. ♪ so you can kick the tin can habit. try special k protein shakes today. this is our plant. these are our workers. and this... is upper management. but what you won't find around here... is any freezing, flavoring or concentrating, which brings us to our end product. simply orange. honestly simple. 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>> yes. >> reporter: miraculously, levi's brain didn't die. he came back. >> they were trying to tell me that i tried to commit suicide. and i was like, no, no, no, no. >> reporter: instead, levi admitted that he had been playing the choking game,ore amply named suffocation roulette. players intentionally strangle themselves for what they describe as a very brief sense of euphoria. levi and his friends thought it was safe. >> he says, mom, it's just passing out. he goes, it's fainting. he says i've never seen anybody faint that didn't get up. >> reporter: it can be a deadly misconception. >> i want to see my boy. i want to run my fingers through his hair. >> reporter: ken's 15-year-old son kevin played the choking game but lost. his 11-year-old sister found kevin in his bedroom. it was too late. >> there's a rope around his neck. i'm going to try to untie it. >> okay. >> it's very tight. >> reporter: kevin's parents were like most, they had never heard of the choking game, despite the fact that most kids have. the cdc just conduct its first large-scale survey in oregon. 10,000 eighth graders were asked about the choking game and 36% said they had heard of it. 1 in 15 saidhey'd tried it. >> we as parents owe it to other parents not to let them have to go through this. if it's in our power to stop it, we owe it to them to stop it. >> reporter: both he and levi's mom now travel the country talking to anyone who will listen, but they say there are two big reasons that some parents are reluctant to address the choking game. >> not my kids. they know better. two, if we tell them about it, then they'll do it. neither are true. >> reporter: so, how do you combat this thing? >> education. >> reporter: and that is their mission, to teach the lessons learned from one who lost and another who got a second chance, playing a game where there are no winners. for "today," lee cowan, nbc news, wichita. >> and as you just saw, ken talk's son ken died from injuries he suffered while playing the choking game. good morning to you, ken. >> good morning, meredith. >> first time we met was just a few weeks after kevin's death. it's now been just over a year. how are you and your family doing, first off? >> we pray a lot. >> yeah. >> we're healing. we're healing as a family. you know, we stay tight, we stay close, we talk. we try our best to educate. we move, we go forward. >> and that's been your mission to get out there -- >> yes, ma'am. >> -- and tell kids what this is about, for those who might not know about it. what kind of reactions have you been getting from teenagers? >> teenagers overall overwhelmingly support it. >> support it? >> yes. they want to know good information and they thank us every time we come for coming and telling them. and i've had at every presentation somebody come up and tell us, i didn't know -- i've done this, i didn't know what it did to me. thank you for coming today. i brought wit me some e-mails today from sixth graders who say you need to come to our school every year because of what you came and talked to us about. now i know what to look for. and the kids, the kids know about it. >> it's the parents. >> it's the parents who don't. and you overwhelmingly hear this, well, if i tell my kid, they're going to go try it. and it's like, well, if you don't tell your kid, they're going to try it with bad information. if you want that kid to know what this is about, tell them the truth about it. >> what about the parents who say, as we just heard in that piece, lee's piece, well, not my kid, my kid wouldn't do that? >> we look at our children as we look at life. at our age, we know that this is dangerous, so we assume that they're going to know that it's dangerous, too. they don't have the life experience that we have. if youant your kid to make informed decisions, educate your child. make sure that your kid knows the truth about this. don't just make the assumption, my kid knows better. it's our fear of the unknown and our fear of this that causes inaction. >> i understand you put the choking game right up there with things like drugs and alcohol -- >> you bet. >> - in terms of things children need to know about. >> yes, ma'am, you bet. it needs to be classified with other risky behavior, you know, huffing and things like that, that it just all needs to be incorporated. it can kill them. they need to know the truth about it. >> so, what are the warning signs for parents who may not realize that their child is already involved in this so-called game? what should they look for? >> marks on the neck, as many specialists have said, blood-shot eyes, changes in their behavior, ropes, ties, belts, things in their room that they don't understand, kids getting moody and suddenly getting moody, grades suddenly dropping, wanting to stay in their room and not come out and disorientation. that's thenly sign that i really had with kevin was that i noticed a couple of weeks before that there was times when he was disoriented that he shouldn't be. >> you had been talking about this, too. >> not knowing that it had a name. i talked to him about the kids that we had seen that we thought were committing suicide by hanging. and now we're wondering how many of those suicides weren't suicides, how many of those were this. and for the last 15 years, it's been very prolific through our society. >> how has this helped you to heal, going around, across the country talking to kids? >> having that kid come up to me and say thank you, i didn't know about this before you got here. when i stand before god and i stand before my son, i will not be trying to explain to them why i did not take advantage of the opportunities that he sent my way, why i stood idly by and did nothing. i'm not going to do that. i nt to know, i want to look my son in the eye and say you believed in me enough to open these doors. i believe in you enough to listen. and that's my goal, meredith. and there's so many parents out there just like me trying to do the same thing, and we're all in this together. we owe it to every parent to do what we can. >> ken, we appreciate you being here this morning. >> thank you. >> thank you very much, ken tork. we'll be right back. ♪ ladies, raise your spoons. now there's nothing left standing between you and a satisfying breakfast. introducing special k low-fat granola. with 50% less fat than the leading granola... and 5 grams of fiber per serving, it's a satisfying way to help you manage your weight. special k low-fat granola -- a taste of freedom. superstar and mom, martina mcbride and sunnyd love to see kids' spirits shine. shine on sunny taste. sunny spirit. sunny d. the favorite flavor with a fever on top. code orange. when the fever is high enough to be a code orange, you need children's motrin. the brand pediatricians recommend most... to bring high fever down fast. children's motrin. green beans. corn. corn. i really should make lists. [ female announcer ] people who spent $100 a week at leading national supermarkets on frequently purchad groceries could've saved $275 in 5 months by shopping at walmart. save money. live better. walmart. ♪ cer: trying toy. live better. walmart. be good to your heart? so is campbell's healthy request soup. low in fat and cholesterol, heart healthy levels of sodium, and tastyou'll love. guy: mmmm! chef: we're kind of excited about it. announcer: campbell's healthy request. >> announcer: "heart by the numbers today" is brought to you by healthy request soups. mm-mmm good for your heart. and this morning, in honor of american heart month, we're kicking off a special series "heart by the numbers today." this morning, the number on as in heart disease, the number one cause of death in the united states. dr. arthur ageston is a preventive cardiologist in miami. dr. agetston, good morning. >> good morning. >> let's start with what we need to know, starting with salt. and we're not just talking about salt from the shaker, but salt that's already in our food. what's the main problem with consuming too much salt? >> well, salt is a major risk factor for high blood pressure, which is a major risk factor for heart attack and stroke, and we've been consuming more and more salt as a society. one teaspoon is 2,300 milligrams. that's about what we should be doing. we're consuming a lot more, like 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons. >> and we're getting a lot of this in processed food. that's where we're getting a lot of the salt. about 80% is in the processed fast food. that's what we have to reverse to get rid of it. >> all right. so, the recommended amount of salt per day is about 2,300 milligrams -- >> one teaspoon. >> and you're saying we're getting 3,400 milligrams. and so, what's the best way to make sure we're controlling the amount of salt in our diet? >> it's not counting the salt or getting rid of the salt shaker. it's getting rid of the processed fast food. we should be cooking more at home, more vegetables, fresh foods. >> you talk about salt being a cause of high blood pressure. let's talk about blood pressure right now. for a healthy individual, what is the appropriate blood pressure, or does it change for everybody? >> it's, overall, ideal is less than 120 over 80. the big problem we see is blood pressure has to be controlled over months and years, not in isolated blood pressure readings. people come to my office after they've been stuck in traffic, they complain they have a headache. your blood pressure normally goes up when you have a headache. >> so, what's the best way to get an accurate reading if blood pressure rises and falls throughout the day? >> 120 over 80, and all the guidelines are based on when we're relaxed and quiet for a while, and it has to be several numbers over a period of time. >> i hear a lot about triglycerides, and i'll be quite honest with you, i'm not quite sure what triglycerides are and why they're so important. >> well, triglycerides are a fat. it's the major form in which fat is stored in our body, excess calories under our skin, in our bellies, and triglycerides facilitate cholesterol getting into our vessel walls, clogging things up. and it particulay facilitates that after we eat. after we eat, the triglycerides shoot up, especially at risk for heart attack and stroke. >> so, when a lot of people take the sting triglyceride levels, is that meaningless then? >> that's been the tradition. it's not meaningless, but we get a lot more information from non-fasting. >> all right. finally, let's talk about waist circumference. i hear a lot about bmi, body mass index. why is waist circumference so important? >> well, body mass index is a way to adjust over weight for our height. 1 150-pound 5-footer is heavy and it includes muscle and bone. it's the fat that's important, particularly our belly fat. that's where we get our risk from, and that's reflected by our waist circumference. >> 35 inches recommended for a woman, not above, and 40or a 8:26 is our time right now, 22 very cold degrees outside. beautiful, sunny skies though. that's going to change. we're still digging out from the blizzard of 2010. the federal government is closed today. every major school district of d.c., maryland and virginia is closed as well. on metro rail, all above ground stations are closed today. understood ground stations running about every 20 minutes. there are limited airline flights at ronald reagan. good morning, bright sunshine, it's frigid, only near 22 degrees. highs today climbing near freezing with lots of sun. cloudy tomorrow, could get some snow developing in the afternoon, heavy at times dews night. how's the traffic, jerry? >> improvement has been made but still tough along the 270 corridor. let's go to northern virginia along 395 and making the trip around the district still very charging on most of the roadways, so if you can air void driving for the time being. >> we'll have more news, weather and traffic in 25 minutes, now 8:30 now on this monday morning, february 8th, 2010. another happy crowd has found its wa to a chilly rockefeller plaza. perhaps a few tired but happy saints fans in the bunch. if they are here, we are very happy to have them. just ahead, a tricky dilemma for a lot of parents. what do you do when one child is overweight and the others are not? do you favor one over the other? do you do separate meals? how's that work? hard to balance both food preparation and everyone's feelings. we have some expert advice, coming up. it's tricky. all right. also ahead, we told you that the pot-and-pan industry is a billion business. do you really have to go out and spend a lot of money to get great pots and pans? then, if you do spend money, what do you do to protect them and make them last longer? we're going to have advice on that, coming up in a couple of minutes. and remember when you went to college, you used to joke about the basket weaving course? well, you won't believe some of the courses they're offering now like walking, the simpsons, garbage. >> what? >> i like the simpsons. >> well, we'll tell you about those classes later on. >> all rit, okay. first, why don't you collect your papers. let's get a check of the weather, al. >> good idea. thank you so much. all right. let's see what's happening for today. we are looking at sunshine here in the east, rain in texas. that's part of a system that's going to be working its way to the east, bringing snow to the mid-atlantic states tomorrow. bad news for washington, we get snow here in the northeast later tomorrow night on into wednesday. mountain snows out west, rain in the central parts of good morning, we have a clear sky, temperatures around 20 degrees. in washington, it's in the teens in the suburbs and it will climb to freezing today for much of the time period all the way through to the end of the week. could get some developing snow tomorrow evening, ending with strong winds on wednesday leaving a big area with five to ten inches of new snow on top of what's already falling from the blizzard over the weekend, a little bit less south and east. and that's your latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you very much. and up next, the best pots and pans for your money and how to make them last a lot longer. but firs we're back now at 8:34. this morning on "today's consumer," pots and fans. america spends $6 billion a year on cookware. so, how do you make sure you get the most fof your money? consumer correspondent and "reader's digest" contributor janice lieberman has answers on all this. janice, good morning. good to see you. >> good morning. we got all fired up about this subject, so we went to the experts for the 411 on cookware. from rachael ray to paula deen, nonstick pans and stainless steel, finding the right pots and pans and caring for them can be a shore. >> something like that. >> is it easy to clean? so-so. to find out what cookware is worth the dough, we visited jack bishop on the set of the popular cooking show "america's test kitchen." give us an education on what the best pan is to buy. >> first thing you need to think about is the material. and the twoactors about the material is going to be the conductivity. so, how it conducts the heat and the reactivity. does it react with the food? sorks elet me start with the cheapest and the heaviest. you might want to try to pick this one up. >> are you kidding? >> it's a cast iron skillet. it's really inexpensive. it conducts heat incredibly well, though you're going to cook something with acidic ingredients, tomato sauce, wine, it can pick up a metallic flavor. this is similar. also cast iron but coated with enamel. so it doesn't have the reactivity problems of a regular cast iron. so, you can cook anything in this. >> and this is lightweight, but kind of useless. >> this is the thing to avoid. lo alum numb conducts heat well. we love this because it's a cla pan, three layers of metal. stainless steel on the inside, on the outside, and then in the middle is the conductive aluminum. stainless steel doesn't conduct heat well, but it's easy to clean and doesn't react with food. >> the nonstick is what most of us go for. it's easy to clean and you use less fat. is it a great pot? >> it's great for eggs, great for fish, you know. food doesn't stick. the problem is the surface does not last. even if you take good care of your nonstick pans, we find after two or three years, the scratches are so bad that the food is sticking and really you've got to get a new pan. >> if there are scratches, should you toss it? >> yeah. that coating is going to come off and end up in your food. then there are disc-bottom pans where it's stainless steel with the disc on the bottom. so that conducts the heat, but not as well. >> reporter: the result of cooking onions with a disc bottom and walking away for ten minutes -- yikes! >> right. we walked away. obviously, if we had been here stirring, we could have prevented the problem, but notice it's just cooked unevenly. >> reporter: compare that to the clad pan made with three levels of metal. >> nice, even coloring. the pieces are pretty much all the same color. >> but the best cookware is only as good as its last cleaning. so, let me know how you clean up really sticky messes. >> so, this is a sort of moderately dirty pan. i'm going to show you a shortcut so you can do less scrubbing. so, i put the heat on, and i'm going to throw some water on here, and what we're going to do is let the water come back to a boil and then we're going to sort of let the water lift the gunk off so we have less scrubbing. you can use a rubber spatula, if you want, a wooden spoon, and you notice -- >> reporter: it's all lifted completely. >> it's all lifted. basically, the boiling water did everything for us. >> reporter: great trick. even rusty cast iron pans can be saved with a little elbow grease and salt. this is a mess. don't tell me you're going to bring this back to life. >> i'm going to put theeat on, sort of on a low setting, and i'm going to use a little bit of oil, and then i'm going to add a little bit of kosher salt and i will use the salt as an abrasive. and you can see the salt is beginning to turn brown, meaning that it's picking up the rust. >> reporter: that's amazing. it's lifting it. >> it's lifting it. and i'm going to quickly rinse it and bring it back and show you what it looks like. and voila. >> reporter: it's almost completely lifted. >> it's almost completely clean. dry the pan while it's over sort of low heat and then and then g rub oil in to close the pores of the metal sot can't rust. >> reporter: fantastic. and the key to keeping your nonstick pots and pans in good shape is to store them correctly, matt. that's the big thing, so they don't scratch. >> andhese are simple things you can do with paper plates and paper towels and bags. >> that's right. that's how you store it so they don't scratch and once they do scratch, toss them. but to make sure they do last longer is to use correct utensils. so use rubber only or plastic. a lot of people use the metal and it completely scratches them. and don't put them in the dishwasher, no pots and pans, which we learned, because that scratches. >> because it's so easy and people love the convenience of that. so, you see people do it all the time. >> yeah, not a good idea. >> cleaning, we saw that tip with salt and things like that, but when it comes to using everyday kitchen things like sponges, you've got some suggestions. >> right. nor nonstick, use these soft pads, but he doesn't like steel wool. he says it's not necessary, they rust. get copper pads, and these are specific for bar keepers, he likes, and cameo, and that's what you should clean your pots with. now, if you have a rely, really big mess on the bottom of your pot and it's terrible, take it out to the garage with rubber gloves and use paper, spray it with oven cleaner, leave it, come back and rinse it off, and voila, it's going to be -- now, this is for everyday. >> you have to be careful about this. >> you sure do. >> if you have young kids and stuff, you don't want this near them. a lot of people wonder whether they should buy a great set of pots and pans or whether they do better or it would be more economical to buy the things they need individually. what's your suggestion? >> they make it alluring because the prices are good for a big set, but you end up with a lot of little stuff you're never going to use. you'd be better off buying a few essentials. this is all clad, but any kind of clad they love. and this is a good size to get. you need one good nonstick that you're going to take care of, but really take care of it. and a sauce pan, also he likes the clad. and this is enamel, but inside it's going to wipe off really nicely. so, this is a crock-pot, stock pot, and you can use that, too. >> so, don't go out and, according to you, buy the big, big set. just get exactly what you need. >> you'll be better off. >> janice lieberman, good information, as always. thank you very much. up next, should you have separate rules for eating for your children if one child is overweight boss: so word's gettin' out that geico customers could save even more on their car insurance by signing up for other things - like homeowner's or renter's insurance. nice work, everyone. exec: well, it's easy for him. he's a cute little lizard. gecko: ah, gecko, actually - exec: with all due respect, if i was tiny and green and had a itish accent i'd have more folks paying attention to me too... i mean - (faux english accent) "save money! pip pip cheerio!" exec 2: british? 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'cause actually, i'm from - anncr: geico. save even more with our new multi-policy discount. back at 8:43. this morning on "take it off today," two sisters, two different body types. more than 12 million children in the u.s. are overweight, so how do you parent two siblings with two different diets? here's nbc's jeff rossen. >> reporter: two sisters living under one roof. advan vanessa is 12 years old, thin, and this is her sister, 11-year-old tiffany, overweight and struggling with it. when you look in the mirror, what do you see? >> well, when i look at my face, i see beauty, but when i look at my stomach, i see, i don't know, i just -- i think the beauty goes away. >> reporter: the sisters are close but just under the surface there's the issue that overshadows everything. >> one's thin, one's chubby. >> reporter: tanya fellis and her husband raise the girls the best way they can. >> i give in a lot. i don't want to, but i do. i give in a lot. >> reporter: every day is a struggle. >> so, there are two sets of rules. like there's 100-calorie snack for one. the other one can have the regular snack. >> reporter: so, this is a mental game. >> yeah, i have a hard time. since i don't want vanessa to have it because tiffany will feel bad, but then be if i say no to vanessa, vanessa will feel bad. so, i'm battling in my mind, how do i do this? who gets what is th? >> hi, welcome! >> reporter: so, they found a family doctor to help tiffany lose weight. >> tiffany can absolutely lose the weight. this is not a hopeless case. >> reporter: okay, so, let's fast forward. it's been nine months since we first met tiffany. we just went back to check in, and wow! >> i'm much more confident about myself now. >> reporter: she looks amazing! >> it took six months to lose 30 pounds. >> reporter: and tiffany's determined to lose even more with the help of her family supporting her every step of the way. >> tiffany's family really stepped up to the plate. they made changes, they kept healthy foods in the house. they encouraged her to exercise. they did everything right. >> ever since we started this diet, the whole house became so much healthier. i've been getting a lot of compliments from everybody. i would never want to go back to being 143 pounds. >> reporter: a new look, a new tiffany, healthier and happier than ever. for "today," jeff rossen, nbc news, new york. >> first of all, tiffany, you look great, kiddo. congratulations. but what do you do if you have a similar situation in your house? ruth peters is a "today" contributor and clinical psychologist. joy bauer is a "today" contributor and registered dietician and nutritionist. good morning to you both. >> good morning, meredith. >> good morning. >> you know, weight issues in children, it's such a sensitive area. when is it appropriate to first broach this with a child, at what age? >> well, i think if you start it where you're not even talking about weight, you're talking about health and nutrition and it's a family ethic, you don't even have to use the weight word because naturally, you know, if you're eating right and getting a lot of exercise, it won't become an issue. >> just avoid that word and talk more generally in terms of good health? >> exactly. and what will naturally happen, because the kids are under your control most of the day, except for those few hours at school, then the children will be healthy, there won't be a weight issue, and it's not a real problem. >> you know, joy, in this piece, the mom said i have two sets of rules, one for my daughter who's, you know, average weight or thin, and the other one for the daughter who's overweight. you're already saying not a good idea. >> no, not a good idea. and clearly, it's unfair and it's destructive if one kid is snacking on baby carrots, the other kid is munching on chocolate chip cookies. you really need as a parent to institute one consistent health message throughout the entire house. and at the end, everybody wins, because the whole family is closer, they're healthier, and by default, it helps with weight management if you have an overweight child. and i think that parents need to be comfortable and confident knowing that nobody needs junk, skinny kids or overweight kids. >> there's also, you know, the two girls -- jeff made the point in the piece that they get along, they're close, but underlying this issue exists and resentment can build up, can't it? >> it can inny pairs. when witnee sat down for this segment, i said how come joy gets to sit near meredith? when you have two kids, let's say one child has a math difficulty and they need extra tutoring. so they're resentful that the other kid gets to play. and the other kid is saying you're spending all this money on tutoring, not about me. so every kid is different and parenting, you have to have the guts to give every child what they individually need. >> and as a parent, you don't want to single one out. like she was saying, i don't want vanessa to feel bad or the other one to feel bad, tiffany. >> and that's why it's so important to have an overall health message within the family. young kids eat about 50% of their food within the home. so, you ideally want to keep the good foods in and the unhealthy foods out of the house. you also want to be strategic with dinners. for example, starch can be a big issue. only make one serving per person so that when they want more, when the skinny child or the overweight child wants more, there is no more. there's more vegetables, there's more lean protein, but there's not more starch. so, there's less fighting, less resentment. >> and when should you seek professional help? >> okay, when you feel that you have not been successful as a family to do this, as the child is having more down moments than happy moments, you see their self-esteem is having issues, there may be significant resentment. sometimes the kid needs to talk to somebody other than mom. you may be saying, parenting the same exact words, but it's not mom. it's not coming out of mom's mouth. >> and if you need a local nutritionists, the american d t dietetic associate has a website, eatright.org, you put in your zip code and you get a rson thais good with kids, good with families and can really help you. >> all right. good information. joy bauer, thank you so much. ruth peters, as always, thank you so much as well. up next, the history of shopping, the joy of garbage. college courses you won't believe. you know, higher education has come a long way from the three rs. today colleges are offering all kinds of classes, many you probably won't believe. "today" national correspondent jenna wolfe is here to explain that. jenna, how bad are these? >> it's not bad, it's good. >> okay. >> it depends how much you're into education. when i think back to college, i remember taking psych 101, english lit, maybe biology. and while universities still require those core classes, what we used to come to know as liberal arts now has a much wider definition. >> i wished there was some way that we could get out of school today. >> me, too. >> me, too, neither. >> reporter: do you remember taking algebra back in school and wondering when am i ever going to use this in real life? wouldn't it have been much more fun studying sports or cooking or tv, like "family ties"? well, now you can, as universities across the country have begun offering practical courses. key word there being practical. at center college in kentucky, they offer a course called the art of walking, where students learn about nature while burning off a few calories at the same time. you like tv? well, at cal berkeley -- ♪ the simpsons -- they've got a seminar called simpsons and philosophy. >> this is a chance for me to fulfill my lifelong dream. >> reporter: yeah, that simpson. where you actually write an episode for your final exam. >> uh, let's watch something else. >> reporter: even yale, an ivy league school, has added a few trendy classes to their curriculum, such as the history of shopping. sign me up. or the culture of things. talk about a broad topic. we caught up with yale professor shelley kagan, who teaches one of the more popular courses on campus called death. >> i took both life and death. >> reporter: yes, he also teaches life, just in case you were wondering. >> a course in death or a course in life sort of has sort of like a cache ring to it. >> it's not like this is an attempt to tell you here's what life is. the real idea of the class was to look at some of the decisions that people make as they go through life. >> rorter: just how popular is death? i mean, the course, not the act. >> the "yale daily" claimed it was the third largest class last semester on campus. >> reporter: santa clara university has a classalled the joy of garbage, which is more than just putting your waste in the appropriate bin. here in new york city, barnard college students are just getting started on a new class called revenge. and i'll bet you won't find a single red sox fan in this class at rutgers university called yankee stadium. >> my dad asked me what i registered for and i told him my classing, writing and yankee stadium. and he looked at me and was like, are you kidding? >> reporter: want to sign up for this one? you'd be 1 of 200 students vying for only 20 slots. that's called popular. >> it's the most popular class in the first-year seminar catalog, i've been told. >> reporter: is everybody that signs up for this class a yankees fan? >> absolutely. >> yes. >> yes, of course. >> i'm a huge yankee fan. >> i was in diapers watching the yankees. >> we had a phillies fan, yes. >> reporter: better than a red sox fan. >> well, we haven't had a red sox fan yet. i don't think they would come. >> reporter: a class about the yankees may seem like a no-brainer if you're interested in sports management, but discussions have ranged from business to sociology to philanthropy. and, yeah, also the captain of the baseball team. if i toldou that jeter is actually here today and is going to come in and speak to you, you don't -- that doesn't affect you at all because you don't really care because you know it's just about the stadium, right? >> i wouldn't go that far. >> reporter: they do think the class is about derek jeter. i scored! i got to the bottom. tell derek he doesn't have to come. no, they don't care. all right, i'll admit some of these courses were offered back when i was in school, i might have actually stayed for an advanced degree. in what, i have no idea, but an advanced degree in something. >> what's the weirdest class that you took in school? >> that i took in school? i think still back when i was in class, they were fairly normal courses. >> sky diving -- >> did you take a sky diving course? >> bowling. >> i loved it it was good. 8:56 is our time right now it's 26 degrees out there. we see sunshine, but we're still cold and we're still digging out from the blizzard of 2010. the federal government is closed today. every d.c. virginia and maryland school districts are closed. at the airports there are limited flights. and streets around the area are rough as you can see in many areas. we'll take a break now and come good morning, it's sunny, but very cold, temperatures only in the teens to 20s in the nmeto area now. cloudy on tuesday northern, by noontime around the metro area light snow developing. could have a couple more inches on the ground by morning. fresh coating of snow of up to 5 to 10 inches of snow in in the region. winds gusting to 40 miles an hour. unfortunately, we may have more power outages as a result. now let's check on the traffic, jerry, how is it looking? >> tom, it's looking a little bit better, but we still have issues, 395 at duke street. pick-up truck ran off the roadway, apparently tried to navigate the exits. as a result authorities now have to deal with that and focus their attention on this incident as opposed to cleaning the wloi. there is hope on the beltway, but still some tough going. >> we'll have more news, weather and traffic for you in 25 we're back now with more of "today" on a monday morning. it's the 8th of february 2010. folks all along the east coast, the atlantic seaboard cleaning up, from virginia to new jersey. they're digging out this morning after a major weekend storm that dumped more than two feet of snow in some places, and guess what? bracing for another big storm on the way midweek. al's going to tell us about that in a moment. meanwhile, we have nice people gathered out on the plaza. it was chilly when we started, not much warmer now. we thank them for stopping by. meanwhi meanwhile, inside studio 1a, m matt lauer along with al roker. as you can see, natalie has made her way out to vancouver, getting ready for the olympics, where the fever there, i guess, is starting to settle in, natalie? hi, again. >> reporter: hi, guys. sure is. four days to go. the countdown is on in full. i'll show you some of the last-minute preparations vancouver is having under way now. maybe you'll want to bring some of that snow this way because that's something they need, especially at one of the venues. that's coming up. >> all right. we'll check back with you in a moment. rethinking all the wardrobe out there with moderate temperatures. >> reporter: yes. repack completely. it's so warm. >> natalie, thank you very much. and coming up in a moment, our exclusive interview with the man who's been at the center of a scandal. former espn sports analyst, who had an affair with a young co-worker, getting them both fired. now he's out of sex rehab and he's speaking out about everything from the scandal to the state of his marriage. we'll hear from steve phillips in just a little while. and also ahead, with more than 90 million folks tuning into the super bowl last night, we're going to take a look at which ads scored a touchdown -- i love that one -- with viewers. we'll also look at what you didn't see last night -- oh. from the celebrities to the parties, in a live report from miami, coming up. we're not doing casual fridays around here. >> we're not. >> not at least that way. let's get a check of the morning's top stories from ann curry over at the news desk. ann? >> thanks a lot, matt. as matt mentioned, eastern states are bracing for a new round of snow beginning tomorrow. up to three feet of snow fell this weekend from virginia to new jersey. federal workers in washington were given a snow day today and schools are closed in washington and philadelphia. today, federal investigators will start looking for the cause of sunday's explosion at a power plant under construction in middletown, connecticut. officials confirmed at least five fatalities. more than a dozen people were hurt. iran says it plans to build ten new uranium enrichment facilities over the next year in a move likely to further raise tensions with the west. iran also says it will start producing higher grade nuclear fuel tomorrow. gas prices are down for a fourth straight week according to the lundberg survey. the average price is now $2.66 a gallon for regular because of falling crude oil prices. toyota says it will announce plans for braking problems with prius hybrids. this affects 200,000 priuses sold in the u.s. and japan since may. and the shuttle "endeavour" is in orbit after a predawn lift-off in florida. the shuttle is carrying six crew members as well as a new room and observation deck for the international space station. it is due to dock on wednesday. and "dear john" took over the top spot at the weekend box office, taking in more than $32 million, according to early estimates. "avatar," which had been the top film for the previous seven weekends, was second. and "from paris with love" s third. it is now three minutes past the hour. let's now go back to matt. >> all right, ann, thanks very much. al's gone out to the plaza to reward the nice people who have been braving the chilly temperatures and to talk to some very impressive chefs. >> that's right, and they're all scurrying into place even as we speak. we've got a special truck on the plaza. this one is going to be feeding busy new yorkers, but the neat thing is the shefz will be serving the food are some of the finest in the world. they are all here serving up gourmet food to some lucky new yorkers who won a golden ticket through a contest on nbcnewyork.com. gentlemen, good to see you. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> you're going to be going out to secret locations with this truck, serving food up. how did people find out? how do you know? >> i think it's going to be on nbc -- >> nbcnewyork.com? >> no, not nbcnewyork.com. you know where it's going to be. >> yes. >> we can't tell where it's going to be. >> you can't tell. >> once they find you -- >> yes. >> once they find you, what are some of the stuff they're going to be eating? >> okay, so, here i am doing cheese, melted cheese, ham. here a hot dog. it's lined with yogurt toast, a burger from bbgb. a little dessert for everybody. >> very nice. >> but the most interesting part is that some special people will get -- >> ooh. >> special eggs with -- >> truffled eggs. >> truffled eggs. >> very nice. >> only 12. >> what do you have? >> this is from benoit, with sauerkraut, pork, smoked pork, three kind of sage and tuna salad. >> and pa, what have you got? >> we have a fish and chips croquet, fried potatoes and some vinegar powder. >> and michael? >> we have a trustan porquette with wild arugula. >> very nice. you'll all be together i think a little bit warmer at the end of the month. you're going to be honoring daniele at the south beach wine and food festival. >>hat's right. >> we're looking forward to that. >> we wish we could join you, but we're going to be at the olympics, so we can't. >> yeah, i know. it will be busy. >> fantastic. gentlemen, thank you so much. >> we'll be all over town today. >> for more information, go to n good morning, we have got bright sunshine, but it's still very cold, temperature4 degrees in washington right now, and in the suburbs near 20, still in the teens, even single digits in north central virginia. highs reaching just near freezing and then clouding up tonight. could get some light snow in the area by noontime. several inches overnight tuesday night into wednesday, strong winds on wednesday. leaving a fresh coating of new snow, up to five to ten inches. that's your latest weather. matt? >> all right, al, thank you very much. now to the scandal that rocked espn. when steve phillips, a popular baseball analyst and married father of four, had an affair with brooke hundley, a young production assistant, it did not work well. when phillips broke it off, police say hundley texted his wife in revenge. news of the affair got them both fired and after sex rehab, phillips is speaking out. i spoke with him earlier in an exclusive interview and began by asking him why he decided to tell his story. >> i think that what people want to understand is what i want to do is take ownership. i made some mistakes. and people look at sex addiction as an excuse. it's not an excuse. i'm fully responsible for everything i did and accept responsibility for that. sex addiction's a diagnosis. >> there's a diagnostic criteria that has to be met. what is that? and you know, because people do think, for someone of high profile who gets caught in a scandal, this is kind of a modern-day get out of jail free card. what is the criteria? >> yeah. i recognized in august that i had a real problem, that i was a sex addict and i needed to get help. i started calling facilities in august before it blew up and i lost my job. i made the decision to get treatment on the friday before the sunday when i got fired. so i was going to get help. i knew i had a problem and i needed to get help. i think that it's the compulsion where you can't stop yourself, where you sdaunderstand the consequences. the first step of the 12 steps is you're powerless over your addiction and your life gets unmanageable. it wasn't anybody else. it was me. i couldn't stop myself from doing the things that i was doing, even knowing the consequences -- married, great job, great career, and i risked all of that, risked all of that to act out the way that i did. >> when you listen to the phone call of your wife, the 911 call, where she's talking about brooke hundley coming to your house -- we've already said that she sent text messages to your wife. she actually contacted one of your sons online, pretending to be someone else and asked questions about your marriage. what goes through your mind when you hear those things? >> it's sad. you know, i think of all my family's gone through. i mean, when you talk about victim with all this, people chose to participate in a relationship, but my wife and kids didn't, and with what my wife and kids have gone through and the trauma that they've faced not only from having a father and a husband that's a sex addict, but the trauma of the incident, the trauma of the media attention afterwards and then me going away for 45 days. they've been through a lot. >> you lost your job, but so did brooke hundley. she was young, 22 or 23 at the time. so she's a victim also. and although you say she chose to be in the relationship. if you could talk to her -- first of all, have you spoken to her? >> no. >> what would you say to her? >> i don't think it would be appropriate. i look at it as all of that is in the past. my focus is trying to save my family. i don't wish ill will on anybody. i need to put the pieces back together. >> talk about the clinic, gentle pass in hattiesburg, mississippi. it's been reported that tiger woods is there as well. can you share any of what it's like? and in particular, what's it like for the week that, i understand the spouse of the person being treated is asked to come and be a part of the therapy? >> yeah, it's -- i mean, people who go there are broken people. i mean, that's really the essence of the addiction is that you're broken inside. you've got a hole that you tried to fill, whether with alcohol or drugs or sex, gambling, whatever. so you've got a lot of broken people there struggling to find answers. and really, that's what you do. you go there and they try to get to the basis of what did you do what you did. and for most addicts, whether it's alcohol or sex or whatever, it's that you have that hole inside based upon shame and trauma that you've occurred from a childhood. >> was there an ah hah moment for you during therapy? do you have a better understanding? by the way, this is not the first time you've gone to a clinic like that. so, clearly, the first time it didn't work. are you able to sit in front of me today and say you're healed, you're repaired, you're better able to deal with it? >> yeah. the first time that back in '98 you're referencing when i had another scandal, i didn't go to a clinic. i just got some local therapy and really didn't get diagnosed properly. so, i tried to manage everything on my own. i didn't get in a system, didn't get into a program, didn't get the appropriate help i needed. that was myissue. i didn't realize it back then. i did get to the basis of that issue. the reality that when i made a mistake, it wasn't i made a mistake, i thought it was a mistake, that when i failed, i thought i was a failure, when i disappointed somebody, i internalized it that i am a disappointme. and that hole is something that i looked for some way to medicate and fill. and most addicts that i've been around, that's been a similar story. so, i've gotten to the basis that i need to try to resolve those oishz my own. >> i just have a few minutes left. your status of your marriage now, you and marni are still together? >> i'm working hard to try to save my marriage. i've broken my wife's heart and she's dealt with so many issues. we've gone to therapy to try to deal with that. i don't know the ultimate result because i damaged her and our relationship in a terrible way. >> that was steve phillips from earlier this morning. coming up, is vancouver ready for the world with the opening ceremony four days away? we'll get an olympic review. and if you're ready to hit the slopes yourself, we've got some great deals on winter getaways. we'll tell you about those right after this. two complementary fragrances alternate to keep things... fresh day after day. and not just for 30 days. um... okay. our longest-lasting plugins air freshener lasts for 60. well, that lasted longer than i thought. away for 60 days... with plugins lasting impressions. and yes, it's glade. s.c. johnson. a family company. - uh-huh. - ( rope creaking ) - ( rope snaps ) - ( piano clangs ) - ( crashes ) - glad forceflex trash bags are so strong, one bag is all you need to pick up the pieces from even your biggest disasters. - ( doorbell rings ) - where do you want the piano? for stretchable strength get glad forceflex. for stretchable strength lipcolor like you've never felt before. new revlon colorburst lipstick. impossibly light feel, intensely rich color. together at last. revlon colorburst lipstick. it's love at first swipe. now, we're making it more affordable. with five one-dollar off coupons in specially marked boxes... of cereal while supplies last. wake up to a better breakfast, on kellogg -- the best to you each morning. of finish t dry nse ent. the glass behind it wasn't. for sparkling dishes, try finish jet dry. we think you'll see the difference. most consumers do. finish. the diamond standard. ♪ three decadent flavors. 60 calories. it's me o'clock. time for jell-o. three decadent flavors. 60 calories. cook delicious dinners and save money with campbell's soups. go to campbellskitchens.com for a valuable coupon and hundreds of mouthwatering, family pleasing dinner ideas. ♪ so many, many reasons ♪ ♪ it's so m'm! m'm! good! ♪ including your skin. discover aveeno positively ageless. with shiitake complex, it helps speed... your skin's unique renewal process. 94% of women showed an improvement... in lines or wrinkles. for younger looking skin: aveeno positively ageless. love to see kids' spirits shine. superstar and mom, martina mcbride and sunnyd shine on sunny taste. sunny spirit. sunny d. brings out the best in kids. shine on sunny d find martina's "shine" cd in stores now. >> announcer: "today's trave is brought to you by expedia. expedia, where you book matters. this morning on "today's travel," with the winter olympics around the corner, you may be inspired to take your own winter wonderland vacation. mountain rests across the country are offering their best deals yet. nilou motamed, feature editor at "travel & leisure" magazine has all the details. so good to see you! >> good morning, al. >> here we go. a lot of people are getting ready for the olympics and think i might want to do this kind of a vacation. some of these places are offering pretty good deals. >> there are. in fact, there's lots of great ski-and-stay deals. because they want to throw in an added value, the hotels want you to come, they'll throw in maybe a lift ticket or added value bonus that makes you feel like you're getting taken care of. >> so, the hotels are offering these great packages. >> they're often either the hotels or the cbbs, the convention and visitors bureau of the resorts. >> what about ski passes, because those can run up? >> lift tickets, ski passes are all quite expensive. so it's great if you're looking for a destination and you're flexible to pick one where they're offering you ski passes. >> let's get started. >> the first place we're going is montana. >> ooh. >> so, the 320 guest lodge. this is a place i love in the summertime. it's a dude ranch, but in the winter, it's awesome. it's $150 a night to stay there. >> wow. >> and they're start throwing in three guest ski passes to the local mountains. and this is my favorite part, there's a sled ride at night that you can take. >> oh, nice. >> which is so nice. and they have draft horses that take you around. and can i tel you the best part? chili at the end. >> oh, that you can eat. you don't get chilly. >> no. they're allundled up. >> now, one of the biggest destinations for ski sports coming up. >> park city, utah, huge. obviously, we had the 2002 olympics there. so, this is a big winter destination, a great ski destination. the park city mountain resort is offering great deals. $275 a night per person, but they're throwing in three days of lift tickets. >> now, are these lift tickets good for different ski centers? >> you can use them all through -- there's actually three big resorts, but you can use them all around the area, which is fantastic. so you're going to get morehan enough skiing in. and my favorite part about skiin skiing, apra skiing. >> and perfect for olympics fever, the site of the 1980 olympics. >> lake placid is stunning. and if you're looking for an east coast winter wonderland experience, this is fantastic. the mirror lake inn, $275 a night for two adults. kids stay for free and they're doing three-day lift tickets, again, in the whiteface mountain, which is the site of the olympics. and there's more. >> there's more. wait, there's more. >> bobsledding. >> bobsledding! >> you can bobsled. you get an olympic pass where you can go to all the olympic venues. if you'd like to be in vancouver, but you can't, because some of us can and some of us can't, you can! >> you can luge like mat and i did. >> i didn't want to mention that because of the out filefitoutfi glad you did. >> what about the one we all think of, aspen? what is that like? >> oh, my gosh, it's so beautiful and i love it there. it's great in the summertime and the wintertime. why not stay there at the sky hotel and they throw in one night's stay and a nice ski lift -- i don't know why i have a problem with that. for $300 a night. >> what about airfare getting to these places? >> honestly, right now airfares are really good. the key is, if you're going for the kids holiday, it's likely to be a little expensive. if you can pick a little earlier, a little later, you'll get a better deal. >> and the other thing, how can you save a little moneyrying to avoid the baggage fees with a lot of these? could you ship your stuff ahead? >> you can ship, but it's expensive. i think the best idea is just to pay the fees. there's really no way, unless you want to rent skis when you get there. >> that's it. nilou -- >> what am i going to say? >> you'd make such cute little snow bunny. >> you should see me in my ski gear. >> okay, nilou motamed, thank you so much. coming up on "today," are your kids sexting? it's a serious issue for a lot of families. we're going to tell you what every parent needs to know. then a great hotel my kids will love. yeah. but wait... here's the really cool part. when i book them at the same time... voila! i can save up to 450 bucks. and we all know that can come in pretty handy. book flight and hotel, and save more. where you book matrs, expedia. ♪ dot com hey bets, can i borrow a quarter? sure, still not dry? i'm trying to shrink them. i lost weight and now some clothes are too big. how did you do it? simple stuff. eating right and i switched to whole grain. whole grain... [ female announcer ] people who eat more whole grain tend to have a healthier body weight. multigrain cheerios has five whole grains and 110 calories per serving. more grains. less you. make the switch. get $5 in coupons. bad cholesterol but your good cholesterol and triglycerides are still out of line? then you may not be seeing the whole picture. ask your doctor about trilipix. if you're at high risk of heart disease and taking a statin to lower bad cholesterol, along with diet, adding trilipix can lower fatty triglycerides and raise good cholesterol to help improve all three cholesterol numbers. trilipix has not been shown to prevent heart attacks or stroke more than a statin alone. trilipix is not for everyone, including people with liver, gallbladder, or severe kidney disease, or nursing women. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take and if you are pregnant or may become pregnant. blood tests are needed before and during treatment to check for liver problems. contact your doctor if you develop unexplained muscle pain or weakness, as this can be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. this risk may be increased when trilipix is used with a statin. if you cannot afford your medication, call 1-866-4-trilipix for more information. trilipix. there's more to cholesterol. get the picture. it was at the comedy club. that's when i'd had it with heartburn. the guy was hilarious. but i was in pain, so i stepped out. 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(announcer) the #1 prescribed acid reducer brand over the last decade is now over-the-counter to treat frequent heartburn a full 24 hours. prevacid®24hr. when you've had it with heartburn™ not yet mardi gras, but the partying has already begun in the big easy as the saints defeated the colts in one heck of a super bowl last night. >> and the celebrations are continuing in miami this morning. and always in a mood for a good party is our own hoda kotb, front and center at the big game. hey, hoda! >> reporter: hey, guys. this was my kind of party. it was so much fun. we had a chance to go into the stadium yesterday and we just camped out with some saints fans, and there was a moment there -- i don't know if you remember, but that interception where the game kind of changed -- it was in that moment where all these guys who, like for 43 years, had been praying this would be the year -- that was the moment that it kind of crystallized. and i've got to tell you, the place went completely crazy. and you actually saw this -- this was interesting -- one man st sobbing. it was one of those things. unless all these guys were watching the movie "rudy" have you ever seen so many grown men cry watching a football game it was astonishing. and we had some fun, too, because we got to go on to the field afterwards, and it was a blast, you guys. to see drew brees holding that baby, that little baby, his little 1-year-old, was like a moment that i know you guys saw th, huh? >> yeah. >> hoda, i've got to tell you, the game was very much in a sense like the city, really gutsy, always surprising you. i mean, that onside kick, talk about a gutsy call. >> reporter: i know. i couldn't believe that he called that onside kick. and that was also where the whole mood sort of changed. but i've got to tell you, watching those guys on the field and getting hugged by a gazillion people it was something special. >> you know that when the saints can beat peyton manning, anything is possible. congratulations. want to make this a valentine's day they'll remember? i love you around the world. i love you through and through. give a book with your voice on every page. and when it seems impossible to love you more... i do. good night, evan. - i love you. - awww, i love you too. a cuddly bear that answers when you talk... or a card with a dvd that celebrates your love story. gifts that will mean something long after the day is done. ♪ i love you only at your hallmark gold crown store. something soft and smooth. or something natural for a healthy look. chapstick. because healthy lips should never go naked. we call the bunches in honey bunches of oats the prize in the box. well, now there's a prize inside the prize. pecans! pecans! baked into crunchy oat bunches. taste the delicious surprise in every spoonful. honey bunches of oats with pecan bunches. beautiful. 9:26 is our time right now, 24 degrees, you can see that steam blowing, it is cold outside, we're still digging out from the blizzard of 2010 as well. the federal government is closed today. every major school district in d.c., maryland and virginia is closed as well. metro rail, all above ground stations remain closed. above ground stations are running about every 30 minutes. reagan national expected to restore some flights today. just when you think the worse might bebehind us, w gonch, bright sunshine, still lower teens and clouding up tomorrow morning. could get some light snow developing ash the metro area by noontime tomorrow and then getting heavier at times tuesday night. lighter snow on wednesday, but very strong winds. fresh snowfall, five to ten inches of new snow coming in tuesday afternoon and into wednesday. >> slowly but slurl things are beginning to improve. along i-270, the travel lanes t exit lanes are going to be very troublesome for a while. a quick check in virginia, along i-66 in virginia, be careful, you still lose the travel lanes because of ice back and snow cover. watch out for the crews, they've got a lot of work to do. do you remember when we first met and we went to that horrible part of town to buy you those dreadful clothes? this team is your family, michael. you have to protect them from those guys. >> that's newly minted oscar nominee sandra bullock in "the blind si," about a family who takes in a homeless team who ends up playing in the nfl. as you know, it's a te story. we'll talk to sandra about the oscar nod tomorrow on "today." meanwhile, coming up this half hour, we're getting excited about vancouver. >> we are. >> top athletes in the world getting ready. hearts will be broken, tears will be shed, and that's just in our control room, but a good time will be had by all. natalie morales is already there. hey, nat. >> reporter: hey! i'm the first wave here. that's right. we're going to be broadcasting. i believe matt's on his way here as we speak. so, we're going to be broadcasting all this week for the next two weeks and we're going to take you all around town and show you some of the olympic moments and give you a preview, coming up, as they're finishing up the final little touches here downtown to get ready. just four days away for opening ceremony. >> all right, nat. we're going to check back with you in a little bit. >> vancouver is such a beautiful city and is looks so sparkling in those videos we just saw from natalie. also coming up this morning, a problem a lot of parents may not want to think about, but they need to, because according to a recent survey, 25% of teens say they have sexted, which is sending racy comments or pictures of themselves to their friends through their phones or online. and according to the survey, a lot of the kids who say they have done this have parents who say they didn't realize their kids were doing this. it's not only embarrassing, but it could have potentially legal consequenc consequences. >> downright dangerous, too. and later on, if you have a young child at home, you know, to get them to eat healthy can sometimes drive you to your wit's end. we're going to show you some healthy options for finger foods for your babies, toddlers, even the bigger kids that they will gobble up. >> some of the finger foods i made for my kids when they were little they still like today, like apples and peanut butter and honey. they still like it today. but i digress. let's talk about the weather. tell us the forecast. >> okay. let's see what's happening. first of all, for the week ahead, we've got much below to below-normal temperatures for almost the entire country. the exception is central florida and the pacific northwest. midweek, we're looking for more cold weather throughout much of the u.s. some showers in the pacific northwest. above-normal temperatures in new england and a lot of wet weather through the gulf. and then toward the latter part of the week, after w get this midweek snowstorm in the northeast and mid-atlantic states, more rain in the west, also a good morning, bright sunshine now, we're in the low to mid 20s right around the metro area and the nearby suburbs and highs today should reach just near the freezing mark and cloudy tomorrow morning, light snow around the metro area by noontime tomorrow. could have a few inches on the ground by sunset. and some heavy snow with several inches added on top of that. strong winds on wednesday may cause more power outages. and fresh snowfall from five to ten inches on top of what's already on the ground. and that's your latest weather. >> all right, al, thank you so much. coming up next, last-minute olympic preps. we're going to go live to vancouver, right after this. 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"today" national correspondent natalie morales is already there, getting a head start on the olympic experience. hey, nat. >> reporter: hey, good morning, al and ann. i can tell you this city is already buzzing with activity, and the excitement is building here as vancouver gets ready to welcome the world. this glistening city by the sea is getting some extra polish, as vancouverites put the final touches on the biggest welco effort this city has ever seen. flags raised in the athletes village represent more than 80 nations which will compete in these games. >> the reality finally hits and flags going up is the icing on the cake. >> reporter: in a matter of days, this city of 2.2 million becomes a city of 3million, and mayor gregor robertson says vancouver is ready. >> it's been an exhaustive effort. we've really brought canada's best to vancouver to make sure we're prepared on every front. >> reporter: from canada's borders to this working port city, security is tighter than most vancouverites are accustomed to. >> i arrived about an hour before the flight left. and usually i arrive about 20 minutes. so, it was quite a bit earlier. >> reporter: so far, officials say they have no immediate reason for concern. >> we have the resources, personnel and assets in place, should we need them. >> reporter: what is a concern is vancouver's unusually warm weather, one of the warmest on record. along with this city's normal bouts of winter, rain has wiped out snow at cypress mountain. just 30 minutes from downtown and the venue for snowboarding and freestyle skiing. but a contingency plan is in place. snow from the mountain's top has been lowered on to a base of hay to secure the location. just over my shoulder here, you can see the helicopters still dropping crates of hay and snow with ls than a week to go before the games begin. these last-minute preparations will mean two less days of practice time for the athtes competing here. still, olympic committee members assure this venue will be ready in time for competition. while green on the slopes has been bad, green for the games has been good. vancouver is billing this olympics as the greenest yet. even the 2010 medals contain metal recycled from electronic waste like old cell phones. >> let's do luge doubles. >> reporter: if ticket sales are a measure of success, vancouver can start celebrating. a record number have been purchased, 1.6 million to date, in spite of one of the worst economic downturns in history. nearly every event is sold out. also selling out, the it item to have these games, canada red mittens. got my pair. the excitement and momentum here is built upon years of hard work. and this city is ready to enjoy its moment. got my little mittens on right now, although i'm not sure we're really going to need to wear these too much, because guys, these temperatures actually are pretty mild here. they're forecasting for the rest of the week it's going to continue that way with some rain later on. so, if you packed all those winter coats and stuff, might want to rethink the packing. >> okay. >> uh-oh. >> all right, natalie. thanks for the tip. >> cold up in the mountains. >> but it is cold where we're going to be. >> we'll need them there, but in the city, a raincoat. thanks so much, natalie. thanks for the heads-up. >> you got it. >> the 21st winter olympic games kick off friday right here on nbc. and coming up next, the truth about sexting and what every parent and teen needs to know. that put you in charge of your world and hungry and the online tools to help you face any situation which means "darn right you can go to the dinner party" and still lose weit. and learn how to keep it off. join for free now. sorry, hungry. you're not invited. but you are, join for free today and change your life. weight watchers. stop dieting. start living. after all the rich holiday food... and activity you were...? 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(announcer) choosey moms, and dads, choose jif. now, we're making it more affordable. with five one-dollar off coupons in specially marked boxes... of cereal while supplies last. wake up to a better breakfast, on kellogg -- the best to you each morning. most parents have heard about it by now, but if you haven't, here's a reality check. a quarter of american teenagers are doing something called si t sexting, which is sending sexually explicit messages or images electronically. recently, momlogic.com asked mothers and teenagers how much they knew about sexting. >> did you know your teen had produced, sent or received child pornography? well, see, i never categorized it as that either, but yes, i knew. >> you just kind of get wrapped up into it because everyone's kind of doing it, and you know, you feel comfortable usually with the person you're sending it to. i mean, you can't really trust everyone. some people won't send it, but some people will send it off to their friends and they'll send it off to their friends and then it gets around the whole school. >> i think it's more, exactly, you're not really paying attention to what you're doing and the consequences of it. >> laura gatz is with momlogic.com. good morning, laurie. >> good morning. >> interesting to have this survey be with children and their parents at the same time. >> right. well, we needed to do it that way. momlog momlogic.com wanted to make sure that we got the conversation started, that it wasn't just that we were talking to parents, but that teenagers understood the consequences of their actions, too. >> and in your survey conducted in this manner, you found that 47% teenagers consider sexting normal. >> absolutely. it's part of being a teenager. you heard the one young girl on the tape there saying that they don't see this as doing anything wrong because they don't think about the consequences. and there are very serious consequences, both legal and emotional. >> well, we'll get to those in a moment, but that is still less than half. but when you think about that along with other surveys, is it fair to suggest, does this suggest that sexting is increasing? >> i think it is. >> becoming more of a problem? >> in my work, i work with thousands of kids each year, and i see that a lot of them are doing this. and it's just -- it is. >> and part of the wake-up call is not only that it's increasing, probably, but many parents who have kids doing this don't realize their kids are doing this. how did you find that? >> that they don't understand what their ks are doing. it's very hard to parent in a realm that we weren't parented in ourselves. so, we don't know what we should be looking for what questions we should be asking. >> let's talk about one of the problems you mentioned, that there are legal ramifications. a lot of the young people who receive, say for example, photographs or -- e-mails are not sexting, or are they? >> it's sexting messages, nude, semi-nude photos. >> photos. so they can have legal ramifications. >> absolutely. >> serious ones. >> as of right now, sexting is child pornography and there are states thinking of changing these laws and separating them, but you could have a registered sex offender -- you could have a 13-year-old become a registered sex offender for sending these pictures. >> and the thing is you can receive these pictures unsolicited as well. >> sure. >> 37%, according to your survey, have received a nude photo of a minor. does that make you legally vulnerable? >> sure. now you are in possession of child pornography, and that is still a felony. >> even if you're just 15? >> right. >> so, what's a parent to do? >> well, we need to talk to our kids about sexting. we need to explain to them that there's not just legal consequences, but emotional consequences, too. when our kids share tir bodies with somebody else in this way, they're being sexually active and they're doing it in a manner where they have no control. they may be sharing their body with one person or with 10 million people. and parents need to make that point. theyeed to be talking about it. >> so, you need to have a conversation. >> absolutely. >> what if your child receives one of these pictures, what's the practical bit of advice in terms of what to do? because as you said, it could be unsolicited. >> sure. they need to delete the image immediately. they need to take action and say i don't want to be part of this and delete that image. >> how do you recommend we speak to our children about this, because this is obviously touchy territory. >> re. it's a difficult talk to have, but we want to do -- there's four things that i recommend to get the conversation started. first, you don't want to make it a big talk. teenagers can smell a lecture from a mile away. experts will tell you that a great place to have these conversations are in the car, where you're not necessarily face to face and there's an end point. when you reach your destination, the conversation is over. then, you want to use tv, the internet, movies, the radio as a jumping off point. talking about somebody else's behavior and asking your teen, how do you feel about that? what do you think will happen to this person? sometimes it's easier to talk about someone else's behavior and not their own. third, when you buy your child a new piece of technology, whether it's a dsi or a new cell phone, you as a parent need to know how that technology works. does your cell phone take video? does it take pictures? and now you need to talk to your too teen about responsible use with that technology. finally, if you find out your teen has sexted, you don't want to yell at them first. you want to ask them why, because there's a behavior here. what brought them to this point that they decided to be sexually active in this manner. >> all right, lori getz, thank you very much. very alarming numbers. next time come back with some positive numbers, okay? >> i'll do my best. >> thank you very much. this morning in "today's kitchen"' a hot chef for the younger set, a lot younger. finger foods and snacks are an important part of a baby's diet and development, but if you're pulling your hair out like i did trying to whip up nutritious meals they'll eat, help is on the way. annabel karmel is author of "top 100 finger foods." good to see you. >> thank you. >> the thing is, no matter how healthy it is, if it doesn't taste good, your kids are not going to eat it. >> that's right. and it starts in the beginning. i start with sweet vegetables, sweet potato, but not squash. and that's important to start giving them meat, fish and chicken for iron and essential fay acids. >> as they age, you ramp it up a little bit? >> yes. it gets to a point where they will not be spoon-fed anymore and the only food that goes into their mouth is the food they put there themselves. >> so we'll start with rice crispy crusted chicken nuggets. >> that's right. i'll get you working, al. >> here we go. >> crush these rice krispies. i've marinated the chicken to give it more flavor without adding too much salt. so, i'm marinating some milk, fresh thyme, lemon juice with garlic. >> right. >> you're doing a great job there. >> thank you. >> then i'm going to dip it into some flour, okay, and then some egg. and what i'd like you to do is i'm going to open this zip lock bag, put it in here and start cutting. now, this can be used with fish or chicken. it's great coating. really tasty. going to add some cheddar cheese. >> all right. >> okay. and then a little bit of paprika. >> okay. >> we're going to mix it all up. oh, brilliant. okay. finger foods are really important because, i mean, you think about all the junk food kids eat, most of it's eaten with their fingers. >> sure. >> so it's important to make things that taste good, and children love chicken nuggets. so, this is a homemade chicken nugget. now, you can bake it or fry it. we're going to pop i in here. you can bake it like 15 minutes in an oven. so, it doesn't have to be fried. and it's delicious and nothing will taste as good as a homemade chicken nugget, i promise you. >> sure. >> i'm going to pop an extra one in here. and the other thing you can do is freeze these. so, once they're coated, before they're cooked, you can freeze them. just put it in a tray with some plastic wrap. we'll come back here. >> scoot back this way. >> and put it in the freezer, cover it with plastic wrap. so you've made them all in advance. then -- oh -- >> ah hah. >> now, this is a dip. so, i've made my own dips. tomato ketchup, sweet chili sauce and some lime. or, if you prefer -- >> mm-mmm, that's terrific. >> they're tasty, aren't they? >> mm-mmm. >> good. >> those are great! we're adding this to the roker family -- i'm not double dipping because i turned it around, okay? >> that's mustard, mayo and a little bit of maple syrup. also very tasty. >> now to get the meat and veggies. >> i'm not into disguising vegetables. i like them to see the vegetables and eat them. so, these are vegetables we marinated. you can marinate them overnight. some olive oil, balsamic vinegar and a pinch of sugar, so it brings out the sweetness of the vegetables. then i've boiled them four or five minutes on each side. >> and little rabbit pizzas. >> these are my rabbit faces. it's cheese mixed with worcester sauce and egg whites. >> and finally -- >> this is a way to get your children to eat vegetables, but it's a cake. things like cupcakes with carrots, cupcakes with zucchini and orange. that's a great way to get kids to eat more vegetables. >> hi, how are you? >> thank you so much. >> these are adorable. >> the recipes are on our website. coming up today, getting creative with your valentine's gifts. >> also, marie osmond is stopping by this morning 9:56 is our time right now, monday, the 8th day of february, 2010. lots of sunshine out there, but still cold. in the news for today, more than 50,000 area residents are still in the cold and the dark this morning. power will be restored to most customers sometime today. in northern virginia more than 8,000 come minudominion custome without power. pge is reported working to restore power to more than 4,000 of itself customers. a lot of work still ahead. let's get a check on the weather forecast. big changes coming? >> more snow on the way, winter storm watch for northern virginia, eastern panhandle of west virginia. sunny today with highs reaching the low 30s. and then light snow developing tomorrow afternoon, could be moderate to heavy at times ending wednesday with powerful winds. so up to 10 inches of new snow by the time it ends on wednesday. >> conditions are improving dramatically right now along the 270 corridor, still far from perfect. but much better. one more stop, we'll head over the same situation over northern virginia here. the crews are still out, many locations are still in traffic. >> we'll have more on captions paid for by nbc-universal television hey, everyby, happy monday. it's february 8th, 2010. hoda has been down at the super bowl all weekend but look who's here. >> that's right. >> catch. chuck nice is here with us, everybody. >> good morning. >> nice to see you. did you have a good super bowl day? >> absolutely. what a fantastic game. just riveting. >> too bad frank couldn't stay up late enough to see i we had this fabulous party all night. all of a sudden during the third quarter -- thought he was getting up to get something or something. we're saying good-bye to all our friends. where is my husband. >> in the third quarter? that's funny. >> he got a little sleepy. he left during the third quarter. he was calling the game. there we are. >> you had a football party? >> yeah. there's rege. our producer, his beautiful wife angelique. there is frank, signing the football on my lap. you have to sign it, too, chuck. when hoda gets back tomorrow, she's going to have the ball that she's having celebrities sign all weekend long down there. we're going to find a way to raise money for haiti relief. >> that is great. >> something should come out of all the craziness, something good. >> those are valuable balls at this time. >> i don't know if this one is. >> you can say that when you're a comedian. >> i was going to say, frank's balls are always valuable, chuck. oh, yeah. >> i've been an admirer of his balls for quite some time. >> when frank gifford signs -- it's cool to have regis on there. when frank signs it -- he puts, h-o-f '77, hall of fame. >> whoa! >> jim bell's four little boys were in frank's trophy room going crazy. >> hall of fame is the pinnacle. >> it is, but you think he could stay up. anyway, did you have a good time? >> i had an insane -- >> you did not. >> it was off the chains, as they say. >> no, no. >> i'm tell iing you the truth. did you see the movie "hangover"? >> yeah. >> nothing like that. hot dogs, pizza and my kids. that was the insanity of my super bowl party. >> you also knew you had to work here today. >> that's the real reason why there was no super bowl party for me. my wife said you've got to get up in the morning so i don't see any party in your future tonight. that was really the end of it. >> you really have learned to obey her at all costs. >> here is the thing. there's a saying that my father taught me. i would much rather be happy thanight. so, that's my marriage. >> works for you. >> it's like, look, what makes you happy, that's right for me. let's go with that. >> do you know what's making me happy right now? >> what's that? >> donnie deutsch is sitting over there and he's so upset that you're hosting today and he's not. >> i love the fact that donnie -- >> get out mief chair! >> i knew that would happen. >> get out of my chair. >> we will be with you for a moment in your segme. okay, don? >> you know what? 'll talk about that later. i happen to love chuck so that's okay. >> we all do. we love you, too, donnie. hoda doesn't like you very much, though. she's down in miami. >> i don't care. >> hoda, darling, are you there? >> are you kidding me? we've been here! >> hoda? >> we've been here. we've been here. okay. we're tailgating. wait. let me explain something. the party's not over. steve, show me how you cook, steve. good. we've got some cold drinks in the house. >> you're not looking at "dateline" hoda, i'm telling you. >> go, go. >> who-dat. >> last night -- wait. last night, last night it was a dream. i woke up this morning, pinch, pinch. we are out at the game. we were sitting with all the new orleans' fans and the place, kath, was rockin'. it was busting. >> yes. >> just to be in the stands was completely insane. you have never seen so many grown men cry in your life than you did in that stadium that night. it was astonishing. we're sit iting there -- there s that point -- remember when they had that interception? >> yes. >> i mn, the place -- blew the roof off. okay. now, look at me being all unbiased and all, and such. you know what? you've got to do what you've got to do. we were in the bleacher, we were in the boxes, we were on the field. we went everywhere. my favorite moment, guys, kath, was when we got out to run out on the field when the game was over and you're not supposed to because we're nbc. >> but everybody does. >> we went flying out there and there was drew brees and i'm looking up thinking how am i going to talk to him? his wife was talking next to him and said hoda, get drew. drew's up there. i said i don't know how to get him. this is what she told me to do. just pinch his tush. pinch it. so, i reached up. you know what? someone had to pinch drew brees' tush. i pinched it, he turned. look at thatbaby. >> that baby -- >> that was one of those moments. >> that baby is even cuter than the e-trade baby. >> one of those moments. >> so adorable. >> i know. look at that. that is the cutest baby. >> do you know what i appreciated? do you know what i loved about that? they showed such great parenting with protecting that little guy's ears. i see people at rock concerts with their babies and they're not protecting their moves. that moved me as much as the love between him and his son and his daughter. in the midst of that, they're not all caught up in it. >> protecting his ears. either that or he was working sound for nbc. >> yh, that's true. >> and that brittany is such a sweet, sweet person, his wife. you fell in love with her. she's awesome. speaking of -- remember we were going to get signatures and i saw your frank signature and regis, love them. here is the ball. wait. watch what i got. let's put up photo number one. >> okay. >> ashton kucher, hello. >> was he tweeting through the whole thing? >> i'm sure he was. i only got to see him for ten seconds. >> there's demi. >> photo two, demi moore. i'm not done. your goddaughter, sort of, kim kardashian. >> my daughter, kim. >> kim is looking a little dark. that's kim, i'm sorry. the other one was chris rock. >> chris rock. >> there's chris. >> i know. okay. and then archie manning, peyton's dad. >> he must have been through the moon, even though his son lost. he loves new orleans and the people there so much. >> i know. >> right. >> yeah? >> he's such a sweet, sweet, sweet man. he's one of those guys who you just think to yourself -- you just feel lucky to be around him. anyway, we're having drinks out here because it's 10:00. i don't know what's going on with you guys over there. this has pitrone. what else is in it? >> lime and orange juice. >> it doesn't even matter. steve is cooking us burgers. >> i heard you never got to sleep last night. >> no, no, no, no. there was no sleeping. we were at the game -- look, the good thing is that no one wanted to leave the stadium. one of those no one wanted to go home. we ended up hanging out there, you went to the truck, you feed and all that stuff. by the time i got back home, my phone was ringing off the hook with new oleanians and the lady came to do my hair at 4:00. how does it look? >> not your best day. >> is it all right? >> no. >> it's not? what? >> you look awesome. we'll see you tomorrow -- we'll see you later in the show. >> i have a piece i'm going to show you. you're going to like it. >> love you. >> love you, too, guys. it was a big weekend, even here. saturday night, our colleague, amy robach, got married to "melrose place" actor andrew hsu in an absolutely beautiful ceremony. look it, they are the most gorgeous couple. >> she is so gorgeous. >> oh, my gosh. look at them. so movie star beautiful. his mother is an ordained minister and she married them. >> oh, look at that. >> right there at chelsea piers, looking on to your house in hoboken. >> gorgeous. >> we just want to wish her and their new family -- she's got two little girls and he has three little boys. >> awesome. >> they were the only ones in the wedding party. >> that's beautiful. >> it was beautiful. we wish them all the happiness. >> congratulation. >> we're going to talk about a lot of stuff come iing up. first we're going to go over to miss sara over there. >> hello. >> sara was at the party last night. >> i was. >> by the way, sara, your boyfriend, very cute. >> speechless. well, hoda and -- we had a lot of fans out for her on our wall in regard to the super bowl, peggy wrote, oh, my god, we won. who-dat. hoda woman, go saints. >> all of these people had an education at some point? >> not on our wall. what a great win for new orleans. i don't think a city has ever deserved this more. the big easy is back. >> i think everybody is thrilled for new orleans no matter who you were rooting for. >> absolutely. >> are you ready, chuck? >> yes. >> monday quarterbacking. we'll take a look at the super bowl ads that scored really big with our good pal, donnie deutsch, right after this. minus frank, tuned into the super bowl last night. if you weren't in for the saints or colts, you probably watched for the commercials, become so popular. >> men without pants, women without clothes. >> who knew? >> but the fan faves derchtly scored some humor. >> which ones scored a touchdown and which one fumbled? donnie deutsch and meetha agerthal join us. >> "avatar" is behaving badly, going for stupid, simple jokes. it was the year of the dumb male. nine ads with men in their underwear. >> we have had men acting dumbly across the nation. >> it was the male idiot convention. >> i agree with that. if i were a decent, classy guy, i would resent -- >> i'm not and i still resent it. >> i don't know who they were talking to. >> college kids, right? i just want to do this and get in your light if that's okay with you. what do you think? >> i have to agree. there was that one ad that had all the men in their tidy whiteys and i can't tell you what the advertisement was for. i had to close my eyes because i was grossed out. >> the cringe value is not what you're looking for? >>he google ad or the letterman ad. >> tremendous. >> i've been hearing all about this letterman ad but didn't see it when you're the hostess, you know, you're serving people. >> yeah. >> so, that was just -- can we see it? >> it's letterman, oprah pops up on the couch, great advertising, holds up the mirror. who we are. what better way for these guys to cement their iconic stature and it was just pitch perfect. and it was smart. >> it was amazing. that's going to be the moment. >> late night with david letterman, how did the boss' here at nbc -- >> that shows you're really on top when you can invite that other guy in. win/win -- big loser once again was conan. everybody was on that couch except conan. >> great way to move the conversation forward to move away from the conan stuff and say these are the people, these are our real late-night hosts. >> the only thing she hasn't conquereyet, right? what about this parisian love ad? is that the google one? >> it is the first time google advertised on tv, actually. and it was a real winner. >> do they even have to advertise? >> why would google advertise? >> cements the brand. it was so smart, so about the brand in contrast to the wacky, silly underpants ads, this was the template for advertising. do something that's cool and about your brand as opposed to flagellat flagellation jokes. >> lovely, smart ad. that line, search on, is a wonderful line. >> i did see the betty white and ed bagoda one. the two most loveable people in the world. >> absolutely. >> are we going to see a little bit of it? here they are, playing football. look at betty, who is 86. she just won a lifetime award. >> man, can she take a hit. >> she's been taking hits for 86 years and still standing when the rest of us are gone. this was supposed to show that you're only falling down on the job basically because you need a little energy. >> you have to remember the snickers there. these ads, you go, the fox ad, who was it for? it's one thing to get attention, u have to remember the product. >> worst way to outsell your product is to put megan fox in a bathtub. i don't remember anything after that. >> let's not knock megan fox in a bathtub. >> your company produced two of them. >> yes, volkswagen with stevie wonder and kiss ad for dr. pepper. two fun ads. can't go wrong. >> what did you think of those? they're his. >> yes, what did you think of those -- >> well -- no, i loved the punch buggy one, little no stalgic, but end ed on that joke, felt like a good use of celebrity, instead of the megan fox, throw her in the bathtub. it was sweet. what about this one, dove care for men? >> interesting. on the flip side, this made men seem kind of intelligent and relevant. i thought it was a very emphemic, smart ad, the only ad men were not behaving badly in the super bowl. >> be a man, grow up. that's kind of what the message was. >> there was a couple, one for dove, castrated man and the only thing you have left in your life was this truck or tv. it was the year of let's smack men around, make them look like fools and idiots. i don't know why that's the -- >> i blame mark sanford. >> he had a lot of company. >> it's all mark sanford backlash. >> he had a lot of company. >> that's true. >> several dorito's ones. they spend a lot of money. >> i found out afterwards they were a result of -- fan-produced commercials and they had a big competition leading into the super bowl and these were the four winners. maybe if they had run that disclaimer at the end of the ad i would have felt like okay, i get it. instead, it felt like they're not quite up to par. >> do you know what the good news is, you guys? >> what? >> super bowl comes every year and next year they can work on that attitude toward the men. >> yes, they can. >> do them yourself so you can control it. >> i don't think he would have a problem li that. >> i know you made fun of me. i actually was brought on to be your personal mass use. throughout the show, i will be loosening up. >> oh, okay. >> meetha, these shoulders aren't going to rub themselves. >> finally found something that donnie is good . up next, a woman who can do it all, marie os monday will tell us about her latest project. wait until you see how thin and gorgeous she is. >> oh, yeah, right. wait until y gorgeous she is. >> oh, yeah, right. she made her first tv appearance when she was just 3 years old and you wouldn't know it by looking at her but four decades later there's no stopping marie osmond. >> that's right. actress, singer, wowing audiences alongside her brother, donnie osmond, they don't get along at all, and now she has her own line of home decor and fashion items. >> it's so great to see you, always. >> you're not exhausted yet, darling? >> no, i'm happier than i've ever been. and you -- >> what about me? >> i just found out that you started out selling my dolls on qvc. >> my very first job in television was selling marie oz monday dolls on qvc 1:00 in the morning, me and her dolls. you are so passionate that it's a little scary. >> hey, you know what? what's scary is that i have some men collectors. they're a little scary. >> there are world people in the world, but we love them. >> they were truly in love with these dolls, just in love. >> you're so cute. they bring generations together. that's why i got into it. >> you just won doll of the year. >> dottie, like winning a grammy or emmy. >> if you're a singer, musician. >> there's the winning doll. >> she won. i sculpted her. she's called a door bell because she's adorable. >> a shout out to donnie. you did so well in "dancing with the stars." >> donnie won the whole enchilada. >> he brings that thing out on stage every night at the flamingo in vegas. >> did you ever think either of you would have careers this long into it? >> absolutely not. every year i do something as a gift. we have the most incredibly loyal fans. i had my first hit record when i was 12 years old. >> old anita bryant remake. >> paper roses. >> you hear remakes, everybody is having them. great song is a great song. hard to come by. here i am, they're asking us to stay at the flamingo -- >> till 2012, you've been extended. >> i figure end of the world, what the heck, right? >> no. >> might as well go out singing. that's the way you came into the world. take you out the same way. >> what else is going on in your life? how are the children? >> they're all great. i have eight children, single mom. when a man asks me out, i say, hi, i have eight children, and he runs. >> let me tell you something, you are no octomom, that's for sure. >> you kept all the weight off, still doing the nutrisystem. >> it works. biggest problem women have is that we're so busy, we run here, run there, we're doing this and doing that and we don't have time to eat right. i know that's what i did. my problem wasn't for eating -- i would eat late at night and eat too much but the consistency keeps the weight off. and i did nutri dsystem. everyone was like oh, whatever. i did it before i endorsed nutrisystem. that's how they found me. >> we didn't talk about your -- >> this is why i'm here. >> tell us. tell us. >> i'm blilike blah, blah, blah. oh, good-bye. >> we will hold them up at the end. go to marry.com. reports of roofs collapsing under the snow. we'll have the latest on the dangers. also coming up on news4 midday, just when people are beginning to venture out, they're still having a hard time doing that.ñ my bad. we ran out of time with marie to tell us about the very reason she's here. tell us in 30 seconds, my darling. >> gift craft is a collection i'm doing. women wear black. we don't have a lot of extra money. i believe in accessorizing with color. designer bag, you spill vitamins in it, it stinks forever. >> these are all washable? >> yes. everything from journals, fragrances, notes and different fragrances match. if you're wearing citrus, can you mix it with vanilla. scarves, jewelry. >> where can people find them? >> marieosmond.com, hallmark, specialty stores, my server and tell them you where to go. look, cool, huh? >> you're adorable. >> wear black and be colorful. >> sorry, marie, about that. >> you're fine. >> it's chuck's fault. >> it's always chuck's fault, yeah. >> it is. carnival started early for us this year in the big easy after that unbelievable super bowl win by the saints last night. >> the partying isn't just on bo urbon seet. hoda is still soaking up the love in miami. hey, hoda. >> what? >> this is our sound woman, sound man, truck operator, cameraman. there's nobody running the show. >> no one. >> i did this night life piece and it looked nothing like this. let's take a look. >> the party officially started saturday night. the night before the super bowl, and i am oh, so ready for a night on the town. >> all right. i am at the hottest party in miami with the hottest guy in miami. why is it so hot here? >> because it is the maxim party. maxim party at the super bowl is the big event. i hear there's a game tomorrow but this is the place to be right now. i've got the golden ticket. are you ready to go inside? >> we're going now? >> let's go! >> let's go! >> the music's bumping and, of course, the booze and bars are everywhere. >> no party is complete without a cocktail, so let's go back, our master mixologist, kevin, is going to make a special drink in your honor. >> in my honor? >> are you ready to get -- >> but i don't drink. >> you're a pro. >> and that special drink is called the fleur-de-lis. up next, it's almost midnight we're at hotel eden rock. i like the music. let's see where the music is coming from. come on. d.j. kiss has me scratching and spinning. we caused quite the commotion. all right. the late-night partying is all well and good but now it is about game day. it's about getting the right outfit. you've got to be decked out for the super bowl, all right? are you ready? all right. now i'm ready. all right. it's time to take it to the street. in miami, that means ocean drive on south beach. i guess it is pretty obvious who i'm rooting for. you know what? you've got to squeeze in a conversation with a few colts. it's only fair. >> you mind posing with me? >> not at all, as long as you don't mind. >> we are one hour, one hour till game time. you know what? saints, baby! >> taken the lead at the super bowl! >> the game feels like a roller coaster. in the end, the sain pull through in a huge way. ♪ it feels like the first time >> the place in an uproar. who-dat, who-dat. >> we did manage to get a quick word with mvp drew brees. love it. love it and a quick word with his wife, brittany. tell me what you thought of your husband today. >> i'm so proud. i couldn't be more proud of him. >> i'm so happy for you guys. >> thank you. >> one of the most heartwarming moments post game, drew holding his 1-year-old son, baelin, the toddler wearing headphones to drown out the deafening noise. that's all right. that's all right. >> wow, hoda. >> hey, i can't hear you guys so no questions. >> you can take the girl out of new orleans but you cannot -- >> we lost her. >> the point is, you can take the girl out of new orleans, you can never take new orleans out of the girl. she is so, so much a part of the fabric of that town. we're happy for everybody. after dropping 100 pounds -- these have 700 calories each, our newest member of the joy fit club reveals her new look right after this. we're back with look at me now, the joy fit club and the induction of its newest member, 47-year-old margaret mclaughlin from new york, veterinary technicians at spca. >> before we meet her, let's take a look at her story. >> i'm 47 years old, director at the aspca. for years i was a yo-yo dieter, struggling to lose the same 20 pounds. when i turned 40, i lost control and my weight started to sky rocket until i reached 264 pounds. although i was active and smiling on the outside, inside i was in agony. i felt ba that i could not control my own body. i finally brought myself to a doctor, who told me i had hypertension, i was prediabetic and i became very depressed. looking at myself in the mirror and thinking who am i? i wondered if i was slowly killing myself. i found a nutritionist and signed myself up for a very tough fitness program at my gym called power hit. i wanted my life back. i have now lost 100 pounds. the weight loss took a little over a year. i have changed my lifestyle and i understand what healthy eating and exercising really mean. >> good for her. >> wow! >> before we ask margaret to come out we're going to hear about her eati habits from joy bauer, expert on all things nutritionally. >> brilliant success story from a woman who simply ate less and she moved more. >> wow! >> you once told us if you cut out 100 calories a day by the end of the year you will he lost ten pounds. >> that's exactly right. >> you can do it if you're in for the long haul? >> margaret did it. she ate a lot of the wrong foods but a lot of chinese, it was a good time to look at the best and worst of. >> there's a lot of sodium in chinese food. >>here's a will the. we're just going to talk about calories a fat today. this is what she used to eat. >> ooh, what is that? >> scallion pancakes, fried pork dumplings, kung pao chicken, at the end of this meal she took in 2,100 calories and 110 grams of fat. now what she does -- >> this is what i order. >> totally extreme. steamed chicken and broccoli. >> yeah, it's great. >> a cup of brown rice. >> fabulous. >> check it out. 510 calories and 18 grams of fat. i realize a lot of people can't go so extreme. i wanted to do a meal in the mile. >> okay. >> so, this is in the middle. order the regular chicken and broccoli and garlic sauce. you can have steamed dumplings. >> instead of fried. >> it has the white flour wrapper on the side, no rice with the main entree, one fortune cookie. this meal is still less than half her original meal. >> wow! >> pass me one of those, please, if they haven't been sitting around four hours. dip it, please. >> i'm sorry. >> i want to see the difference of what this tastes like as opposed to the other. >> steam is absolutely fine. it really is. that's only because it's not -- >> this, all right? >> only because it's not warm. >> i'm being honest. all right. >> anyy, you're going to be blown away by what she looks like. she's 100 pounds lighter and has made lifelong lifestyle changes. >> there she is before. let's bring out the new, gorgeous margaret. >> margaret! >> yeah! >> go, margaret. >> oh, wow! >> wow. >> totally different. >> do you remember any of this? >> yes, i do. >> face the camera. >> what were you thinking about back then when you were wearing these clothes? >> that that wasn't me. >> you felt trapped in that body? >> absolutely. i wore that stuff. i looked in the mirror and i always knew that was not me. this is me. >> this is you. it certainly is, baby. >> you've got an adorable husband over there. >> no, that's her trainer. >> that's her trainer? >> that's why he looks so proud. >> he is adorable. >> he's adorable, too. >> margaret, congratulations. you're an inspiration for everybody. flowers or candy? so last year. unique gift ideas for valentine's day. maybe your trainer could get you something nice. valentine's day is just six days away. what are you waiting for? you better get a move on be. >> flowers are nice, so to speak and chocolate can melt any sweetie. get creative this year. robin spiesman from the giftsinary.com. from atlanta. >> hotlanta we call it. >> for the kids, this is the cutest idea. >> gum drop cookie shop. give a party decorating kit in a box. they come with 12 cookies and it's edible ink. >> you can color them in? >> you can eat the ink. that is the cutest thing in the world. >> give the gifts for valentine's day. it's a lot of fun. it's a party in the box. you have to keep some kids under control, the big kids. >> they're not getting that on camera. the man is eating it. >> what i do for you people and we've got nothing. >> it's wasted. wasted. >> for the baby on your list, make an initial impression with mud pie baby be collection. these are bibs with their initials that are so cute. sippy cups, feeding sets from $14 and up available at amazon.com. >> so cute. >> oh, so cute for that baby on your list. >> do you want to eat up that little baby brees? baby brees. >> pinch that little face. >> eat him. >> anythingphotos.com. send a noncopyrighted photo, just a snapshot and they will put it on a lunch box. >> how adorable. >> from treasure boxes to lunch boxes, you can fill these up with whatever you choose and give a gift, $39. this is darling. >> that is adorable. only $39. >> so much better than my scooby doo lunch box. >> how sweet it is to be loved by you. we're going to give these -- almost look like cupcakes but they're not. >> they look plastic. >> they are iced cookies with oreos in the middle. >> stop it. >> you can bite into one and literally they're so delicious. >> it says bite me. >> lovely message for valentine's day. >> go ahead, try that. >> miss you. >> there go the teeth. >> o my god, they're wonderful. >> good. >> just delicious. and then this is sleepyheads.com. this is a really nice to say sweet dreams on valentine's day for the entire family. so we have cupcake pajamas, red silk pajamas for the guy. >> do you wear red silk pajamas? >> uh-uh. >> now we know what to get you. >> do you sleep commando? >> yes, i do. >> okay. >> so we're not going to go there. all right. >> i like to get to know my co-hosts. >> yes, as i can see. >> i know this box. >> oh, yes. >> i recognize this box. >> beautiful box. give her the key to your heart but make sure it's from tiffany. tiffany keys around $150 for the keys plus the chains and they are stunning. >> i have one of them. i didn't know there were more to choose from. >> you can layer them up. the more the merrier. >> frank gifford, are you up yet and are you watching this? >> you do know the saying. >> good job. >> don't pick up props. if you give the little blue box make sure you have your little blue pill. >> oh. >> you never heard that saying? >> what i learned on the "today" show, something for everyone. >> for $32 and up, these are charms that bring good karma and each charm comes with a beautiful little saying. great message. then we have max and clhloe, infinity bracelets for your infinite love. this is mrs. gifford here and frank's gal. they will put your message in rhinestones on anything you want from caps to hats to hoodies and t-shirts. >> very cute. >> i would love to wear this on stage one night if you would allow me. >> frank's gal? >> yeah. >> good luck. >> pga golf lesson for $150 at over 25 courses across the country from cloud9living.com. >> great gift. so many bad golfers who are obsessed with the sport. that's also great to remember for father's day. >> it really is. value what he values. he's a golfer, show it. >> right. >> amazingclubs.com has hot sauce of the month club for your red hot lover. >> good job. >> actually, i have -- i was familiar with them and got to sample all the sauces from another job i had and they are awesome. >> they are awesome. >> good job. >> nacho mama's hot sauce. >> she knows because she's from hotlanta. thank you very much, robin. stay right here. we'll check in with hoda and sara. first this is "today" on nbc. all right. time to check in with miss sara haines. >> yes. >> linda wrote in, i think she summed up hoda's new orleans experience. she opened up so much lately. >> "dateline" hoda is gone. hot-time hoda. when are you coming home, honey, or ever? >> i'm on a 2:00 flight, i think. you guys want a burger? i'm on a 2:00 flight. i'll see you guys tomorrow. really looking forward to seeing you. it was such a fun experience. a big thank you to sarah and lindsay. nice little photo of us on the field that we're going to remember for a long time. and steve our crew. >> hoda, i'm really, really happy for you, honey. >> congratulations. >> come home safely. >> great win. >> snowstorm when you get home. just warning you. >> i'm on the way. >> hoda and i have this amazing interview with beyonce. we spent -- wait till you see this interview. she is unbelievable. have a great day, everybody. thank you, chuck.