Transcripts For WBAL Today 20110321

fighting for her life after her husband was forced to crash land the airplane. he speaks about her condition the airplane. he speaks about her condition today, monday march 21, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning. welcome to "today" on a monday morning. busy monday morning. i'm matt lauer. ann curry is back from japan, in for meredith. what a job you did on what was a difficult trip. >> it was difficult for everyone involved. i think we are all thinking of the people who are there and especially for the japanese. we'll have the latest from japan including the latest evacuation of the workers from the nuclear power plant and also the detection of radiation on spinach and milk coming up, matt. >> also ahead the u.s. army is issuing an apology for disturbing photos that portray abuse allegedly committed by u.s. troops serving in afghanistan. they were published in the german newspaper derspiegel and some show soldiers posing with dead afghan civilians. there are fears the images could generate more outrage in the community akin to the abu ghrab scandal in 2004. let's begin with u.s. air strikes in libya. three reports starting with nbc's pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. u.s. officials say moammar gadhafi isn't the target of the u.s. and coalition air strikes, but it appears one attack overnight came pretty close. it was a british cruise missile that slammed into gadhafi's compound overnight. the libyan leader reportedly escaped harm. u.s. officials say the attack was aimed at a military kman and control system. libyans say it was an attempt to take out gadhafi. the u.s. last tried to kill him in 1986 in an air strike. two years later a libyan bomb brought down a pan-am flight killing all 259 aboard. gadhafi is accused of personally ordering the attack. meanwhile, u.s. officials claim there was significant progress in the current bombing campaign. for the third straight night u.s. and coalition air strikes pounded libyan targets. on "meet the press," admiral mike mullen declared the no-fly zone has been a success and moammar gadhafi's air force has been grounded. >> he hasn't had any aircraft or helicopters flying the last couple of days. effectively the no-fly zone has been put in place. >> reporter: these air strikes have gonele well beyond the no-fly zone. american f-15s and 16s left a trail of bombed and burned-out tanks and trucks on an attack on forces on benghazi. dozen of military were killed. armed forces celebrated a victory over the military, but u.s. military officials insist the attack was aimed at protecting civilians, not the rebels. critics claim the u.s. is taking sides in a civil war. >> we can say this is for humanitarian purposes or say it's a no-fly zone but what we have done is intervene in a libyan civil war. we now own a moral responsibility for the outcome. >> reporter: on his way to russia overnight robert gates said the u.s. will turn over the bombing campaign to allies within days. >> we will continue to support the coalition. we will have a military role but we will not have the preeminent role. >> reporter: despite claims that killing gadhafi isn't the military objective in the campaign, president obama has said gadhafi must go and it is clear the political objective is to drive the libyan leader from power. ann? >> jim miklaszewski, thanks. nbc's jim maceda is in tripoli. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, ann. well, we find ourselves here close to but not actually in a targeted area. but still the last two nights have seen wave upon wave of anti-aircraft fire with trace-around flying really in every direction, mostly defensive fire which suggests that libya's targeting capabilities are very limited. now, last night we lived what jim was describing from the inside. we felt an explosion for the first time here. clearly from an air strike. we saw smoke coming from the general direction of gadhafi's compound. we have been told he was not a target, but when our government minders invitedle all journalists to go to the compound, some of us hesitated. we were concerned and sensitive about becoming human shields. those who did go were shown evidence that there had been an air strike, shrapnel damage and pieces of what could have been a cruise missile with serial numbers on it. gadhafi was not near the building, however, part of the vast compound is a command and control center. again, gadhafi hasn't been seen here since friday. ann? >> jim, your comment about the possibility that gadhafi's regime is using people as human shields is alarming given that gadhafi is on the attack. is that right? >> reporter: he is still on the attack, though in ben it ghazi forces pulled back 90 miles. he's desperate to take the town of misrata. it's much closer to tripoli. after being hit by air strikes yesterday, his forces actually pushed back into misrata today. it is the third largest town. according to the latest report at least six people were killed. the forces have remained in misrata now. they have changed out of uniforms, are dressed as civilians and invited hundreds if not thousands of other civilians to join them. this could be an important test case. can or will the coalition strike with all the would be sieve i can't be -- civilians in the center of the city. >> the arab league's approval was pivotal for the u.n. revolution that led to the air strikes. it authorized all necessary means to protect civilians. what do we make of new that is the arab league secretary general has denounced the military strikes saying the league still backs the u.n. resolution? >> reporter: right, exactly. you here fire just started behind me here. there could be no worse development on the political level. the arab league support, as you say, of the no-fly zone was a game changer. it made all of this happen. now amir mous's negative comments were made but he sounded more positive and replied to the same question in english. there is a double voice here that's not rare in the arab world. that's perhaps the reason today we are seeing a statement from u.n. secretary general ban ki moon saying it's important that the international community speaks with one voice. ann, that appears to be a crack coming up in that no-fly zone coalition. back to you. >> an important development. jim, thanks. it's 7:08. here's matt. >> thank you very much. retired general barry mccaffery is here. good to see you. >> good morning, matt. >> is this enforcing a no-fly zone or has it expanded? >> no-fly zone is a nonsensical political device. we are trying to protect civilians and thankfully with brilliant deployment of naval power we have gone for the center of gravity which was tanks, artillery, armor. this along with the b-2 strikes on the airfield more than 82 bombs going after the hangars. we have changed the equation and giving breathing space to benghazi. >> president obama says moammar gadhafi must leave power but the chairman of the joint chiefs sunday said one possible outcome is that gadhafi stays in power even after the u.s. military accomplishes its mission. it sounds like they are on different pages here. >> yeah. i think we are in some political trouble. very tepid support out of the arab league. there is no involvement except u.s., brit, french. allegedly six or four aircraft headed to the mediterranean. turks have blocked consensus temporarily in nato. we have some political problems. i'm sure at the end of the day what we have to sort out publically -- what is the political mission? and make sure that the military objectives match up. >> can anile miy military actio seen as anything but a failure if moammar gadhafi remains in power? >> i don't see how libya remains a stable platform when this murderous regime stays in office. clearly he's the only arab leader who's absolutely despised by his fellow countrymen. having said that, the algerians, syrians, saudis are unlikely to be up front dealing with civil war in libya. >> i want to change subjects and ask you as a military man about the other story we are covering this morning. there are photos that allegedly show u.s. servicemen in afghanistan posing next to what appear to be dead afghan civilians. clear clearly -- the u.s. military says the pictures are repugnant to us as human beings and contrary to the standards and values of the u.s. army. we saw the fallout after ab abu ghrab. the damage done to the u.s. military's reputation and our nation's reputation as a whole. what do you see as the fallout from the photos? >> probably significant. the taliban will make use of it along with al qaeda worldwide. it's a shameful incident. they are going to trial. the stryker brigade had a platoon that went bad on us. they will end up in front of military justice if the facts are as alleged they will be punished. this is a real blot on the honor of the armed forces. it causes two problems. general petraeus with 100,000 military on the ground, 50,000 nato. this is inopportune. it will be exploited by the other side. >> general, thanks for your perspective. i appreciate it. >> good to be with you, matt. >> 12 minutes after the hour. here's ann. >> now to the disaster in japan where smoke was seen rising from the nuclear plant overnight. there are new concerns over food and milk produced near the milk. robert bazell is in tokyo with the latest on the story. bob, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. for a few days the word from the power plant has been mostly hopeful. now what is at least a temporary setback. >> we have seen smoke coming out. >> reporter: japanese officials taking to the airwaves today. new problems. smoke emanating from reactors as workers were evacuated from the crippled plant for the second time in five days. with radiation still leaking from the plant and people still being screened there is a new trouble lurking. >> levels of radiation exceeding the provisional standard set by food safety legislation. >> reporter: government officials ordered the halt of shipments of milk from fukushima prefecture and leafy vegetables, many far from the site. officials say most food is safe but in tokyo some were skeptical. >> i'm going to try to avoid to buy it. >> reporter: we bought spinach in the tokyo market and tested it. most batches had nothing above the normal background rate. one had a rate of two counts per second, well within safety standards, but an indication that radiation has spread in the food supply into the market. evidence that farmers like this woman will have long-lasting effects on their livelihood. [ speaking in a foreign language ] >> reporter: i'm worried, she says. we won't be able to carry on as farmers. meanwhile the new normal of everyday life continues. cars are getting back on the road with the damaged oil reserve repaired. and people are cleaning up, trying to rebuild their lives. thousands are dead and many thousands missing. it is moments like these that give the country a boost of spirit. an elderly woman and her grandson found a live nine days after the quake and tsunami ravaged the town. the young man seen today recovering as the father rejoiced. never give up. one happy story among all the misery from north of here that you witnessed and reported on so well. about the retareactors, nobody s what the cause of the smoke is yet. they say there are no abnormal pressure readings or anything, but it indicates that the problem will be going on for a very long time. ann? >> robert bazell this morning. bob, thank you very much. we have gary wahs from the university of michigan. good morning to you. >> good morning, ann. >> first of all, your response, reaction to the report of smoke rising overnight. what does it possibly mean? >> in the past week smoke coming out of the containment has usually been an indication of a fire in the spent fuel storage pool. that's due to overheating of the fuel rods because it's hard to keep them under water which keeps them cool, keeps radiation levels down. >> is it probable that there would be radiation attached to the smoke? >> very possible. the smoke has been due to uncovering of the rods by the water allowing the zirconium cladding to catch fire. >> hence why the workers have been told to pull back. meantime, about the radiation, we have been hearing from bob how they found evidence of this in milk and food -- some contamination. what are the chances that that is going to spike, that it will continue to rise? >> that's a good question. the situation at the reactors has stabilized. in each building there are two potential sources of radiation, both from the fuel. one in the reactor vessel surrounded by steel and concrete and the other in the spent fuel storage pool. if the trouble they are having is because of loss of power they can't keep water on the rods and keep them cool. if they overheat then they can become damaged and release radiation into the environment. >> so you're saying there is a real chance it is going to spike quickly? >> well, it's possible. it's a tenuous situation. >> i see. >> the problem at the site is the loss of power. power is required to pump water to keep the rods cool. it's similar to a car engine. if you lose the water pump, you can't keep your car engine cool. the difference is when you turn off a reactor, it still releases heat. the heat must be removed. it decays with time but you have to remove it. that's why they are wabattling with makeshift solutions like fire hoses and sea water until they can get power. >> if they can't get power what could happen in the next couple of days? >> it might take a while to bring power to the site. i understand it was brought to one of the reactor buildings now, number 2. after that they have to successfully hook up the pumps and get those running. then the situation can be brought under control and stay that way for a while while they assess damage and start cleanup. if they can't there is a problem in continuing this sort of intermittent or intermediate state where they are using water to keep the rods cool rather than pumping water. so that's a more dangerous state. >> all right. you're essentially saying the bottom line is we have to still wait and see how this thing develops. thank you so much for joining us. >> my pleasure. >> now a check of the top stories from natalie morales who's in for me at the news desk. good morning. >> good morning. yemen's top general joined anti-government protesters and says he'll order troops to protect demonstrators against the president. this is the latest in the back it is lash against the president for friday's crackdown on protesters that left 52 people dead. two other top officials in yemen stopped to protest the killing and ban ki moon condemns the use of live fire on demonstrators. strong spring showers are soaking the los angeles area and he have sn heavy snowle fell in the sierra mountains prompting evacuations. parts of the pacific coast highway were shut down after rock slides in malibu. at least 35 people were arrested outside the president at quantico, virginia. hundreds gathered to protest the treatment of bradley manning who was charged with releasing documents to wikileaks. daniel ellsberg who leaked the so-called pentagon papers in 1971 was among those arrested. president obama is directing military action against libya while continuing his trade mission to south america. a national security team accompanied him in brazil where he played soccer with children from a violence-ravaged slum. today in chile he's holding his first news conference to answer questions about the libya assault. now to wall street where news of a possible at&t buyout of t-mobile has investors buzzing. good morning, melissa. >> good morning. the $39 billion dealle would create the largest wireless operator in north america ahead of sprint and verizon. the news sent stocks soaring to the biggest gain in german trading ever. the good news for consumers according to analysts is that quality and coverage of services like broadband mobile will improve but pricing may not come down as quickly as consumers might hope. meantime, traders will be focusing on the price of oil. u.s. crude topping $103 a barrel on the unrest in libya. natalie? >> going to be a busy week there again. thank you, melissa. proof of the power of the human spirit. arizona state wrestler anthony roblez was born with one leg but it didn't stop him from winning the 125 pound title at that time ncaa championships this weekend. the man who entered on crutches left with the national title. what an incredible young man. it's 7:20. let's turn it back to matt, ann and al. >> what a story. >> big smile, well deserved. >> hello, al. what's going on? >> out west they have been getting hammered and will continue over the next 48 hours. this is the last 24 hours of precipitation. some areas picking up up to eight inches of rain in and around the santa barbara area. on the current radar you will see more rain pushing in and mountain snows as well. over the next 48 hours we could be looking at another one to two inches of rain to the north of san francisco. snow has been a big problem as well. they may pick up a foot to two feet of snow. mountain rescues and water rescues, the folks you saw in the car drove around a barricade and got stuck. so it's a mess out west. they >> we have some fairly strong thunderstorms moving through the area now. these storms producing a small hail. off and on and that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thanks. coming up, the pilot forced to make a crash landing moments after his wife began a wing walk. now she's fighting for her life and he will speak out in an exclusive interview coming up. but first this is "today" on nbc. just ahead, big changes in the guidelines when it comes to kids in car seats. we'll give you the details. >> plus, where are prince william and kate middleton going on their honeymoon? we have a hint the prince may have dropped in australia. that's coming up after your local news. because you don't see this everyday. 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[ male announcer ] the simple joy of love at first sight. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. time for a check of the morning commute. >> on 50 we have an accident at the severn river bridge in the westbound direction. tractor-trailer involved. causing pretty heavy delays there. in the meantime, we're tracking an accident on the b.w.i. parkway. must not i-70 past 97, accident report -- westbound i-70 past 97, accident to report their. 24 and greenmount avenue, watch for an accident in the city. in terms of delays, we will give you a live look at a couple of spots. there are many this morning, with the rain and the accidents. 50 in the westbound direction, had the backing approaching the tractor-trailer accident. we will switch to a live view of traffic in the aria sheriff 95 from white marsh -- the area of 95 for white marsh. >> strong storms tore through the area right now. going to be some heavy rain, and small hail. don't be surprised to see some help cover on the ground. it tapers off towards the pennsylvania line brought it is not going to be a steady rain. it is going to be off and on. warmer this afternoon. 47 now, and we will make it into the low 60s lid on today. rain comes back on wednesday. there could be light snow on thursday and then again on saturday. >> check the bottom of your screen for updated news and traffic information. back at 7:55 with another live update. 7:30 now on a monday morning, the 21st of march 2011. first full day of spring. there are those spring showers out on the plaza. kind of chilly out there, too. unspring-like, but people hanging out. we'll say hi in a little while. inside studio 1a i'm matt lauer alongside ann curry filling in for meredith. ahead the latest on prince william's trip to new zealand and australia. >> that's right. he spent five days visiting with people recovering from natural disasters in both countries. is he also getting an early taste of his honeymoon destination? what he said that's fuelling speculation with just 39 days left before the royal wedding, matt. >> thanks for counting it down. also keeping kids safe in the car. the american academy of pediatrics has a new set of recommendations for child car seats. if you have a toddler under 2 or if you have a child who is in a booster seat you will want to pay attention. these are major changes. we'll have the details coming up. >> plus a question a lot of people asked -- does heaven exist? we'll meet the boy who inspired a new york times bestseller who said he's been there. he'll share his story coming up. >> we want to begin with an air show crash caught on tape. kyle and amanda franklin were performing a wing walking stunt in brownsville, texas, when the engine stalled and kyle was forced to crash land. both are in the hospital. "today" correspondent amy robach is in san antonio where the couple is recovering. amy, good morning. >> reporter: that's right. good morning, matt. amanda franklin remains in critical condition at the u.s. army burn center. her husband kyle says while she's stabilized she's far from stable at this point. he's in better shape but was inside the cockpit when they crashed. aymmanda barely had enough timeo make it back inside the plane. it was a horrific site that was unmistakable to on-lookers. youtube video shows smoke and fire shooting out of a stunt plane with 25-year-old amanda franklin standing on the wing as the plane began to fall. >> i thought the plane wouldle go down. >> so did the pilot, amanda's husband kyle. as kyle was coming out of a maneuver he heard the engine stall and felt his heart sink. >> i knew we were too low, too slow. >> reporter: from the moment you heard the sputter of the engine to the time on the ground how much time elapsed? >> 14 seconds. >> reporter: that's how long kyle had to crash land and how little time amanda had to get into the cockpit. up fortunately it was the front part of the plane that burst into flames on impact. kyle tried to free amanda but was burned. rescue workers quickly pulled him from the wreckage. air show worker eddie alavarez was one of the first on the scene. >> first thing i saw the fire. >> reporter: the plane was on fire? >> the plane was on fire. i heard amanda. >> reporter: she was screaming? >> she was screaming. >> reporter: what did you do? >> i heard the scream. ran to the plane and there was no way to get to her real quick. >> reporter: when eddie got there he realized amanda was trapped by her safety harness. >> amanda grabbed my wrist. i knew she was alive. >> reporter: firefighters got bolt cutters to eddie. he freed her but she was badly injured. kyle first saw his wife in the hospital. >> she has burns over 70% of her body. she has an inhalation injury, a broken neck, broken back. her face is smashed. she's got multiple fractures throughout her face. she's got verile little skin left for them to do very much grafting. >> reporter: amanda has been through one surgery already, is heavily sedated and has yet to wake up. before the accident both kyle and amanda were avid stunt pilots and performers. they toured air shows, wowing crowds with wing walking and aerial acrobatics. amanda and kyle met through their fathers who were air show stunt pilots. >> they did an act together called masters of disaster. >> reporter: in july of 2005 disaster struck. both of their fathers were killed as their planes accidentally collided into each other during an air show. kyle and amanda were on the ground and watched the tragedy firsthand. >> flying is what we do. it's our passion. it's what we love. i can't imagine doing anything else. even after this situation here. i guarantee you amanda will be back up in an airplane soon. >> reporter: doctors are still monitoring amanda around the clock. they can't yet say what her prognosis will be. they know she has a very long road ahead of her in the months to come. we also want to mention while we were at the hospital we were able to connect eddie who pulled amanda from the plane and kyle. it was an emotional reunion, the first time they saw each other since the accident. they had a lot to talk about. we should mention kyle said he wanted to thank all of the people who rushed to a burning plane to save him and his wife. matt, back to you. >> amy robach in san antonio this morning. thank you very much. if you would like to help the franklins with their medical bills head to our website at today.com. it's 35 after the hour. here's ann. >> all right, matt. thanks. prince william wrapped up his visit to new zealand and australia as he prepares for the royal wedding in just 39 days. nbc's sarah james followed the trip every step of the way. >> reporter: it was a greeting fit for a rock star. [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: as prince william hopscotched across eastern australia from town to devastated town, thousands jammed the streets for a peek at the future king just weeks before his wedding. desperate to meet the prince with the golden touch. >> he shook my hand. i was so happy! >> he spoke to me! >> reporter: but there was a more somber side to prince william's whirlwind tour. this visit down under, a chance to meet families whose lives have been turned upside down by a cyclone and a devastating series of floods which claimed 35 lives. at this farm, three hours north of melbourne, the renn family got to meet the prince but fretted over what to serve him. >> we don't have running water or power. can't just sit down and pour the kettle and make a cup of tea or a coffee. it's a bit challenging. >> reporter: flying into one hard hit town, the prince himself took the throttle of the sea king helicopter, the same craft he flies in the u.k. as a search and rescue t pilpilot. he listened to the story of melanie and her premature twins evacuated just before the cyclone spoke. >> that will be a good thing to tell the girls later in life. >> reporter: the prince and fiancee kate middleton dedicated the doctors group to a charity to which wedding guests can donate. elsewhere, the kennedy sisters, one of whom lost her home in the club made it clear they are part of the will fan club. >> it's great that prince william is here before if wedding. >> reporter: for british photographer arthur edwards this trip was especially poignant. 28 years ago this weekend he snapped this picture of the prince on his first visit to australia with mom, princess diana, and dad, prince charles. >> it was a photo feast. it was the start of the tour and the pictures were magnificent. now when william has a child and brings him to australia that will be full circle. >> reporter: that was nbc's sarah james. now a check of the weather from al. >> all right, thanks, ann. a little bit on the wet side. a little raw. you want to say hi to kinder investigator ners. >> i do. my kids at kennedy elementary school in green bay, wisconsin. they made this sign. >> thanks for bringing the sign. let's check your weather. we know it's raining here. we have a risk of strong storms back through ohio into the west virginias. in the midwest we could have an isolated tornado in the latter part of the afternoon from omaha to sioux falls. we have snow in upstate new york and new england. rainfall amounts, anywhere from a half an inch to a quarter of an inch of rain. snowfall, three to six inches from syracuse to bangor, maine. >> showers and storms to start the day to day, but it will taper off by nearly a afternoon hours. it could come back late in the day and that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thank you. coming up, significant new changes to the guidelines for kids and car seats right after this. ♪ [ female announcer ] smooth. like you've never felt before. ♪ touch of smoothness body wash with new hydra iq, nivea's latest breakthrough in skincare technology. provides moisture throughout the day with no greasy feel. beautiful moments are born in the shower. with touch of smoothness. look for new hydra iq in a variety of scents. nivea. touch and be touched. tough being the only girl. aw, there's the man of the house. who's this ? this is rufus. hey, rufus. he's actually pretty talented. you wanna see him do a trick ? ok. hey rufus. who do we love ? we love our bank. we love our bank. we love our bank. we love our bank. yes, yes. you really love your bank don't you. ally bank customers love our 24/7 customer care that allows you to talk to a real person anytime. ally. do you love your bank ? how about a coastal soup and grilled shrimp salad combination at red lobster? or maybe skewers of tender, wood-grilled shrimp. or your choice of shrimp paired with wood-grilled chicken. all served with unlimited, freshly-baked cheddar bay biscuits. seafood lunches starting at just $6.99 that fit into your budget and your lunch hour. only at red lobster. ♪ ♪ stay inside? 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[ male announcer ] get zyrtec®'s proven allergy relief and love the air®. back now at 7:43 with new car seat recommendations for parents of young children. the american academy of pediatrics has revised the guidelines and you need to listen up. dr. levine is the spokesperson for the aap and from baby.com. nice to see you. we have three different kinds -- infant, convertible and booster seats. we start with the infant seats. any major changes here? >> no. the important thing to know is the infant cease is always rear facing. you never want your baby facing forward in this suit. from the moment you bring them home from the hospital they need to face backwards in the seat. >> generally speaking how long does a baby stay in an infant seat before moving on to the next seat, the convertible seat? >> babies can sit in the infant seat until they reach the limit of the car seat which is easily seen. this one says 5 to 35 pounds up to 32 inches. check with the specific car seat you have. >> then you will move your infant into a convertible seat and always at the beginning these are to face the rear. >> exactly. this probably represents the biggest change in the words of the policy. you want this seat to be rear facing until your child is 2 years old, within the limit of the seat. >> let's talk about what parents do now. at about a year it's almost a rite of passage. parents say the baby is a year old. we are going to turn the seat front-facing. that's no longer acceptable under the guidelines. >> exactly right. a lot of parents will say, well, my child has long legs but it's more important to keep their head, neck and back safe. children are comfortable knees bent. so keep it rear facing. >> a lot of parents switch them at a year because they want to look in the mirror and see the face of my baby. rear-facing i don't know what's going on. >> that's true. but safety is our number one priority. children are definitely safest rear facing. >> always rear facing until 2 years of age. >> as long as you are within the limits of the seat. >> also look at the height and weight requirements of a seat like this before deciding when to move into a booster seat. >> exactly. once you reach the limit of the seat then you can move your child into a booster seat. >> okay. when we talk about booster seats we are going to talk about probably the most important second guideline change. what is that? >> now the recommendation is to keep your child in a booster seat until your child is 4'9" which is roughly between 8 and 12 years of age. the reason is because the purpose of the booster seat is to make sure the car seat belt hits them in the right place. >> right. if the child is too small and you put them in a regular seat with a regular seat belt the seat belt rides up around the neck. >> it will be up around the neck. it will be uncomfortable for children. they will take the shoulder belt off which you don't want them to do. you want them to sit all the way back in the car, knees bent over the edge of the seat and the seat belt needs to go across the middle of the chest and the thighs. >> it's the combination of age and height. parents who say, wait, my child is 8, out of the booster seat he or she comes. no. only 4'9". >> you really want to be 4'94'9. >> and settle an argument. at what age should children be allowed to sit in the front seat of the car. >> children need to be in the rear of the car until they are 13. >> okay. >> i'm not making friends today. >> not at my house, but that's okay. it's important. we have important guideline changes and we'll put them on the website so everybody gets them. just ahead, the boy who inspired the best-selling book "heaven is for real" will share his inspiring story on life and death. but first, these messages. depression is a serious medical condition. i feel like i have to wind myself up to deal with the sadness, the loss of interest, the lack of energy. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about pristiq®, a prescription medicine proven to treat depression. pristiq is thought to work by affecting the levels of two chemicals in the brain, serotonin and norepinephrine. tell your doctor right away if your depression worsens or you have unusual changes in mood, behavior, or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase suicidal thoughts and behaviors in children, teens and young adults. pristiq is not approved for children under 18. do not take pristiq with maois. taking pristiq with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. tell your doctor about all your medications, including those for migraine, to avoid a potentially life-threatening condition. pristiq may cause or worsen high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or glaucoma. tell your doctor if you have heart disease or before you reduce or stop taking pristiq. side effects may include nausea, dizziness and sweating. for me, pristiq is a key in helping to treat my depression. ask your doctor about pristiq. ♪ [ male announcer ] what are you gonna miss when you have an allergy attack? benadryl® is more effective than claritin® at relieving your worst symptoms and works when you need it most. benadryl®. you can't pause life. the best approach to food is to keep it whole for better nutrition. that's what they do with great grains cereal. they steam and bake the actual whole grain while the other guy's flake is more processed. mmm. great grains. the whole whole grain cereal. that's why we make ocean spray 100% juice. it has plenty of natural goodness, but there's no added sugar. so, say, "hello," to 100% juice. and, "goodbye," to added sugar. i thought we weren't adding any sugar. oh. oh -- okay, nobody use these cranberries over -- over here. also try ocean spray light, only 50 calories, and a full serving of fruit. some say i'm bold. i say i'm free. i wear what i love, because expression means everything. i wear the pants. and the tops. and the jewels. i grab life by the accessories. some say i've done it all. i say i'm just getting started. ♪ too hot to trot ♪ baby i'm so chico's. those of us who know grass doesn't turn green just because the calendar says to. and that a big difference can grow from a small budget. for those of us with grass on our sneakers... dirt on our jeans... and a lawn that's as healthy as our savings... the days are about to get a whole lot greener. ♪ more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. we're lowering the cost of a day in the dirt with a special buy on this mulch, three bags are just ten bucks. who was checking out the moon in the last couple of days? >> i wish i had been. my gosh. >> look at the photos. >> i mean, this is one of the biggest i have -- about the biggest i have ever seen the moon apparently because it is closer -- >> closer to the earth. >> 14% bigger, 30% brighter. >> 13% brighter, right. >> happens every 18 years or so. >> i actually reached out and touched it on saturday night. >> wow. >> that's how close it was. >> just like jimmy stewart. do you want me to pull the moon down for you? >> look at that picture. cutting the moon in half. >> last time i saw that, bugs bunny sawed off florida. >> there are concerns it might create tidal issues but none of that happened. >> nothing happened. >> just beautiful pictures. >> great, great images. >> yeah. >> and a good impersonation of jimmy stewart as well. >> i'm doing edward g. robinson. >> all right. we're going to have much more ahead right after your local news. ♪ [ lane ] here's the trouble with most anti-wrinkle creams. the cream disappears but your wrinkles don't. ♪ introducing neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair. it has the fastest retinol formula available. in fact, it's clinically proven to smooth wrinkles in just one week. so all you have to do is sit back and watch your wrinkles go away. new rapid wrinkle repair. from neutrogena®. that's what's incredible about quaker oatmeal squares. a single serving has 46 grams of whole grains. that's 96% of your minimum whole grain needs for the day. are you kidding me? they fuel you up to start your day right... and they taste great. ♪ amazing mornings start with quaker oatmeal squares. so come on, get up and get going. ♪ >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i'm stan stovall. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> the delays around. and accidents to report. around the severn river bridge, tractor-trailer accident and heavy back up. if your brunn at en route route 895, go or on the harbor tunnel toll. there is a disabled vehicle. light street and. street, -- light street and pratt street, watch for an accident. if you are going head out at reisterstown and montrose, there is a crash been cleared. also looking at it was not accident on i-70 just passed route -- it was bad accident on i-7 just passed route 97. this is westbound traffic on 50, just ms. we will switch to a life of 95 and white marsh. extra heavy. not helping matters this morning. >> we are picking up heavy thunderstorms across the eastern shore counties right now, a round rockfall and back towards annapolis. it is moving south and east so conditions will be improving. the rain has come to an end in carroll county and frederick county. and on a showers and thunderstorms -- off and on showers and thunderstorms nice day tomorrow, rain will come back on wednesday. back on wednesday. ♪ are you having any joy? ♪ ♪ what you getting out of living? ♪ ♪ what good is what you've got if you're not having any joy? ♪ ♪ ♪ are you having any laughs? ♪ are you getting any lovin'? ♪ if other people do, so can you ♪ ♪ have a little joy [ female announcer ] how does your next week look? why not get away on a cruise from baltimore? book today at royalcaribbean.com. all right. we're back with more of "today" on a monday morning, the 21st day of march, 2011. it says here a little wet weather can't deter the crowd. i would say it's more than a little wet weather. it's nasty here. ann making her way over. it's raining cats and dogs. >> she just stepped in a poodle. >> good morning, everyone. i'm matt lauer along with ann curry and al roker. we are trying to batten down the hatches. we'll be talking about a case of cyber bullying. >> that's right. a list of a hundred young women was posted on facebook and now police are investigating. it was called the smut list. allegedly -- it alleged that the girls were promiscuous. we'll talk to a young woman whose name was on the list and get her reaction. >> also a question a lot of people have asked themselves over the years -- is heaven real? we'll hear a remarkable story. the number one bestseller on the new york times list of nonfiction now is called "heaven is for real." it is about this young man who emerged from life-saving surgery several years ago telling stories about his visit to heaven. some of the things he said recounted details he couldn't have known at his young age. we'll meet him and his parents. >> really amazing story. and later on how did rulon go from being a gold medalist to a competitor on "the biggest loser"? jenna bush hager caught up with him at the ranch and talked to him about his emotional journey. >> all right. great guy. really great guy. >> you should be wearing bogs. >> i know. i need to put boots on for the next hit. natalie is filling in at the news desk while ann is getting wet. >> in the news, forces sent a strong message to moammar gadhafi. richard engel is in tobruk, libya. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, natalie. the message to gadhafi could not have been clearer with a missile strike overnight in the heart of tripoli inside gadhafi's compound destroying a building that was described as an administrative building. no word if gadhafi was in the structure at the time. he hasn't been seen in days but his compound has been full of volunteer human shields, people willing to put their own lives at risk because of their love for the libyan leader. here in the east in the rebel-held territory, rebels say they are incredibly encouraged now that they have western military support. but the rebels are leaderless, poorly armed, disorganized and it remains to be seen if even with military help from the united states the rebels will be able to launch an effective counter offensive and achieve the goal of reaching tripoli. >> thank you so much, richard. meanwhile, defense secretary robert gates arrived in russia today for talks on missile defense. while flying to st. petersburg he said the u.s. expects to hand over the mission to a coalition in a matter of days. the army apologized and is bracing for backlash after photographs of u.s. soldiers allegedly posing with the bodies of afghan civilians surfacesurf. the images were published in der spiegel. some are afraid they could generate more anti-american anger than the issues from abu ghrab in 2004. several triasoldiers are on tri for the murder of civilians. iodide pills were offered as the japanese said there was radiation in produce near the fukushima plant. workers were again evacuated from the damaged nuclear plant after smoke rose from one of the reactors. this as the predicted death toll has climbed to 18,000 following the earthquake and tsunami. the coast guard says testing on sludge found in the gulf of mexico saturday shows that it is most likely mississippi river sediment and contains only a trace amount of oil. the coast guard is investigating separate accounts of an oily substance washing ashore but doesn't believe it is from the bp oil spill. spring fever led to a wild scene sunday in front of berlin's brandenberg gate. hundreds of people pounded each other with pillows hoping to land in the guinness book of world records. that's a big mess. 8:05. let's go back outside to matt and ann. >> that sounds like a blast. we should do that. >> we should do it indoors. let's get a check of the weather from al. >> this is great, isn't it? this is fantastic! [ cheers ] >> are you having a great time? yes! we like this. let's check your weather. all these folks having a good time. dallas, texas, will be nice. let's go to dallas. partly sunny and 80 degrees. going to be lovely there. nbc 5. as we check your weather today, we've got more rain in southern california. mountain snows as well. we're looking at a mess in the northeast. rain, windy conditions and snow in upstate new york. back through the plains. also mid ohio river valley, a slight risk of strong storms. it will be a mess. >> off and on a showers and thunderstorms will be with us all day today. chances for rain will taper off a little bit into the afternoon. a little bit into the afternoon. we will and that's your latest weather. >> when we come back, a young woman targeted on a so-called smut list of new york city high school students speaks out right after this. aches and pains, fatigue. when it becomes hard to ignore that you need help. that's the day you do something. depression hurts. cymbalta can help with many symptoms of depression. tell your doctor right away if your depression worsens, you have unusual changes in behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing of the skin or eyes. talk with your doctor about your medicines, including those for migraine, or if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles, to address a possible life-threatening condition. tell your doctor about alcohol use, liver disease, and before you reduce or stop taking cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. side effects include nausea, dry mouth, and constipation. is today your day? talk to your doctor... and go to cymbalta.com for a free 30-capsule trial offer. depression hurts. cymbalta can help. to london starts with arthritis pain... and a choice. take tylenol now, and maybe up to 8 in a day. or...choose aleve and 2 pills for a day free of pain. enjoy the flight. 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[ male announcer ] ask the doctor about once daily non-stimulant intuniv. back now with the troubling new case of cyber bullying. 100 girls in new york and connecticut, some as young as 14 years old, labeled as promiscuous by peers. we'll talk to one of the girls named on the list in a moment. first michelle franzen is in greenwich with details on this. good morning. >> reporter: greenwich high school is just one of several schools dealing with the aftereffects of the list that targets and names students. greenwich police tells nbc new that is the school resource officer on campus here is also helping the school investigate, but so far it appears no laws have been broken. that's bringing parents here and at schools elsewhere with teens on the list little comfort who say bullying and harmful gossip has gone to a new level. it's a list no parent wants to see their teen's name on and the latest case of cyber bullying. >> i'm angry. my daughter, i'm sure she's angry. frustration. it's just a sickle feeling. >> reporter: sick, angela says that her 15-year-old daughter jen from new york's westchester county was one of 100 females named in a so-called smut list. >> i wasn't angry with her. i was angry at the fact that why would somebody do that? how could somebody get away with making a list? >> reporter: she said the list started making the rounds with students in the form of text messages. then someone posted it on facebook for anyone to see. details included first and last names of teens from at least seven school districts in new york and neighboring greenwich high in connecticut and it ranks each one according to their alleged sexual activity. >> it's cyber bullying. that's how i consider it. >> reporter: the facebook page has been removed but lenise ortega worries. >> i don't want it to affect me later on. >> reporter: she graduated from white plains high school last year. she transferred there after having two children while in high school. the 20-year-old said she's been bullied before, but nothing like this. >> i scrolled down and my name is there. they were saying, oh, how many baby daddies do you got, or something like that? >> reporter: meanwhile school officials are reportedly taking the mass distributed list seriously. several administrators say they are investigatoring ivestigati students used school computers to create or send the list. they could face disciplinary action. angela said her daughter hasn't talked much about her feelings and tries to laugh it off. as her mom, she felt it was important to speak out so it doesn't happen again. >> i don't want my daughter's life to be ruined over somebody's opinion. they don't know her. >> reporter: back at greenwich high, students are in classes. we spoke to the headmaster chris winters. he calls it a distrags and says they have spoken to students. they are offering counseling to students that were on the list. >> michelle, thank you. lenise ortega is one of the young women whose name appeared on the list and also joining us is terry aftab, the internet security expert who's been on many times. good morning to you. >> thank you. >> what do you want to say about how much this hurt you? >> well, as everybody knows i got pregnant at a young age. i was a teenage mom. so it did affect me because i'm somebody else's mom. i thought everything that happened in middle school was left behind me. i thought people grew up. i guess not. it did affect me a lot. i thought this nightmare was over. you know? >> you have a sister who is also named in the list. >> yes. my younger sister. she's 16. >> do you have any idea who would do this? >> i don't know. to be honest, in white plains the girls who used to be very harsh on me when i was in middle school, in the streets they would say hi, ask about my kids. i don't understand. if it was the girls i don't understand why they would do it to me. i don't talk to them, associate with any of the group i went to school with. when it comes to guys, i don't talk to guys in white plains in general. i'm not sure who was up to this. >> what do you think, perry, about whether or not investigators will be able to discern who originated the list? >> i suspect they will. we leave ale trail of cyber bread crumbs wherever we go. this started on bbm, a blackberry messenger and the records are kept. it's just a matter of investigating them. this is westchester. so we have good people there. >> you're saying these particular prosecutors are very savvy about cyber bullying? >> absolutely. it's one of the best units in the country. >> this list seems to include students from a number of schools. does this maybe perhaps indicate it was not just one person but perhaps more than one person? >> well, it starts with one and everybody joins in. that's the problem. p bystanders are now called active bystanders. they become cyber bullies by adding new names. more names were put on the facebook page than were on bbm. >> what do you think would be the right punishment given that you are a victim in this and your sister as well? >> i'm not sure what would be the right punishment. i hope they get the worst. because there are a lot of girls going through it now and they are still in school. it's worse when you have to be in school with them. it's like coming home and you have to deal with it. i think they should be punished to a certain level. i saw online people committing suicide for being called names. some people can't handle emotions the way i can. they have to think about that. >> you're not saying suicide in this case, but other cases of cyber bullying. >> in general, yeah. >> what's the worst that could happen once these people are found? >> we need to understand the elements. they could be charged under harassment laws in, no. there may be criminal impersonation. >> defamation? >> absolutely. you can sue and get decent recovery on defamation. then the parents may be liable as well. >> yes or no, are you prepared to sue if that's what it takes? >> yes. >> thank you so much. >> she'll be working with us and helping us by speaking out to other kids. >> she spoke out today. thank you very much. coming up next on a much different note, the boy who says he's been to heaven. he's here with his parents to share their story right after this. 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[ male announcer ] nicorette mini goes wherever you go, to help make quitting suck less. what's your idea of heaven? a little boy from nebraska thinks he has a good idea because he said he's been there. we'll talk to him in a moment. first, his story. ♪ >> reporter: some people have called this god's country. with crimson sunrises and rolling farmlands. imperial, nebraska, population 1,982, is the heartland. it's also where the burpo, todd, the local pastor, sonja and their three kids live. normal in all respects it shaex one. >> a few angels came to pick me up and i was looking at jesus. >> reporter: that's right. their 11-year-old colton has been to jesus. >> then he says the thing that gets their attention. that's when the angels sang to me, mom . wow. >> reporter: it all started when colton was 4 with a near tragedy. >> we hit a low. we looked at each other. >> reporter: what they thought was the flu was a burst appendix. >> he had it for four days. >> reporter: they were given little hope. >> i remember the doctor not saying anything. you know that was a nightmare. >> reporter: after 17 days in the hospital colton emerged but he was different. he began speaking about things he couldn't possibly know about. his mother's miscarriage. his father's prayers and a visit with his great-grandfather pop. >> i was just sitting by the holy spirit. then this guy comes up to me and says, are you todd's son? i said, yes. he said, well, i'm his grand-father. >> reporter: it led to this book "heaven is forle real." good morning to all of you. >> good morning. >> colton, i will talk to you in a second, but todd, first they will say this is a pastor, a believer, a man of the cloth. he wants desperately to believe this and he wants others to believe it. that's why this story is out there. how do you respond to people like that? >> at first, we were surprised. we doubted ourselves. we never anticipated to talk to our son about these things. what grabbed my attention is he could tell me where i was while he was in surgery. the surgeon couldn't, my wife couldn't. he could tell me. >> you asked how he knew. he said, i was sitting in jesus' lap as you were doing all these things. >> yes. >> you were both cynical until you started to hear these things. >> exactly. >> some of the other things he said. okay, i'm sitting in jesus' lap. everyone in heaven has wings. mine for smaller than most people's. nobody is old in heaven. >> i like that part. >> a lot of people like that. >> did you start to share these stories with other people and did anyone say, you folks are crazy? you have been through a traumatic experience. sonja? >> we didn't share at first. once we started sharing, people were amazed and encouraged by what we were sharing with them. >> colton, today you're 11. this happened when you were 4. how vivid are your memories today? can you close your eyes and remember exactly what you think heaven looked like? exactly what jesus looked like? all those things? >> well, i remember most of it. but since time has come by, you forget. >> when you say nobody in heaven is old, they all -- you saw nobody like in their 60s, 70s, 80s up there? >> no. saw them in their 20s, 30s at oldest. >> i think a question a lot of people would like to ask is what did heaven itself look like? is it the way i talk about it to my kids? is it above the clouds? is everybody floating? what's it like? >> well, there was a lot of colors. there are a lot of people. and a lot of animals. >> you know, i think the story that's going to get people's attention, sonja and todd, is the story that he met the child that you had miscarried. that was a couple years earlier. had you ever told him about that incident? >> not at all. not at all. >> how would you explain it to a 3-year-old that a baby died in your tummy? no. it was something we didn't even share with our friends. >> can you describe the moment he said that to you? >> shocking, but then a relief which she's okay. we didn't know she was a she. >> tell me about pop, colton. >> well, pop, he was very big, huge wings. he had curly hair, big smile and he was really nice. >> you know, what's amazing is this has become a "new york times" bestseller for nonfiction. is simple explanation is a lot of people want to believe or want to question. >> i think for us, he told us about his sister in heaven and we hadn't told him. another one of those holy cow moments. he can't invent this. no memory was planted, but the pie peace that came other us and the healing that, wow, i have a daughter waiting for me. a lot of people need that hope and healing, too. i think that's what a lot of people are finding when they hear colton's testimony. >> tell us what you want people to take from this -- a sense of peace prap peace prerhaps? >> hope, healing. >> the book is called "heaven is for real." they will be back in the >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. let's get a final check of the morning commute with sarah caldwell. >> the rain at is making a very difficult rush-hour this morning. westbound 50, fortunately, the accident now gone at the severn river bridge, but the delays are not. inner loop at wilkens avenue, watch port slow spots leading to the accident location. windsor boulevard and rutherford road, we accident. bodoni and tyburn, this is also gone. slow go on the tire beltway -- the entire beltway. here is what looks like on 50 and st. margaret's, was spun traffic at a crawl. all of that due to an earlier accident. here is a live view of traffic as we look at the white marsh area. tony, over to you. >> improving conditions around the baltimore area, the was a lot showers and thunderstorms across the lower eastern shore in two southern and eastern maryland. that will be the trend as we go through the morning. hit and miss showers and thunderstorms for the rest of the day. that is the forecast, a mixture of clouds and a little bit of sunshine. we are in the 40's right now, but we will make it into the low-to-mid-60's this afternoon. nice 1 tomorrow. rain comes back on wednesday. it may be cold enough at the end of the week but with high temperatures only in the 40's, rain or snow shower on a thursday and saturday. >> another update at 8:55. we download about four free songs a month. i play online poker two nights a week. my fiancee shops online about an hour a day. we're exposing ourselves to web viruses that could obliterate our finances and leave our future together a bleak and tortured existence. [ laughs nervously ] i got it covered. we switched to kaspersky. no matter who you are, we've got you covered. kaspersky, the most advanced internet security software. sink your teeth into some big n' toasty if you understand. good. you've got spunk. a big day calls for the new big n' toasty. wrap your hands around fried eggs, cherrywood-smoked bacon, and cheese on texas toast. america runs on dunkin'. 8:30 now on a monday morning. 21st of march, 2011. looking at rainy days and mondays don't have to get you down. folks having a nice time in rockefeller plaza. apologies to these people. natalie didn't want to go out. >> wow. throwing me under the bus. >> thanks for stopping by. it's nasty out there. i'm matt lauer along with ann curry filling in while meredith is off today. natalie morales and al roker. remember rulon gardener? he won wrestling gold but left the spotlight and ballooned to 474 pounds. now he's trying to get fit again on "the biggest loser." how did he get so out offal control? jenna bush hager caught up with him and he'll share his story. >> okay. >> also the bad economy has put a real strain on a lot of marriages, but instead of divorce some couples are redoubling their efforts to stay married. just ahead, what we can learn from a couple who put their marriage -- pulled their marriage back from the brink. >> plus, we want you to step away from the potato chips. joy bauer is here with healthy snacks that are both tasty and satisfyi satisfying. >> hey, they don't look bad. >> think roasted edamame. >> i love it. >> all right. well, spring has arrived. that means unfortunately spring allergy season has arrived for you sufferers. we'll talk about the biggest offenders and how to treat them. >> al, how about the weather? >> you know what it's like in the ooegs aeast and out west. snowy out west. warmer than usual from the eastern two-thirds of the country. below normal through new england. mid-week period looking for chilly weather into the plains. much above normal in the mississippi and ohio river valleys. as we get to the latter part of the week it stays messy out west with below temperatures in the northeast through the great lakes with rain and snow around the great lakes. >> showers and storms to start the day to day, but it will taper off by nearly a afternoon hours. it could come back late in the day and to keep track of your weather all day long check out weather channel on cable or weather.com online. >> thank you very much, al. up next we have jenna bush-hager catching up with olympic fwogol medalist turned "the biggest loser" contestant. after these messages. another unpredictable season on nbc's "the biggest loser," but so far the show's most recognizable contestant is going strong. "today" contributing correspondent jenna bush hager checked in on rulon gardner. good morning. >> good morning. years after retiring from the sport that made him famous he's still wrestling but now with a life and death struggle against obesity. >> good evening, everyone. >> reporter: it's week 12 of "the biggest loser" and the competition is heating up. rulon gardner is trying to light a fire under that same competitive spirit that earned him an olympic gold medal. >> i'm here to put my life in a position to where i can reset. >> reporter: in 2000 the farm boy from wyoming made his first trip to the olympics as a member of the u.s. wrestling team. >> it became a battle of wills and gardner has a heart the size of the 56-inch chest. >> reporter: gardner stepped into the ring against a russian heavy weight who had never lost in international competition. >> that's it! oh, my? do you believe in miracles again? >> reporter: and pulled off the miracle on the mat. >> rulon gardner has shocked the wrestling world. >> reporter: four years later in athens, gardner won the bronze and hung up his shoes. >> years of work have brought it down to this special moment and this emotional time for him. >> reporter: when you focus on one goal and reach the goal. you get the gold medal, it seems that's the happiest moment of your life. you have reached the point. so where do you go from there? >> for me i was just happy to be at the olympic games and winning two olympic medals, one bronze, one gold. i'm retired, happy, done. >> reporter: he stopped working out but kept eating like he was in training, especially at night. >> i would consume potentially 5,000 or 6,000 calories, you know, from 10:00 at night until midnight. then i would go up and go to bed. >> reporter: gardner reached his lowest point last year. on a night that should have been a highlight of his career. his induction into the wrestling hall of fame. >> it was actually a pretty tough night for you. >> i was looking and i realized, you know what, i don't even recognize myself when i watch myself on tv. i felt so ashamed. i made a commitment that night. i had to do something about my weight. if it's this bad in six years, what's going to happen in another ten? >> reporter: carrying 200 pounds more than his olympic weight gardner worried he wouldn't live long enough to start a family with his wife. how big of an inspiration is your wife? >> she's a big part of the reason i want to change my life. i don't want to have a family with her and then in ten years not be here to raise my kids. >> reporter: when gardner arrived at the ranch he weighed in at 474 pounds. >> that's a tragedy. it's horrifying for me and my family. >> reporter: it took a few weeks of poking and prodding -- >> you're an olympic athlete. >> not at 400 [ bleep ] pounds. >> reporter: but his competitive juices are flowing again. he's showing the heart that maid him a champion. >> are some of the other contestants thinking it's not fair that they are competing against an olympic athlete? i would protest against that. >> that was a discussion that we have had numerous times. a lot of their attitude is, you know what, i want to be an olympic champion. i want to beat you. >> one, two, three. [ laughter ] >> i'm tired. >> reporter: gardner said his workouts for "the biggest loser" rival anything he's done to train for the olympics. >> get set. go! >> reporter: halfway through season 11, gardner is feeling good about his chances at winning on the show and in life. >> i don't want to go out there and try to just dominate or master something. i want to learn how to master myself so i can balance my nutrition and my health, so i can live to be 80 years old. >> reporter: going into week 12 of the competition, rulon weighs 335 pounds. so in less than three months he's lost 139 pounds. matt, he's amazing. >> one of the nicer guys you will meet. what's funny is the picture of him at 474, i don't recognize him. >> he didn't recognize himself. he'd gotten back from mcdonald's, turned on tv and saw himself. >> everybody need as turning point. we appreciate it. a reminder, catch "the biggest loser" tuesday nights 8:00/7:00 central on nbc. up next, a couple who saved their self-described bad marriage will share advice for improving your relationship. first this is "today" on nbc. back now at 8:42. this morning on "today's relationships" marriage and money. statistics show the recession is a mixed bag when it comes to the state of matrimony. some couples say they are postponing plans to divorce while others are deepening i are that commitment to marriage. janet shamlian explains. >> reporter: three couples from different walks of life, all with the same problem -- a marriage unraveling. >> tell me how bad it got for you? >> for me? i was so miserable i was planning his funeral on the off chance he would drop dead. >> we would get in fights every day or other day, like screaming match fights. i would be like, oh, is it just better if we get a divorce? he eyde say, i don't know, whatever you want to do. >> i would say, we won't get divorced. we'll just hate each other for the rest of our lives. >> reporter: these couples were struggling with what some say happens to more than half of all marriages. a loss of passion and the growing belief their future would be spent apart. >> i'm sure you can laugh about it now. how did it feel when you first heard she was planning your funeral, thinking what it would be like if you died? how did that feel? >> i was a little surprised at the depth of her anger. >> reporter: mark can laugh about it because the marriage didn't end in funeral or divorce. like a growing number of couples in america, the bowmans who have a young daughter made a conscious decision to save their marriage. >> over the past two years i have seen more couples coming for counseling to save their marriage. prior to that they were coming in learning how to separate. >> reporter: all three couples worked it out. lisa documented the journey back to being in love in her book "project happily ever after". >> we did a lot of little things and a lot of little things added up to a big improvement. if it was one thing it was changing myself which i never thought would be the case. i really thought he was 100% the problem. >> we're both happier than we have been. >> we really are. >> busy and just loving life. >> one of the things i have learned to do is listen. >> are there lessons in there for guys? >> it's in your best interest to keep your wife happy. >> reporter: back from the brink. as couples headed for divorce make a u-turn on the road back to happiness. for "today" janet shamlian, nbc news, pennsylvania. >> so, al, alyssa and mark are joining us now. the book is "project happily ever after." and we have the director of drexall university. first talk about your lowest moment. it happened after your daughter was born. >> yes. you know, we were pretty good until we became parents. having a baby was exhausting. my husband had just opened a business before we had a baby. so he was really not home often. he was working 14-hour days. didn't really have an income. so i was the sole parent, sole bredwinner. became exhausted, depressed, angry. every negative emotion. >> sounds like something a lot of women couldle identify with. what about you, mark? >> i'm not sure there was a lowest moment but we reached a point where we were going through the motions. you know, communicating on a very -- not deep relationship level of where we just kind of went day to day, talking about what we had to do that day rather than dealing with our relationship. >> at one point you started imagining your husband's death. >> yes. >> what switched you around? what made you think, okay, let's work on this? >> i thought we were going towards divorce. in my mind i was mentally planning my escape. i had dinner with a friend who was divorced and remarried. i ranted about my husband for 45 minutes and i was looking for permission. after the time i finished talking and she just looks at me and she's just like, what have you done to save your marriage? i couldn't answer. i haven't done anything. we hadn't tried counseling. i hadn't tried anything constructive. she made me promise that i would try. so i promised to try everything, even things i thought were silly. >> you started looking at self-hope books. >> yes. >> is this a trend? >> it is. i find that couples are wanting to fight for their marriage more than they have before. the stat is 50% of people are getting divorced but that means 50% are getting married. i can't believe those people never thought about divorce. >> why now? >> sometimes they are thinking the problems i'm having now, i might have the same problems in another relationship. why not fight for the relationship i'm in now? you need two people to do it. >> you talked to mark. you both agreed to work on it together and you started coming up with things you saw inle self-help books like hugging. like, okay, i don't like this guy, but i will hug him. >> yeah. the hugging exercise wasn't the most important exercise we did. i went at it with an open mind. that was one of the exercises the book suggested. we were supposed to feel a profound connection during the hug. i just felt profoundly bored. there were other things like learning to communicate which i didn't think i had a problem with. i'm a writer. i had a huge problem with communication. >> so part of it is recognizing your own faults. in fact, you have ten steps to happily ever after. find yourself, define your problem, get your spouse on board, stop fighting about old stuff, get busy, learn to romance each other, learn to talk out loud, not too loud, feel understood, write your spouse's eulogy. whoa. which is the most important? >> for me it was talk out loud, not too loud. i was communicating through the silent treatment, through random acts of ab sabotage. he needed me to talk out loud but not aggressively. i couldn't be assertive without being aggressive. i had to learn it. >> for you, mark? what was important? >> the same thing. a lot of times as a man my wife had difficult communicating with me what she wanted me to do. men expect people to verbalize what you want to do. at certain times she couldn't verbalize. she wouldn't come out and say what she wanted. >> alyssa and mark, i can see that you have your hand on his knee. that's a good sign. thank you so much. up next, healthy food finds that your family will love. first this is "today" on nbc. ♪ this morning on joy's he wille think food finds, crunchy sn snacks and sweet treats. how do you know which healthy options your family will enjoy? joy bauer is here with nutritious picks that were taste-tested and family approved. >> hey, matt. >> what's the criteria here? how healthy? >> all the items have wholesome ingredients, nothing artificial, low in saturated fat with reasonable amounts of sugar and salt depending upon what the product is. most importantly they have been taste tested and have gotten two thumbs up from adults and kids. >> and you don't have to go to specialty stores for a lot of them. >> most major supermarkets. >> in full disclosure you have been working with me on getting more nutritious snacks in my day. a lot of these things i have tried. >> you have. >> the wonder of edamame. >> seapoint farms and most of them know them by the little soybeans in a japanese restaurant. they are roast into a crunchy snack that's totable, shelf stable with twice the protein, twice the fiber and fewer calories than nuts. these are gems. >> if you like peanuts and things, these will hook you in a hurry. >> there is a lightly salted and a wasabi. i like the hot. >> i love these. sweet potato chips. >> food should taste good. i like them because they have clean ingredients, heart healthy oil and a shot of sweet potato so we have a dose of bet beta carotene good for good skin and vision. >> the first food that comes to mind with healthy isn't pretzels, but these are healthier versions of what people snack on. >> most pretzels are refined white flour. it's like eating a handful of white bread. i'm excited that snyder's has a new organic whole grain line. there are three versions. pick which flavor you want. look for "organic" and you will know it's the line that'sle whole grain. about 9 to 10 sticks is a serving. you can eat them plain or dip them in hummus, bean dip or salsa. >> goldfish that the kids love to snack on and parents often take a handful as well. kids and parents will like these. >> this is cool. kids flip for the fun shape. it's a clever strategy for parents. spread it with nut butter. great snack on the go. >> tell me about the granola bars. >> i like all the flavors from the hard crunchy two-pack from nature valley. these are the new kids. oats and dark chocolate. >> chocolate's okay? >> it is in this. cocoa powder and dark chocolate chips. the perfect way to satisfy. better than a candy bar. >> what's the most important thing there? >> whole grain, oats. always remember you want your bar under 200 calories, less than 2 grams of saturated fat and at least 2 grams of fiber. >> this is a frozen banana on a stick covered in chocolate sp. t >> it's delicious. diana's bananas frozen dark chocolate bananas. >> and it comes in milk. >> get the dark for the health perks. there is nothing artificial. clean, whole some ingredients. it's a nice dessert. >> is the milk chocolate as good or -- >> it's not, but it's still portion controlled. dark chocolate! >> you still get the banana. >> half of a real banana. >> last is pudding which is a favorite for wkids but this has something extra. >> this is koze shack. no artificial colors, dies or sweeteners and it has two grams of fiber. thanks to low fat milk, calcium, vitamin b and protein. they're delicious. >> great, joy. thank you very much. >> thanks sh matt. >> more ahead after your local news. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. if 4-year-old boy is dead after police think he shot himself. officers were called to for a hell of a new 10:30 yesterday morning and monday -- fern hill ave 10:31 to morning. authorities >> let's take a look at the forecast with tony pann. >> you can expect a mixture of clouds and a little bit of sunshine and of and on a showers and thunderstorms. there will be a lot of dry hours today. after a cool start this morning we will make it in the low-to- mid-60's this afternoon nice day tomorrow. rain comes back on wednesday. then it becomes chilly for the rest of the week. high temperatures in the 40's and a chance for rain or snow showers thursday and saturday. >> we will have another weather update at 9:25. [ younger brother ] oh, do you want it? yeah. ok, we'll split it. [ female announcer ] made fresh, so light... ...buttery and flaky... this is half. that is not half. guys i have more. [ female announcer ] do you have enough crescents? but i've got a warm, fresh baked strawberry toaster strudel.

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