captions paid for by nbc-universal television >> welcome to "today" on this friday morning. i'm ann curry, good morning, everybody. >> and good morning, ann. i'm natalie morales in for matt this morning. we've step outside to be right near the gorge russ rockefeller christmas tree as the countdown is in fever pitch, two days to go before christmas, this is as quiet as you're going to see it. >> this is the eve of the eve. all eyes are on the roo and we had pretty big downpours in the northeast overnight. in fact there was actually a storm in parts of georgia. it was a very powerful storm and so the question this morning is, what does mother nature have in store for us today and the rest of the holiday weekend? we're going to get the forecast coming up straight ahead. and in these economic times i think we all need a holiday feel-good story and we've got one for you, anonymous angels picking up the layaway tabs for families in need all across the country. we'll have much more on that story as well. >> we have important information for parents tied to powdered infant formula that's now been pulled from the shelves of walmart stores nationwide, some questions have been raised, what you should know if you have it at home and we'll have advice on that. we begin with a deal reached on capitol hill, a major breaking story, to avoid a costly payroll tax hike for millions of americans. nbc's capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell joining us with details. >> reporter: good morning, ann. this say painful defeat for house republican who were really taken over by this, the public's frustration not wanting to see a tax hike come january 1st, the white house gaining advantage and fellow conservatives who said, cut your losses, make a deal, and when that time came, house speaker john boehner was standing all alone. house speaker john boehner finally has a deal on the payroll tax cut but not a victory. >> we were here fighting for the right things. may not have been the politically the smartest thing in the world but i'm going to tell you what, i think our members waged a good fight. >> reporter: the outcome? working americans won't get a tax hike and the unemployment get to keep benefits for two more months. house republicans were getting pounded by the president and even some in their own party, for refusing to pass a short term extension first before working on a one-year deal. >> enough is enough. >> reporter: the president kept the pressure on all week, finally declaring victory thursday night, tweeting "thanks to all who shared $40 stories. today's victory is yours. keep making your voices heard. it makes all the difference." turning to campaign 2012, a former president, george h.w. bush, waded back into politics to call mitt romney the best choice. >> this is much more important to me personally than even politically. he's a real hero to me and to my family and i appreciate his support. >> reporter: letting voters see more of his personal side from filling up the tank. >> $3.85 a gallon. >> reporter: and shopping with wife, ann, in new hampshire. one of romney's most valuable allies, new jersey governor chris christie curiously did not say no when asked about a pop vp spot. >> he hasn't said that to me but i don't think he wants to talk to somebody about vice president when he's not the nominee. >> reporter: newt gingrich focused on more pressing business, to make sure he's on the ballot in virginia. >> when you get to the choice massachusetts moderate or southern conservative in the south, i think we have a pretty good chance. >> reporter: he's dampening expectations saying he'd like to come in third and the caucuses there after so many negative attacks. >> kelly, how damaging has this payroll tax controversy been to speaker boehner's leadership? >> reporter: well those questions are being asked by angry house members who still think they shouldn't have caved on this for a deal. john boehner has been caught between trying to make a deal early, trying to bridge those divides between dealing with the white house and conservatives. this has been a very tough week for him in his speakership and there are questions about whether he should even continue in that job. it's been a real challenge to his leadership. >> nbc's kelly o'donnell, kelly, thank you so much. now here's natalie. >> ann, thank you. the great holiday escape is under way this morning. if you're hitting the roads and airports you better believe you'll have plenty of company. an estimated 92 million of you are going to be traveling in the coming days and nbc's tom costello is along i-270 in north potomac, maryland. tom, how is it looking there? >> reporter: natalie, good morning to you. all of the people in the roads behind me and above me are paying more this year for airline tickets, for food, you name it. aaa estimates 30% of the population will be traveling 50 miles or more over the holiday stretch. that could be cross-state, could be cross-country. yet again, you're in good company if you plan to be on the move over the holiday stretch. of the 92 million people traveling 50 miles per more, nearly 84 million of us are driving and only about 5.5 million leisure travelers are flying. that's a big drop of nearly 10% from last year. you can blame all the extra flying fees and a rough economy, but none of that matters to the grandspoon family headed to florida. >> you know the decision to go is based on the fact that we have family there, so we have a free place to stay. >> reporter: or the curry family headed to north dakota. >> we just try to make it work and family is important to us so we wanted to make sure we got home for christmas. >> reporter: so how much are we paying compared to last year? the lowest round trip air fare this year is $210. that's up from about $175 from a year ago and you still have to pay for your bags. rental cars are actually about $10 cheaper this year, $40 a day on average. the lowest in five years. gasoline, though, is averaging $3.23 for regular. last years can 3.02. $126 will get you a room at a three-star hotel, about the same from a year ago and movie tickets haven't changed much, $10.60 on average. groceries are up 4% to 5% on average, making eatinging for the holidays is more expensive. >> the typical family is living in an environment where their wages have not gone up in the past few years and yet inflation has really been ticking away. >> reporter: especially for food and gas. finally, if you do plan to drive over the holidays, the folks at the aaa hope you don't mind a friendly year-end reminder in the name of safety. >> stay away from driving while distracted. it's very important that you focus on the task at hand, which is driving. >> reporter: and, says the aaa, keep the keys way from friends or family members who may have had too much to drink this time of year. a good piece of advice there. here's an interesting factoid. the folks at gasbuddy.com tell us every year from christmas until the gas peak, in other words, how high will gas prices go in the new year, gas prices rose 93 cents on average between christmas and the end of next year. hang on to your gas caps. natalie and ann back to you. >> thank you, tom. now we've got maria larosa in for al this morning. good morning to you. >> good morning, lald ease. i have good news. a lot of the roughest weather we saw yesterday but really, really rough weather. look at what parts of georgia looked like last night as severe storms tore through those areas. winds gusting over 60, 70 miles per hour. nearly 50 reports of severe weather across the south yesterday including one confirmed tornado in alabama, a preliminary tornado report out of homa, louisiana. the storms have moved across the southeast. the storms plowed through the south packing winds 60, 70 miles per hour have dissipated. now you're looking at snow and rain in parts of the northeast, that's the power of the storm at this point. ork up into boston you you're are seeing a lot of the rain activity wind down. that's fantastic news if you are going to be traveling today across parts of the northeast and into the weekend. high pressure settles in and you are looking at lake-effect snow showers in the northeast, and that will be about it. and soggy across the southeast, and looking at snowy roadways across parts of th maria, thank you and we'll get to the rest of maria's forecast in a moment. first they say better late than never. turns out a lot of you are late, a lot of you are in fact traveling to the malls today to wrap up their last-minute christmas shopping and nbc's craig melvin is at a mall in herald square, new york. craig, what's the scene there? >> reporter: natalie, good morning to you. we've seen a few folks go into the store behind me. we expect to see a lot more later because today widely expected to be the busiest shopping day of the year, this macy's and herald square has been open 24/7 for a few days, won't close until late tomorrow evening. retailers in this down economy doing all they can to lure shoppers, even the ones that waited until the very end. >> hi, how are you? >> reporter: ian pearson may be desperate but he's not in den l denial. >> no excuses. i have no good reason as to why i waited until the last minute. >> reporter: he has lots of company, 77% say they have not finished shopping, at the 11th hour, three things lead to these long lines, adrenalin. >> i feel more in the spirit when i do last-minute shopping. >> here you go. >> reporter: schedule. >> i work 30 hours a week and i go to college full time. >> reporter: and strategy. >> yesterday everything was 40% off. >> reporter: no matter the reason, for many the longer they wait, the more they spend. according to a new "consumer reports" survey, 40% say they'll shell out more than planned when forced to shop last-minute. >> they're so desperate to get their shopping done that they're willing to bust their budget to get what they have to do and get out. >> reporter: this year, even those who started early could be frustrated and angry. thursday best buy announced somebody who ordered online won't get their gifts in time for christmas. the electronics store ran out of the year's popular products. >> we always do our best to forecast and figure out how many of a particular product, what the demand is going to be like but there's always things that surprise yous. >> reporter: what is surprising many is the uptick in sales. the national retail federation expects november and december sales to rise 3.8% to a record $469 billion. that would be welcome news for retailers. many are as hopeful as a last-minute customer realizing there's a price for procrastination. >> i'm trying to trade something in right now and they're pretty much out of everything. >> reporter: but some of the late still get lucky. >> this little like driving thing i'm not actually really sure what it is. >> 320 gig. >> this is the wii fit i'm getting for my mother and she's kind of an almost there worko workoutahol workoutaholic. >> reporter: what do you do next year? >> start on the 21st instead of the 22nd. >> reporter: if you still have some last-minute shopping to do and you do not want to brave the crushing crowds that we're probably going to be seeing today, retail experts say you have another option. you can find great deals at supermarkets and drugstores. natalie? >> or i can always send craig melvin to finish the last-minute shopping that i should be doing. craig, thanks so much. >> reporter: i can grab something for you. >> thank you, craig, i appreciate it. let's get a check of the morning's other top stories. for that, tamron hall is at the news desk, in for me. good morning. >> good morning. the same rough weather affecting holiday travel is disrupting fires in other ways. high winds flamed this fire in st. elmo's square in los angeles. it took half of the city's on duty firefighters several hours to bring the fire under control. santa ana winds toppled trees and jack-knifed and overturned trucks. no reports of serious injuries. officials in minnesota are warning it's still too early for ice fishing. thursday rescuers safely plucked more than 20 anglers from a sheet of ice that broke away from the edge of the lake the night before. the ice floe drifted a half mile into open water. former presidential candidate john edwards is asking for another delay in his criminal trial citing an undisclosed medical condition. he's accused of using funds to hide his mistress and her pregnancy in his presidential campaign. mandy drury is at the new york stock exchange. what do we have today? >> the question is whether we can extend the mini santa claus rally. as of yesterday the s&p 500 index was on the cusp of turning positive for the year. i should also say that that payroll tax cut agreement will lessen uncertainty on wall street and the market really hates uncertainty, so that is a positive as well. happy whole days to you. >> thank you, same to you, mandy. here's a holiday tradition certainly not for the feint of heart. young men get into the spirit sharing a fru drinks and becoming bull fighters for a day. this year's festival left a half dozen amateur mat adores with scrapes, bruises and wounded pride. hopefully they won't do it again. it's 7:15, back to ann and maria. obviously there are people in this town who believe that is nod a good idea. >> last shot, he was smashed before getting into a wall. >> it is an all girls day. >> that's right, we'll get back to not a lot of testosterone but the other part in this room. good morning to you. >> good morning, ladies, good morning, everyone. we are looking at kind of a mess >> we are looking at a mess right now, so don't be scared if you are traveling. from new york to atlanta, things will be improving. snow will be wrapping up towards the end of the day. and parts in the southwest, we have sunshine in the midsection. that's a look at the weather across the country, and here's a look at what you can expect. >> tom kierein in storm center 4. there's a live view from the eastern sky. sunrise in eight minutes. the cloud cover is breaking up and we will get sunshine today. right now temperatures in the 40s to near 50 degrees and 50 at reagan national right now, and the mid-50s by noontime and getting colder tonight, down to near 30 by saturday. and >> that's a look at the weather. ann back to you. >> maria, thank you. >> health officials are waiting for results on powdered infant formula, pulled from nearly 3,000 walmart stores nationwide. nick boeggert is in chicago. >> reporter: avery cornet was born healthy but after a week of bacteria began an assault on his system, leading to meningitis which claimed his life days later. recalling the few precious days with his son. >> he was good. he didn't cry about. >> reporter: avery corn net's parents' hope turned to horror when their infant became violently ill. avery was rushed to the hospital but died within days. doctors determined he was incorrected with cronobactersakazaki. one source, they fed the infant formula from walmart. all cans were removed from that lot out of an abundance of caution. while health officials are still investigating the safety of this product. pediatric infectious disease specialist alison bartlett say normally 3% of baby formula contain some form of the bacteria. >> it's important to check the specific lot of formula to make sure the rate of the bacteria isn't out of the normal and extremely high. >> enfamil's manufacturer, mea johnson said cronobacter is commonly present in the environment, adding the batch of our product used by the child's family tested negative for it when it was produced and package aed. >> when you're doing preparation, using sterile bottles, washing everything well, having a clean working service. >> reporter: water hotter than 160 degrees will also kill the bacteria. federal labs are testing the family and water used to prepare avery's bottles. avery's grief-stricken parents can only mourn their son's short life. we should stress cronobacte cronobacter ssakizaki infections are very rare, only two worldwide in the last year. there there's an infant in illinois recovering. they are recommending you discard cans with the lot zp1k7g. >> nick bogert thank you for bringing the story to us. here's natalie. ann, thank you, good news as christmas approaches, so-called layaway angels are going around paying off accounts for total strangers. kmart alone says anonymous benefactors have been doing it to the tune of $450,000 and the same thing is happening at other retailers. here's nbc's george lewis. >> reporter: in costa mesa, california, hospitalworker monica diaz was overcome with emotion. >> thank you so much. >> thank you. >> reporter: she found out a total stranger had paid off her $85 layaway bill, a simple act of kindness that made a world of difference. >> it does feel like an angel, i told my daughter it was an angel that paid off her gifts. >> reporter: now she'll be able to afford a ham for the family's christmas dinner. the employees at the kmart dinner say there's no shortage of layaway angels paying off customers' accounts. >> at least a good 30, 40 people at least. >> reporter: one man, david wilson, who owns 16 auto dealerships said he wanted to pay off every layaway account of $100 or less. >> so i had to do some figuring and come to be $15,919.61. >> reporter: then the store employee started calling the 260 customers who benefited from this. >> the raw emotion, the tears just flow. they're excited. they're happy. it's like happy tears. >> reporter: the trend started in michigan when an anonymous woman paid off some layaway accounts at a kmart there. >> i thank her. it's the best gift that i ever received and it's the gift of believing in people, you know, and believing that there's good out there, because you don't always see that. >> reporter: back in costa mesa, krista sepulveda, a stay-at-home com couldn't believe the $150 balance was paid down to just one penny. >> it's happy. it's been a hard six months and it's just so nice to know that people out there care. >> reporter: those layaway angels. >> thank you. >> reporter: whose generosity embodies the real meaning of christmas. for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> great, great story. still ahead a man looking for his own anonymous angels after a serious fall at work left him desperate to afford his skyrocketing medical just ahead, new developments in the search for a missing toddler who vanished from her own bed. >> we'll talk to her mother, after your local news. honey, check your email! [ cellphone chimes ] [ cat yodeling ] kids! [ cat yodeling ] sing, larry, sing! [ cat yodeling ] we should have got a cat. [ male announcer ] get low prices on gifts to stay connected. order your last-minute gifts at walmart-dot-com and get free same-day pickup on select items. save money. live better. walmart. and get free same-day pickup on select items. [ cat yodeling ] honey, check your email! [ cellphone chimes ] [ cat yodeling ] kids! [ cat yodeling ] sing, larry, sing! [ cat yodeling ] we should have got a cat. [ male announcer ] get low prices on gifts to stay connected. order your last-minute gifts at walmart-dot-com and get free same-day pickup on select items. good morning. it's 7:26 on this friday, the 23rd of december. the rains cleared out but you can expect more changes in the weather. meteorologist, tom kierein, joins us for a look at the forecast. >> the sky has broken up quite a bit and there's just a few clouds now. the sun has been up for a couple minutes. temperatures are in the 40s to near 50 degrees throughout most of the region. and later today in the mid-50s by the middle of the day, but then colder tonight with a blustery wind. we will see temperatures down to 30 by saturday. and tomorrow, sunshine into the mid-40s. partly sunny, near 30 in the morning, and highs mid-40s. dry on monday and still cold. this is an rc robotic claw. my high school science teacher made me what i am today. our science teacher helped us build it. ♪ now i'm a geologist at chevron, and i get to help science teachers. it has four servo motors and a wireless microcontroller. over the last three years we've put nearly 100 million dollars into american education. that's thousands of kids learning to love science. ♪ isn't that cool? and that's pretty cool. ♪ is as easy as... making breakfast. omelet? sure. scrambled eggs. [ male announcer ] actually, it's easier. citi financial tools. easier banking. standard at citibank. really? [ male announcer ] kate uses her citibank debit card because kate knows there are some things you shouldn't be charged for. refill? i'm ok. [ male announcer ] so does that guy. the citibank debit card with no monthly fee. easier banking. standard at citibank. cautioning traveling columbia pike at tech road. the lights are out and flashing. the lights are out and flashing. and the inner loop and, any luc? not yet. i want to buy used but how do you know what you're really getting. check out carmax. all their used cars are guaranteed. that's where henderson found the one for him. way to go, henderson. finding the perfect car is easy at carmax because each car is carefully selected, inspected, thoroughly reconditioned and backed with a five-day money back guarantee so come find the one for you today, at carmax. way to go, neil. ♪ 7:30 now on this friday morning, the 23rd of december, 2011, just two more shopping days left until christmas. we're guessing most of these people must be in pretty good shape if they've got time to join us this morning here in rockefeller plaza, including santa, look he's ready for us. we thank them all for joining us. a little bit drizzly outside but looks like the rain has stopped and we'll be outside but inside warm and toasty, inside studio1a i'm ann curry along with natalie morales who got the memo on wearing the christmas colors. >> i know. >> matt is off. on thursday police searched the home of ayla reynolds where she was last seen asleep in bed. we'll be talking with her mother just ahead. we'll lighten things up. a lot of families go to the movies christmas day. what is new at the box office you should see and what is in when it comes to entertaining your holiday guests? we'll clue you in and also get to the heart of christmas because they can't hear us but we have a very special surprise for some people in texas who have lost everything in a devastating wildfire. we'll have a live reveal coming up this morning and it's heartwarming to see this all the time. >> looking very much forward to that. but we begin this half hour in maine, and that search for 20-month-old ayla reynolds. her mother speaks out in a live interview in a moment but first, nbc's adidi roy has the latest. adidi, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, natalie. over the last 24 hours we've definitely seen an escalation in police activities in front of the home where little ayla was last seen. authorities are still calling this a missing person's investigation, using sources like cadaver dogs to scour the area. neighbors leave toys on the lawn while police put up crime scene tape, reminders of 20-month-old ayla reynolds who seepingly vanished from this home last friday. investigators set up a command post where ayla lived with her father >> that home was thes last place that ayla was reported to be. we need to go through that as thoroughly as we can. >> reporter: although police continue to call this a missing person's case, state prosecutors have been called in. >> on the off chance she was a victim of crime you get one chance to get the evidence. that's what they're doing right now. >> reporter: investigators have 200 tips from the public. volunteers and local officials are following up on those needs, combing nearby areas while a frantic mother hopes for a happy ending for the holidays. >> i just want her home and hoping for maybe my christmas present, that would be it, that she's going to come home. >> reporter: krista reynolds says she last saw her daughter a month ago. family services removed ayla from her mother when reynolds was in rehab. ayla went to live with her father, justin dipietro. last week he put her in her pj. a day before reynolds secretly went to the courts and filed for sole custody. >> i trusted him to keep her safe and now she is missing, and i don't know where she is, and i blame him right now, because he did not protect her the way that he was supposed to. >> reporter: police have not named a suspect and say ayla's mother and father are cooperating. for his part, dipietro issued a statement this week saying "i have no idea what happened to ayla or who is responsible." >> everything is open. we're not discounting anything. we're looking at every lead that comes out. >> reporter: since ayla disappeared two vehicles, including one registered to dipietro have been processed. police indicated other unidentified individuals were at the home the night ayla went missing. thursday police also said dipietro's whereabouts were unknown. >> when we see one of the other parents absent, that raises a question for all of us but that's a question that law enforcement has to ask, and in this case, the biological father needs to answer. >> reporter: tonight ayla's mother will be holding a candlelight vigil for her daughter in portland, maine, in amdiman's square. last year it's where she and her daughter celebrated the holidays with a christmas tree lighting. >> aditi roy in waterville, maine, thank you. >> the mother, trista reynolds is with us now. i know this is a difficult time for you. thank you for being here. >> good morning. >> what are police telling you about the investigation right now? >> nothing. >> they are not giving you any clues as to why they're searching more intently the house? >> no clues. not at all. everything i'm hearing i'm hearing from news reporters, broadcastings, yeah. i'm just like everybody else out there right now. i'm not hearing from any detective, any state police, nothing, just what i hear on the news. >> i can understand how scary the situation is for you right now. let's go back to the last contact you had with ayla's father, justin dipietro. he is cooperating with police, as you saw he released that short statement and said he has no idea what happened to ayla, but you checked in with him a week ago, when he was supposed to take ayla to a doctor's appointment to check her broken arm. what happened? >> i had reached out to him on thursday the 15th to see if he was definitely still coming on friday, and he told me he was definitely not coming and that was the last that i had spoken with justin. >> and then ayla disappeared, as you found out. have you heard from justin since? >> i have not. >> and justin says he put ayla to bed at 8:00 p.m. that night, thursday night into friday, and he checked her bed at 8:00 a.m., time line here is very important, as you know, in a missing person's case. you have told us that justin always apparently checked in on ayla before he would go to bed. do you have any reason to believe that he did, in fact, do that? >> i don't know in this case right now. like yeah he's told me numerous times before he'd go to bed he'd check on her and i'm trying to think why would this one time you not check on her. >> there's a lot of questions. >> so i'm not sure -- >> i was going to say there's a lot of speculation about the custody situation. ayla was put into by child protective services into custody. justin got custody of ayla in october. >> he did not get custody of ayla. >> temporary custody in october, he did not? >> no, he did not. no, he did not. >> why was she in his care? >> there's nothing stating -- because department of health and human services violated my rights, that is why she ended in justin's care. there was no court order, there was no nothing that had to do with any custody at all. none whatsoever. >> did you file for sole custody, though, the couple of days before she disappeared? >> on thursday, yes, i went to portland courthouse and i filed for parental rights and responsibilities. >> and did you have any reason to believe that justin was not being a caring parent to ayla? >> i don't think he was not a non-caring parent. i think the way he was going about things was just wrong by lots of ways, and i mean, just you know, after a while of not hearing from her and being able to see her, a mother is going to get suspicious and i started getting very suspicious of what was going on. >> trista reynolds, our heart goes out to you and we pray you get your little girl back. >> thanks, and can i just thank everyone out there for, you know, especially the mothers, mother to mother, who is out searching for my daughter, and who has, you know, been there looking and not given up and given their prayers. >> well we thank you for saying that. thank you, trista. appreciate it. >> thank you. and now let's get a check of the weather from maria larosa, who is in for al. >> announcer: "today's weather" is brought to you by advil. make the switch to advil now. >> once again we're talking about major snow across the west. this is video out of new mexico, another major winter storm, in some cases half a foot or more. icy spots along i-40 in new mexico closed because it's dangerous to travel. conditions will be improving travel. you might remember a few days ago a few blizzards passing through that area, and that's a good news for tomorrow and rain. it will be rain in texas for your christmas eve, and cold across the northeast and windy across southern california, but all should be quiet for christmas day. the rain is continuing across parts of the south. that's a look at the weather across the country. >> that is a live picture from the skywatcher camera, a spectacular sunrise. and watch out for standing water, though, still after all that rain from last night we still have that and temperatures are in the 40s and throughout much of the region near 50. by midafternoon, getting colder and a and it is sunday night, you know what that means, coming up, football night in america. we've got a big matchup, the bears against the green bay packers. green bay 13-1. will they make it 14-1? partly cloudy and cold at historic lambeau field, not too bad as temperatures will be into the mid-20s to near 30 degrees. kind of warm by green bay standards. natalie? >> maria, thank you. coming up next, using the internet and the kindness of strangers to make a big difference. one family's touching story, right after this. great fall. ugh, it's my sinus congestion, and it's all your fault. naturally blame the mucus. he's funny. instead of blaming me, try this, advil congestion relief. often the real problem is swelling, not mucus. advil congestion relief reduces swelling due to nasal inflammation. so i can breathe. happily ever after. another story? from him! [ mucus ] advil congestion relief. the right relief for the real problem. [ cat yodeling ] honey, check your email! [ cellphone chimes ] [ cat yodeling ] kids! [ cat yodeling ] sing, larry, sing! [ cat yodeling ] we should have got a cat. [ male announcer ] get low prices on gifts to stay connected. order your last-minute gifts at walmart-dot-com and get free same-day pickup on select items. save money. live better. walmart. yay! [ female announcer ] storytime is not for reading. this is a story about jingle the husky pup. and jingle was a good dog. [ jingle ] ruff! ruff! jingle loved to bark hello. ruff! ruff! ruff! ruff! [ mom ] jingle even loved to sing. ruff! ruff! ruff! ruff! jingle! [ female announcer ] it's for bringing stories to life in a whole new way. jingle, stay. and jingle did. [ female announcer ] hallmark interactive story buddies. when you read key words, jingle responds. back now at 7:had 3, the season of giving and one family is counting on the kindens of strangers and the internet in a big day. "today" national correspondent amy robach has their story. >> good morning to you. online fund-raising sites popped up years ago offering artists and entrepreneurs a chance to raise money through individual contributions. over time people have come to use them for a whole range of causes. missoula, montana, artist, amy dodi paints to help put things in order. her latest piece a portrait of her brother, mark. part of her creative campaign to help him raise money. >> we're at the eye of the beholder. they're doing a benefit art show of my art. i've been doing butterfly pictures so this is a chalk hill blue, these are watercolors. these are some of my christmas ornaments, the clothed ones with the ribbons. >> i'm a wildlife firefighter. i've fought fires in new mexico, arizona, montana. are a fall on the job, mark dodi thought he had a backicry. >> his friend had to drive him home, because he was in so much pain, doubled over screaming. >> the pain that i was feeling was actually the tumor in my spinal column, pushing up against my spinal cord. >> reporter: diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma, mark faces a long path to recovery with a rising stack of hospital bills. >> i think i made $20,000 last year fighting fires and this is going to cost way more than that. >> reporter: now laid off, mark's paying for treatment on his own. >> first it was the full body skin to see where the cancer is and those are $8,000 each. >> reporter: a close knit family, the dodies are doing what they can to help mark. he's moved in with his parents and in addition to her art contributions, amy went online. >> we don't have all of the money to pay these bills and so we're just going to do what we have to do, which is ask strangers for help. >> reporter: she put mark's cause up on indiegogo, that helps individual causes find funds. it ranges from the artistic to the intensely personal. >> it's amazing the people that you can contact and just people sharing links will spread the word to different countries all over the world. >> reporter: with at least $80,000 to raise, marc and amy are fishing for funds beyond missoula. site updates are a powerful lure. >> yes, i check it all the time. i know that marc just doesn't have the energy to do fund-raising, plus it's a hopeful thing, you know. >> reporter: as one example of the millions of currently uninsured americans, marc doty is hoping it will be made easier through the internet. >> me and marc were closest when we were kids. he would go up to strangers and say "i love you." he would tell my mom 20 times a day "i love you." so he was just a really sweet, loving little boy. >> reporter: the little boy who loved everybody is now a man counting on the kindness of stranger, in the chilly environment of these tough economic times, marc doty and his sister are casting their hopes for warmer days. >> i hope to start work in the spring or in the summer next year, with my fire crew, and get right back at it, is my goal. >> and amy and marc are having pretty good success with their site. so far they've raised just over $2,500, and with the kind of bills they're looking at, every little bit counts, ann. >> so wonderful. what a great story, amy robach, thank you. >> thank you. coming up next, just how does he do it? we're going to visit with santa and his christmas wonderland, but first, these messages. - the craving for chocolate... - oooh. - is all grown up. - oooh. - jared presents beautiful natural levian chocolate diamonds and chocolate south sea pearls. levian is the only company on earth to make jewelry with chocolate diamonds. levian: the leading family in jewelry, from ancient royalty to today's red carpet. you will only find these styles at jared. levian chocolate diamonds: they're anything but vanilla. that's why he went to jared. [ growling ] captain, one step at a time.keep going! come on, snowy. look! did you ever see a more beautiful sight? captain! it's just a mirage. - snowy? what is it, boy? - [ barks ] what do you see? [ yipping ] [ woman announcing ] just like snowy, your dog's one of a kind. overactive imagination and all. [ barking ] long live your buddy. long live your dog. [ tintin ] snowy! purina dog chow. see the adventures of tintin, only in theaters. when sugar plums appear, temptation's all around. donuts, cakes and pies, they've got a gift for me, i wish that i could take it back, but there is no receipt. oh jiggle bells, jiggle bells, jiggle all the way. oh how i wish i could resist, jiggling this holiday. oh joy oh natural joy! truvia®, box of bliss, zero calorie sweetness from a leaf, my sugar plum happiness. truvia®. honestly sweet. santa and his helpers are working overtime this morning to get ready for tomorrow night's big ride and nbc's michelle kosinski managed to catch up with the big guy. >> good morning. we traveled to this magical place called santa park and santa claus village way up in the arctic circle in lapland, finland. we wanted to see how santa was handling crunch time and he shared with us a few things we didn't know about him. the deep arctic forest holds a big secret. a tiny village, tucked away. more far underground, home to a certain someone. >> santa. >> reporter: that's right, and we find mr. klaus himself still taking visitors, young -- >> how can you fly? >> reporter: -- and older. >> it's my very first time. it's wonderful. >> reporter: these three croat a croatia. >> you're a good boy. >> reporter: now they find santa's world all abust. the elves are teaching visitors a thing or two in elf school. >> in every single window in the world there is at least one elf. >> reporter: in santa's post office they're helping him read and answer letters from all over the world. >> you need two elves to open this one. >> reporter: there's one from nicky in florida. >> this christmas just give me what you think i deserve. >> reporter: more than half a million letters this year. >> i'm so worried about my baby sister. do you have any ideas to cheer her up? >> reporter: and out in the woods, the elves have a secret control room. >> rudolph! >> reporter: this is where they make toys. but here in santa's world, it's okay to peek a little. santa! he even gave us a rare interview. everybody wants to know how do you have time to go to everybody's house all over the world? how do you do it? >> i have a machine. i can stop the time. >> reporter: so you stop time. >> yes. >> reporter: is all of this legal that you're doing? >> i'm not so sure. but i do. >> reporter: that's amazing. >> yes. >> reporter: did anything surprise you about him? >> he talked a bit funny. >> he had a very long beard. >> merry christmas. >> reporter: santa's icy kingdom, remote lapland, also home to his reindeer, a world of wonder. very cool. >> let's go! >> reporter: where everyone sees through the eyes of a child. >> hey, michelle, you want to hop in? >> okay. this is what santa's magic is made of. let's go, santa! >> let's go! >> that is a first. >> right. santa park and santa village are a year-round operation and they take is so seriously you can get a master's degree from lapland university in being a santa's helper. >> will we find you under the tree at christmas, you an santa's sleigh, thank you so much. still to come, coming up a lot more to get to after your local news. some stocking stuffers. what am i -- invisible? are you serious? don't get involved. everybody's bumping me! [ crying ] [ female announcer ] just go to walgreens. one simple trip to fill all those stockings. and don't forget the hershey's kisses chocolates. and we're open late to help you finish your list. happy holidays and from all of us at walgreens we wish you well. [ female announcer ] shopping simplified. with walgreens...there's a way. care and dedication. our family-owned company has focused on making... the best-tasting sour cream for over four generations. it's made with farm-fresh cream... that's 100% natural without any additives or preservatives. and no added hormones. so you can feel good knowing every creamy dollop... will bring all your favorite dishes to life. ♪ do a dollop, do-do a dollop of daisy ♪ gives you a 50 percent annual bonus. so you earn 50 percent more cash. if you're not satisfied with 50% more cash, send it back! i'll be right here, waiting for it. who wouldn't want more cash? [ insects chirping ] i'll take it. i'll make it rain up in here. [ male announcer ] the new capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. what's in your wallet? sorry i'll clean this up. shouldn't have made it rain. nyqui tylenol: me, too. andp. cougnasal congestion.ers? nyquil:what? tissue box (whispering): he said nasal congestion... nyquil: i heard him. anncr vo: tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion... nyquil cold & flu doesn't. good morning to you. it's 7:56 on this friday morning. i am joe krebs. let's get the forecast from storm 4 meteorologist, tom kierein. clouds breaking up? >> they are. we have white top, gray bottomed clouds. temperatures are in the 40s to near 50 degrees. it will only climb a few degrees up around noontime and then it will get colder with a gusty wind. and then in the morning, temperatures near good morning. traveling in germantown, an accident. it's blocking the right lane. if you are traveling on 270, i am not seeing any issues there. as you travel north and towards the spur southbound you are in the clear. 395, clear as well. no issues to report at this time. back to you. >> another news update in 25 8:00 now on this friday morning, the 23rd of december, 2011, our crowd is up and out early and making the most of their holiday weekend, now in the heart of midtown manhattan. i'm ann curry along with natalie morales, and we're really enjoying all the great people out here this morning, including santa claus, and a lot of fine people getting ready to spend their day, their family days -- days with their family for the holiday weekend. coming up we'll give you the lowdown on what's up, what's in, what's new this holiday season and what's new in the theaters, there are a lot of great movies coming out and also talking about the if, christmas for the duke and duchess of cambridge. >> and how the first family is celebrating, how the celebrities do their christmases as well. also we have an incredible surprise for people hit hard by a devastating wildfire in texas. volunteers in the fire department, they can't hear us, what they don't know next door we have a huge holiday surprise just waiting for them. we'll have that big reveal coming up. >> always heartwarming. also we've got the jersey boys performing in our studio, but first -- there they are now. we'll get a check of the morning's top stories. we have natalie here so we have tamron hall standing by at the news desk. good morning. >> good morning, ann and natalie. good morning, everyone. after months of partisan wrangling, house republican leaders announced last night they'll accept a two-month extension of the payroll tax cut. a voice vote is going to be taken today. walmart and health officials are waiting tests on a batch of powdered infant formula. a missouri newborn who consumed it apparently died from a rare infecti infection. the manufacturer says the formula tested negative for bacteria before it was shipped to walmart. a terrified family from texas is grateful to be alive. the husband wife and 5-year-old daughter were going skiing this week when a blizzard buried their vehicle under four feet of snow in new mexico. two days later, with air running out, the husband was able to call his brother, who triggered a successful rescue. the little girl is okay. but her parents have pneumonia. san francisco firefighters say they were fortunate to bring this five-alarm fire under control thursday before the building collapsed, the fire injured three people and left about 60 others homeless. a strong 5.8 magnitude earthquake rattled the new zealand city of christchurch today. one person was hurt and four rescued. there was no major damage. last february an earthquake killed more than 180 people and destroyed much of downtown christchurch. a new report reveals last august's earthquake caused extensive damage to the washington monument, cracks and chipped stone could make the 127-year-old monument vulnerable to rain. steve jobs is receiving to posthumous awards for his technological innovations in the arts and a statue of jobs has been unveiled in budapest, hungary, where he helped a local software maker become a global leader in its field. a quick roundup of what has you talking online. aisha kan, the 19-year-old kansas student missing and reportedly found safe after a week-long search that included a dedicated facebook page. adam lambert is a top google search, brushing off his arrest in finland thursday. he blames a fist fight with his boyfriend on jet lag, booze and irrational confusion. he tweeted that "it's a lesson learned." trending on yahoo! the first winner of "the x factor" melanie amaro from sunrise, florida, earned the contest earning a $5 million recording contract, not bad at all for a 19 years old. it is 8:04, back to maria and another check of the weather. >> announcer: "today's weather" can brought to you by kay jewelers. every kiss begins with "q." >> i have the perfect story to share with all of you out of that sponsorship. here we have joel and judy, married 50 years. you have an amazing story a side from being married 50 years. tell us what you brought with you? >> we brought the original sales receipt from the plaza hotel for the first night of our wedding. >> and how much was it for? >> $27 $27.90 and $5.51. >> for the bottle of champagne. >> that was the second bargain i got. >> any secrets you want to share of 50 years? >> compromise. >> all right, there you heard it. all right, they're living in miami right now but our pick compromise.s to be in florida as >> there you heard it. our pick city happens to be in florida. jacksonville, 75 with afternoon showers. and a white christmas basically across the rockies, thanks to the snowstorm and lake effect snows. today it's rain along the mid-atlantic and clearing out in places like new york and oot lan tau. lots of sunshine for the central planes and snow continues across the southwest. that's a look at the weather across the country. >> we have great clouds racing through a view. and then temperatures in the 40s to near 50 degrees. this afternoon it will get colder as the winds diminish. by late tonight we will be down to near 30 by dawn on saturday >> that's a check of the weather. natalie back to you. >> thanks so much, maria. a great crowd, giving a little air time. coming up next from the box office to food and drink, what is in and what is new this holiday season, coming up right after this. >> i can do it! - [spoken in spanish] will you marry me? - will you marry me? male announcer: before saying those words, there's one word every man should know. - leo. - leo. - leo. announcer: the leo diamond at kay jewelers, a fire, sparkle, and brilliance so intense, it is the first diamond ever certified to be visibly brighter, one more reason kay is the number one jewelry store in america. - [spoken in chinese] yes. - [spoken in spanish] yes. - yes. ♪ [ laughs ] [ laughs ] [ woman ] i want to see that. careful. careful. careful. good. ♪ [ female announcer ] they're for bringing us together. ♪ this holiday, select hallmark cards come postage-paid. i took some steep risks in my teens. i'd never ride without one now. and since my doctor prescribed lipitor, i won't go without it for my high cholesterol and my risk of heart attack. why kid myself? diet and exercise weren't lowering my cholesterol enough. now i'm eating healthier, exercising more, taking lipitor. numbers don't lie. my cholesterol's stayed down. lipitor is fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients who have heart disease or risk factors for heart disease. it's backed by over 19 years of research. [ female announcer ] lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications, or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. [ man ] still love that wind in my face! talk to your doctor. don't kid yourself about the risk of heart attack and stroke. if lipitor's been working for you, stay with it. lipitor may be available for as little as $4 a month with the lipitor co-pay card. terms and conditions apply. learn more at lipitorforyou.com. so i used my citi thank you card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind. ♪ [ male announcer ] the citi thank you card. earn points you can use for travel on any airline, with no blackout dates. just a second. just, just one second. ♪ what are you looking at? don't look up there. why are you looking up? ♪ get outta the car. get outta the car. ♪ are you ok? the... get in the car. get in the car! [ male announcer ] the epa estimated 42 mpg highway chevy cruze eco. from spending time together, to spending your lives together, chevy runs deep. ♪ what's new, pussycat, whoa, whoa, whoa ♪ back now at 8:10 with something we're call "what's new, what's up, what's in" everything you need to know to see, eat and drink this holiday weekend. >> that's right we rounded up three experts to clue you in and get us started with what's new, the highly anticipated holiday weekend box office openings. joe levy, contributing editor at "rolling stone." good morning to you. >> good morning. >> a lot new at the box office. >> "the adventures of tin tin" and a lot of people my age want to see this. >> this is a kids movie but adults will like it. it's a cartoon, same animation as "avatar" same motion capture. if you see it, see it in 3-d, the action consequences are incredible. it's a little long but kids will still love it. >> lots of publicity on "war horse" not a kids movie? >> made from a children's book, also spielberg movie. a horse in world war i. if you can make it out of this movie without crying you're a very, very tough soul but it's not a kids picture. the war consequences are really gritty. >> another movie "mission impossible" open on tuesday. >> that's right. >> you still think it's going to win this box office weekend. >> it's got momentum coming in, it's broke records in its imass opening last weekend. this is directed by brad bird, he directed "the incredibles" he's done cartoons, it's live action, the humor of an old bond movie, it's a lot of fun. >> "girl with the dragon tattoo" is it worth spending time on a sitter? it's definitely not for the kids. >> it's a swede irthriller. even if you read the book there's a lot of surprises. it's gritty and dark. if you like to be scared and thrilled, this is the holiday movie for you. >> or if you want to see just amazing acting and actually there are a couple of golden globe nominations. >> it's a beautiful movie. >> "we bought a zoo" i don't know onmuch about the movie exct matt damon. >> matt damon and scarlett joe hanson. he's buyinging the zoo and putting it back together and his family. if you like animals and matt damon, try it out. >> and who doesn't. thank you so much this morning, joe levy. we appreciate your time. here's natalie. what's up with some of the holiday plans, some of the most famous people in the world. alicia quarrels of the associated press, good morning. >> good morning. >> you have inside scoop on the obamas? >> they have parties in the white house weeks up to christmas, i've had friends attended and they said there's lots of christmas trees, a little christmas tree that looks like bo. president obama was supposed to go to hawaii on the 17th. the rest of the family is there. he stayed because of the payroll taxes dealing with that and hopefully they'll get there soon. >> they're leaving d.c. from hawaii. >> yes. >> first family to the royal family, kate and william's first christmas. >> we'll be at sanderingham house, one of the queen's residences, her private residence and this is a big deal. it's kate's first christmas as a royal so they'll be hanging out with the queen and the word is that pippa will join them the next day on boxing day which is a break with tradition. we'll see if she shows up. >> boxing day? >> yes. >> that must be a big thing there. celebrities tom cruise, katie holmes, what are they up to these holidays? >> they claim to be just like us. tom says he's going to cook for the family, hang out with suri, their daughter and his two children with nicole kidman. prior to that, they were seeing the rockettes. >> where can we find george clooney? ? in mexico with girlfriend stacy kiebler. they have a house there. ladies we have to wait on that one. >> he's already preoccupied. thank you. now here's tamron. >> last but not least bobby flay is what's in in the latest in holiday trends. >> good morning, thank you. >> let's jump in. fried chicken for the holidays >> fried chicken has become a huge trend. it's an american classic. now every cuisine that has flavor and spice, things like southwestern, this is what we do at mason grill, 16-spice chicken. >> can you name all 16 spices? >> you want me to try? i can try. okay, there's thai fried chicken, indian spiced fried chicken and it makes perfect sense >> nice. >> fried chicken is good and a little flavor goes a long way. >> next up, using food with colors to represent the holidays. red and green. >> this goes really well with natalie and ann's outfits today, both have green and red. >> yes, it does. >> if you wanted to add white ricotta cheese you'd have the italian flag, or making the seven fishes for the night before christmas, it might be a kind of cool way to bring flavor and color and represent what you're doing. >> almost too pretty to eat. >> no, we have to eat it. >> and what will the holiday be without a nice toast of champagne and the hot trend bitters? >> this is a champagne cocktail, sugar in the bottom, cognac and champagne of course and some bitters. >> what are bitters? >> bitters are the trendiest things in terms of cocktails. as you know, every restaurant and bar has their own cocktail list now so you utilize ingredients like a chef would, a mixologist. i tell people to think of bitters as sort of the vinegar of cocktails. >> okay. >> because they're sweet and you need a little bit of bitter to it. >> a little bit of bitter goes a long way. happy holidays. up next a holiday surprise for a deserving group and they have no idea what's about to happen. and this hot thing's the brand-new nook tablet. ♪ by barnes & noble it's their fastest, lightest tablet with all my favorite books. ♪ jane can write! and the best streaming movies. see? high score. ♪ yeah! yeah! ♪ introducing nook tablet. books, the best in entertainment, facebook, apps, magazines and more. you know, typical alarm clock. i am so glad to get rid of it. just to be able to wake up in the morning on your own. that's a big accomplishment to me. i don't know how much money i need. but i know that whatever i have that's what i'm going to live within. ♪ ♪ i'm not going to the cleaners anymore, am i? [ gps ] no dave, you're not. [ tires screech ] [ male announcer ] jared the galleria of jewelry has five times the selection of ordinary jewelry stores. how did you know? [ horn honks ] [ male announcer ] that's why he went to jared. laces? really? slip-on's the way to go. more people do that, security would be like -- there's no charge for the bag. thanks. i know a quiet little place where we can get some work done. there's a three-prong plug. i have club passes. [ male announcer ] now there's a mileage card that offers special perks on united, like a free checked bag, united club passes, and priority boarding. thanks. ♪ okay. what's your secret? ♪ [ male announcer ] the new united mileageplus explorer card. get it and you're in. united mileageplus explorer card. it's finally here... ...the petsmart christmas countdown sale! save 50% on all petholiday™ and save $5 on select bags of iams®, beneful & one® dog and cat food. december 16th through the 24th only. at petsmart®. but sometimes i wonder... what's left behind? [ female announcer ] purifying facial cleanser from neutrogena® naturals. removes 99% of dirt and toxins without dyes, parabens or harsh sulfates. so skin feels pure and healthy. [ female announcer ] from neutrogena® naturals. build the best vehicles and once a year offer them with special savings. today, it's an american tradition. toyotathon is back with great deals on the toyotas you've been waiting for. right now, get a low 0% apr financing on select new tundras and drive with peace of mind, thanks to toyota care, a complimentary maintenance plan with roadside assistance. others have tried to copy it. but in the end, there's only one...toyotathon. the biggest and best sales event of the year is going on now! are back now at 8:20 with more of our special series, "getting to the heart of christmas." this morning we head to texas where this holiday season is especially difficult for people affected by a devastating wildfire that raged near austin nearly four months ago. nbc's kerry sanders is at the fire department in the heart of the pines, kerry, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning. the firefighters admit that this fire initially was just too much for them, but the 24 volunteer firefighters did put up a valiant fight. in the end, however, 60% of the homes here were destroyed and among the newly homeless, 14 of the volunteer firefighters themselves. veteran firefighters say the bastrop blaze was a career fire. >> oh, my god, total devastation. >> reporter: the sort of catastrophe a firefighter may see but once in a lifetime. >> there is he aa big fire and the wind's blowing it toward us. >> it's not contained at all. >> oh, dear god. >> reporter: sparked by a downed power line, bastrop burned out of control for 45 days. two people died, remarkably not more. >> lance's house is gone, nolan's house is gone. >> reporter: 667 homes destroyed. >> ahh. >> reporter: patrick beasley is one of 24 volunteer firefighters who was battling to stop the inferno. >> door was right here. >> reporter: fighting the fire as his own home burned to the ground. >> we lost everything that we owned. we lost our house. we lost our garage, clothing, everything that was, you could imagine that's in the house, tvs, the beds. if a firefighter can lose his house, anything's possible. >> reporter: that's exactly what happened here. >> that's exactly what happened. >> reporter: his wife, tiffany, escaped with baby michaela in one arm and the family photo album under the other. >> in the matter of probably i would say 30 minutes this house was gone. >> reporter: irreplaceable family heirlooms, reduced to cinders. >> all my grandmother's stuff that she hand made for all of us, all of the hand made quilts that michaela had, you can't put a price on them. >> oh, look, i no he what this is. >> reporter: also with the fire department domenica mcguiness, she and her children escaped the blaze. they, too, lost everything. >> my porcelain set. >> reporter: with donations sorted into boxes in their temporary home, trauma from a disaster like this is always just beneath the surface. why are you crying, honey? >> i was thinking about all the -- >> we can't understand. take your hands off. >> i'm thinking of something that i really liked. >> reporter: 6-year-old elizabeth lost her barbie doll in the fire. in her world it's like a friend died. >> that was one of my biggest regrets, because it didn't -- that doll didn't mean as much to me. i didn't know it was special to her. you just let them cry, and you let them deal with their emotions. >> reporter: and your tears? >> you get to those eventually. you know, to be honest, there's just been no time. >> reporter: an hour from what was their home, the mcguinness family, four children, two parents, are today crammed into a friend's small cabin. >> attention fire department -- >> reporter: like more than half the volunteers, they now live too far away to respond in an emergency. >> we've lost firefighters for the short term. none of them have quit. it's just logistically they're not able to live here right now. they are returning, but it's going to be a while before we feel like a department again. >> reporter: so we're going to get to the heart of christmas this morning, get a little cheer here. guys i want to you follow me, okay. let's go through this door here. we've teamed up with walmart, okay, come on through, guys. come on through. [ cheers and applause ] and with walmart, they're going to have an incredible christmas. are you guys looking at this tree over here? take a look at the tree. okay? so with walmart, for the mcguinness family, there's a tremendous amount of things over here, including a gift card for $2,000 for you from walmart. if you look over here and take a look at some of the presents, i know somebody wanted a grace kelly doll, oh, look at this. these are those other tears that you haven't had, and over here, come on over here, let's bring the beasley family over, as the family takes a look here and over here, look, patrick, i know one of the things you lost in this fire here were some tools, and look at that, there's an ipad. and i think it's really amazing, because as you see their faces and you consider what they're going through here, when you go through a fire, you lose everything. i mean everything. your forks are gone, your sheets are gone, your beds are gone. just take a look at the faces here of the kids who are discovering that so much of what they lost is now at least in this christmas some of it's being returned. >> and kerry, i understand that the mcguinness family actually is getting some barbie dolls in addition to clothes. >> reporter: they are. take a look down here, guys. what is that? is there a barbie doll down there for somebody? somebody lost a barbie doll. what is that? oh, what is that? >> yeah! that face said it all. we're so happy. >> now that here is a look at our city camera. the sun is shining brightly on this friday morning. it's 8:26 on december 23rd. good morning, i am pat lawson. the rain moved out of the area and warmer temperatures are on their way. let's go to meteorologist, tom kierein. >> we have a brisk wind whipping down the potomac and blow drying the roads after the night rain. here's a live view from the skywatcher camera. and temperatures in the 40s to near 50. not going to warp up much, only to the mid-50s by noontime and then colder tonight. it will bottom out to near 30 by [ screaming ] [ zapping ] there goes dwayne's car. oh, man. there goes dwayne's house. whoa! whoa! and there goes dwayne. man, that thing does not like dwayne. [ male announcer ] state farm's got you covered. nice landing. it was. [ male announcer ] get to a better state. good morning. if you have family flying into bwi and taking i-95 to get to you, they will be delayed. right now there's an accident and you are jammed from i-95. i will give alive look at it right now. it's blocking the right side of the roadway and you have rubbernecking delays approaching the accident. ♪ we wish you a merry christmas ♪ we wish you a merry christmas ♪ we wish you a merry christmas and a happy new year ♪ 8:30 now on this friday morning, the 23rd of december, 2011. we have a tremendous crowd outside getting a jumpstart on their holiday weekend with a visit to our corner of rockefeller plaza. they brought their signs and their joy, getting all of us in the spirit and we're excited to see all of their happy faces this morning and i'm ann curry outside here in studio 1a, outside studio1a and tamron hall and natalie morales. also coming up we're going to get into the spirit, we're going to get a performance by jersey boys. >> we love them. >> we're excited about that. what else? >> jersey girl moves here going on. as you know all month long we've been enjoying all of our celebrity guest elves helping us out with the toy drive with our donations and you all have been so generous as well, donating but have you ever wondered where those toys are going, once they leave our plaza? i know we've all wondered that. coming up we're going to show you just how much of a difference your generosity has made to kids all across the country. >> very nice. we'll have more on the former first family's life changing trip to africa. we've talked a lot about it. more details on the incredible journey. jenna bush hager is here with details on that. >> it's an amazing story and she's here to continue our chick-a-thon this morning. all about the women on the "today" show on this eve before the eve. let's get get inside, no, let's find out from the weather from maria larosa in for al this morning. >> good morning, guys. good morning, everyone. we have some folks here from oklahoma, they made it on to tv, but where's mom? >> at the hotel. >> reporte >> she didn't want to get up with you guys? >> no. >> sorry, mom. welcome to new york. a lot of people wondering if they'll have a white christmas. let's look at the forecast right now. we have the same areas where wh christmas. we have the same areas where they have had no and it looks like they will get a little bit more across parts of the great lakes for the christmas eve forecast. looking good for travel from the northeast to the southeast, and that's good news as well. christmas day, rainy and soggy across the southeast and showers in the pacific northwest as well, and the areas in the rockies, sunshine will prevail on christmas day. that's a look at the weather across the country. storm center 4 live view, clouds racing through a blue sky on this friday morning. we have dried out since the overnight rain. left over an inch of rain in a few locations in northern virginia and the area. and it's colder this afternoon and into >> and you can get your local forecast 24/7 at the weather channel or weather.com. still to come a special performance from the cast of the jersey boys coming up. up next, jenna bush hager takes us along one more time to introduce us to the amazing women she met during the ♪ and we're back at 8:35 with more on the bush family's recent trip to africa. it's a continent where women don't always have a voice. "today" contributing correspondent jenna bush haguer is here with the meaningful changes she's witnessed firsthand. good morning. >> good morning, ann. that's right, as our trip unfolded at every stop we met incredible women and girls who are literally changing the faces of their countries. we visited programs that are making sure that women have access to all they need to live the lives they deserve. ♪ ♪ we are women ♪ we are strong >> reporter: young faces of hope, filled with promise, a sisterhood of girls now empowered to create their own futures. in zambia, girls must contend with abuse, early marriage and hiv/aids but a program called glow is trying to change that. tell me what you like about the glow program. >> the glow program is good to me because i have learned how to express our views, we have learned how to say no, so to express our rights, yes. >> reporter: so do you feel more empowered? >> yes! >> reporter: do you all feel more empowered? >> yes. >> yes. >> reporter: g.l.o.w. stands for girls leading our world and it comes from lessons about self-esteem. >> let's go. >> no! >> reporter: and skits that teach them to protect themselves. do you feel the program is helping do you that? >> yes. >> reporter: what is your slogan is? >> we're g.l.o.w. girls! >> reporter: just down the road the university teaching hospital is the only cancer hospital in zambia. we meet 14-year-old tushiba facing a bat well ovarian cancer, brave beyond her years. how are you doing, your health? >> i'm fine. i can tell myself that. >> reporter: do you appreciate things more? >> very much. i see people on the television, people who are suffering and now like i'm suffering, this is my time to suffer and i'm just accepting it. >> reporter: her mom says this hospital is a gift. >> we are lucky this time we have this facilities. we never used to have the facilities to treat cancer in our country previously. now at least we have hope. ♪ >> reporter: there's hope, too, at the chicken bousso women and orphan's project. its name means remembrance. in zambia, widows once facing a life of poverty and isolation from the same of hiv learn to sew and bring in an income. orphans receive a free education. hello! >> hello! >> reporter: are you in school? >> yes. >> reporter: all of you? >> yes. >> reporter: do you like it? >> yes. >> reporter: emily, like so many other women here, lost her husband to aids. shunned by her neighbors and her family, she's found a new home and a second chance. people treated you badly? >> yes. they were laughing at me. >> reporter: why? >> because i'm hiv positive. >> reporter: and now do they laugh at you? >> no. >> reporter: how come? >> i don't know. >> reporter: because you have --? >> i have bousso and my husband, he's back again. >> reporter: your husband. is back again? >> yes. >> reporter: how come? >> i make the bag i sell, i get money, it's like we have man. ♪ >> reporter: a makeshift family of women fighting a long held stigma, singing a song of thanks for the chance to start over. ♪ and then it was on to the last leg of our trip. >> off to ethiopia. >> reporter: what are we going to do there? >> we're going to tour some health inclinics. >> reporter: last day? >> last day of our trip. >> reporter: we arrive in the ancient capital of ethiopia. first stop, st. paul's hospital on the front lines in the fight against aids. these workers are determined to break the cycle of hiv. the u.s. program pepfar donates funding to their work. >> i love you. >> reporter: i love you. how does it make you feel when you see the way that people greet mom and dad? >> i mean it's unbelievably moving. i'll probably start crying now, but i think it's been so inspiring and moving to see how pepfar has moved and changed people's lives. >> there's no better way to save lives. >> reporter: at the international conference on aids in africa, world leaders meet to rid this continent of an aids death sentence. ♪ and as our journey ends, we celebrate the living, grateful for those who worked tirelessly, so songs like this of joy and hope ring out across africa. it was an amazing trip and there really is so much hope in africa. these people that work every single day, are changing the face of this continent, and i think especially now during the holidays, it gives us all something to be thankful for. >> exactly right. i also think that as you point out, with these women and this hope, this change is happening to africa, it's a whole new look at africa. it's a revelation for a lot of people in america to see what is happening there. >> definitely. these women, these young girls at the g.l.o.w. project for example, these are girls that would have normally gotten married at 10, 11 years old and now they're 14, 15, and they want to stay in school and go to college and their dreams have just totally changed. amazing. >> as these girls are empowered, these women are empowered, all of africa will change. thank you so much, jenna bush hager, for your information this morning. >> thank you. >> happy holidays. >> you, too. coming up next your generosity at work. we'll follow some of the gifts you contributed to our annual holiday toy drive, but first this is "today" on nbc. ♪ back at 8:45. throughout the holiday season we asked viewers to donate gifts to our annual toy drive and boy, were you generous in 2011, but where do all those gifts go? here is a look at just one of our very deserving charities. >> jim carrey, collecting toys for our toy drive, anything he can get his hands on. >> reporter: over the years, the celebrity elves. >> matt damon. >> reporter: the corporate sponsors. >> over $1 million retail value. >> $7 million again this year. >> reporter: the generous donors on the plaza. but of the hundreds of charities that receive your donations every season, here's one you may not have seen. st. joseph's social service center helps the poor and homeless in elizabeth, new jersey. parents line up a day in advance to buy toys received from our toy drive. >> it gives the parents the opportunity to be the givers. >> reporter: the toys collected from our plaza get packed up and shipped here where they are sorted and given a very special holiday discount. nothing costs more than $3, including this hot wheels play set which retails for as much as $48. >> 12 grandkids. >> reporter: this woman paid 28 bucks for her 12 grandkids. >> $14, $15, you can go home looking like santa claus. >> reporter: it has a food assistance and career counseling program, services for people who need it now more than ever. >> as the economy got worse we saw more people coming. >> we're going through a recession so being a single mother this really helps me out a lot. it really helps me out. >> reporter: the percentage of families living in poverty here is higher than the national average, so st. joseph sets aside free toys to give away, so that nobody can left out. >> families that can't afford it, we give them toys. we don't charge them enough because they don't have the money to get it. >> it is special because it's coming from a parent. and we are very pleased to say our 18th annual toy drive delivered nearly $35 million in gifts to 200 family charities, in all 50 states and u.s. military bases around the world. in all, we helped out roughly 4 million needy kids, amazing, so again a big thanks to all of you who contributed and our elves who worked tirelessly behind the scenes and antoineette, mike, and kate cook. coming up next, sounds of the season from the cast of jersey boys. first this is "today" on nbc. ♪ making your way in the world today ♪ ♪ takes everything you've got ♪ wouldn't you like to get away? ♪ ♪ ♪ sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name ♪ ♪ ♪ you want to be where you can see ♪ ♪ our troubles are all the same ♪ ♪ you want to go where everybody knows your name ♪ ♪ ♪ >> announcer: the toyota concert series on "today" brought to you by toyota. >> jersey boys opened on broadway in 2005 and won the tony for best musical and a grammy for best musical show album in 2006. now the cast is out with a special holiday album called "seasons greetings, a jersey boys christmas" and nathan sherric, jar odd spector, andy karl and quinn vandentorp thank you for being here this morning. >> thank you, good morning. >> jared, three years playing frank frankie valle, singing songs when you weren't even born. >> not even close. >> what is the takeaway for you? >> you know, it's a real unique experience. we all have dreams of being on broadway and then you get to go and be on broadway and play a real guy, a rock star, and very truly be able to go on stage and be a rock star every night and it's a unique experience and it's amazing and i think all of us just sort of do our best to do justice to the guys and their music. >> the songs include "sherry" "big girls don't cry," "walk like a man," ogs oh what a night." do you have a favorite? >> "sherry" is a real good song, you can't beat that one. >> you have the holiday album. a couple of you are on the album. is there going to be a jersey boys vibe on the album? >> definitely a "jersey boys" vibe. bob gaudio was the producer on it. it was special to be with the guy who made the songsz legendary back then. they take the traditional classics and put a four seasons spin on them. >> the four seasons very cool also, four guys, blue collar, coming up from nothing, and before they were 30, they had sold 175 million records worldwide, invented their own sound, and wrote their own songs, and you embody their spirit on broadway, and in your performances, so i'm going to get out of the way and let you guys sing a song. merry christmas. >> want to joinin us? >> no, i don't think you'd want that. ladies and gentlemen, jersey boys. ♪ santa claus is comin' to town ♪ santa claus is comin' to town ♪ you better watch out, you better not cry ♪ ♪ oh, baby, telling you why ♪ santa claus is coming, santa claus is coming to town ♪ ♪ he's making a list ♪ checking it twice, gonna find who's naughty or nice ♪ ♪ santa claus is coming ♪ to town ♪ he sees you when you're sleeping ♪ he knows when you're awake ♪ ♪ he nows if you've been bad or good ♪ ♪ so be good for goodness' sake ♪ you better watch out, you better not cry ♪ ♪ ay, baby, telling you why ♪ santa claus is coming ♪ to town ♪ here comes santa claus, here comes santa claus ♪ ♪ right down santa claus lane ♪ vixen and blitzen and all his reindeer a-pullin' on the reins ♪ ♪ bells are ringing, children singing ♪ all is merry and bright ♪ ♪ ahh ♪ hang your stockings and say your prayers ♪ ♪ say your prayers ♪ because santa claus comes tonight ♪ ♪ here comes santa claus, here comes santa claus right down santa claus lane ♪ ♪ he's got some toys if you're rich or poor sew loves you rich or poor ♪ ♪ he loves you just the same ♪ fill your heart with christmas cheer cause santa claus comes tonight ♪ ♪ cause santa claus comes tonight ♪ ♪ cause santa claus comes tonight ♪ i saw mommy kissing santa claus underneath the mistletoe last night ♪ ♪ he didn't see me creep down the stairs to have a peek ♪ ♪ she thought that i was tucked up in my bedroom fast asleep ♪ ♪ then i saw mommy kissing santa claus ♪ underneath his beard so snowy white ♪ ♪ beard so snowy white ♪ oh, what a laugh it would have been if daddy had only seen ♪ ♪ mommy kissing santa claus ♪ mommy kissing santa claus ♪ mommy kissing santa claus last night ♪ ♪ last night ♪ santa claus, santa claus, santa claus, santa claus ♪ ♪ santa claus is comin' tonight ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> you know what, just listening to you made us all so happy. thank you so much this morning. >> thank you. >> they're called "the jersey boys christmas" and seasons greetings you guys. we've hadden incredible year in news and a lot of highlights as well. we'll look back at some of the most memorable images now of 2011. >> enjoy, everybody. merry christmas. good morning. it's 8:56 on this friday, december 23rd. i am pat lawson muse. let's look at the weather at this hour. tom kierein has a look at the weather. tom? >> we have the sunshine creating long shadows and a blue sky. we have a blustery wind gusting 20 to 25 miles per hour. we will have the gusting wind through the mid and middle of the afternoon. and the highs are around mid-50s in the noontime. partly sunny on sunday, and christmas day, good morning. traling in rockville, old georgetown road an accident there. we're still seeing delays as you travel southbound past 100. again, it's in the right shoulder lane, but the lanes are that's the jingle bell, that's the bingle bell rock ♪ ♪ good morning, two days before christmas. you've been listening to the music from the cast of "jersey boys." we're lucky they were willing to get up early and spend more time with us. we'll hear more from them. outside a festive crowd gathered in the plaza, sightseeing or last-minute holiday shopping and there you are, santa is even among our crowd. i'm ann curry along with natalie morales this morning. we're excited about the holidays. >> i know, and matt and al and savannah have the day off. coming up if you're one of the 92 million americans who is heading out for the holiday weekend, we've got some news for you. we'll be telling you about the roads and the airports, what you face in terms of traffic and delays and also what the weather might be like when you get to where you're heading. we'll tell you all about that coming up this morning. >> maybe you're thinking of relocating in the new year. if you are, barbara corcoran is here. she's checked out homes across the country and boy has she found some deals, some great homes for $200,000 or less. >> uh-huh. also if you want to give, if you have the money to give someone a trip for christmas, neisome of best hotels in the world. tamron is in for you at the news desk, what is going on at the news? good morning. congress is voting today on a two-month extension of the payroll tax cut in unemployment benefits. house republican leaders dropped their opposition to the stop gap measure thursday, following heavy criticism from the president and democrats. the 92 million americans traveling over the holidays can expect to pay more this year whether they are flying or driving. nbc's tom costello is in north potomac, maryland, to explain exactly why. good morning, tom. >> reporter: hi, tamron. paying more for gas, paying more for airline tickets, paying more for good. a good chunk of the population is on the move. yet again you're in good company if you plan to be on the move over the holiday stretch. of the 92 million people traveling 50 miles. more, nearly 84 million of us are driving, and only about 5.5 million leisure travelers are flying. that's a big drop of nearly 10% from last year. you can blame all the extra flying fees and a rough economy, but none of that matters to the grinspoon family headed to floor. >> you know, the decision to go is based on the fact that we have family there. so we have a free place to stay. >> reporter: or the curry family headed to north dakota. >> we just try to make it work and family is important to us so we wanted to make sure we got home for christmas. >> reporter: so how much are we paying compared to last year? the lowest round-trip airfare this year is $210, up from about $175 a year ago and you still have to pay for your bags. rental cars are actually about $10 cheaper this year, $40 a day on average. the lowest in five years. gasoline, though, is averaging $3.23 for regular. last year it was $3.02. $126 will get you a room at a three-star hotel, that's about the same from a year ago, and movie tickets also haven't changed much, $10.60 on average. but groceries are up 4% to 5% on average, making a holiday gettogether that much more expensive. >> the typical family is living in an environment where their wages haven't gone up in the past few years. their salaries have not gone up in the past few years, and yet inflation has really been ticking away. >> reporter: especially for food and gas. finally, if you do plan to drive over the holidays, the folks at the aaa hope you don't mind a friendly year-end reminder in the name of safety. >> stay away from driving while distracted. it's very important that you focus on the task at hand, which is driving. >> reporter: and, says aaa, keep the keys away from friends or family members who may have had too much to drink this time of year. good advice there. you notice we said that we're averaging about $3.23 for regular unleaded gasoline. tamron, gasbuddy.com says if this coming six, seven, eight months or anything like the traditional six, seven, eight months after christmas, we could be back over $4 a gallon for gasoline maybe come memorial day or the summertime. back to you. >> all right, tom, not so good on that. hopefully everyone gets to their destination safe. thanks, tom. high winds are complicating holiday travel in southern california. strong santa ana winds toppled trees and clogged highways with jack-knifed and overturned trucks. there were no serious injuries. the forecast calls for the winds to pick up again tonight. more snow is expected in parts of new mexico, where a winter storm shut down highways thursday with up to 15 inches of snow and blizzard conditions. the storm also brought most air travel there to a stop. and while many americans are traveling today, others are finishing their christmas list. nbc's craig melvin is in midtown manhattan with last-minute shoppers. you're in good company. good morning, craig. >> reporter: tamron, good morning to you. i am indeed. we have seen a steady flow of foot traffic going into the mapsymap macy's here at herald square behind me. several other stores around new york city have been open 24/7 for the past few days. this store won't close until tomorrow evening. retailers pulling out all the stops here, with their last-minute shoppers. these are the folks who year in and year out oftentimes wait until the very last minute to go out and do the lion's share of their shopping and according to a new survey, they have lots of company. 77% of folks surveyed say they still have some holiday shopping to do. there's also another survey that says according to "consumer reports" those who wait until the last minute generally tend to spend a fair amount more money as well. retail experts say if you wait until the last minute and you do not want to brave the crowds, you're probably going to see today, you can go to a supermarket, you can go to a drugstore as well and get a reasonably priced gift. we should note that today is generally the busiest shopping day of the year. tamron? >> craig, thank you. and tourists are being treated to a spectacular show off the western coast of mexico. take a look, an estimated 18,000 gray whales have started their annual migration from the bering sea to give birth to calves in mexico's warmer waters. it is six past the hour. back to ann and natalie. >> i'd love to someday get to see them. >> before we get to weather you found special guests. >> these kids your daddy is serving overseas and his name is major dacy siguri. >> hi, daddy! i love you! >> and we know that daddy can catch. >> he's watching online so yeah! merry christmas. we love you, too. let's get to maria larosa with a check of your weather. >> i'm going to send a little love to one dad in afghanistan as well, your lovely girls back here, what would you like to say to your dad? >> we love you, daddy. >> a special thanks to mom holding down the army at home. welcome to new york. as we look at the forecast today, we've got snow right now happening in new england, all that's going on in the east. good news for travel from new york to boston, the east, so good news for travel from new york to boston eventually improving. and it's average cold. for the day today, no monster system that will snarl holiday travel, and that's good news. the snow still continues through the mountains of new mexico, and the breezy conditions are there in southern california. good morning. we have a wind increasing in the north and west, and we have temperatures right now near 50. not going to warm up much. the gusty wind bringing in colder weather. highs around 50 around noontime. and then tomorrow, mostly sunny and highs near 40s and christmas day, looking better, partly sunny and lows near 30 and afternoon highs near 40s. next week, still cold weather will be >> natalie, back to you. ♪ our house in the middle of our street ♪ this morning on "today's real estate" what you can get for under $200,000. barbara corcoran is here to show us what she found. you found some gems for a good price tag. the first one is a home in tempe, arizona, three bedrooms, two baths. >> the town of temp e is a hot spot for outdoor sports and festivals. this is on a cute named street called sesame street and a big green lawn looks more like it's not in arizona but more in oregon. the kitchen is very brown with wood cabinet, silestone counters and floor that is brown. sunny area off the open kitchen and i like the armoire on the right. homey. the living room is plain and simple with a cooling ceiling fan and low-energy windows and a pretty nursery with beam board, wane's coating. and inground pool and a shed, good storage shed. >> omaha, nebraska, great place, home of several fortune 500 companies, an amazing three bedroom, one and a half bath tudor brick house on you say a quiet tree lined street. >> it is quiet and a pretty street. this is an old brick tudor and in addition to it looking pretty, tudor homes are best at conserving heat so people like the way they look but they're also practical. >> i didn't know that. good to know. >> it has a simple white kitchen with contrasting wood floors and blue and white tiles over the stove. the dining room has an odd ball color. >> bright red. >> what were they thinking? i don't know what that finish is. >> it's easy to fix. >> the living room is brighter than it looks, lots of windows and a brick fireplace. the mood changes when you go upstairs to the dormer room on the second floor. am any the same house? a fancy tile job in the main bathroom you're going to like that's green wall tile and should be sprayed white in my opinion but lovely floor tile and would go much better. all of that is a very good price. >> next to lansing, michigan, and you found a beautiful modern home designed by william kessler. >> this is modern with a capital "m." wait until you see how modern it is, three peak sections and the rear of the house is 100% glass, nothing in your way. all the glass kind of takes advantage of the park light views that fronts on the grande river of this house and gives you a sense that you're living outside. when you see a shot from the inside you'd swear you're just outside. beautiful wood ceilings throughout the dining areas and the ceilings are that way throughout the entire house. it grounds the house, looks pretty. >> bringing nature in. >> lovely and i luke the modern kitchen and skylights and swing out kitchen cabinets. the living room is spacious and cool with flat wood ceilings and looks out on a small courtyard that gives you privacy, considering the glass and the light filled quilt room makes a great office or artist studio and the master bedroom is tucked behind a private wall backyard. weird quilt for a modern house, i don't get it, what the heck. >> interior decorating could make that easy. >> someone gave them that quilt. >> next a great family community, not so far away from little rock, arkansas, cabot, arkansas, a great home with four bedrooms, two bathrooms and a deck. >> this is a neat almost lego-looking house. it's big enough, even though it doesn't look big on the outside, four big bedrooms for a large family. the open kitchen and breakfast area have barrel ceilings and flooded with lights from the arch win dose. the large living area has wood floors. the kitchen is modern. the large living area has wood floors and odd ball column, and the big fireplace. the marble bath with the jetted tub and once you go out back a huge two-tiered deck surrounding an above-ground pool but very popular in that part of arkansas. >> looks pretty good. barbara corcoran, great finds for us. happy holidays. >> same to you. we're back with more of "today" right after this. ♪ ding dong ding, dong ♪ hark how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say, ♪ ♪ throw cares away, christmas is here, bringing good cheer, ♪ ♪ to young and old, meek and the bold, ding dong ding, dong, ♪ ♪ that is their song, with joyful ring, all caroling, ♪ ♪ one seems to hear, words of good cheer, from everywhere, ♪ ♪ filling the air, oh how they pound, raising the sound, ♪ ♪ o'er hill and dale, telling their tale, gaily they ring, ♪ ♪ while people sing, songs of good cheer, christmas is here. ♪ ♪ merry, merry, merry, merry christmas ♪ ♪ [ horse neighs ] you're leaving. it is my destiny. ♪ take this. it is a piece of me. ♪ [ male announcer ] it's movie time. with a wii twist. netflix now delivers unlimited tv episodes and movies instantly through wii and nintendo 3ds. all for only 8 bucks a month. seriously, what is it? [ laughter ] ♪ [ male announcer ] for tim and richard smucker, giving a gift of their family's delicious jam always made the holidays just a little bit sweeter. we forgot to put our names on them! richard, i think they'll know who it's from. ♪ thank you boys. you're welcome. you're welcome. [ male announcer ] happy holidays from our family to yours. i love christmas! fwe throw out over $500 in food ziploc preevery year.gic. help save more of it with ziploc freezer bags featuring new, improved smartzip. edge to edge protection you can hear. get ziploc. and get more out of it. [ female announcer ] s.c. johnson. a family company. cuban ca jun raw seafood pizza parlor french fondue tex-mex fro-yo tapas puck chinese takeout taco truck free range chicken pancake stack baked alaska 5% cash back. right now, get 5% cash back at restaurants. it pays to discover. dad. did you know it's 22 days, 11 hours and 2 minutes to christmas? [ mumbling ] ...enny days, 8 hours, 9 minutes... 18 days, 17 hours... [ mom ] let's go, young lady. [ female announcer ] they're for building excitement for christmas. 12 days, 18 hours... come on. it's no days! [ female announcer ] the hallmark countdown to christmas ornament. 5 hours and 59 minutes and 41... 40...39... 38...37...36... we're back with "today's travel." this morning seeing the world in style from the exotic african wilderness to a quaint new england inn. "travel & leisure" magazine has the list of 500 best hotels, many affordable prices. neila motamed is here. good morning, nilou. two titles. your gift to us is another incredible list of places where we could have travel adventures. >> this is a gift from our readers. our readers voted on the top 500 properties. there's nothing better than hearing from people who were actually out there and giving us their feedback on everything. >> absolutely. let's start out with vermont, a nice little inn there. >> i love this idea of going to vermont in the wintertime, perhaps because one of my first away days with my husband was in vermont. rabbit hill inn is $169 a night. they're having a 20% off deal if you stay there during the week. >> sweet looking. >> adorable. they have 19 rooms, they have super comfy beds, a. that's 200 years old you can have a pint in or play board games. you can have afternoon tea. i love the idea of going someplace, you can spend cozy time and it's romantic. fall, spring, winter, you can't go wrong in vermont. >> quaint vermont to rockin' las vegas, mandarin oriental there? >> the idea of getting a mandarin oriental property under $200 a night is incredible. the thing about vegas if you're not a gambler you feel overwhelmed. it's a nongaming hotel. no casino. in the middle of city center, gorgeous new complex but no casino. go up to the 23rd floor and hang out in their lounge with floor-to-ceiling views. they have the only pierre ganier restaurant in the u.s. and i have to say their spa is incredible. if you're looking for pampering and relaxation, and they're throwing in spa and dining credits every day they're staying. >> if you like it you could move in, the residents are here. what stays in vegas, you just stay in vegas. moving on to virginia. >> the homestead in virginia, this is a national historic property in virginia, and it's absolutely great for families. if you're looking for a great place to go with the kids, if they have an on site outdoor skating rink. >> that looks like an estate picture. >> all of the hospitality, lots of hot chocolate, definitely cozy and a great place, especially they're having value after january 2nd, that's something for people to keep in mind. they weren't able to book something during the holidays, they got priced out. after the holidays is a great time to travel for air fare and hotel. >> very nice. >> i'm going on the 7th. >> there you have it. send us pictures. moving far, far away to somewhere a little more exotic for a lot of people, cambodia. >> cambodia is on a lot of people's wish list. anchor watt is a destination. the golf and spa resort is absolutely stunning and $195 a night including breakfast. this is a trip of a lifetime and yet you're getting it for a huge value. they have the largest swimming pool in the country of cambodia, they haven't left all of the amenities but you're next to anchor watt, unesco world heritage site. matt went there for "where in the world" a few years ago. it's stunning, i highly recommend it for value and also a cultural immersion experience. >> another trip of a lifetime, tanzan tanzania. >> safari is on a lot of people's minds but the cost is a big concern. not at the serengeti lodge, $225 a night. a lot of people say that east africa is where the safari was born so you have kenya, you have tanzania. of course, home to mt. kilimanjaro and the serengeti. the serengeti is where you see the wildebeast migration, elephants, lieians, giraffes, all of this for $225 a night rate, unbelievable, two game drives, stunning hotel. i can't recommend this highly enough. if you're thinking safari in your future this is a great place to start. >> incredible range of ideas but all fantastic. nilou thank you so much. happy holidays. >> thank you. come up what you can do to avoid from creating a spoiled child this holiday season. plus the jersey boys are back with another holiday medley, but first these messages. i'm good about washing my face. but sometimes i wonder... what's left behind? [ female announcer ] purifying facial cleanser from neutrogena® naturals. removes 99% of dirt and toxins without dyes, parabens or harsh sulfates. so skin feels pure and healthy. [ female announcer ] from neutrogena® naturals. when sugar plums appear, temptation's all around. donuts, cakes and pies, they've got a gift for me, i wish that i could take it back, but there is no receipt. oh jiggle bells, jiggle bells, jiggle all the way. oh how i wish i could resist, jiggling this holiday. oh joy oh natural joy! truvia®, box of bliss, zero calorie sweetness from a leaf, my sugar plum happiness. truvia®. honestly sweet. i took some steep risks in my teens. i'd never ride without one now. and since my doctor prescribed lipitor, i won't go without it for my high cholesterol and my risk of heart attack. why kid myself? diet and exercise weren't lowering my cholesterol enough. now i'm eating healthier, exercising more, taking lipitor. numbers don't lie. my cholesterol's stayed down. lipitor is fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients who have heart disease or risk factors for heart disease. it's backed by over 19 years of research. [ female announcer ] lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications, or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. [ man ] still love that wind in my face! talk to your doctor. don't kid yourself about the risk of heart attack and stroke. if lipitor's been working for you, stay with it. lipitor may be available for as little as $4 a month with the lipitor co-pay card. terms and conditions apply. learn more at lipitorforyou.com. what's next? 607 franklin st. ♪ sea bass... ♪ ooohhh! ♪ i like it. yeah, i love the kitchen. [ male announcer ] the epa-estimated 42 mpg highway chevy cruze eco. from looking for your perfect home to finding it. chevy runs deep. still to come, quick and easy appetizers if you're throwing a last-minute holiday gathering this weekend. >> plus more holiday music from the cast of "jersey boys." ♪ sunny friday morning, and sunn% friday morning, and that's a surprise on this friday, the 23rd day of december. ou our time now is 9:26. good morning, i am pat lawson muse. it appears we won't be getting a white christmas this year. >> now, drying out. we cleared out with the sunshine, and temperatures are still holding steady in the upper 40s to around 50. will climb three or four degrees to around noontime, and then colder this afternoon with a gusty northwest wind and colder late tonight, and afternoon highs with sunshine tomorrow into the mid-40s. for christmas day, it's looking better. the storm system way to the south, and highs reaching the mid-40s after a cold start. cold into next week, good news. traveling in rockville, an earlier accident, that's now clear. also not seeing any problems along i- 70 or the beltway in the rockville area. and then traffic is flowing quite nicely. no issues to report at this time. pat, back to you. >> thanks, danella. we will have another local news update in 25 minutes. now back to the "today" show after the break. yeah, i'm married. does it matter? you'd do that for me? really? yeah, i'd like that. who are you talking to? uh, it's jake from state farm. sounds like a really good deal. jake from state farm at three in the morning. who is this? it's jake from state farm. what are you wearing, jake from state farm? [ jake ] uh... khakis. she sounds hideous. well she's a guy, so... [ male announcer ] another reason more people stay with state farm. get to a better state. ♪ ♪ there she is, our magnificent 74-foot norway zp s spruce in rockefeller plaza, fitting sight for christmas, just two days away. just ahead we all want our kids to have a happy christmas, we want them to feel good about the holidays but you don't have to feel guilty if santa doesn't pick up everything on the holiday list. coming up, we got a little holiday survival guide, how you can survive without raising a spoiled child. >> that is good advice for everyone. plus a lot of people will be having holiday guests. we're helping you what to serve. you are in luck, we'll get recipes for quick and easy appetizers. keeping with the holiday spirit, we'll have one more song from the magnificent cast of "the jersey boys" coming up, they've one more hit for us as well. first lets's get a check of your holiday weekend weather from maria larosa, filling in for al. we're not getting a white christmas here but some folks are. >> we are totally out of it now. we have some showers happening in seattle. do you get tired of being associated with forks? >> it's good for the economy because my parents live out there. and i love "twilight." i'm a twi mom. >> the forecast we are seeing snow christmas eve, anyway. it's around the great lakes with grea around the great lakes. welcome rained around texas and the pacific northwest as well. and christmas day, sunshine in the northeast and soggy across the southeast, and all the snow out west getting a bit of a break and the sunshine will prevail with the snow on the ground. that's a look at the weather across the country and here's a look at what you can expect. >> we have a blue sky and a few clouds racing through. we have a gusty northwest wind. i am tom kierein in storm center 4. temperatures are still holding steady in the 40s to around 50 degrees, and we'll stay this way for another few hours and maybe briefly get low to mid-50s in the early afternoon, and colder later tonight and the winds will diminish. tomorrow, mid-50s. cold through the first part of next week, too. coming this up weekend, sunday night is football night in america. what a matchup we have for you on sunday night. we've got the bears against the green bay packers and aaron rodgers, 13-1, going into this game. lambeau field, not too bad, into the mid and upper 20s at kickoff and partly cloudy skies. tamron, natalie, back to you. >> tamron's come one a football themed dance. go ahead. >> no, then it will debut on youtube. are you going overboard? how to avoid spoiling your children this holiday season. we'll have that right after this. >> or your nieces and nephews. [ laughter ] ♪ [ male announcer ] for tim and richard smucker, giving a gift of their family's delicious jam always made the holidays just a little bit sweeter. we forgot to put our names on them! richard, i think they'll know who it's from. ♪ thank you boys. you're welcome. you're welcome. [ male announcer ] happy holidays from our family to yours. i love christmas! from our family to yours. yi mean you've got like five chundred dollars worth of nuts here, you do the math. be five percent more merry with the target red card, by getting an extra 5% off, our already low prices. plus free shipping at target.com ♪ it rides in limos. it has a crew. it gets invited to parties with paparazzi. it hangs out poolside. it has millions of drooling fans. it knows the recipe for success. there's nothing like it. the big mac. it doesn't do interviews. and don't miss the mac snack wrap while it's in the house. the simple joy of famous flavor. ♪ this was the gulf's best tourism season in years. all because so many people wanted to visit us... in louisiana. they came to see us in florida... nice try, they came to hang out with us in alabama... once folks heard mississippi had the welcome sign out, they couldn't wait to get here. this year was great but next year's gonna be even better. and anyone who knows the gulf knows that winter is primetime fun time. the sun's out and the water's beautiful. you can go deep sea fishing for amberjack, grouper and mackerel. our golf courses are open. our bed and breakfast have special rates. and migrating waterfowl from all over make this a bird watcher's paradise. so if you missed it earlier this year, come on down. if you've already been here come on back... to mississippi... florida... louisiana... alabama. the gulf's america's get-a-way spot no matter where you go. so come on down and help make 2012 an even better year for tourism on the gulf. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. [ dog ] i am my coat? solid gold. my insides? pure platinum. [ female announcer ] a healthy outside starts inside. new iams simple & natural has chicken as its number one ingredient and zero fillers. it works inside for health you can see on the outside. [ dog ] i can't be a rockstar on the outside if i'm not one on the inside. [ female announcer ] new iams naturals. you'll like what's in them and love what's not. [ dog ] i am an iams dog. [ girls ] he's so cute! [ dog ] groupies! ♪ that is their song, rds of good cheer, om everywhere, ♪, ♪ne seem, ♪ filling the air, oh how they pound, ising the sound, ♪ ♪ o'er hill and dale, telling their tale, gaily they ring, ♪ ♪ while people sing, songs of good cheer, christmas is here. ♪ ♪ i want a hippopotamus for christmas ♪ this morning on "parenting today" it's the season of gift giving. how do you celebrate the holidays without spoiling your kids? christina bacelitto and robi ludwig, good morning to you both. >> happy holidays. >> christina let's talk about the results of the survey. how much on average are parents going to be spending or have spent already on the holidays for their children? >> the average is actually pretty close to $300, $271, but one in ten parents are spending over $500, and what's ironic about that is 75% of these same parents will admit, my kid is spoiled. they know this. >> robi, you say it's not so much about the amount but it is about the message. >> it's the message. you know, teaching your child things should come easily, giving in to tantrums, sending the message kids don't need to work for what they want. these are all, and also not being grateful for what they have. that's also sending the message, it's okay to be spoiled. >> i think a lot of us as parents have been guilty of, you know, trying to get to the store to get the hottest toy in the aisles right now, and christina, what did the survey find about the length that parents are willing to go to, to get that toy? >> well, 4% will admit to actually going to the store and wrestling other parents down. >> what? >> to grab a toy. >> really? >> a much higher percentage. >> you get your exercise that way. >> so much for the holiday spirit. >> yes. wow, why do parents go overboard like that? >> we want to feel like good parents. we want to make our kids happy. this seems like an easy way to make our kids happy and joyful, and in some cases, parents wait a long time. they wait until they're older to have kids. they have more money, and this child is their miracle child, and they just fall madly in love and it's anything that will make this child feel gratified. >> and then i can imagine, guilt from the parents has a little bit to do with that as well. christina, we feel guilty if we can't get them what they want, right? >> it's true. and our survey, a majority of parents, 76% said that guilt is actually what drives them to spend more than what they know they should. >> so what should we do, robi, to not feel so guilty? >> when you're a parent you feel guilty but it's redefining what parent hood is about. you should be setting limits with your child. your job as a parent is to train your child for the real world, which means sometimes you get what you want, and a lot of times you don't. so you have to help them develop those psychological muscles and how to deal with that reality. >> when they're saying i want, i want, i want, what do you say? >> you say listen, here's a range of what we are going to get you or in some cases -- >> or santa's going to bring you. >> or you can say we're going to spend this dollar amount, and anything else that you want, let's save and work towards, because that's really what you value the most, what you get easily and effortlessly is just a tchotchke you take for granted after a while. >> after the first 15 minutes they're on it playing with the toy. let's end on a high note. you found people are being generous and passing that message along to our kids as well. >> one in five parents will talk to their kids about the importance of giving back to those less privileged on a regular basis. 70% said they donate money, they donate toys, food to the needy at holiday time and take their kids with them so the kids see them doing that. >> that's really the message, robi, more about giving than it is about receiving. >> kids feel so great when they learn the joy of giving, if they pick a charity with their family and they find a cause that they can feel good about, that's really something that they can learn a lesson, they can bring into their life for the rest of their lives. >> absolutely. ladies, great talking with you. happy holidays. >> happy holidays. coming up next, quick and easy appetizers to serve at your next holiday party. but first these messages. i wouldn't do that. pay the check? no, i wouldn't use that single miles credit card. hey, aren't you... shhh. i'm researching a role. today's special... the capital one venture card. you earn double miles on every purchase. impressive. chalk is a lost medium. if you're not earning double miles... you're settling for half. was that really necessary? [ male announcer ] get the venture card at capitalone.com and earn double miles on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? cover for me. i have an audition. . . . . send a kleenex brand share package for free today at kleenex.com and start your own chain of sharing. in return, you'll receive a sample of new kleenex cool touch tissues... the only tissue that actively releases a cool sensation to soothe a sore nose on contact. kleenex. softness worth sharing. hellmann's and holiday leftovers become irresistibly creamy turkey casserole. real delicious hellmann's. make it real. make it different. so you don't have to deal with this. [ boy ] she's pushing me! [ mom ] you guys stop it. [ horns honk ] look for spaces. hang on. [ horn honking ] are you sure that's a space? keep walking. [ horn honks ] [ female announcer ] just go to walgreens. great parking...short lines... and just the right gifts. and we're open late to help you finish your list. happy holidays and from all of us at walgreens we wish you well. [ female announcer ] shopping simplified. with walgreens...there's a way. make the best vehicles in america... and once a year offer them with special savings. today, it's a phenomenon. toyotathon is back. see the reinvented camry, named a 2012 "best resale value" by kelley blue book's kbb.com. and with amazing deals, now's the time to get the toyota you've been waiting for. others have tried to copy it. but in the end, there's only one...toyotathon. the biggest and best sales event of the year is going on now! >> announcer: "today's holiday kitchen" is brought to you by hershey's kisses, delightfully dlirks, o delicious, one-of-a-kind kisses. this morning on "today's holiday kitchen" last minute entertaining if you're throwing a holiday party this weekend, feeling short on ideas and time, you're not left out, nbc's has a few appetizers to dazzle your guests. sarah, good morning. >> great to see you. >> i got a sneak peek at the list and i love it, starting out with the cucumber cup. >> i love greek salad. these are so easy you can put a lot of different things in them. it's an english cucumber, you can peel them or leave them just like this. slice about three-quarters to an inch thick. you take a melon baller and scoop it out and fill it with whatever you want. here i've done calamatt olives, greek feta, garlic mashed into a pace, capers, lemons and sha shallots and capers. i topped this with red wine vinegar and olive oil and pepper. >> i love it, looks so festive and small enough your guests can pop in their mouth and keep moving and not haasle with holding something in their hands. >> depends on how big their mouth is. >> i'm hanging out with the wrong crowd. my friends pop it in their mouth and keep going. >> bite sized crab cakes, the great thing is obviously you want to have a hand free so you can have one hand doing things. we've got some lump crabbed meat here. you can mix the lump with the flake, might be less expensive that way, mix it with mayonnaise, dijon mustard and beaten egg. i use a melon ball scooper, do a little bit of lime juice on the outside to moisten it, and then you just crust them in your panko, pan fry them. super easy. >> you sues panko, why not bread crumbs? >> i like the texture and they look better to me. i just did avocado citrus, aoli, like acy trum creme, avocado, lime juice, a little salt. super easy again and a squeeze bottle -- i did that one terrible. >> your guests won't notice. you can freeze these as well in case you have them on standby. >> if you want to do them on new year's, freeze them and crisp them in the oven so heat them back. >> super simple and cute. next up before you tell me the reci recipe, is it en-dive or on-deeve? >> it's endive. >> toe-may-to , toe-mah-toe. >> it's bleu cheese, if you're pregnant maybe use feta. there's a tablespoon and a half, sherry vinegar, olive oil, grapeseed oil, shallots, truffle oil, salt and pepper and you take this and scoop it in, and there you have something nice to spread around. i want to get to your cocktail. >> this is from my friends in new york city because i couldn't test any recipes because of the impending baby here. >> sure. >> so this is vemorvermouth and and boule blanc. if you don't have ice balls you can do it in an ice cube tray or a little mesh or garnish >> very nice. that's a great list. a lot of people popping over your home. >> you want to try anything? >> i want to try a cracker. >> it is a holiday. >> thank you very much andñr congratulations on the baby. >> thank you very much. >> a special holiday performance from the cast of "jersey boys." first this is today on nbc. >> announcer: the toyia ta concert series on "today" brought to you by toyota. >> swapping recipes. >> you said you're taking all of these to your mom's tomorrow? >> i made them all and i thought they don't have any appetizers, i thought i got you covered. >> they take the longest time so this is great. >> it's a simple idea to knock them out. still to come this morning. >> instant ambush makeovers and last-minute holiday gift ideas. >> kathie lee and hoda come face-to-face with a reindeer. first one more holiday song from the cast of "jersey boys." we'll see you back here on monday. have a merry christmas everyone. >> cheers! >> cheers! ♪ sleigh bells ring, are you listening ♪ in the lane snow is glistenin' ♪ a beautiful sight, we're happy tonight walkin' in a winter wonderland ♪ gone away is the bluebird ♪ ♪ here to stay is the new bird ♪ he sings a love song as we go along walkin' in a winter wonderland ♪ in the meadow we can build a snowman ♪ a snowman ♪ ♪ and pretend that he is parson brown ♪ morning, parson ♪ ♪ he'll say are you married, we'll say no man ♪ ♪ no man ♪ but you can do the job while you're in town ♪ ♪ when it snows ain't it thrillin' ♪ ♪ so your nose gets a-chillin' ♪ we'll frolic and play the eskimo way ♪ ♪ walkin' in a winter wonderland ♪ ♪ in the meadow we can build a snowman ♪ ♪ a snowman ♪ and pretend that he's a circus clown ♪ ♪ what a clown ♪ we'll have lots of fun with mr. snowman ♪ ♪ hey, he's melting ♪ until the other kids knock him down ♪ ♪ later on we'll conspire as we dream by the fire ♪ ♪ to face unafraid the plans that we made ♪ ♪ walkin' in a winter wonderland, walkin' in a winter wonderland ♪ ♪ walkin' in a winter wonderland ♪ jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ jingle bell swing and jingle bells ring ♪ ♪ snowin' and blowin' up bushls of fun ♪ ♪ now the jingle rap has begun ♪ oh ♪ jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ jingle bell chime in jingle bell time ♪ ♪ dancin' and prancin' in jingle bell square in the frosty air ♪ ♪ what a bright time, it's the right time to rock the night away ♪ ♪ jingle bell time is a swell time to go ridin' in a one horse sleigh ♪ ♪ giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet ♪ jingle around the clock ♪ ♪ around the clock mix and a mingle in a jingling beat ♪ ♪ that's the jingle bell rock ♪ what a bright time, it's the right time to rock the night away ♪ ♪ jingle bell time is a swell time ♪ ♪ to go riding in a one horse sleigh ♪ giddy-up, jingle horse, pick up your feet ♪ ♪ jingle around the clock ♪ around the clock ♪ mix and a mingle in a jingling beat ♪ that's the jingle bell ♪ ♪ that's the jingle bell ♪ that's the jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ your time is now ♪ it's a good day ♪ i know it's here to stay ♪ today get the technology they love, on the network they deserve. and video chat with up to 9 of your friends with the galaxy nexus by samsung, or get the samsung stratosphere, and for a limited time, get twice the data for the same low price. verizon. it feels like spring outside right now. it's beautiful today. we will check on the forecast in joss minute. 9:57 is the time. >> we have the sun back after the overnight rain. we have a gusty wind out of the north and northwest. today right near 50 and low to mid-50s by noontime and colder this afternoon and tonight and then the winds will diminish and the temperatures near 30 on saturday. and we're dry and a cold start to next week. everybody is hitting the roadways, and they are traveling i-95 south. starting to see delays around route 1. this is the view at the occoquan. i am seeing some delays as you make your trip this morning. as i look closer in the left hand lane, i see a disabled vehicle and cars seem to be passing in the shoulder lane. >> be sure and tune in at 11 [ screaming ] [ zapping ] there goes dwayne's car. oh, man. there goes dwayne's house. whoa! whoa! and there goes dwayne. man, that thing does not like dwayne. [ male announcer ] state farm's got you covered. nice landing. it was. [ male announcer ] get to a better state. captions paid for by nbc-universal television nice landing. it was. hey, everybody. we're so glad you're with us for try day friday, december 23rd. happens to be the day before christmas eve. >> two more days before christmas. >> you are out of time, missy. out of time for all those presents you have to buy. >> this is a great time to figure out what kind of gift-giver you are. "usa today" did this whole deal. they broke it down into categories. are you the procrastinator slacker? those are the people who put off buying gifts until the last minute because they like the pressure and feeling of getting it at the end. >> really? we don't have to. we get all our christmas presents here because jerry tries to nail them down but we steal them. >> there is no glue strong enough for us. >> then there is the planner. these people bother me. they shop for the holidays all year long, they shall remain nameless martha stewart. they have a closet reserved for gifts. they carry special lists all the time. you know who used to do that i remember? i totally understood it because she had a gazillion grandchildren. e ethel kennedy and a anne mara who own the giants. they have 600 children and 8,000 grandchildren. >> i don't like when people say it's thanksgiving and i'm all done. i don't like that feeling. then there is the practical gift giver. these people skip the gift and go right to the gift card or cash because they know the recipient would rather have that or else they are lazy. >> it seems lazy, but in truth -- if you're giving gifts to people -- >> you don't know. >> it goes back to why are you giving gifts to people you don't know. with teenagers, you often misread what they would like. the provider. the provider buys items they think are needed but not desired like turtlenecks and ties and socks. >> here are some socks, merry christmas. >> i want socks this christmas. >> what if you unwrapped and there would be socks. >> i would be thrilled. i want workout clothes, socks and a new treadmill. that is something we all go on the treadmill and ours is from the flintstone era. >> the socializer gives what they want to the person. hey, i love this red dress, here's one for you. >> i did it once for my mother. i was little and got her the pink stuffed poodle i wanted so badly, i gave it to my mother. one time in my life and i still feel guilty about it. the perfect gift-giver gives something they know you would like, not something they want for their selfish selves. they take their selfish self-absorbed selves out of the picture. >> if you get a gift in the next couple of days you don't like, and you will, about.com shared some advice. i happen to disagree with most of this. what do you do when you get a gift that you don't like? do you ask the person for a gift receipt? >> no. >> they say yes. that is the rudest thing in the world. hey, hey, thank you for the gloves. is there a receipt with these? >> i know. >> that's terrible. you say thank you and then you give it to somebody else. yes, you give it away. >> i think it's fine. you be gracious, write a thank you note and you know somebody that's going to love them and you give them away. nothing is wasted. >> if you don't want more stuff but cash would help, how do you say that to someone? >> you say, i don't want more stuff but cash would help. >> they said that is something you should do. >> i agree with that. one thing i have trouble with and i had it all along since my kids were born. that's 21 and 18 years ago. i don't want people giving my children stuff. i've always tried to keep stuff at a minimum with my children. there are certain people you just can't stop. >> i think what gets sticky -- >> and they shall remain nameless, eva. >> how about this, i give someone a present, gloves that cost $20. then they give you a huge mega ipod. that feeling when the gift exchange is so -- >> unjust, inequitable. >> you have to have this, it's like the conversation with kim and kris humphries. should have been done before they got married. love them, want them both to be happy now. certain things you talk about before. like you and i did. we said we love each other, we are each other's gift all year round. you don't need anything, i don't need anything. >> no. we don't want anything. it's nice to say it ahead of time though, okay? >> yeah. you know what i'm saying. bobbie, let's see if we can buy something under $100 for each other or under $50. >> make it a fun challenge. >> right. >> we are talking about delivering the gifts. you know all the reindeer, right? >> dasher, dancer -- >> there is dasher, dancer, prancer and vixen. >> we brought up donner. we brought up the three "ds." dancer, donner and -- what is it? >> dasher. >> they were saying it was donder or donna and blitzen. that's what they said. >> donna and blitzen. >> anyway, i guess sara hit the streets to find out what is it? >> lord knows we need to. >> do you know the reindeer, santa's reindeer that start with "d?" >> donor. >> donder. >> can anyone spell that? >> no. >> that's going to be the hardest. >> that's a donor. >> if i said on comet, on cupid on -- >> donder and blitzen. >> you know it is donder. >> i said donner. >> should be donder. >> why? >> sounds better. >> show that to the camera. >> donner. >> final answer? >> final answer. >> what if i told you it's actually donder? >> no. it's donner. it can never be. it will change history. >> really? >> let's flip it around. i think we've got a winner. ding, ding, ding. >> a lot of people think it's donder. >> because it was originally written in dutch or german. >> german. >> then the dutch stole it. >> then the germans stole it from the dutch. >> who stole it? >> donder and blitzen is thunder and lightning and it drives the team of reindeer. when they sing the song he said donner because he heard it that way. it's donder. >> nobody stole it from anybody. >> what about donna? >> that's just your version. >> i need to thank donna in wardrobe because she decorated my dressing room. you go in and a little thing changes your day? look at my dressing room. she put christmas lights and little balls and stuff and sprayed it with snow. donna and blitzen, thank you. thank you. >> all right, now this is going to make you crazy. a lot of people have a fear of meeting people. they are not like you, hoda. they can't go in and miss bossy pants everybody around and have fun. you have more fun at a party than anybody i know. >> i do have fun. >> a lot of people are very shy. they would rather text, rather e-mail, have a hard time socializing. one in five would rather go on facebook. >> if you feel uncomfortable going into a party, this is according to some group, some you can agree with, some you don't. first thing is go and say hello. just say hello. >> but people are afraid to say hello. >> how about that line, all you need is ten seconds of insane courage. ten seconds of embarrassing bravery and something great may happen. >> you may intellecty know that but can't get yourself to say hello. >> hello. >> then stick to common ground like, wow, that food is good. >> how about them giants. >> did you see that game? >> this one i love. if you have a sense of humor, start with something fun. >> listen to what they want you to say. picture this. here i am stranger walking up to a group of people and they want you to say this. >> if you were a famous actor, who would you be? >> like if someone walked in a group and said that, would you not run the other way quickly? that is the most ridiculous. my phone keeps dinging and dinging. >> is it donna? >> it might be. >> why did you bring your phone? >> we have a little thing. >> it's time for friday funny! >> don't get too excited, everybody. a group of 15-year-old girlfriends discussed where to meet for their christmas celebrations. since they didn't have lots of money -- this is not the one i thought we were doing. they agreed on the dairy queen next to the ocean view restaurant down the street from jerry johnson. at 35 they decided to celebrate at the ocean view restaurant because now they could afford it. cosmos were good, waiter were cute. 55 they decided to go back to ocean view because prices were reasonable, wine list was good, lighting better, restaurant at air conditioning and fish was good for their cholesterol. every five years the ladies continued to meet. when they turned 85, they decided the ocean view would be the perfect place for their christmas celebration because it was wheelchair accessible and they'd never been there before. >> that's good. that's good. you know what it's time for? bobbie's buzz! bobbie thomas. merry christmas, bobbie. love you. >> by the end of the month there will be countless new owners of ipads and phones, et cetera. i thought here are some gifts you might want to get yourself in anticipation. this is such a cool invention. it's a case that is meant to go on an iphone to actually become a keyboard. from sharper image they sell this for $74. a lot of people complain about not having a physical key pad. this is the hottest new invention so you can bang out e-mails and other stuff. >> that's the reason she doesn't want an iphone. >> this is going to transform iphone people. >> it's the blackberry keyboard. >> if you like bling, pick up jewelry for your head phones. dios has a way to bling your case starting at $30. this i'm personally obsessed with. if you have an ipad you usually use it on the couch in bed, this is the bean bad. at b&h video. it keeps it in any passion you need. that's a lounge pad this pillow pad for your ipad is genius. >> that is genius. >> that's what i'm getting you. >> merry christmas to me. bobbie thomas, great gift ideas. we are going to talk about our amazing results for ambush makeovers. >> we are not doing this, i guess. >> we'll do it later. >> probably next year. also, they're back. sami and joni. >> our moms are in the kitchen. trouble is abreuing. brad, where we going? just a second. just, just one second. ♪ what are you looking at? don't look up there. why are you looking up? ♪ get outta the car. get outta the car. ♪ are you ok? the... get in the car. get in the car! [ male announcer ] the epa estimated 42 mpg highway chevy cruze eco. from spending time together, to spending your lives together, chevy runs deep. hellmann's and holiday leftovers become irresistibly creamy turkey casserole. real delicious hellmann's. make it real. make it different. real delicious hellmann's. shop kmart and get after christmas prices now... at the christmas blowout sale! take up to 60% off family sleepwear and robes... this faux fur comforter is just $49.99! plus all fine jewelry is up to 75% off! now that's kmart smart. pillsbury holiday star cookies start with pillsbury cookie dough easy. then add my own favorite frosting and sprinkles. just three ingredients to sweet memories. holiday ideas made easy. [ female announcer ] it's the holiday sale at famous footwear. ♪ ♪ winter wonderland, oh, my [ female announcer ] buy one pair of shoes, get another pair half off. ♪ we'll make today famous, it's true ♪ [ female announcer ] spectacular savings on the brand names you love. famous footwear. make today famous. laces? really? slip-on's the way to go. more people do that, security would be like -- there's no charge for the bag. thanks. i know a quiet little place where we can get some work done. there's a three-prong plug. i have club passes. [ male announcer ] now there's a mileage card that offers special perks on united, like a free checked bag, united club passes, and priority boarding. thanks. ♪ okay. what's your secret? ♪ [ male announcer ] the new united mileageplus explorer card. get it and you're in. we are back with a special holiday edition of special plaza embsh makeover where we pluck two lucky ladies from the crowd. >> here to help us is luis lacari, la, la, la. and "today" and "us weekly" contributor and author jill martin. >> what better time of year to get an ambush than the holidays. >> you say that for groundhog's day. >> every day. let's get real. >> we like your festive look. very nice. >> thank you. i appreciate it. >> kerry schultz is our first lucky lady, 42 years old from bradenton, florida. she will only treat herself to a hair cut when the rest of the family needs one. she was thrilled when we approached her on the pladsa. >> it is so cold, aren't you happy to be inside? >> yes! >> i know you want this. you tell me you're doing this for your high school students. >> they would love to see my hair straightened out. they are asking me to touch my hair and straighten it and i'm like, no, no, no. >> are you ready for a glam, sexy wife. >> i think i am. she is beautiful already, but let's make her more beautiful. >> i love that answer. are you ready to see a new mom? >> yes! >> it's already over. >> these husbands are so smart who go, she is beautiful already, but yes. >> with john with the kids carly and marly. keep your blindfolds on until we tell you to take them off. here is kerry before. let's see the new you. whoa! >> oh, my gosh! >> ready? take off your blindfolds and get ready. >> silence. >> wow! >> whoa! >> whoa is right. >> hi. >> ready to see yourself. >> yeah. >> take a spin. >> wow! i look so different, i can't believe it. >> it's unbelievable. look at camera number 12 for us. tell us about the hair. >> first thing i would like to say, my chemistry teacher never looked like this. that is good chemistry, right. we brightened her hair, kept it natural and soft. she wanted easy maintenance. lives in florida. and brigitte came in and did this great haircut. >> i love the cut. >> she gave her layers, but blew it straight. gave a little control without making it straight. >> are you in shock? >> i am absolutely in shock. i didn't recognize her. she looks awesome. >> we didn't recognize her. >> you didn't recognize your own mother? carly and marley, both of you? >> look at marley. >> where is mo? >> marley is in shock. jill, the outfit looks awesome. >> it is a dress, calvin klein available at macy's. she wanted something for christmas and new year's. we added a little dazzle. >> we have to reintroduce you to your family. >> go join them. >> karen ayers from horse head, new york. her definition of getting dolled up is putting on mascara. she was excited at a chance to get a glam new look. >> you're adorable. i'm no expert, but it is too short on the top and too long on the sides, agreed? >> agreed. i get up every morning and i have to wear a ball cap to work. so i don't care what it looks like. >> but you care, frank, right? >> yeah, i do. >> i came over to you and you were pointing her, her, her. what do you hope she looks like? >> like her but can always use improvements. >> good answer. all right. are you ready for a glam new look? >> i am. >> good-bye, frank. >> i have a frank, too. if he said that, he'd be dead. >> frank, you're road kill. >> let's take another look, last look at karen before and bring out karen right now. >> looking good! >> frank is going to like it. take those blinders off, baby. >> wow! >> karen, swing around to see how great you look. deep breath. >> oh, my god. >> you look awesome. >> that means she likes it, luis. >> she sure does. >> it's adorable. your hat is still going to look great on you. >> your hair is going to look great when you take that kitchen hat off. she is a cook in a restaurant. the restaurant is not too far from where i live. >> horseheads. >> i don't want to say where i come from. i lightened her hair. her hair was too dark, too harsh, too soft. again, brigitte gave us a short haircut, brought two haircuts into one. you look beautiful. >> you look gorgeous. >> that dress is so festive. >> for the holidays, adrianna arpel, we wanted to wow her. we gave you pizzazz with these tights. >> frank's that kind of guy. >> let's bring kerry out. >> you look beautiful. >> thank you, guys. >> merry christmas to everybody. >> coming up next no escape for us this holiday. this was the gulf's best tourism season in years. all because so many people wanted to visit us... in louisiana. they came to see us in florida... nice try, they came to hang out with us in alabama... once folks heard mississippi had the welcome sign out, they couldn't wait to get here. this year was great but next year's gonna be even better. and anyone who knows the gulf knows that winter is primetime fun time. the sun's out and the water's beautiful. you can go deep sea fishing for amberjack, grouper and mackerel. our golf courses are open. our bed and breakfast have special rates. and migrating waterfowl from all over make this a bird watcher's paradise. so if you missed it earlier this year, come on down. if you've already been here come on back... to mississippi... florida... louisiana... alabama. the gulf's america's get-a-way spot no matter where you go. so come on down and help make 2012 an even better year for tourism on the gulf. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. when you pour chunky beef with country vegetables soup over it... you can do dinner. four minutes, around four bucks. campbell's chunky. it's amazing what soup can do. [ cat yodeling ] honey, check your email! [ cellphone chimes ] [ cat yodeling ] kids! [ cat yodeling ] sing, larry, sing! [ cat yodeling ] we should have got a cat. [ male announcer ] get low prices on gifts to stay connected. order your last-minute gifts at walmart-dot-com and get free same-day pickup on select items. save money. live better. walmart. we are back with three, two, one live with sara haines. >> sara is with fans to ask questions. >> nina from rhode island. >> what is the best christmas present you've ever received? >> it's easy for me. there is a barbara streisand song "the best gift i ever got" and it's all about having a brand-new baby at christmas time. that's always the best present you can ever, ever have. or if you have a loved one through a difficult time, the christmases i still had my daddy because he was so ill, those are the best christmases. >> and mine was a purse. anyway, back to you. >> next up we've got gabriella or tree from rhode island. >> it was a great purse. >> what is your favorite christmas movie growing up. >> look at your hat. >> you went with the tree on top. we saw you earlier. i can answer that easily. it is the fabulous iconic movie snchl it's a wonderful life." i love that one. >> when i was a kid i liked the cartoons. i loved "rudolph" and all the "charlie browns." >> the claymation one, i love that. >> sorry, maybe next year. >> but maybe not. >> still ahead, we have a special holiday performance. >> nothing beats home cooking from our moms. [ laughing ] [ cat yodeling ] honey, check your email! [ cellphone chimes ] [ cat yodeling ] kids! [ cat yodeling ] sing, larry, sing! [ cat yodeling ] we should have got a cat. [ male announcer ] get low prices on gifts to stay connected. order your last-minute gifts at walmart-dot-com and get free same-day pickup on select items. save money. live better. walmart. how about the beat of a healthy heart? campbell's healthy request soup is delicious, and earned this heart, for being heart healthy. ♪ feel the beat? it's amazing what soup can do. the droid that wirelessly pulls files, music and movies, all at 4g lte speeds. and introducing the droid xyboard. with an 8 inch hd screen and adaptive surround sound, a home theater for your hands. powered by verizon 4g lte, these droids are too powerful to fall into the wrong hands. buy a droid razr and get $100 off a droid xyboard. we are back with today's holiday kitchen. we love this time of year because our moms come to be with us. my mom joan epstein, and my mom sammy kotb. >> we never know what is going to happen, but we'll remember. >> in the kotb house we have something called christmas granola because nothing says christmas like granola. this is the stirring. what is this exactly you're making? >> granola? >> so what do you do? you take oats. >> you add the oats to the muselin. it's a kind of cereal. then you mix that. >> this is like quaker oats? >> then you add the oil. >> i'll pour it for you. >> just vegetable oil? >> yes, i think so. it doesn't matter. >> i forget the name of the oil. >> canola. granola. >> look on our website, it will be there. >> you add other things. >> you add the cranberry and raisins. >> and the egypt-in secret ingredient pistachios. and flax seed. and what is this? >> cinnamon. >> you mix it all up. and you bake it. >> on a cookie shoot for about an hour. >> look at the holiday bag. then you can give them away. >> that is the perfect hostess gift. >> joanie, i'm always surprised every year with what you make. you say i grew up loving it and i don't remember any of it. what are you making today? >> this is a cream cheese pie. it's wonderful. >> you do say so yourself. i think i do remember this how do we start, joanie? >> we take cream cheese and get it softened. then we add sugar. >> you told me growing up about cheesecake that if it was spreadable, it's not edible. >> well -- i don't know how to come back to that. >> all right. keep going. >> i forget. >> what is that? >> this is egg whites. >> like a merengue. can i help with you that? >> no, i'll get it. >> good. that would be funnier. >> then i stir that. >> say we did that. >> we did that. then some vanilla. then we pour it in the dish. just sprinkled with it's buttered and sprinkle it with the graham cracker crumbs and you fill the dish. this is the pie. >> mom, did you leave out something? >> no. this goes on the top. >> she knows what she is talking about. >> enough of that, barbie. >> i'm really the pro, really. you put it on top. >> this is what really makes it. >> you spread it around. >> what is going on top? i missed the ingredient. >> what is that? >> what is that mixture? what is the topping? >> whipping cream? >> it's on our website. >> is that sour cream? >> no. >> this is sour cream. >> good guess. okay. then you garnish it with what, joanie? >> any kind of thing but raspberries look beautiful. >> you know who happens to love this pie? your little niece hannah. >> do you want some pie? >> she had some earlier and she loves it. >> you want a bite? >> sammy, let me get you a bite of this. this is amazing. >> get in there. >> this is great stuff. >> thank you very much. >> yes, indeed. >> we love you guys. love you. >> nature's little creatures get us in the holiday spirit after these messages. that was delicious. mom, your granola is good, too. e to cover all of manhattan out of landfills each year? the equivalent of 140 million trash bags, gone. by using new glad trash bags, designed with reinforcing bands to be stronger with less plastic waste, we can. ♪ it's a small change that can make a big difference. ♪ has focused on making the best-tasting... sour cream for over four generations. it's made with farm-fresh cream that's 100% natural. no preservatives. and no added hormones. ♪ do-do a dollop of daisy sally, you don't need toys when you have... ♪ imagination ♪ imagination imagination ♪ ♪ helps you see the world in different ways ♪ yay! yay! ♪ this is a pony ♪ and this is a choo-choo ♪ [ male announcer ] it's movie time. and this is a... [ male announcer ] with a wii twist. what is this? [ male announcer ] netflix now delivers unlimited tv episodes and movies instantly through wii and nintendo 3ds. all for only 8 bucks a month. ♪ hellmann's and holiday leftovers become irresistibly creamy turkey casserole. real delicious hellmann's. make it real. make it different. [ female announcer ] kleenex brand tissues are america's softest... no wonder people want to share them on and on. send a kleenex brand share package for free today at kleenex.com and start your own chain of sharing. in return, you'll receive a sample of new kleenex cool touch tissues... the only tissue that actively releases a cool sensation to soothe a sore nose on contact. kleenex. softness worth sharing. to soothe a sore nose on contact. shop kmart and get after christmas prices now... at the christmas blowout sale! this 32-inch sylvania lcd tv is just $269.99... get $20 off all character bikes... and all craftsman tool storage is on sale! now that's kmart smart. we are back with today's call of the wild. julie scardina is here. >> this is maxine, an umbrella cockatoo. she is magnificent. let me show you her beautiful wings. she wants to say hi to everybody. >> hi. hi. >> say hello. >> hello. >> you're very smart, aren't you? >> she is very smart. you're a smart bird, aren't you? >> oh, my gosh. that is crazy. >> we all love the holidays at seaworld and busch gardens because everything is decorated. thers wonderful other shows to do and all that. even the animals have special things they love to do. one of the things maxine loves to do is decorate the tree. >> she does? >> decorate the tree. >> are you kidding me? you are joking. she is not putting candy canes on the tree. >> good birdie. >> be careful. >> what's down there? more presents. >> is she going down? >> there could be something really good in there. >> she would be fun at cocktail parties. >> good birdie, maxine. >> that is unbelievable. amazing. >> okay. >> wow. >> she's been watching a lot of charlie sheen this year. winning! >> what else do we have? >> i'm going to hand maxine off here. >> we'll miss maxine. i usually can't wait to get rid of these animals. >> wait till you see these little guys. they are smallest species of otter in the world. these two were born at seaworld. they are very used to the fact we do it all loud at christmas. they love opening presents because they never know what they are going to find. >> you put peanuts in for them? >> there is fish. there are toys. they just like going one through one. there are presents in there i don't know about. >> look at him opening. he can't get it in. >> he did it. >> what's great about these guys, their paws are very sensitive. they use them like we do human hands. that's how they find fish out in the wild, as well. they eat just about everything. that's why you see peanuts. >> that's hysterical. >> fish and shrimp and other things. if you want to feed them? >> no thank you. >> i'll feed them. >> they are very vocal little guys. buffy, zander. >> they don't want your fish. >> zander. they'll take that. >> they take them with their paws as opposed to their mouths. you can go over to buffy. just call her name. she knows what her name is. >> no, she doesn't. >> buffy. >> very good. >> she caught it in her hand. >> what else we got, julie? >> as we had our beautiful white cockatoo, we have wonderfully colorf colorful conyers. they were supposed to go to the tree. what is up with that every single time? >> what happened? why does that happen? >> you have a great head. >> we have spent time training them on going to the christmas tree. >> that is so funny. >> are they partridges? >> you want to hand them a grape? >> hoda does. >> don't come near me. >> very colorful conyers. >> they are so sweet and beautiful. >> we have something else. >> they can stay up there for the last christmas animal. you can't do christmas without a reindeer. so here comes nick of all reindeers. >> a lot of people don't think reindeer are real. >> they think they can't fly. he is going to be very busy. >> is it donna? >> this is nick. >> so these guys are amazing animals that live up in the north. they've got wonderful adaptations including these cool feet. you see those feet? those are amazing feet that won't slide on the roof tops with ice and snow. they can pull the sleigh. >> this is a great one. >> talented animals. >> i won't guarantee they won't poop on you. >> just two shopping days left. [ older brother ] hey, that's the last crescent. [ 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? [ female announcer ] it's the holiday sale at famous footwear. ♪ ♪ winter wonderland, oh, my [ female announcer ] buy one pair of shoes, get another pair half off. ♪ we'll make today famous, it's true ♪ [ female announcer ] spectacular savings on the brand names you love. famous footwear. make today famous. famous footwear. sears last minute gift sale is on now! get our lowest price ever on this samsung 46-inch 3d tv, just $999.99. all craftsman mechanics tool sets are up to 50% off. plus, earn $100 back in rewards points with all fine jewelry. sears we are counting down to the holidays and we are almost there. two days to go. you are running out of time, my friend. >> we enlisted the help of a shopping expert to share last-minute suggestions for everyone on your list. >> ho, ho, ho, let's go. >> last minute, liquor stores are always open. christmas is a big time for them. going to someone's house, pick up a bottle of scotch. don't just bring the liquor, bring incroutement. these are are ice cube trays or don julio, you can make up a cocktail called the dolly john. you can print out a label with the recipe on it. it's thoughtful, but stim many. >> any more down there? no. i'll have this. >> stores are open late. the guy that has locations open till 10:00 p.m. tonight and tomorrow night. >> smart. pick up your chocolate and get it last minute or you eat it, i eat it. target stores open midnight tonight, tomorrow open till 9:00. you can get anything from lingerie and lounge wear, jewelry. i love their beauty stuff. this is 25 bucks. there is a full set of brushes in there and a donut maker. we all need a donut maker. something for everybody. >> home goods is open really late tonight. they are open till 11:00. tomorrow they are open late. they are getting new merchandise on the 24th. tumblers, all this stuff is reasonable. i like this espresso maker 20 bucks, picture frame, hot chocolate. >> you would think now it would be too late to order online. you say not in some cases. >> i did my research. a lot of places say it will get it to you in time. these have been verified. the nuddle blanket.com. this is what i'm giving everybody. there is a foot pocket inside. there is baby, adult, kids, so you can go one stop shot. >> it's called nuddleblanket.com. it's the softest blanket. has a pocket to put the remote control in. those gifts sold out everywhere else, overnight shipping 20 bucks. >> i didn't know uggs made short ones like this. >> teeny and colorful. isaay.com. you can deliver gifts to someone's inbox. abc mouse.com, 2,000 games for kids ages 2 to 6. print out a gift card, put it in the stocking. it's a one-year membership to the site. you get everything for $79.95. this is cool. this is the culinary institute of america has this pro chef cookbook. it's one of the top five cookbooks. $49.99. you can gift it for the ipad. there are videos and recipes. >> these picture books, that's a clever idea. >> shutterfly.com. $10 on up. give someone the ability, 20 bucks, they can make a photo book so all the photos from the holidays you put in this book. >> look at miss efficient. >> thank you so much. up next -- >> five-time frahmly winner michael feinstein sings sinatra. first, this is "today" on nbc.> the great american songster he received a grammy for his 2008 sinatra project. he just released his sinatra project two. great to see you. >> you two, too. ♪ it's beginning to look a lot like christmas ♪ >> you're going to be performing night and christmas night. >> yes, with barbara cook so jews have something to do. >> you'll be going through new year's? >> new year's eve with kelly o'hara which is exciting for me. >> she is brilliant. that will be fun. it really is one of the most delicious evenings out in new york to go to michael's club, whether he's performing there or other people. what are you going to sing tonight? >> i'm going to do. ♪ i got my love to keep my warm." >> here he is. he's terrific. >> thank you. >> thank you, honey. ♪ ♪ the snow is snowing ♪ the wind is blowing ♪ but i can weather the storm ♪ what do i care ♪ how much it may storm ♪ i've got my love to keep me warm ♪ ♪ i can't remember a worst december ♪ ♪ just watch those icicles form ♪ ♪ what do i care ♪ if if icicles form ♪ i've got my love to keep my warm ♪ ♪ off with my overcoat ♪ off with my glove ♪ i need no overcoat ♪ i'm burning with love ♪ my heart's on fire ♪ the flame grows higher ♪ so i will weather the storm ♪ what do i care ♪ how much it may storm ♪ i've got my love to keep me warm ♪ captions paid for by nbc-universal television -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com ♪ ♪ off with my overcoat ♪ off with my glove ♪ i need no overcoat ♪ i'murning with love ♪ my heart's on fire ♪ the flame grows higher ♪ so i will weather the storm ♪ what do i care ♪ how much it may storm ♪ i've turned off every heater ♪ my sweetie's arms are sweeter ♪ i've got my love to keep me warm ♪ the droid razr by motorola. the newest droid armed with motocast. granting you wireless access to files on your home computer from almost anywhere. 4g lte equipped to pull pictures, music, and movies. all at mind-melting speeds. powered by verizon, this droid is too powerful to fall into the wrong hands.