Wednesday on Today 9/19

Here is what's new and noteworthy on the 9:00 hour of Today. Straight Talk: Kids' Tough Questions. An iVillage contributor--sorry, didn't catch her name--was a guest discussing how to handle your kids' curiosity. Her advice was to encourage questions and answer them honestly. Talk to them about upcoming difficulties that you know will have them asking questions such as an impending divorce or the like. For kids under eight, keep it simple and be patient--let them spit it out before you jump in and try to finish their questions for them. For kids over eight, play it straight. They want to be treated like adults and want to be included in the conversation. She also suggested to prep your babysitter so that he/she knows how to handle questions. Share your personal values with your caregiver and have them defer questions. Have them monitor your kids and let you know. Isn't that their job, anyway?

Life Lessons: A crossing Guard's Story. Her message: stay in school. This lady was a dropout in the sixth grade and had a 4th grade reading level. She enrolled in classes, got her GED and now reads at a 10th grade level. Then she got her first real job as a crossing guard. Unfortunately, her husband died of cancer only two days into her new job, but she says he stayed around just long enough to see her succeed. Her goal is to get a degree and become a social worker. She says you can go back. It's never too late and at 50, she's proving that. She's a good person to spend time around kids to give them positive messages and encouragement.

Dave Barry stopped by for a visit to joke about and discuss his new book, "History Of The Millennium So Far." He gave a few funny examples that can be found in the book such as when the Boston Red Sox won the world series in 2004 and it was written in the Bible as a sign of the apocalypse. That may sound like a joke, but as a Red Sox fan, I really thought the world could end now that they had won after thinking it could never possibly happen. I mean, it had been since 1918. But there is plenty of fun stuff in the book I'm sure. Dave is so funny. I miss his weekly syndicated columns. Look for his new book in my Amazon search box here on this page.

Another new book is "Down To Earth, A Guide To Global Warming" by Laurie David and Cambria Gordon. It's geared toward kids and what they can do to help stop global warming before it's too late. Laurie David was a producer on Al Gore's academy award winning documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth." We must teach kids about reading, writing and saving energy and the three R's: Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. The book is an entertaining way to get kids involved and become part of the movement. The future is in their hands and they're going to be the ones to solve the problems of climate change. Everyone should get this book and give it to a kid they know. Do your part to save the earth.

And that's a wrap.