Lynda Hirsch on Soaps

ALL MY CHILDREN: Liza confesses the truth to Tad as she reveals she's faking being pregnant so that she and Jake can pass Amanda's baby off as being hers. Tad is vastly opposed to what Liza and Jake are doing. Remembering the ordeal he went through with Kathy, Tad doesn't believe any parent, even someone as despicable as David, should be duped into thinking they lost a child. Amanda musters up the strength to hand her baby over to Jake but not before saying an emotional and heartfelt goodbye to her newborn little boy. David tracks Jake and Amanda down to the clinic in Barbados. After getting the good news that Ian will soon be released from the hospital, Kendall tells Zach she wants to move back home even though she knows he doesn't want to get back together with her. Kendall tells Ryan of her plans and admits she doesn't know what she wants. Ryan remembers Greenlee when he receives a Christmas gift from her that Jack had found while packing up her things. Ryan gets a mysterious phone call. Adam tells Ryan he's helping Annie because she saved his life and there's no way he's going to walk away from her. When the judge assigns Annie house arrest at Adam's, Adam tells JR and Little A they must move since Annie cannot be around minors. JR proves to be a good friend to Marissa when she tells him she blames herself for the deaths of her adopted parents. Taylor and Brot address the fact that their relationship isn't what it used to be. Brot walks away unnoticed when he sees Taylor sharing a laugh with Tad. Frankie takes a major step when he allows Randi to feed him.

SNEAK PEEK: Frankie makes some progress.

AS THE WORLD TURNS: Parker is very worried about Carly. Craig agrees not to put Rosanna in jail if the money is returned. During a live show about Tango lessons on WOAK, Vienna accidentally exposes herself while Brad uses his hands to cover her up. Henry calls WOAK pretending to be a disturbed audience member. Oblivious to his true identity, Kim invites Henry's alter ego, "Miss Swift," to come on WOAK and present "her" issue with Vienna to the WOAK viewers. Henry goes into the studio in drag and calls for the firing of Vienna on air. Kim wants "Miss Swift" to be a regular; Henry finally gives in to Kim. He shows up at the studio as Geneva Swift to get Vienna off the show. It backfires when Kim enjoys the banter between Vienna and Geneva. Katie realizes Henry is Geneva. Margo asks Riley to leave, for the sake of her family. Damian gives Luke a check for $20,000. Noah refuses the money, but Luke convinces him that he can use what he wants and then they'll pay Damian back with the grant money they'll apply for.

SNEAK PEEK: Carly causes a tragedy.

BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL: Despite the obvious signs, Stephanie tries to assure Taylor that Ridge's feelings are genuine and not chemically induced. To commemorate Owen's departure from Jackie M, Nick celebrates with champagne and a proposal of marriage to Bridget. A conversation with Clarke puts doubts in Jackie's mind about marrying Owen. Now that they are officially engaged, Owen asks Jackie for his job back. Not being able to get through to Jackie, Nick gives her an ultimatum: him or Owen. With sales dwindling at Forrester Creations, Pam concocts a harebrained scheme to try to drum up business and inadvertently recruits Donna to assist her. Failing to get in to meet with the producers at "The Price is Right," Pam finds another way to get into the building by attempting to become a contestant on the show. Pam's life-long dream is dashed when it is Donna that is the one chosen as a contestant on "The Price is Right."

SNEAK PEEK: Nick and Bridget wed.

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Rafe tells Arianna about Grace being Sami's biological daughter. Arianna is sympathetic when she learns the biological dad is a DiMera. But she still wishes Rafe would disentangle himself from Sami, fearing that he's repeating the past. Arianna runs into Brady at the Kiriakis mausoleum. Will reacts to the news that Grace is his biological sister. He asks why Sami lied about the adoption. Sami says she was protecting Grace from EJ. It's an emotional day for everyone. At the church, EJ serves Sami with papers giving him temporary full custody of Johnny. EJ tells Nicole about being Grace's dad. Nicole pretends to be stunned and privately reveals her panic to Stefano. Sami suffers a crushing loss. The Kiriakis family and the DiMera family call a truce. EJ demands it be brokered between him and Philip. Meanwhile, Stephanie has a vision of Owen and retreats to her medication by taking a pill. She goes to see Max. Max tells his ex goodbye and wishes her well. Kate plots her revenge against Daniel and Chloe, first by digging up info on how Daniel's ex-wife, Rebecca, died. Chloe confesses to Father Matt she's cheating on Lucas in her mind, and she's more in love with Daniel than ever. Kinsey tells Mia she ran into an old friend from Salem West, Chad Peterson.

Kinsey notices Mia's reaction to the name. Maggie introduces Melanie to her grandson, Nathan, who's going to be living with them. Nathan has graduated from med school and will be working at Salem University Hospital.

SNEAK PEEK: Stephanie overdoses.

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Remembering that he could easily be the father of the child she's carrying, Sonny tells Claudia he doesn't want her to leave. Claudia and Michael continue to enjoy their easy rapport. Jason comes to Sam's rescue when he finds her being harassed and is completely unaware that the man he rendered unconscious is an undercover cop. Although Michael agrees to go back to Carly's, things remain tense between him and his mother. Michael confesses to Kristina he fears he might act out and end up hurting someone he loves. Diane later informs Patrick that he's going to be named in the malpractice suit along with Matt. Tracy grows suspicious when she finds Ethan and Rebecca with their heads together. Claudia takes steps to have Jason eliminated when he and Johnny attend a business meeting together.

SNEAK PEEK: Edward wants Jason to move home.

GUIDING LIGHT: Phillip persuades the judge to be lenient with James by giving him an offshore account and a promise of more money later. He has already arranged for the fund to give investors their money back. James is brought in for his arraignment, and the judge announces that almost all the charges are no longer valid. He sentences James to serve one year of community service. After everyone leaves the room, Beth overhears Phillip talking with the judge. She tells James what Phillip did for him and says that Phillip loves him. James calls Phillip a hypocrite and tells him he hates him even more. Rafe asks Natalia to tell him what is going on. Natalia realizes he knows about her and Olivia. She explains that they were waiting for the right time to talk to Rafe and admits that she's in love with Olivia. Rafe is convinced that Olivia took advantage of Natalia. Rafe moves in with Frank. Father Ray clarifies that he doesn't support Olivia and Natalia's choices and thinks that they're letting the circumstances dictate their actions. Lizzie and Bill announce their resignation from Spaulding-Lewis. Billy offers Bill a job at H.B. and Sons. Natasha threatens Cyrus and says he'd better find the diamonds. Cyrus asks Christina about her relationship with Remy and learns that Remy proposed to her with a rare diamond. Jeffrey questions Shayne about Edmund's cremation, and Shayne tells him Reva was in charge of Edmund's arrangements. Josh tells Shayne and Dinah that there's a possibility Edmund is alive and framing Reva. Jeffrey tells Josh that the chopper is set, and they decide to meet in two hours. Jeffrey tells Dinah that he has set himself up to look guilty and is going on the run to find Edmund. Josh learns that Reva is no longer a suspect.

SNEAK PEEK: Reva turns on Josh.

ONE LIFE TO LIVE: Marcie and Starr have a heart-to-heart talk, with Marcie telling Starr she sees how much she's matured since Hope's birth and can tell she's ready to be a mother to her own daughter. A spiteful Asher tempts Cole with pills. Although tempted to find a temporary escape, Cole comes to his senses and decides to throw the pills into the water just as a cop approaches him. Cole faces serious trouble when he's arrested for drug possession even though he was in the process of throwing the pills away. A drunken Dorian makes a disaster of the party Langston throws to celebrate Markko's graduation. Markko's conservative parents are horrified when Dorian reveals Markko and Langston slept together on prom night and forbid their son to have any contact with Langston. The judge rules that Todd and Blair will both retain custody of the kids but decides that everyone must live together under one roof. Michael and Marcie decide to move to Seattle to start a fresh life. Bo advises Rex to take things slow with Stacy after noticing their growing closeness. Schuyler later tells Gigi he has proof that Stacy didn't save Shane's life. Gigi realizes she can't expose Stacy's lies until she discovers who Shane's bone marrow donor really is. Layla agrees to go on a date with Fish.

SNEAK PEEK: Rex and Stacy make love.

YOUNG AND RESTLESS: As Mac and Billy are about to make love, Raul starts pounding on the door at Jimmy's. Billy and Mac dress quickly, and Billy exits as Mac lets Raul in. Raul tells Mac that Chloe called and said that Mac needed him. Mac tells Raul that she can't marry him. Raul realizes that her change of heart has to do with Billy but asks her to keep the ring. Mac sees a family moment between Chloe and Billy and decides to let them continue to believe that she and Raul are still engaged. Victor orders Mary Jane to start playing things closer to the vest, starting with Paul. Jack tells Phyllis about his past mistakes with love and how it drove a woman to try to kill him. Devon has a fantasy that he is kissing Tyra instead of Roxy. Nina tells Jill and Kay that Phillip IV has been exhibiting signs of Huntington's Disease and they need to test Phillip III's DNA in order to confirm the disease. Jill agrees to let Phillip's body be exhumed if it is only to check for the Huntington's Disease gene to ease Phillip IV's mind. Nina collapses when the casket that is supposed to contain Phillip's remains are filled with sand bags. The real Aucker arrives at Crimson Lights with a search warrant just as Michael, Daniel and Jana arrive. Aucker finds the briefcase full of money in the back office and arrests Jana and Daniel. Adam is the chief suspect in the terrorizing of Ashley. Victor buys a stem cell research company in hopes of saving Adam's eyesight.

SNEAK PEEK: The baby results are in.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

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