Hoda Kotb does it all, from appearing on the Today Show to hosting a podcast to writing bestselling books. The morning show anchor is also a mom to two adorable little girls, and she recently shared a “magical” moment she had with her daughter Haley.
Kotb Shares Early Morning Moment With Daughter Haley
“Can I tell you the cutest thing that happened this morning?” Kotb asked co-host Jenna Bush Hager. “I’m getting up, and it’s 3:45. I’ve taken my shower, I’m in the bathroom, and I hear these little feet behind me, and I turn around and there’s Haley.” Kotb adopted Haley in 2017, followed by her second daughter, Hope, in 2019.
Kotb continued, “She’s looking at me, and I looked at her, and I go, ‘Good morning,’ and she goes, ‘Hi, Mama.’ I said, ‘Hi.’ She goes, ‘I’ve never done this before; seen you in the morning.’ We sat on my bed and I go, ‘This is a first, isn’t it?’ She goes, ‘Yeah. Now I can whistle, I know how to make my own eggs’—because those are the two things she learned—and she goes, ‘And now I get to see you.’”
RELATED: Hoda Kotb Reveals Portrait Of Jenna Bush Hager By George W. Bush That Hager Hates
“Her eyes welled up; my eyes welled up,” Kotb said. “It was 3:45, and I looked at her and I said, ‘You just made my morning.’ I gave her a big hug and I go, ‘Let’s go, let’s go back to bed.’ So I took her back to bed.”
Fan Reactions: ‘What An Extraordinary Experience’
The morning show host explained, “Sometimes when your child wakes up, your first instinct is ‘Honey, go to bed, it’s too late,’ and you don’t mean it, but it’s your first [instinct, and] I just paused for one second! This morning when I FaceTimed her—I always FaceTime the girls at, like 7:30—she goes ‘Wasn’t that magical?’”
She and Hager went on to talk about how important it can be to spend little moments with your children, and it seems like their fans agreed. The comment section of the video clip was soon filled with others’ thoughts about Kotb’s story.
“What an extraordinary experience in such a small, quiet moment to remind us parents to pause, breathe, and LISTEN to our kids before jumping to a reaction,” someone wrote.
Another commented, “It is all about the pauses before we react or speak. It meant a lot to [Haley] and she will always remember this [sic] times.” Kotb’s schedule might mean she doesn’t get to have as many mornings with her daughters as she might like, but the mom of two just showed that she makes the most of every moment she gets with Haley and Hope.
