Hoda Kotb admits that she hides in her minivan to avoid home responsibilities.
Kotb smiled sheepishly as she chatted with her Today cohost Jenna Bush Hager on the NBC morning show’s Wednesday, November 20 edition.
“Have I told you I love my minivan? I love it so much,” Kotb, 60, gushed.
“Have you [gone] in there just to hide from your children yet?” Bush Hager, 42, asked.
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Kotb nodded her head and said that the day before, “I cased out my own house. I sat outside and I didn’t go in. … But I was in the car. So I was casing and waiting.”
Kotb, who shares daughters Haley, 7, and daughter Hope, 5, with ex Joel Schiffman, said that she finds it difficult “to get things done” when she goes home, because “the minute I go in, I can’t do anything. I was doing my thing [in the car], and then I went in later.”
Bush Hager and husband Henry Hager share daughters Mila, 11, and Poppy, 9, as well as son Hal, 5.
“You’ll find yourself sitting in cars, listening to music, having just some alone time,” said Bush Hager, supporting Kotb’s minivan solitude. “And wait, you’re like, ‘OK, maybe just one more song.’”
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“Sometimes you need that time,” Kotb noted. “You reset. And then you’re ready.”
Today fans have watched Kotb and Bush Hager swap candid parenting stories and advice ever since the latter replaced Kathie Lee Gifford on the show’s fourth hour. Kotb, who’s been with Today since 2007, announced in September that she would be departing in early 2025 after nearly three decades with NBC overall.
“I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at 60, and to try something new. This is the right time for me to move on,” Kotb explained at the time, citing her children as a major influence on her decision to leave and transition into another, currently unspecified role at NBC.
“My first reaction was from my gut and it was almost crazy. … I said, ‘No, you can’t leave,’” Bush Hager said on Today following the announcement. “You’re who I come to when I’m feeling joyful, when I’m feeling unsure. You are who I come to and you believed in me first. We have a lot of bosses and I love them, but this lady, on October 28, 2013 — I looked it up — said, ‘Hey, wanna come sit next to me? There’s room.’”
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Kotb’s replacement for Today With Hoda & Jenna has not been selected, and the show will continue as Today With Jenna & Friends with a rotating lineup of guest hosts until a permanent choice is made.
Kotb recently admitted to E News! that she doesn’t have a voice in who replaces her. All she could do was give Bush Hager some encouragement to advocate for what “feels right.”
“I said, ‘Jenna, feel who you want. Feel what feels right for you,’” she explained. “She’ll know, because the only way it’s going to work is if they got a vibe or not. Just the fun party vibe. It can’t be forced.”
