Leaving Today allowed Hoda Kotb to develop a deeper relationship with daughters Haley, 8, and Hope, 6.
During an appearance on Jenna Bush Hager’s “Open Book” podcast on Tuesday, September 23, Kotb recalled one moment where she was able to have a meaningful conversation with her kids — and tell them about her breast cancer battle. (Kotb, 61, battled breast cancer in 2007.)
“I saw Haley reading my book and there’s probably a lot of stuff in there that she doesn’t know,” Kotb said. “She’s like, ‘You had breast cancer?’ I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’”
She added, “The fact is, I think we’re knowing each other as people, humans, not just mom or, you know, authority figure versus child.”
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Kotb also admitted to previously looking at her kids as “problems that need to be solved” rather thank just humans
“To realize that you can sit and have a real conversation with your child and to sit and soak that in,” she continued. “I feel like it did make space in me because it’s like anything, when you’re crowded and you’re carving out small spaces for your kids or for yourself, even tiny little pockets, like they don’t get enough.”
Kotb, who adopted her daughters with ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman, said they “chose her” and she is “choosing them” with this phase of her life.
Kotb’s new book, Jump and Find Joy, was released on Tuesday and offers insight into her cancer and career journeys. Kotb hosted the fourth hour of Today for 17 years before departing from the show this past January.
Her announcement to leave the show came in September 2024 with a lengthy statement explaining that she wanted to focus on her family.
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“As I write this, my heart is all over the map,” Kotb wrote in a letter shared on Today.com at the time. “I know I’m making the right decision, but it’s a painful one. And you all are the reason why. They say two things can be right at the same time, and I’m feeling that so deeply right now. I love you and it’s time for me to leave the show.”
Kotb said she has been “weighing this decision for quite a while” but her 60th birthday was a “massive” and “joyful” confirmation for her.
“I saw it all so clearly: my broadcast career has been beyond meaningful, a new decade of my life lies ahead, and now my daughters and my mom need and deserve a bigger slice of my time pie,” she said. “I will miss you all desperately, but I’m ready and excited.”
