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Hoda Kotb's actions shock her daughters as she opens up about home life live on Today

The NBC daytime show anchor is mom to daughters Haley and Hope


Hoda Kotb on Today show
Hanna Fillingham
US Managing Editor
On 18 September 2023
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Hoda Kotb loves nothing more than being a mom and often shares sweet stories about her young daughters, Haley, six, and Hope, four. 

The Today Show star admitted on Monday's episode of Today with Hoda and Jenna that she ended up surprising her children with her very laid-back behaviour over the weekend, something they were more than thrilled about! 

Chatting to Jenna Bush Hager about the joys of laughter, she reminisced about the pair of them getting into fits of giggles on Friday, and how it had caught on and helped boost her mood all weekend. 

VIDEO: Everything you need to know about Hoda Kotb's family life

"You know what I love about you, that friend that you have that you just look at and can't stop laughing? I've just realised it's one of my favorite emotions to have. A really, truly belly laugh like we had on Friday," she began. 

Hoda continued: "You know what's funny? It caught on to the weekend. I was laughing with my kids through parts of the weekend and I couldn't stop. "The kids laughed so hard they spat out their water at dinner and rather than being like 'let's clean that up!' I was laughing. 

TODAY -- Hoda Kotb on Tuesday, April 20, 2021© Getty Images
Hoda Kotb is a doting mom to two young daughters

And the kids looked at me like 'Omg!'" Hoda shares her two children with ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman, and the pair have remained on good terms as they co-parent their daughters. 

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In fact, Hoda even paid tribute to Joel back in June when she marked Father's Day. The 58-year-old took to Instagram to share a lovely photo of Joel with their daughters, taken in the living room of his home. 

Hoda Kotb's ex Joel Schiffman with their daughters
Hoda Kotb's ex Joel Schiffman with their daughters

He had been treated to a feast of sausage rolls and a handmade card, which read 'I love you so much'. Fans were quick to react to the sweet post, which had been captioned: "Happy father's day to a great dad!!" 

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One comment read: "This is everything," while another fan wrote: "What a sweetheart, so happy to see this and that he still has an active role in their lives." A third wrote: "He loves his girls!" 

Photo shared by Hoda Kotb on Instagram August 7 of a pre-birthday dinner with her family, including her daughters Haley and Hope plus her mom Sameha "Sami" Kotb, which she revealed co-star Jenna Bush Hager had taken care of.© Instagram
Hoda Kotb loves spending time with her family

Hoda sat down with HELLO! for an exclusive interview last year and opened up about their relationship. At the time she discussed their plans for the holidays and said: "We have a really nice situation set up," as she talked about her partnership post-split. 

"We will spend some time together and then Joel will spend some time just with the girls." The former couple have done everything they can to ensure their girls' happiness isn't disrupted by the break up. 

mhoda kotb with kids and former today star koanne lamarca Mathise© Instagram
Hoda Kotb often shares updates on her young family

Speaking to People magazine, Hoda said last year: "“He’ll have a Saturday, and I’ll do the Sunday. We switch each week. He’ll take the girls and do some fun things, and I’ll take some quiet time. 

"It’s a healthy mix, and the kids love it." Hoda said they have two nannies and are always "very open about fixing things" so that everybody is content.

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