Skip to main contentSkip to footer
Jenna helped set up the date for Hoda© ABC

Jenna Bush Hager makes surprising parenting confession - Hoda Kotb reacts with a cheeky response

The Today show hosts are both mothers to young children

Faye James
Senior Editor
July 2, 2024
Share this:

Jenna Bush Hager has never been one to shy away from candid confessions about her personal life, and Monday's episode of Today with Hoda & Jenna was no exception. 

The 42-year-old delighted viewers with her refreshingly honest take on parenting, sharing how she’s completely unbothered about walking around naked in front of her three children—despite her youngest, four-year-old Hal, making some hilarious comments.

During a lively discussion with her co-host Hoda Kotb about the best order to get ready for a night out, the conversation took a cheeky turn. 

The two ladies agreed that sorting out hair before makeup and then choosing an outfit was the way to go. This led Jenna to recount a recent, amusing anecdote involving her son Hal.

Recommended videoYou may also likeHoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager celebrate fifth anniversary of becoming co-hosts

“Recently, while I'm getting dressed, if I do makeup, hair, outfit, and I'm standing there, Hal likes to come in and say, 'Look at your nickels! I like your nickels!'” 

Jenna shared, eliciting laughter from the audience. “Now, he's talking about something else that...” she continued, as Hoda, 59, interjected, “I can kind of guess what he's talking about!” Jenna confirmed with a chuckle, “Yes, nipples! But he said, 'Look at your big nickels!' and then I feel a little humiliated in my own home!”

Jenna Bush Hager was absent from Today due to illness © NBC
Jenna Bush Hager admitted that she walks around naked in front of her kids

The hilarity didn’t stop there. Hoda then posed a direct question to her co-host: “Do you care about walking around naked with your kids around?” 

Jenna’s response was swift and clear. “No, I don't, but not in a gross way!” she replied, before defending her stance against Hoda's playful jibes. 

Jenna Bush Hager with her husband and three children© Instagram
Jenna Bush Hager with her husband and three children

“But also, I'm not walking around; I'm in the privacy of my own bathroom! And he walks in and makes fun of my ‘nickels,’ pointing and laughing and talking about their size.”

Jenna went on to explain the practical side of her parenting approach. “Then I have to get on a robe, which makes me hotter!” she exclaimed, to which Hoda advised, “Throw a T-shirt on, it's just easier.”

Hoda explains she's going on a third date© ABC
Hoda hilariously responds to Jenna

 Referring back to her routine, Jenna shared how Hal has humorously started to dictate her getting-ready sequence: “But he's started to shame me into: outfit, hair, makeup.”

The discussion then veered into shower habits, with Hoda admitting she likes to brush her teeth in the shower to save time—a confession that left Jenna “horrified.” 

Jenna retorted, “I do believe that the shower is not a place to brush our teeth. I believe that that's why God made a sink—or a human—and you're telling me that you have a toothbrush and a toothpaste by the sink...”

Jenna Bush Hager © NBC
Jenna Bush Hager was shocked by Hoda's confession

Hoda, unperturbed, fired back: “Okay, so you don't brush your teeth in the shower. However, when you step into the warm water of the shower, you know what happens at times... are you going to dry off and go use the restroom or...” 

Jenna responded pragmatically, “Well, usually, if I have planned my mornings correctly, or my evenings, I've already taken care of that!” But Hoda was quick to challenge, “But let’s talk about the time in which... which is many times, ask Henry!” referring to Jenna's husband.

The conversation turned to the practicalities of parenting. “So that happens. So you can't be okay with that, urinating in the shower, but how about your kids? Do you get them out of the shower if they say, ‘I have to go pee real quick,’ or do you say, ‘Just go!’” 

Jenna admitted, “I mean, if I was proper, I would take them out,” before Hoda blurted out, “Of course you would not! You would never do that!”

Sign up to Off Camera for all the gossip and goings-on from the wonderful world of TV and film

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More TV and Film

See more