TODAY -- Pictured: Hoda Kotb on Tuesday, October 1, 2019© Getty Images

Hoda Kotb left in tears discussing 'difficult' time with her daughter as co-star comes to her aid

The NBC News anchor is the mom of daughters Haley and Hope

Ahad Sanwari - New York
Senior WriterNew York
February 21, 2024

Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie are exploring what their definitions of faith include in the wake of the release of Savannah's new book, Mostly What God Does.

Savannah, 52, was the latest guest on her Today Show co-host Hoda's podcast, Making Space with Hoda Kotb, where they discuss how the book led them to revelations about parenting in particular.

Hoda, 59, is a mom to young daughters Haley Joy, seven, and Hope Catherine, four, and as an older mom, she's experienced difficult challenges with her daughter, ranging from her split with their father and her ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman to Hope's health challenges last year.

On the February 21st episode of the podcast, Hoda told her co-host, herself a mom-of-two: "You know, what's funny, I read the book when you first sent me chapter by chapter and I reread it last night when I was going through a difficult time with my daughter.

"And I was worried… am I, um, enough? Am I doing it right?" As she proceeded, she began to choke up and the tears audibly flowed, sniffling her way through her conversation.

She spoke about finding a passage in the book that related to the love one has for a child, and explained: "I'd already read that, by the way, a few months ago. And it didn't hit me. But it hit me last night like it was meant for me in that moment."

Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie recording an episode of "Making Space with Hoda Kotb"© NBC
Hoda and Savannah recording their episode of "Making Space with Hoda Kotb"

Savannah, in response, called having children a "revelation on every single level, physically, emotionally, intellectually" and described the feeling of losing her invulnerability through being hardened over life once she welcomed her children.

MORE: Hoda Kotb reveals she's going on a date, seconds after spilling secret during chat with famous Today guest

Savannah and her husband, Michael Feldman, are the proud parents of daughter Vale, nine, and son Charley, seven.

The hosts sat down to discuss Savannah's new book, which was released on February 20

During a 2018 episode of the Thrive Global Podcast, Hoda explained that while she had endured ups and downs in her faith, it was restored following the adoption of her first child, Haley.

MORE: Hoda Kotb drops huge hint former Today star has split from long-time partner

"We were just brought up to believe in God," she explained. "We were all about that, and I feel like when you have a relationship with God, and I feel like I've had endless, countless, abundant conversations about it…sometimes you think, can he hear me? Does he hear me? Am I just talking to myself? Is it for real?"

© Instagram
Hoda is a mom to daughters Haley and Hope

She continued: "But, I think when Haley arrived, [while] I didn't have any doubt in that belief…it was personified. Literally when I watch her now, I just feel like she's proof of everything. Like, everything. She's the best." 

MORE: Today Show stars including Hoda Kotb captured in emotional backstage moment after show ends

The friendship between the two NBC anchors, who have led the morning news show together since 2017, was made all the more evident by Savannah's mention of Hoda in the acknowledgements section of her book.

© Instagram
She co-parents her children with ex Joel Schiffman

She penned: "And if you ever find yourself attempting something hard and scary, I hope you have someone as irresistibly enthusiastic as Hoda Kotb – and her two giant pom poms – cheering you to the finish line." 

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