Hoda Kotb Opens Up About Saying ‘Goodbye’ to Her NYC Apartment Amid Move to the Suburbs
Hoda Kotb built quite a spectacular life for herself and her two daughters while living in the heart of New York City, but she decided it was time for a big change. The Today host reflected on saying “goodbye” to her longtime Manhattan apartment and hello to a new home in the suburbs.
Hoda, 60, opened up about packing up her belongings with kids Haley and Hope and gearing up for their fresh start during a Wednesday, August 14, episode of Today With Hoda & Jenna.
"You gotta clear out. You can’t have something new if you have old stuff,” she told cohost Jenna Bush Hager. “It works that way with everything in life. Clear it out. Say goodbye. Your kids only need this box of all their keepsakes.”
Hoda also revealed that she did not plan on taking any time off of work to move, leaving Jenna rather shocked by the decision. “It's all going to work out,” Hoda assured her.
"As you said, some things take planning," the former first daughter chimed in, to which Hoda replied, "They do. It’s too late. Too late.”
Jenna even offered to help Hoda unpack her stuff in the new place, which she will officially be moving into next week. What are friends for?
“I feel like I’m in this repotting phase of my life,” Hoda said of her move during an episode of her “Making Space” podcast. “I just feel it. I feel like my roots need a bigger pot, in all kinds of things. I’m physically moving with my kids, which was a big deal for us, because it’s easy not to move because friends and this and that."
Hoda, who shares her daughters with ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman, also dished on what made her fall in love with her new home.
"When I found this spot that I liked, a little town that had all the things that could teach my kids independence, I told my kids, ‘We’re repotting.’ They’re like, ‘What? We’re moving?’ I go, ‘Yeah, but we’re repotting,’” she explained.
Haley, 7, and Hope, 4, were curious to know more about what their mother meant by “repotting.”
"I go, ‘Well, it’s when you pull yourself up by the roots. And you’re a little scared, right?’ They’re like, ‘Yeah.’ I go, ‘But then we’ll go back into really great soil. We’re going to grow bigger and stronger. That’s going to be the place,’” Hoda shared.
Going from city life to the suburbs is going to be quite a dramatic change for the family, but Hoda wants her kids to enjoy new experiences.
"I want my kids to feel grass on their feet, and play in the yard, and ride bikes down the street, and run up and down the stairs," she told People on Monday, August 12. "I just see that life for them in this perfect house in this beautiful little town where I know they'll be able to blossom into beautiful, independent, strong women."
