Hoda Kotb is following up her time at the 2024 Paris Olympics with a milestone celebration.
The Today host kicked off her 60th birthday on Friday, August 9, with an at-home celebration with family. “Great bday morning!! Lucky me xoxoxo,” Kotb captioned an Instagram carousel, the first slide of which showed her opening presents with her daughters, Haley, 7, and Hope, 5.
Kotb got into the birthday spirit with decorative balloons. She and her daughters were joined by Kotb’s mother, Sameha, her brother, Adel, and one of her nieces. The family posed for a group photo in the Instagram upload’s last slide.
Kotb received some more birthday love from her Today cohost Al Roker via Instagram on Friday. “How can you not smile when you’re with @hodakotb Happy birthday to someone who has shared laughs, tears and so much more. Love you,” he captioned a video montage featuring pictures of them over the years.
Today’s Instagram page also commemorated Kotb’s big day captioning photos of her on the show, “Happy 60th birthday to our favorite hack enthusiast and America’s cheerleader, @hodakotb! We love you so much and can’t wait to celebrate you 🩷.”
One month before her 60th birthday, Kotb told Today.com that her “50s were my best,” adding, “And I imagine because my 50s were my best, that my 60s will be even better than that.”
She continued: “In my 50s, I got my children, I got the job I dreamt of, I found out who I was myself. Finally, I feel like I’m 100 percent me.” (Kotb adopted her daughters with ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman in 2017 and 2019 and took over for Matt Lauer as Savannah Guthrie’s co-anchor in 2018.)
The NBC morning show will continue Kotb’s birthday festivities with a “Hoda’s 60th Birthday Bash” party at 30 Rockefeller Plaza on the Monday, August 12, episode of Today With Hoda & Jenna.
Kotb, Roker, 69, and Guthrie, 52, returned to New York City on the Wednesday, August 7, episode of Today after spending nearly two weeks covering the Paris Olympics. Their colleague, Craig Melvin, remains in France for the last few days of competition.
Kotb gave fans a glimpse at her sweet reunion with her daughters via Instagram on Thursday, August 8. “Mommy!” Haley exclaimed as she and Hope ran toward the door to hug their mom. The post also featured pics of Kotb giving both of her girls individual hugs before cuddling together on a couch.
Though her kids were unable to join her abroad, the Today crew surprised Kotb and her cohosts with video messages from their little ones. “Hi Mommy, we love you and miss you. Go Team USA!,” Haley and Hope stated in a clip aired on the August 2 episode of the series. A teary-eyed Kotb commented, “That was so sweet.”
