The Today star celebrated her 59th birthday on August 9
Hoda Kotb has been enjoying the last few days away from the studios in honor of her 59th birthday on August 9 – but she has been keeping her followers updated on her celebrations.
The NBC host is spending time with her friends and family, including her daughters Hayley, six, and Hope, three, by the beach, but she was treated to "one last surprise" when her former co-worker stopped by for a visit.
Hoda took to Instagram to share a sweet photo of herself beaming with joy alongside her two daughters and her close friend, former executive producer, Joanne LaMarca Mathise. Captioning the image, which saw Joanne cuddling up to Hoda's daughter, the TV star penned: "One last surprise!! @jolamathisen! Yay!!!"
Hoda appears to have been truly spoiled during her week-long celebrations and earlier on Wednesday she shared a gorgeous beach photo of herself and her lookalike siblings alongside their mom.
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Hoda appeared to be wearing a swimsuit as she posed makeup-free next to her sister and brother, with all three of them beaming the same infectious smile as their mom to the camera.
It looks like it's been a fun-filled week for the birthday girl, who has loved every minute of being surrounded by her loved ones. On Tuesday, she shared a glowing photo of herself and her "crew", which she captioned: "7 attempts – 10 second timer – got one! Happy to be surrounded with my crew on my bday eve! Hope you get some time with the ones you love this summer. #slowdownsummer."
It has been quite the special month for Hoda so far, as not only is she celebrating her birthday, but she also recently made the highly-anticipated announcement that she has a new children's book coming out.
Hoda announced at the top of the month that her new book is titled and is inspired by none other than her youngest daughter Hope. She shared the news while talking with a group of young readers in the Bronx, spray painting a wall with the title of the book.
It's a follow-up to her 2018 children's book, which was inspired by Haley's birth, and she said: "It reminds me that hope is in every corner, no matter what hardship you endure."
The book comes months after Hope was hospitalized for several days in February and March 2023. Hoda took a leave of absence from her seat on but when she returned, she told viewers: "My youngest, Hope, was in the ICU for a few days and in the hospital for a little more than a week.
"I'm so grateful she's home. She is back home. I was waiting for that day to come, and we are watching her closely. I'm just so happy." She added: "I'm grateful to my family, and I'm grateful to friends like you who were there every single day."
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