Kotb said she’s been having deeper conversations with her daughters Haley and Hope since she left the ‘Today’ show in January.

NEED TO KNOW

• Hoda Kotb appeared on the Sept. 23 episode of Jenna Bush Hager’s podcast, Open Book

• Kotb revealed that her 8-year-old daughter, Haley, discovered she had breast cancer after reading her book; she also shared that she’s trying to have more meaningful discussions with her kids in recent months

• Kotb stepped away from her role on the Today show in January to spend more time with her family

Hoda Kotb is having deeper conversations with her daughters since her exit from the Today show in January.

The 61-year-old, who is mom to daughters Haley Joy, 8, and Hope Catherine, 6, shared how her relationship with her children has changed since her exit from the NBC morning show and how Haley found out about a big chapter of her life — partially by accident.

“I saw Haley reading my book, and there’s probably a lot of stuff in there that she doesn’t know,” Kotb shared on the Tuesday, Sept. 23 episode of Jenna Bush Hager’s Open Book podcast. “She’s like, ‘You had breast cancer?!’ I’m like, ‘Oh my God! Oh geez!’ ”

Kotb was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007. She underwent a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery in March 2007. Kotb has remained cancer-free in the years since.

And while her initial reaction to Haley’s discovery was shock, Kotb said she’s glad she’s having more meaningful conversations with her kids in recent months.

“The fact is, I think we’re knowing each other as people, humans,” she explained. “Not just mom or, you know, or kid.”

Noting that she was looking for a more “profound connection” with her children, Kotb noted, “To realize that you can sit and have a real conversation with your child and to sit and soak that in. And I feel like it did make space in me. Because it’s like anything when you’re crowded and you’re carving out small spaces for your kids or for yourself, even tiny little pockets.”

Kotb, who adopted both of her daughters, said she felt an obligation to make sure she didn’t just “choose” them and continue on in her life as normal.

“I feel like my kids chose me and I chose them. For sure,” she shared. “In choosing them, like, parent them. Be with them. Don’t choose them and say, ‘Yay, I did that.’ And then off I’m going. You know?“

Kotb shared that she still has to focus on prioritizing getting to know her kids even better.

“I keep reminding myself, take it small,” she added. “Get all the conversations. Know your kids.”

Back in May, Kotb opened up to PEOPLE about her decision to step away from the morning show.

Savannah Guthrie Said These 3 Shocking Words When She Learned Hoda Kotb Was Leaving “Today”

Kotb announced her decision to leave ‘Today’ in September 2024 before stepping away from the NBC morning show in January

NEED TO KNOW

• Hoda Kotb returned to the Today show on Tuesday, Sept. 23

• The former Today co-anchor recalled the time she told Savannah Guthrie that she planned to exit the show

• Sharing Guthrie’s shocking three-word response, Kotb noted that she’ll “never forget it for as long as I live”

Hoda Kotb’s exit from the Today show caught many people off guard, including her co-hosts.

But now the former morning show personality is sharing one key reaction she received from her news desk co-anchor, Savannah Guthrie.

Kotb, 61, returned to the Today show on Tuesday, Sept. 23, where she discussed the moment she shared her decision with Guthrie, 53.

“I remember I dialed your number. My heart was pounding, like pounding,” Kotb told Guthrie. “And you said, ‘I’m at a wedding, hey girl!’ being your awesome self. And I said to you, ‘I have to tell you something.’ And you go, ‘Wait, what?’ And you stop for a second and I told you.”

Guthrie’s response to Kotb has stuck with her in the months since her departure.

“What you said to me, I’ll never forget for as long as I live, you said, ‘I’ll mourn for us later, but today, I’ll say to you’ — I’ll say exactly what you said — ‘you got balls,’ ” Kotb recalled, laughing. “That’s what you said to me.”

“Oh, it’s poetry,” Guthrie replied, cracking up.

“No, but you gave me this feeling inside. You said, ‘Today’s for you. I’m not gonna say one thing about me today,’ ” Kotb recalled. “And I took that, by the way, that advice, that’s very helpful in life when someone’s telling you something. And I remember that moment like it was yesterday. And you made me feel so good.”

Guthrie said that no matter how she personally felt about Kotb’s exit, she was rooting for her former co-anchor.

“I remember it too. We believe in you, Hoda,” she said. “I knew anything you do, it would turn to gold, and it has.”

Kotb stepped away from the Today show in January after 17 years in order to spend more time with her daughters Haley, 8, and Hope, 6, and to focus on her new wellness business venture, Joy 101.

Back in May, Kotb opened up to PEOPLE about her decision to step away from the morning show.