Hoda Kotb Introduces New Holiday Tradition to Her Kids

This festive season, Hoda Kotb is creating a joyful new custom with her daughters, Haley, 8, and Hope, 6. In her newsletter published on Tuesday, December 2, she shared her plans for a more relaxed and stress-free holiday.

Ive realized that aiming for perfection during the holidays just adds unnecessary stress, Kotb wrote. Cookies will burn, decorations will break, and our Elf on the Shelf will never be flawless.

She revealed her familys new tradition: This year, we are introducing Elf on the Shelf, and my daughters are eager to discover where he appears each morning after visiting Santa. So far, he has simply returned to a shelf, but Haley and Hope imagine grander adventures inspired by their friends elves zip-lining across the kitchen, making snow angels, or attending marshmallow tea parties!

Kotb is keeping her approach simple and lighthearted. Our elf mainly sticks to shelves, maybe a windowsill, she joked. The fun is in the anticipation rather than elaborate setups. While I admire the creativity of other Elf enthusiasts, I prefer to take it one shelf at a time.

She concluded her newsletter with guidance for managing holiday stress. As December progresses, take a quiet moment to breathe and consider what you can let go of this season. Heres a journaling idea: What is one simple way I can reduce holiday pressure to enjoy more joy? Write it down and carry it with you.

Kotb launched this newsletter earlier this year alongside her wellness initiative, Joy 101, a project among several she has pursued since leaving her role on Today, including her new book, Jump and Find Joy.

Her departure from Today in September 2024 was motivated by a desire to spend more time with her daughters. I had my kids later in life and want to dedicate more time to them, she explained, emphasizing the limited time she has with them.

The 2025 holiday season began for Kotb with a reunion alongside Savannah Guthrie and Al Roker as cohosts of the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade on November 27. Her daughters and family cheered her along the route. She shared Instagram snapshots of Haley and Hope enjoying the parade, calling them Uptown girls!

Kotb also posted photos of her family Thanksgiving gathering, which doubled as a birthday celebration for her brother Adel, captioning the slideshow: Happy Thanksgiving xoxoxo.

Author: Logan Reeves