When the “Today” show’s Hoda Kotb’s daughter Hope landed in a hospital ICU last year, the NBC host was scared. Kotb has since relocated her family from New York City to the suburbs where her child’s health has been improving.
“We’re seeing great differences,” Kotb told People in an interview published on Oct. 10.
The single mother of Hope, 5, and her sister Haley, 7, previously lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan before moving to Bronxville, New York.
“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 said.
Kotb has not disclosed her daughter’s medical condition.
O’Dea, who wrote the book “Slow Living: Cultivating a Life of Purpose in a Hustle-Driven World,” believes that slowing down intentionally has positive health benefits both physically and mentally.
“Nature has a profound impact on children’s development,” she said. “It promotes a deep sense of calm and connection that is often hard to replicate in an urban environment.”
Kotb further disclosed that “things have stabilized“ in the last six months and that Hope is ”thriving“ and ”improving” in the Westchester suburb.
“We really have excellent care,” Kotb remarked. “I have people helping us out. I feel like [Hope] is finding steady footing.”
Realtor.com reported that Kotb paid $2.8 million for the four-bedroom, five-bathroom colonial home and that it has a backyard.
“Being in an environment where there’s less distraction helps allow parents to feel more in control and confident about addressing medical or developmental challenges as they come up in real time instead of waiting for things to ease up,” O’Dea said. “Often things don’t ever really ease up unless we decide to actively make this shift ourselves.”
Bronxville, a one-square mile village, is a 30 to 40-minute train ride to midtown Manhattan. It ranked number 8 on America’s 100 Richest Places determined by Bloomberg.
Kotb said her children had been looking forward to having more space in their suburban home.
“They’re excited about a reading chair,” Kotb said of her two daughters. “They’re excited about having a bean bag and their bed.”
The suburbs allow children to be away from the overstimulation that is common in large cities like New York, according to O’Dea.
“In the suburbs, kids can experience a more relaxed, quiet setting, which reduces sensory overload caused by constant city noise, bright lights, and heavy traffic,” she added.
In addition to leaving the city, Kotb announced she is leaving the “Today” show in January 2025 in order to spend more time with her children.
The 60-year-old worked at NBC News for 26 years and became co-host of the Today show in 2007.
“Obviously I had my kiddos late in life, and I was thinking that they deserve a bigger piece of my time pie,” Kotb told Today.com on Sept. 26. “I feel like we only have a finite amount of time.”
Kotb did not respond to requests for comment.
