Hoda Kotb Says She's Completed Paperwork to Adopt Third Child: Now 'It's in God's Hands'
Hoda Kotb is looking to expand her family once again!
On Friday, the Today co-host, 56, appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show, confirming to the Santa Clarita Diet actress, 45, that she has indeed completed paperwork to kickstart the adoption process for a third child.
Kotb is already mom to daughters Hope Catherine, 17 months, and Haley Joy, 3½, both of whom she welcomed via adoption with fiancé Joel Schiffman.
"May I ask what inspired that decision?" inquired Barrymore.
"You know what," replied Kotb, "I was sitting with Joel — who by the way has a grown daughter who just graduated law school so know where we are here — I said to him, 'We have a lot of love in this house do we have space for more love? Yes, we do. Would our family be enhanced? Yes, it would. Are there children who need us to? Yes, there are.' "
"Every answer was yes," she continued. "Look, it's not in our hands now. We filled out the paperwork and say it's in God's hands, like, come what may. I just know your heart's ability to expand blows my mind, you can fit so much love in there."
Barrymore, who is mom to two daughters, Frankie, 6, and Olive, 8, agreed with the sentiment that there's always room for more love in a family.
"It's true," she said. "When I had Olive and then found out I was going to have Frankie, I was like, 'How does this work?' Your heart does get bigger. I know you have touched countless women with your story."
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Earlier this month, the This Just Speaks to Me author opened up to PEOPLE about adopting again, sharing that her mindset is that "you just wait and see if it's meant to be for you."
"That's where we are on that," Kotb said. "I feel like families come in so many different shapes and sizes and as long as there's lots of love, I think they'll endure. I'm just going to wait and see on that one."
Her older daughter Haley is in preschool now, and when Kotb drops her off and picks her up from the socially distanced classroom sessions, she can't help but rave about parenthood with the other moms.
"One of my favorite things is standing six feet apart from the moms at the place, waiting for her to come out. And literally, she sprints out the door … and I scoop her up. It's the best," she said. "When they go in," she adds of drop-offs, "I'm watching her face. When I see her pointing to her friend saying, 'That's my mom out there,' it makes me want to weep."
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Kotb also opened up to PEOPLE about concerns in being an older mother and worrying that she won't always be there to support them — but she said her girls already show signs of a strong bond with each other.
"I was watching them yesterday and they were in the living room playing and they're holding hands. I just looked at them," she said. "Because one of my, obviously, concerns is as an older mom, you want them to be loved forever, for their whole life. It can be scary to think of that."
"When I saw them standing there holding hands together and they were literally in our apartment, walking back and forth, holding hands," continued Kotb, "I looked at Joel and I said: 'I think we did it. … I think they're lifelong, forever. I think they're going to help each other forever.' "
"It was so moving to me in that moment for some reason to look at them, oblivious to us, just there together, holding hands," she added. "I was thinking in that moment, I hope you guys have your hands in each other's hands for the rest of your life."
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