Jenna Bush Hager reveals 'painful' part of becoming a mother before twin sister
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On "Making Space with Hoda Kotb," Hoda's fourth hour co-host, Jenna Bush Hager, opened up about the reality of having children before her twin sister, Barbara Pierce Bush.
Jenna, 42, said she and Barbara were always in sync, because there was never an age difference.
"We had a really shared history because we were the same age," Jenna recalled of growing up in the White House with her sister. "So it's interesting how adulthood happens and how I just met Henry and that she didn't meet somebody, you know, she had a lot of boyfriends. And people always asked about it."
Jenna, mom to Mila, Poppy, and Hal, revealed that having children before her sister created a "painful" situation when the pair were together.
"I mean, it was kind of disheartening to travel with her and people would say like, 'Why aren't you married?' I mean, painful is the right word," she said. "One of the things that people assume too is, like, why hadn't she had kids?"
Jenna revealed that it was actually the twins' grandmother who encouraged Barbara to make a proactive step toward motherhood.
"Barbara actually had decided...before my grandmother died, she had a conversation with my grandmother where she had decided to have kids on her own, and she talked to my grandmother about it," Jenna said. "My grandmother said, 'I think that's a really good idea.' So Barbara froze her eggs and was planning, if she didn't meet somebody, to go ahead and do it, and then hopefully meet somebody else."
On Sept. 27, 2021, Barbara welcomed her first baby, Cora Georgia, with husband Craig Coyne.
"Dearest Cora Georgia," Jenna wrote in a sweet Instagram tribute welcoming the newborn. "Today is the day I got to meet my most beautiful, precious, feisty, niece (a bit earlier than we expected!) I witnessed in awe as my dearest, toughest @barbara.p.bush became a mama. And today is the day I fell in love! Some cousins are anxiously waiting to play with you, but not just yet love. Xx auntie j"
Jenna told Hoda her sister will be moving closer soon, which is something that excites her.
"It is interesting how our lives followed this very similar narrative as little kids and then ... I just started a family earlier," she said. "It'll be really fun to watch her become a mom and she's FaceTiming me with the baby, feeding the baby a bottle and all of those, like, wondering what we should do for Halloween — like, all of these things that were our narratives are coming back together, and I just can't wait to watch her become a mom."
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This article was originally published on TODAY.com
