Hoda Kotb knows how to keep a secret, but she couldn't help slipping a hint. The "Today" host surprised her co-anchors with news of her new baby on Tuesday, leaving them shocked and emotional — especially Willie Geist, who could barely pick his jaw up off the floor. But while the announcement was kept well under wraps, Kotb actually teased the secret on Monday with a cryptic Instagram. She posted a photo that read "Choose Hope," an inspirational phrase with a double meaning: Kotb's daughter is named Hope Catherine. One day later, Kotb shared the significance behind the sweet name during Tuesday's episode. "The name came because I think there are a lot of women out there who are hoping their day is coming too, you know?" she said. As for the baby's middle name, "Catherine is my best friend's daughter's name. It just so happens this weekend when [Hope] was born, it was also John's birthday, my best friend's husband who passed, and they said that they promised him that they would come to New York and go to Yankee Stadium to a baseball game for him on his birthday in heaven," she said. "And so it was a very emotional time for all of us and I said to Catherine, 'You're the strongest kid I know.' So I wanted to name her after Catherine." PHOTOS: Hoda Kotb with her daughter Haley<doc-sep>Hoda Kotb is now a mom to two little girls! The "Today" host revealed Tuesday that she's adopted her second child, breaking the news to both the public and her co-anchors live on air. Ahead of the announcement, Savannah Guthrie teased her co-hosts with the news, telling them, "It's an exclusive. I think you're gonna want to hear this. It's someone on the phone right now ... Do you have something to tell us?" On the phone was Kotb, who said simply, "Yes, I do — it's a girl!" Guthrie and Jenna Bush Hager quickly teared up, while Al Roker and Willie Geist were visibly shocked: "Boy, you keep a secret!" Geist marveled. "Savannah hasn't said a word all morning." She then shared her new daughter's name: Hope Catherine. Kotb first became a mother in 2017 after adopting a baby girl named Haley Joy. The 54-year-old has spoken candidly about her journey to parenthood. More than a decade ago, a battle with cancer left her unable to conceive, and after her treatment concluded, she and her then-husband filed for divorce. "I feel like if you're meant to have a child in your life, your child is out there,'' Kotb said in 2018 on World Adoption Day. "They said to me at the adoption agency, 'Don't worry, your child is out there waiting for you.' And I remember I would scribble in my journal, 'I know you're there.' I could feel her." PHOTOS: Hoda Kotb with her daughter Haley<doc-sep>Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) On Tuesday, Hoda Kotb shocked everyone by announcing she adopted a new baby girl named Hope Catherine. “It’s a girl! It’s a girl,” Kotb, 54, said calling into “Today” on Tuesday morning. “I can’t believe that I’m here! I’m so happy to be here.” “You think that you’re full… and Joel [Schiffman] and I were standing there when they hand you the baby and it’s the closest thing you’ll get to a live birth,” she recounted. “It’s amazing. I can’t believe it’s happening!” Kotb also said Schiffman, 61, rarely cries but he broke into tears the moment he met his new daughter. “I can’t imagine any of this happening,” Kotb expressed. “We hoped and prayed about this.” Hope’s middle name comes from Kotb’s best friend’s daughter. As for Kotb and Schiffman’s 2-year-old daughter, Haley Joy, she’s loving being a big sister. Kotb said Haley’s been trying to feed the baby and has proudly been announcing she’s a big sister. While the news was a shock, Kotb may have been hinting at it all along. On Monday she cryptically posted a message to Instagram saying, “Choose Hope.” When Kotb chose to adopt Haley in 2017, she simply said, “One of the things in my life I’ve always wanted was to be a mom.”<doc-sep>Hoda Kotb's family has grown. The "Today" show co-anchor revealed she adopted a second child. In a telephone call on Tuesday, the 54-year-old told her morning show colleagues that she has adopted a baby girl. Hope Catherine joins 2-year-old sister Haley Joy. HODA KOTB SPEAKS OUT ABOUT ADOPTING DAUGHTER AFTER BREAST CANCER LEFT HER UNABLE TO HAVE CHILDREN Kotb adopted Haley Joy in 2017. Kotb says Haley is marching around saying "I'm a big sister." She says Haley wanted to feed Hope raspberries for breakfast. "This morning at breakfast [Haley] was trying to feed [the new baby] her raspberries and I was like, 'Not yet, babe,''' Kotb shared. "She was literally marching around saying, 'I'm a big sister.''' "Today" shared a picture of Kotb with her two daughters on Instagram. "Congratulations are in order for @hodakotb, who adopted a second little girl, Hope Catherine, this week," the caption read. When Kotb's new co-host Jenna Bush Hager asked how "life with two" children is going, Kotb replied, "Oh, my gosh, you guys. She is laying on the Boppy pillow right now, I'm feeding her and I can't believe it." She added, "Look — in life you think maybe you’ve gotten what you deserve, but, man, I’m so happy she is here." Kotb shared that both she and her longtime boyfriend, Joel Schiffman, were present when Hope was born. JENNA BUSH HAGER NAMED PERMANENT REPLACEMENT FOR KATHIE LEE GIFFORD ON NBC’S ‘TODAY’ "Joel and I were standing there when they hand you the baby," Kotb said. "And it's the closest thing to a live birth I think you'll ever see. In that moment ... my heart just grew 10 times. It’s amazing. "I just can't believe it's happening, y'all. I can't.” Shortly after the adoption of Kotb's first daughter, Haley, she opened up about her difficult journey to motherhood. A battle with breast cancer 10 years ago left her unable to conceive and her two-year marriage to tennis coach Burzis Kanga fell apart a year after her recovery. The news anchor had all but given up on having a child. "One of the things in my life I've always wanted was to be a mom," Kotb told People in 2017. "Sometimes in your life, things just don't work out for whatever reason, so you say, 'Well, I wasn't meant to have that.' But it was really hard to come to terms with it." HODA KOTB OPENS UP ON BOYFRIEND JOEL SCHIFFMAN But then one day, Kotb decided she was going to be a mother. "Finally I said to myself one day, 'Why can’t I? Why not me?'" So the NBC journalist asked her boyfriend if he was open to adopting a baby. "I was afraid to even say it out loud, because then it felt so real," Kotb said. "I said, 'Think about it for a day or a week or whatever.' And he said, 'I don't need a day. Let's get this journey going.'" Kotb finally brought her newborn daughter home in February 2017. Haley Joy was born on Valentine's Day. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “I wake up sometimes and go, ‘Oh my God, I have a baby!’ ” she told the magazine. “But it feels totally real. I guess if you’ve been waiting this long for something, and you wish for it, pray for it, hope for it, wonder if it will ever be, and then it happens, nothing’s more real. Nothing.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.<doc-sep>
Surprise — Hoda Kotb has a new baby. On Tuesday’s Today show the co-host, 54, called in to the show to share that she adopted a second daughter. The baby’s name is Hope Catherine Kotb and she joins big sister Haley Joy, 2. Hoda Kotb with her daughters, Hope Catherine and Haley Joy. (Image: Today show via Instagram) “It’s a girl!” the elated new mom gushed, through tears, to her colleagues. Hoda Kotb with her daughters, Hope Catherine and Haley Joy. (Image: Today show via Instagram) When Jenna Bush Hager asked how “life with two” has been, Hotb replied, “Oh, my gosh, you guys. She is laying on the Boppy pillow right now, I'm feeding her and I can't believe it.” She continued, “Look — in life you think maybe you’ve gotten what you deserve, but, man, I’m so happy she is here.” For the record, Haley is “digging” being a big sister. She’s trying to help by offering to feed the newborn raspberries for breakfast to which Kotb told her “not yet, babe.” And she was “marching around saying, ‘I'm a big sister.’” She also tried “to crawl into [Hope’s] bassinet.” Kotb said she and her longtime partner, Joel Schiffman, were there when the baby was born. “Joel and I were standing there when they hand you the baby,” she recalled. “And it's the closest thing to a live birth I think you'll ever see. In that moment ... my heart just grew 10 times. It’s amazing.” She added, “I just can't believe it's happening, y'all. I can't.” There have been hints that Hoda was expanding her family. The biggest one was Monday when she posted what many perceived just to be an inspirational Instagram: “Choose Hope.” On Kathie Lee Gifford’s last day co-hosting with Kotb, she said something about Kotb expanding her family as well. For now it remains unclear how long Kotb’s new parent leave will be — or who will be filling in for her. Yahoo has reached out to a rep for the Today show and will update this story when we hear back. Read more on Yahoo Entertainment: Want daily pop culture news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Entertainment & Lifestyle’s newsletter.