Jenna Bush Hager is truly surrounded by love. The Today anchor gave birth to her third child and first son, Henry Harold "Hal" Hager, on August 2, 2019. Her husband, Henry Hager, was there by her side. Both mom and baby are doing fantastic.
Jenna's daughters — 6-year-old Margaret Laura, known as Mila, and almost 4-year-old Poppy Louise — are all thrilled with the new addition to the family. It seems like Hal and Jenna were surrounded by a lot of family members soon after he made his entrance into the world.
Jenna revealed the first visitor to come see the little guy in a very sweet Instagram post. It was none other than her own twin sister, Barbara Pierce Bush Coyne. And Barbara didn't show up empty-handed. Like any good sister and aunt, she brought provisions. In this case, that meant tacos and donuts. We know Jenna's been loving tacos, having had her baby shower at an NYC taco joint just days before Hal made his arrival.
Fans of Today show anchor Jenna Bush Hager have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of her third child. Jenna first announced she was expecting in late April, just weeks after cohost Hoda Kotb announced that she had adopted her second child.
There were a few clues that the time to welcome her little boy was drawing near. Jenna celebrated a baby shower with friends and colleagues at Taco Dumbo in New York on July 30, 2019. Hoda took a break from her own maternity leave to stop by the celebration.
On August 2, Jenna announced that she was going on maternity leave. "Today is my last day!" she said on Friday's show, according to People. "I want to thank all of you guys for the last four months. I can’t believe it’s been four months, but to share this joy with all of you, with you Willie [Geist], with everybody that’s filled in … all of you that have cheered us on as a show and cheered me on personally, it means the world. I feel so grateful to work in a place with people that lift me up every day."
Just hours later, Jenna held her new baby boy in her arms. She later shared a photo on Instagram, writing, "Welcome to the world my darling Henry Harold 'Hal' Hager! Hal came into the world Friday, August 2, 2019 at 9:02 am and our life has never been sweeter. ❤️❤️ ."
Jenna also let fans in on who was the first one to come to see her little guy. Hal's first visitor was his aunt, Barbara Pierce Bush Coyne. "Visitor number one: hours after babe’s birth, this one comes with donuts and tacos," Jenna wrote aside photos she shared on Instagram.
"My sister came the first day with donuts, which I don't think you're supposed to eat right after a C-section, but I went for it," Jenna recalled fondly when sharing the story with her Today cohosts on Monday.
Another precious moment for Jenna was watching her little girls meet their baby brother. "Mila and Poppy came and picked him out in the nursery, and they're just crazy about him," Jenna gushed. "The girls are so thrilled that they have a little baby brother all of their own."
Poppy even held her little brother in a beautiful, tender moment. "It was so beautiful," Jenna recalled. "Poppy told him that she loved him and then asked, 'When we can bring him home?' … They're crazy about him."
Another exciting visit came from Hal's grandparents. Former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush visited their first grandson and fell in love immediately. There was one tiny complaint. "My dad was a little mad that the name wasn't George," Jenna joked, according to People.
Hal even got some love from the Today family, courtesy of Savannah Guthrie. "Look who came to visit!!!" Jenna posted with a picture. "Hal loves @savannahguthrie, of course. Friendship is hereditary. ❤️."
Hal's name carries a lot of family history, as Jenna explained to People. "He is named Henry after many on his father’s side including his dear dad and his paternal grandfather," she said. "Harold comes from my maternal grandfather, Pa, who I loved dearly and was unable to keep a son long enough to name."
Jenna got a hint that she would one day have a little boy from Hollywood Medium's Tyler Henry in March 2016. "We’ve always thought if we had a boy, we were going to name him after [Welch]," Jenna tearfully replied during the reading, per People.
Hal is happily home with his mom, dad, and big sisters. Everyone's having a great time settling into their new family of five. "This beautiful chaos is what life is all about," Jenna said in her update to Today.
Since coming home, Hal got to meet some very important people who will be a big part of his life. Jenna and Hal went over to Hoda's, where Hoda and her daughter Haley got to meet Hal. It seems in just a few short days, Hal has gotten so much love, and it's just the beginning.
