Jenna Bush Hager Gets Emotional Discussing Motherhood on "Today"

Jenna Bush Hager became visibly emotional while co-hosting NBC's "Today with Jenna & Sheinelle" on Tuesday, following a discussion with guest host Savannah Guthrie about motherhood. The segment turned tearful when Guthrie, 54, shared her personal journey of having children in her forties.

Guthrie, filling in for Sheinelle Jones, who was attending the Emmy Awards, reflected on the news that Lady Gaga had become a mother at 40. Guthrie noted her own experience, having had her two children, Vale, 12, and Charles, nine, in her forties. She described the benefits of being more established in her career and feeling a greater sense of stability.

"It's like anything; there are pluses, and there are minuses, but I think being a little more stable in your career and stuff is wonderful because you're not trying to juggle all the different things you're trying to juggle when you're in your twenties and thirties," Guthrie said. "I like to think there's a little wisdom, but also, you get tired more quickly."

Responding to Guthrie's reflections, Bush Hager, 44, began to cry. "I know you felt this way, that you were just so delighted that it could happen for you," she said, recalling visiting Guthrie with her newborns. Guthrie admitted, "I'll never be over it. I just feel so profoundly lucky that I got to have my kids, and I was so late in life to do it. I mean, I had Charlie, and I turned 45 two weeks later."

Bush Hager apologized for her emotional reaction, attributing it to being an "empath." Guthrie and Bush Hager, who live near each other, have shared experiences of raising young children.

The emotional moment occurred shortly after Guthrie herself was moved to tears earlier in the broadcast. This was in response to actress Allison Janney's tribute to Guthrie's missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, during Janney's Emmy Awards acceptance speech.

Janney, who won an award for her role in "I, Tonya," mentioned Nancy Guthrie's disappearance, stating, "I honestly can say I think about Nancy every day and think about the loss and what Savannah and her family are going through." Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home in Tucson, Arizona, on January 31 and is believed to have been abducted.

Guthrie expressed her gratitude to Janney for her heartfelt words, which she said offered an opportunity to renew the public call for information regarding her mother's whereabouts. "My whole family - my sister and my brother and I and all of our extended family - are just in such pain. We need help," Guthrie said through tears. "We just want our mom home and to be able to give her a proper goodbye, that's all."

Willie Geist, another "Today" co-host, described Janney's tribute as a "beautiful expression of sympathy" and reminded viewers to contact the FBI with any information. Guthrie concluded by urging people to call anonymously, emphasizing her family's need for help in bringing her mother home.