Jenna Bush Hager Recalls Bringing Her Daughters To The White House For The First Time

Jenna Bush Hager Today
Jenna Bush Hager Today
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

NBC/Getty Images

Jenna Bush Hager recently brought her two daughters to see her old stomping grounds for the first time. Last week the Today co-host and her husband, Henry Hager, took nine-year-old Mila and seven-year-old Poppy inside the White House on a night Jenna described as "so magical."

On Today with Hoda & Jenna on Monday, the former first daughter explained how she and Henry prepared their girls to meet the current president and first lady, who greeted the Hager family.

"We're like, OK, you shake your hand and you say, 'Nice to meet you, Mr. President,'" Jenna said of their preparations. "Poppy's like, 'I don't know if I can do it.' They were so nervous."

"We kept practicing, and Mila was like, 'My stomach's dropping!' But they go out, and they said, 'Nice to meet you, Mr. President.' And then Poppy goes, 'Where's the movie theater?'" Jenna recounted.

The family was invited to attend Elton John's performance at the White House on September 23. But seeing Sir Elton wasn't the only highlight for Jenna. She also got to see some of the staff who worked there when she was growing up.

Jenna explained that it's the people who work at the White House who make 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue  "feel like a home."

"Ron, who was one of our favorite guys that worked in the White House, right before the concert started, came over and was like, 'What are y'all doing?' And I got to introduce my girls to him...It reminds you that our country's institution is so special."