Hoda Kotb Reveals How Sandra Bullock Changed the ‘Course’ of Her ‘Life’ With Adoption Advice

Hoda Kotb shares a common thread with Sandra Bullock.

While interviewing Bullock, 62, on her Making Space podcast, the Today alum, also 62, began tearing up when the pair broached the topic of motherhood.

“Ten years ago, right now, I was 51 or 52, and I realized that I had missed the window to have children, and I felt terrible about it and I was so upset,” Kotb recalled.

While Kotb is now a mother to adopted daughters Haley, 9, and Hope, 7, the prospect of starting a family seemed daunting at the time — that is, until she reached out to the Miss Congeniality star, who had adopted her son, Louis, now 16, around the same time.

“I literally Googled, ‘How old is Sandra Bullock?’ I was like, ‘She’s my exact age,’ and I burst into tears,” the TV personality continued. “I reached out, and I called you, and I said, ‘I have to ask you a question.'”

Reflecting on the decade-old phone call, Kotb, who co-parents the pair with ex, Joel Schiffman, said Bullock told her that adoption was “the best thing” she’s ever done, inspiring the now mother of two to do the same.

“She changed the course of my life,” Kotb added through tears, pointing to an equally teary-eyed Bullock, who was sitting alongside Practical Magic 2 costar Nicole Kidman for the interview. “I now have a 9-year-old and a 7-year-old solely because of that moment.”

“I have such extreme gratitude because, now, I’ve got a kid going to fourth grade and a kid going to second grade,” Kotb added, revealing that before interviewing the pair, she showed daughter Haley a photo of the woman who made it all possible.

Kidman, 59, who, in addition to the two biological daughters she shares with ex-husband Keith Urban, adopted two children during her marriage to Tom Cruise, praised Bullock, calling her “the angel” that helped bring Kotb’s family together.

“That exact thing that you just said, that is Sandy,” Kidman added. “You call up, and you go, ‘Tell me this,’ and she’ll tell you… And that’s deeply personal. That’s sisterhood.”

Bullock, who is also a mother to adopted daughter Laila, 12, said it was a choice she didn’t want to “gatekeep.”

“When someone’s happy in their life, they don’t mock or judge others,” the actress added. “I’m so happy with what I have.”

The conversation also reshaped the way Kotb thought about family – a moment Kotb said has stuck with her.

“I think you said, ‘You don’t have to live in the box.’ Families come in a million different ways,” Kotb recalled.

“You know, you know, I know, she added, referring to the trio’s unique and “interesting” families. “And they’re all beautiful in that way.”