Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Bush’s parenting styles have been heavily influenced by their own parents, George W. Bush and Laura Bush.
“I would say it was sort of, like, the laissez-faire parenting of the ‘80s and ‘90s,” Barbara, 43, exclusively told Us Weekly of her and Jenna’s childhood with the former President and First Lady. “Our parents were very around, but we had a lot of freedom in terms of playing outside and exploring our neighborhood and just kind of being out and about in a, obviously, safe way. But it was before cell phones and before the constant connection and communication that we all have now.”
Raising their kids in a world where they are more exposed to technology than ever, Barbara told Us that she and her twin sister are working to “emulate” their parents “as much as we can.” She explained, “The world is quite different now. I aspire to be that type of parent in this world.”
Barbara shares her 3-year-old daughter, Cora Georgia, and 7-month-old son, Edward, with her husband, Craig Coyne. Jenna, 43, is a mother of three, sharing her kids Mila, 11, Poppy, 9, and Hal, 5, with her husband, Henry Hager.
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Jenna agreed with her sister’s comments, telling Us they are “pretty similar” to their mom and dad “when it comes to parenting.” Her parents’ focus on living in the moment influenced her decision to hold off giving her eldest daughter, Mila, a cellphone.
“She’s in sixth grade. A lot of kids in her grade do, but we are waiting on that,” the Today host shared. “But therefore, she knows how to go up to people and say — I’m like, ‘If you need me, go into a store and you have my number.’”
Jenna still has fond memories of her parents “creating joy” during her and Barbara’s childhood, such as George, 78, running alongside her as she rode her bike to the couple planning “scavenger hunt” birthday parties for the two of them.
“They tried to make the world creative and magical for us. And when you’re really little, the world is magical,” she stated. “So, it’s both parents being part of their kids’ lives, but it’s also parents getting kid energy, putting down their phones and seeing what they see because it’s hilarious and it’s fun.”
Jenna continued, “Yes, parents can show the kids the magic of the world, but also, and probably more importantly, parents can see through their kids’ eyes some of the magic. And that’s in a world that feels like it can be sometimes dark and difficult and hard, it’s so much fun just to choose that type of fun that comes through seeing the world through your kids’ eyes.”
That message served as the inspiration behind Jenna and Barbara’s new children’s book, I Loved You First, which highlights the love between parents and their kids. Barbara told Us the book serves as a “love letter” to her and Jenna’s kids as well as their parents, the latter of whom the book is dedicated to.
“What[‘s] better than thinking about a book that encourages you to tell your kid how meaningful and how much you love them every night before bed?” Barbara said. “That was really why we wrote it, as an excuse to keep telling our own kids how grateful we are for them and how they see the world and how they are just as themselves”
Barbara went on to note that when parents read I Loved You First, she hopes “they feel that way about their own kids, and also maybe think of their own parents the way that we were inspired now, thinking about how our parents gave us the world in so many ways.”
I Loved You First is available now.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
