The One Thing Jenna Bush Hager Wishes She Had Done Before Getting Married

Jenna Bush Hager and husband Henry Chase Hager go way back. The talk show host met Henry while he was working for her father, President George W. Bush, in 2004. At the time, she was 23 years old, while he was 26. They clicked almost instantly, and soon found themselves causing trouble for the Secret Service together. The couple wed in 2008, and they're still going strong today, with three adorable children between them. 

Although Jenna is more than happy with married life, she's been open about her romantic past before settling down, keeping it real with co-host Hoda Kotb on "TODAY with Hoda & Jenna." Over the years, she's shared plenty of anecdotes about dating and marriage, often tying her experiences to societal expectations around relationships. On May 23's episode of "TODAY," she made quite the shocking statement: She could have dated around more before getting serious with Henry. "I dated in college, I dated in high school. But I didn't date enough, which is what I realized," she said. 

That's not to say that Jenna regrets shacking up with Henry so soon — she just feels that she should have approached dating with a different perspective when she was younger. 

Chatting with Hoda Kotb, Jenna Bush Hager elaborated on her position. She noted that her experiences as a "serial monogamist" from a young age has informed the way she wants to speak to her kids about romance when they're older. Most notably, she wants to remind them that there's no need to remain committed to someone if the relationship just doesn't feel right: "You don't have to stay in a relationship if you're not engaged in it." 

"I met the right person early and it's great and we've built a really incredible life and I'm proud of it," she clarified. "But also, you should have fun and date while you can."

Bush Hager went on to condemn stereotypes about girls who date often. "Girls are taught that, 'Be careful or otherwise you'll get a bad reputation.' And you can do both. You can date a lot of people and stay true to yourself," she declared. Kudos to her for using her platform to debunk such outdated ideas. 

In case there's any doubt, Jenna Bush Hager couldn't be more positive that she married her ideal man. On a June 2020 episode of "TODAY," she fondly recalled the moment she knew that her husband Henry Hager was the perfect guy for her, even though Jenna's cracked some controversial jokes about him on the air. "One of the reasons why I knew really soon that Henry was the one was because I was completely myself and he loved it," she said, noting that she didn't have to tell any white lies to impress him as she had with her high school boyfriend. On another episode of the show, she gave Henry a sweet birthday shoutout: "I feel really lucky to meet somebody that has given me three beautiful little babes. We've created a life together and I'm pretty proud of us."

It's a good sign that Jenna feels so comfortable opening up about her marriage — it seems that she and her husband are truly secure in their love for each other.