'I had Lily Debbie Allen': Sheinelle Jones reveals intriguing pre-marriage tradition

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Sheinelle Jones has opened up on an unusual change she brought to her life following her marriage.

The '3rd Hour of Today' co-host stepped in for Jenna Bush Hager on Monday's 'Today' with Hoda and Jenna, sharing a personal tidbit about keeping a Cabbage Patch Kids doll on her bed until her marriage vows with husband Uche Ojeh.

"When I got married, I had Lily Debbie Allen — she’s my Cabbage Patch — on my bed. And grandma said I had to get rid of the Cabbage Patch," admitted the 45-year-old.

Jones and Ojeh, who celebrates her 44th birthday on February 4, exchanged vows in September 2007 after their romance blossomed during their time at Northwestern University in Chicago. At the time of their marriage, Jones was 29 years old.

Jones said that the doll was a constant in her life 

Jones continued to share with Hoda Kotb that the Cabbage Patch Kids doll had been a constant presence in her life since childhood.

The Philadelphia native exclaimed, "She’s always been with me!" The conversation about Jones' cherished doll arose as she and Kotb, 59, delved into the topic of individuals who engage in baby talk within relationships.

"Why? Why are you doing that?" Jones asked, mimicking someone speaking in that voice. She insisted, "Absolutely not" when asked if she'd ever done that herself to her husband. "No!" she stressed when pressed again.

She then went on to explain that she doesn't even call Ojeh by anything other than his name, rejecting common affection nicknames like "honey," "babe," "bae" or even "boo." "We’re trying to be better," she explained.

Jones and Ojeh do not like showing public displays of affection

Jones and Ojeh are strictly against showing public displays of affection or in fact, any displays of affection around other people. "It drives everyone in my family crazy," Jones said. In her defense, she said she didn't grow up around parents who did that.

Kotb didn't think she did either, but that hasn't stopped her from making out in a furniture store with a guy she was dating. "Sometimes you’re just lost in the moment and you can’t believe that it’s happening," she confessed.

Jones, however, revealed that there was a time she did kiss a guy in public and it wasn't Ojeh. "I broke up with Uche in college and was like, ‘I don’t need him, ha ha,’ and we’re at some random place in Chicago...," she said, adding that when she made out with "some guy."

Jones had previously shared that she and Ojeh navigated a long-distance relationship for eight years. He eventually proposed, amid a rainstorm, during a visit to their alma mater.

The couple, now parents to three children – Kayin, 14, and twins Uche and Clara, 11 – has built a life together since then.