'The Talk' 's Natalie Morales Has Found Happiness In Daytime Television After 'Today' Show Departure

Natalie Morales appears relaxed and at home as she hugs her co-hosts moments before going live for CBS's The Talk. The 50-year-old is clapping her hands and attempting to dance in her high heels, clearly captivated by the filled in studio crowd's excitement.

"After so many years, I need laughter in my life. I am so happy," says Morales, who was announced today as a new CBS 48 Hours correspondent.

As the cameras roll, Morales — who's the show's first ever Latina moderator — begins delivering a variety of fun, hot-button topics to discuss, such as lottery winners and adorable dogs.

The mom of two tells PEOPLE: "It's so interesting because a friend of mine recently texted me, 'Oh, I was watching the show and I see so much more of your personality now. The Natalie I know is what I am seeing.'"

She continues, "I love hearing that because when you're at the news desk, you tell the story, but you don't really ever personalize or you don't ever really say, 'This happened to me,' necessarily."

Morales joined The Talk on Oct. 10, 2021, only 10 days after announcing the end of her tenure with NBC, where she served as a correspondent on Today, Dateline and Access Hollywood.

She returned one last time to NBC's iconic Today studios in Rockefeller Center in New York City to sign off at the anchor desk she once called home as the first Latina to co-host Today.

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"Dear viewers … from the minute I stepped in front of the camera and into your living rooms, I knew it was an honor to be part of your morning tradition, the most sacred time," she said. "With you, I've had a front row seat to moments that captured our hearts, moments I will forever cherish as I witnessed history."

But with things much lighter than the serious news she once covered for 22 years at Today, she feels right at home finally showing off who she really is at The Talk.

"You don't get that opportunity [on a morning news show]," she says. "You just give the facts, so people get to see a side where you can be vulnerable, when you can laugh and be in hysterics, where you [are] almost crying on TV. It's happened. Everything has happened to me on this last year of this show, so I think they see it's the real Natalie. It's not that they didn't see that before, but they see all sides of me that I think being a news anchor didn't necessarily allow me to be."

Another perk to the new job is a later call time that means she has more opportunity to for family bonding.

"I never have to get up at 3 a.m. in the morning," the Rutgers University alum jokes. "If I have to get up at 3 a.m., it's just to go to the bathroom. It's so nice. I get to go back to bed and sleep for another three, four hours. That's, I think, the best part of this whole thing is. Honestly, having time with my family more too because I don't travel as much as I used to. I'm able to be home."

She adds, "My kids are teenagers and going through lots of things that teenagers do, so being able to be there to make sure my youngest does his homework, and being able to help guide my oldest son into college, all of that has been key. I'm lucky that I've been able to do that for the last year and a half, two years."

Not only is she thrilled to see her kids grow, she's proud of the work she's doing highlighting her background during Hispanic Heritage Month.

On Tuesday, Morales — who is of Puerto Rican and Brazilian descent — will sit down for an in-depth interview with Camille Vazquez, a fellow Latina and the lead attorney for Johnny Depp.

"It was interesting, because here's somebody who became a superstar overnight, just about," Morales says. "She went from being attorney Camille Vasquez on Johnny Depp's case, but she was one of the team of lawyers, [and went] to being the one with eight billion views on TikTok and having hashtag Camille for president be a trending thing. I think it's extraordinary. She was like, 'I got famous for just doing my job.'"

Morales has a lot to celebrate as she ends the show.

Not only is it almost her one-year-anniversary with The Talk, but she's just been announced as a 48 Hours correspondent — all during Hispanic Heritage month.

Morales — who grew up as an "air force brat" in Panama, Spain and Brazil — jokes she may toast her latest accomplishments with a spicy margarita, but tells PEOPLE: "I'm not big on anniversaries, only because I believe in longevity. I don't look at one year, I look at 10 years. So ask me on my 10th anniversary, 'How will you celebrate?' Then I'll be like, 'Yeah, we're going to have a party.'

For now, she has her eyes on the immediate future. "I am very much looking forward to expanding my role at CBS by contributing to the various news platforms and to the original true crime pioneer 48 Hours," she says. "It's an honor to join some of the finest journalists, and I am eager to continue to talk about the important stories of our day."

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The Talk airs weekdays at 2 p.m. ET on CBS.