Current:Home > ContactMaria Menounos and Husband Keven Undergaro Welcome First Baby via Surrogate -ProfitPioneers Hub
Maria Menounos and Husband Keven Undergaro Welcome First Baby via Surrogate
View
Date:2025-04-18 15:57:30
Maria Menounos and her new family of three are better together.
The TV host and husband Keven Undergaro shared that they welcomed their first child together, a baby girl named Athena Alexandra, via surrogate on June 23.
"It was the most special moment of my life," Maria told Us Weekly July 19. "The doctor literally grabbed her and hiked her onto me. I sat with her on my chest, and Keven and I kept looking at each other like, 'Oh, my God.' It was just pure joy."
Their sweet news comes five months after the couple—who tied the knot in 2017—announced they were expecting their first child together via surrogate.
"We are so grateful to everyone who helped make this beautiful blessing happen," the Better Together author told E! News in a Feb. 7 statement. "I am so excited to be a mom and Keven is so excited to be a dad! And my dad is over the moon to be a papou."
At the time, Maria also gave a nod to her late mom, Litsa Menounos, who passed away in May 2021 after a battle with brain cancer.
"I know my mom had a cup of greek coffee with god and said it's time," she captioned an Instagram post, in part, alongside a clip of her sharing her baby news. "So grateful for the blessing in our lives. Cant believe I'm sharing this news without her in the physical , but I know she made it happen on the other side and is going to be with me every step of the way. Thank you all for your love! We are just so grateful!"
Back in April the couple shared the sex of their baby, with Maria noting on her Heal Squad x Maria Menounos podcast, "We're very excited to announce we have a baby girl coming."
She also revealed that she and Keven, 55, have their baby's name chosen—but added that they're keeping it under wraps for now.
"We've been thinking about names for years, because as you may or may not know, this has been almost a 10-year journey for us," Maria explained. "We've thought about names forever, and I think we've come up with the perfect name for this baby."
However, over the past almost-decade it hasn't been an easy journey, as Maria has been vocal about various health scares along the way. This includes a private battle with Stage 2 pancreatic cancer earlier this year, which required undergoing surgery to remove a 3.9-inch tumor along with part of her pancreas, her spleen, a large fibroid and 17 lymph nodes.
"This whole year has been trauma, stress, crisis," she told People May 3. "I had that moment where I thought I was a goner—but I'm okay because I caught this early enough."
The former E! News correspondent, who previously had a benign brain tumor removed in 2017, pointed out the painful timing of her diagnosis.
"I'm like 'How in the freaking world can I have a brain tumor and pancreatic cancer?'" Maria said. "All I could think was that I have a baby coming."
But throughout it all, she's had her husband and dad Constantinos to lean on.
"I'm so grateful and so lucky," Maria expressed. "God granted me a miracle. I'm going to appreciate having her in my life so much more than I would have before this journey."
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (43)
Related
- Israel lets Palestinians go back to northern Gaza for first time in over a year as cease
- Florida’s ‘Fantasy Fest’ ends with increased emphasis on costumes and less on decadence
- Live updates | Palestinian officials say death toll rises from expanded Israel military operation
- These 15 Secrets About Halloweentown Are Not Vastly Overrated
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
- Former NHL player Adam Johnson dies after 'freak accident' during game in England
- An Alabama Coal Plant Once Again Nabs the Dubious Title of the Nation’s Worst Greenhouse Gas Polluter
- Who Were the Worst of the Worst Climate Polluters in 2022?
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Israeli media, also traumatized by Hamas attack, become communicators of Israel’s message
Ranking
- Backstage at New York's Jingle Ball with Jimmy Fallon, 'Queer Eye' and Meghan Trainor
- Food delivery business Yelloh to lay off 750 employees nationwide, close 90 delivery centers
- Russia says it shot down 36 Ukrainian drones as fighting grinds on in Ukraine’s east
- Matthew Perry, Emmy-nominated ‘Friends’ star, has died at 54, reports say
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Lance Bass Weighs in on Criticism of Justin Timberlake After Britney Spears Memoir Release
- Israeli settler shoots and kills Palestinian harvester as violence surges in the West Bank
- An Alabama Coal Plant Once Again Nabs the Dubious Title of the Nation’s Worst Greenhouse Gas Polluter
Recommendation
Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
Who Were the Worst of the Worst Climate Polluters in 2022?
'Friends' star Matthew Perry, sitcom great who battled addiction, dead at 54
49ers QB Brock Purdy cleared to start against Bengals after concussion in Week 7
Jamie Foxx reps say actor was hit in face by a glass at birthday dinner, needed stitches
A man is arrested in a deadly double shooting near a Donaldsonville High football game
Severe drought in the Amazon reveals millennia-old carvings
Federal prosecutors seek to jail Alabama lawmaker accused of contacting witness in bribery case