Maria Menounos is officially a momma! Finally!
After a difficult decade of cancer and infertility struggles, the fierce journalist and her husband Keven Undergaro have FINALLY welcomed a baby girl into their lives — and it’s “better” than the former E! News host “could’ve ever imagined.”
The 45-year-old revealed to Us Weekly Wednesday that her surrogate gave birth to a healthy girl on June 23, and it’s all been “pure joy.” She reflected:
“It was the most special moment of my life. 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.”
Keven added:
“It was like Christmas morning times a million.”
How sweet! We’re so happy for the couple. It’s been such a difficult journey for them.
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The Noovie host revealed back in February that she and Keven were expecting via surrogate, telling People:
“After a decade of trying everything, we are so grateful to the beautiful family helping us conceive our baby.”
She added at the time:
“I definitely didn’t think it was going to take this long. It’s been years. We’ve used different services, different people. It’s just been a very frustrating process. It’s been a long time. We’ve done everything — I mean literally everything. They’ve tried to get me pregnant, that didn’t work, Keven had a surgery, that didn’t work, he’s hung me upside down like a chicken, that didn’t work.”
Maria has also struggled with multiple cancer diagnoses — first a brain tumor in 2017, and more recently, Stage 2 pancreatic cancer last year. She’s so incredibly strong and deserves the absolute best!
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She and Keven named their baby girl Athena, telling Us Weekly:
“We knew we wanted a Greek name. We had a list, and everyone says when you see the baby, you’ll know, but that was totally untrue for us. We were like, ‘What do we do?’ Athena is the goddess of war and wisdom, and Keven loved the power of that name, so that was it!”
If she’s anything like her momma, she’ll for SURE be strong, so Athena is a great name choice!
As for home life since bringing home their little bundle of joy, the former Extra host gushed:
“Better than I could’ve ever imagined. It’s euphoric. For so long, I’ve felt something’s been missing. I’d go to kids’ birthday parties, and I’d be a little sad because I wanted my own family. And now I feel so grounded, like I finally know where I belong.”
She added that her bond with Athena “felt amazing, but also really natural, like we had been together a long time.” That’s when she shared the wildest tidbit:
“A psychic said she was going to be my mom from another life. So I remembered that after, and I [thought] maybe that’s what that feeling was.”
A “psychic” told her the little girl was going to be a reincarnation of her late mother, who died in 2021 after her own battle with brain cancer?! Wow! That’s… a lot. She added:
“Athena is our miracle baby. I’m so grateful for her.”
Ch-ch-check out the new mother’s full Us Weekly cover (below):
It sounds like everything is absolutely perfect for Maria at this point in her life! She really deserves all the happiness after everything she’s been through.
What are YOUR thoughts, Perezcious readers? Share your support in the comments down below!
[Images via Maria Menounos/Instagram]
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