Maria Menounos described her feelings about becoming a mother to her daughter Athena Alexandra, who was born on June 23 through a surrogate with her husband Keven Undergaro, as “Better than I could’ve ever imagined.”

Maria’s journey towards motherhood has been a difficult and lengthy one, spanning a decade. Her struggles with infertility led her to undergo IVF treatments, which were subsequently halted when she was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2017. 

Although the tumor was successfully removed, her neurosurgeon warned her against carrying a child. She was also diagnosed with a pancreatic tumor in January, which was successfully removed.

After their first surrogate arrangement failed in 2020, Menounos nearly lost hope. However, in February, she and her spouse, 55-year-old AfterBuzz TV founder Undergaro, revealed that they were expecting a child.

The 45-year-old revealed that after her first surrogate attempt failed, a lawyer Kim Kardashian had connected her to, helped her find another surrogate.

She praised Kardashian for her help throughout the process, “I give her so much credit. She helped us get started and guided me through the fears and the process. She was the first to know we were pregnant! We were at a gala [in November], and I couldn’t resist telling her. She’s such a chill, calm person. Anytime I had questions or needed advice, her responses were instant. I had really leaned on her a lot.”