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Keven Undergaro and Maria Menounos dated for two decades before getting engaged in 2017. They tied the knot on live on television during New Year’s Eve festivities, kicking off 2018 with a bang.
Not long after getting engaged, Menounos, 39, revealed that she and Undergaro were trying to start a family. They wanted to do so before getting married because that was “more time-pressing and most important.”
However, not long after that announcement, Menounos shared that she underwent surgery for a benign brain tumor. On July 3, 2017, she announced that she would be leaving E! News. Undergaro has remained by her side through the bad and the good times.
“And to [Keven], the best nurse in the world. You never left the hospital and slept by my side there. you are my everything and I’m so thankful to you. You and dad have really been incredible to mom and me. You both have inspired me. I’ve never been more excited about life. I see so much so clearly,” Menounos posted on Instagram after People Magazine reported her diagnosis.
Here is what you need to know:
1. Undergaro Has Been a Huge Supporter of His Wife
Undergaro has been nothing but supportive of his wife over the past two decades.
Aside from the normal ups and downs that every relationship goes through, Undergaro and Menounos have been forced to deal with other unforeseen circumstances that has not only tried the strength of their relationship but brought them closer together.
In August 2016, Menounos revealed that her mom, Litsa, had been diagnosed with Stage 4 brain cancer. Undergaro and Menounos put everything on hold to be there for Litsa and to take care of her as she underwent surgery and treatment. At this time, Litsa’s cancer is said to be “stable.”
This past February, Menounos learned that she had a brain tumor and needed surgery. Undergaro stayed by her side through it all and continues to be the rock in her life. Menounos’ tumor was not cancerous and she has been in good health since.
2. Undergaro Proposed to Menounos on ‘Howard Stern’ & They Had 2 Weddings
Menounos was completely shocked when her boyfriend of over 19 years got down on one knee during her interview with Howard Stern on March 9, 2016.
“Although I said that this isn’t a proposal I want to ask you something, Maria. Will you make me the happiest man on Earth?” Undergaro asked while down on one knee holding a ring box. Menounos’ initial reaction was absolutely priceless.
“Are you freaking kidding me right now?” she exclaimed. You can see the proposal in the video below.
Undergaro proposed with an impressive bauble created by jewelry designer Jean Dousset.
“[Keven] and I first spoke on the phone and I consulted on what I thought Maria’s ring should be (about her!) and shouldn’t be. We then met to begin the design process, [which took] one month total. We had a limited amount of time and worked together closely to create the perfect ring for Maria,” Dousset previously told PeopleStyle.
The ring is described as an “Ideal round cut brilliant stone” surrounded by a “seamless halo.”
The couple tied the knot on New Year’s Eve 2017, exchanging vows on live television with Steve Harvey officiating, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A few months later, Menounos and Undergaro traveled to Greece for a second wedding. The two exchanged vows in front of family and friends in Menounos’ dad’s hometown of Akovos.
“It was the most special day of my life. We were so chill about everything, and I think, you know, Greece is our home and everyone there just came together for one purpose, and that was love,” Menounos told People Magazine after spending about a month overseas.
3. Undergaro & Menounos Struggled With When to Start a Family
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Starting a family was something that was discussed by Undergaro and Menounos as it never seemed like an immediate want for the former E! News host. Menounos was focused on her career and didn’t want to settle down with a family. However, as she got older, she realized that she’d have to make a decision. She decided to freeze a few embryos so that she could try to conceive later in life.
Last year, Menounos started IVF treatments. However, she didn’t get pregnant.
“Last November, I had three embryos made, and we put them in the freezer. Then we did inseminations—IUI—because I was like, ‘Listen, I think we could probably have done this naturally, but what was happening before is that the ovulation kits weren’t working for me.’ Last month, I did another egg retrieval, and I got two eggs—so we tested all five embryos. Afterward, I had the craziest conversation with my doctor I ever thought I’d have in my life. She said, ‘OK, so here’s the news: We tested the five embryos. Two were bad quality, one was fair quality, and two were good quality.’ She told me the sex of these children, so now I’m realizing I have kids in a freezer. It makes it real when you know the sex. I was like, ‘What is happening?!’ So I called my mom and said, ‘Mom, you’re a grandma! Here’s what we’ve got in the freezer—don’t tell anybody. Isn’t this weird?’ It was the strangest call ever. Then I realized I have to do another IVF round because if I want two kids, the two good-quality ones could only end up yielding one baby, and I keep hearing stories about all these women who keep implanting embryos and they don’t take. I was so upset about the idea of another round, because it’s exhausting, physically and mentally,” Menounos told Health Magazine back in June 2016.
She posted the following on Instagram in June after months of trying to get pregnant.
“After months & months of IVF treatments and not feeling myself… I am happy to be able to post this picture & say I feel like me again. It takes its toll on you physically&emotionally. Hell, I spent an entire episode of my @siriusxmstars show crying one day bc of it all! After a few weeks of @piyoworkout & achieving my step count of 10,000 steps a day(most days going way above that) I feel back to normal! Anyone going through IVF knows what I’m talking about. This vacation was soo necessary & I feel blessed I was able to take it! #nofilter hahaha oh and ps this is place is heaven have I mentioned that?” Menounos wrote, along with a photo of herself on the beach.
The two absolutely love dogs and are parents to quite a few four-legged loves.
4. Menounos’ Dad Didn’t Like Undergaro at First
When the couple started dating, a then 19-year-old Menounos was disowned by her traditional Greek family because she was dating a non-Greek.
“It wasn’t an easy situation. He wasn’t Greek so my dad was very upset, pretty much disowned me, took my education away… I was now pretty much homeless, no education, no degree, but I had Keven,” Menounos told AOL back in 2014.
Menounos and Undergaro moved into a woman’s unfinished basement in Boston before moving to Los Angeles. Once she got hired as a correspondent for Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood, her parents headed to Los Angeles and Menounos’ dad, Constantinos, had a bit of a heart to heart with Undergaro.
“My parents came out to visit. My dad apologized to Keven which I think is such a sign of, I don’t know. I don’t know a lot of men that can actually say they’re sorry… It’s so hard to give the whole story but it was really tragic and really, really hard. We spent so many nights clinging to each other crying and it was terrible,” she said.
5. Undergaro & Menounos Had Their Own Reality Show & Survived ‘the Curse’
GettyMaria Menounos and Keven Undergaro with her parents.
Undergaro and Menounos starred on Chasing Maria Menounos along with her parents, Constantinos and Litsa. The show aired on Oxygen back in 2014. Although there was only one season (it consisted of 10 episodes), people absolutely loved watching the couple navigate life.
Despite the well-known curse of couples splitting up after doing reality television, Menounos and Undergaro survived just fine.