NBC News chief White House correspondent Kristen Welker appeared on NBC’s Today this morning to announce that she’s expecting a baby girl via surrogate.
“We’re so excited to be able to announce that we, with the help of a surrogate, are expecting a baby girl in June,” said Welker, news that was met with cheers and claps from the Today hosts—Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Craig Melvin.
To mark National Infertility Awareness Week, she shared the news on the morning show alongside her husband John Hughes, revealing that she and Hughes had struggled with infertility for years.
In a segment dedicated to sharing their journey with others, Welker revealed that while she loves her job as a journalist, “one of my dreams has always been to be a mom.”
After a few attempts to have a child, the couple decided to see Dr. Rafat Abbasi, who first recommended in vitro fertilization, which Welker went through the process of.
The doctor eventually determined that the lining of Welker’s uterus was too thin to carry a child.
Welker revealed that the news left her feeling like a failure, while fellow NBC News chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander explained that there were days that Welker would break down after receiving bad news regarding her fertility.
“After two years of trying to carry my own baby and after having consulted with four different doctors, they all agreed that I wasn’t going to be able to carry a child,” she said, recalling that it was the day of the Michael Cohen trial, one of the busiest workdays of her life, that she was forced to come to terms with that fact.
Welker later became emotional while discussing her future daughter after years of fertility troubles, saying, “I’m having a baby girl with John, and we’re so excited, and it’s with the help of a surrogate!”
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