The Mother (How I Met Your Mother character)

Tracy McConnell
How I Met Your Mother character
The Mother appearing in "The Locket"
First appearance	"Lucky Penny (unseen)" "Something New" (seen)
Last appearance	"Last Forever"
Created by	Carter Bays Craig Thomas
Portrayed by	Cristin Milioti
Information
Aliases	The Mother
Gender	Female
Spouse(s)	Ted Mosby
Significant other(s)	Max (deceased former boyfriend) Louis (ex-boyfriend)
Children	Penny Mosby (daughter, born in 2015, played by Lyndsy Fonseca) Luke Mosby (son, born in 2017, played by David Henrie)
Nationality	American

Tracy McConnell, better known as "The Mother", is the title character from the CBS television sitcom How I Met Your Mother. The show, narrated by Future Ted, tells the story of how Ted Mosby met The Mother. Tracy McConnell appears in 8 episodes from "Lucky Penny" to "The Time Travelers" as an unseen character; she was first seen fully in "Something New" and was promoted to a main character in season 9. The Mother is played by Cristin Milioti.

The story of how Ted met The Mother is the framing device behind the series; many facts about her are revealed throughout the series, including the fact that Ted once unwittingly owned her umbrella before accidentally leaving it behind in her apartment. Ted and The Mother meet at the Farhampton train station following Barney Stinson and Robin Scherbatsky's wedding; this scene is shown in "Last Forever", the series finale. The Mother's death from an unspecified terminal illness in 2024, also revealed in the series finale, received a mixed reaction from fans.

An alternate ending was released in the ninth season DVD. In the alternate ending, Tracy Mosby is still living when Ted is telling the story in 2030. In the video, future Ted is heard saying, "...When I think how lucky I am to wake up next to your mom every morning, I can't help but be amazed how easy it all really was...", indirectly stating that The Mother is alive. The video ends right after the train passes at Farhampton station and credits start rolling, implying that Ted never went back to Robin as he lived a successful married life with Tracy Mosby.