***Thanks for all the comments, but I’m closing down commenting on this article. It’s at over 650 comments and that’s a ton to read, People are saying the same things over and over. In the spirit of keeping the conversation going, I’ve summed up the bulk of the post and what people are saying here and have started a new thread called More on Who is the mother from HIMYM.
Like most posts tat I really enjoy it’s overly in depth, check it out and let me know what you think!
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I feel that a big question for How I Met Your Mother fans has always been “Who is the mother?” And while we don’t have a definite answer, we can take what we do know so far and begin to formulate some ideas. This is a long one so go grab a drink and pull up a chair. By the way, HIMYM returns to us on March 17th! So hopefully soon there will be more to add to this list! Disclaimer: I love theories, but I have not posted anything here that cannot be backed up. Enjoy!
Who we know is NOT:
1. Robin is not the Mother. We learn this in the first episode and and it is reconfirmed countless times in all 3 seasons. No matter how much people “want it to happen, ” it just won’t. Get used to disappointment. In fact, for those still
letting the thought wonder in the empty space in your head let me share the best explanation / recap on the subject from tv.com forum user RUdaPs:
To explain the surprise of the “…and that’s how I met your Aunt Robin.” line in the pilot…
If you pay attention throughout the pilot, Future Ted always says things like “…and then I went to her apartment.” The assumption is that the kids are thinking the whole time that “she” and “her” are their mother because Future Ted says that he’s telling the story of how he met their mother. The only thing is, he doesn’t say a name. So at the end when he says “…and that’s how I met your Aunt Robin.” the kids are surprised.
It’s like watching “The Sixth Sense” for the first time. (If you haven’t seen it and would like to you should stop reading this and skip to the next paragraph.) You always assume that Bruce Willis is alive but it is never clearly stated. Then if you go back and watch it again, you realize that only the kid talks to him throughout the movie. Even though you thought it was obvious the story was about one thing it was clearly about another and you can go back and see what it was really about
2. The string of possible girls throughout Season 1. There was Natalie (Return of the Shirt), Ted’s old girlfriend, who knew Krav Maga. Coat Check Girl (OK Awesome), that Carter Bays even joked that if the writers strike ruined the show for good, she was the mother. Even though we never meet her (which would be a great idea for this season…hint, hint), the Slutty Pumpkin (from oddly enough the episode called the Slutty Pumpkin). Dr. Sara O’Brien (Matchmaker), the engaged 9.6 match found by love solutions. Trudy (the Pineapple Incident), who came back in the Third Wheel…let me side track here for a moment. Ted only says “I left Trudy a message, but she never called me back”…to me this implies he never saw her again, but I suppose that was the way around things for that episode (that and “Some stories you tell, some stories you don’t”…seriously, would would ever tell their kids they rode the tricycle)…anyhow moving on. There was Victoria from episodes 12-18, she was great, would have been nice, but she won’t be back (at least not as marriage material). Let’s not leave off Mary the Paralegal (and that is a shame…but when you don’t laugh it just seems mean). And I can sum all these up as “not the mama” because in the episode Lucky Penny from Season 2, Ted says:
“My destiny was to stay in New York. Because if I hadn’t, I never would have met your mother.”
Thus saying that up to this point, he has not met the mother yet, so we have not seen her. Take a moment and let that sink in if you need to.
3. Ted’s soul mate. Let’s camp on this one for a moment. Season 1 episode 21, Milk, the dating company finally comes through and finds Ted’s soul mate. Now if #2 is true then she could be included in that group. However, Ted never actually met her in person. Will this be a loophole? Will she ever play back in? I leave it to you…personally I feel, the “Soul Mate” is out of the picture or at very least not the mother…I just felt she needed to be mentioned.
4. The girls form Season 3 (so far). Well Season 2 was a wash as far as “the mother” because Ted was with Robin the whole time. And in Season 3 so far I don’t think we have seen any potential for a “mother character”. In some of the recent interviews with the creators of HIMYM they confirm this thought (more or less). In the Platinum Rule, Ted say something about that being all with Dr. Stella for now…but I seriously doubt she is the mom…and here is why….
WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW SO FAR:
1. Her name. Now this is just a theory but it seems to be a pretty strong one. The mother’s name is Tracy…don’t believe me? Season 1 Episode 9, Belly Full of Turkey, at the end of the episode a “burlesque entertainment artist” approaches Ted and says what he did was sweet… She says “I’m Amber”…then says “Actually, I’m Tracy”… then future Ted’s (Bob Saget) voice pops in and says “And that kids is the true story of how I met your mother.”
The kids are blown away surprised. He does say he is kidding…however ponder this if you will…why would the kids even believe it for a moment if their mother’s name was not Tracy?
*Update: Here is some more info on the Tracy Theory.
2. They meet in New York. This is a slight assumption too, however in Lucky Penny he says if he wouldn’t have stayed in New York he would have never met her.
3. The Yellow Umbrella. Season 3 episode 1, Wait for It, Ted says, “Kids, there is more than one story of how I met your mother. You know the short version, the thing with your mom’s yellow umbrella…” So we don’t know much, but we do know there is a yellow umbrella involved (You can thank Captain Obvious for that one).
Also if this is your first time here be sure to check out the How I Met Your Mother Show Reviews for the latest info on “the mother”.
I’m a firm believer of the Tracy theory. I’ve been telling people that one since the first season aired.
I CAN’T WAIT for new episodes! I have to admit that I haven’t really kept track of the “mother” because I’m usually too busy laughing at something Barney says.
remember the same lucky penny episode
where robin n ted discuss who was actually responsible that they missed their flight(s)
robin and ted figure out the person responsible for them not making to chicago was who dropped the penny on the subway and can be traced only if he knew her
and ted said” I WISH I DID”
so person who dropped the penny is the mother
so we can try to conclude some thing abt the mother
a) her name is tracy
b) fond of coins
c) yellow umbrella
@neeraj…
You could have something there but I honestly feel as if that may be a bit of a stretch…I will re-watch the episode and get back to you on that.
I have my doubts about the Tracy theory. Even though she claimed her “real” name was Tracy, no dancer would give out a real name, so it is quite possible that was another fake. As far as the kids reaction, I know personally that if my dad told me he met my mother while she was stripping, my reaction would be utter disbelief for a moment before actually processing the information and thinking logically about it. I seriously doubt the writers would have wrote themselves into a corner by nailing down the name of the mother that early in the show.
Jason,
I can respect your theory doubts…but consider this:
1. There have already been instances of the writers writing themselves into a corner. Consider Ted’s 30th birthday and the goat. Despite the eventual ending of the episode, the writers still had to explain the goat on the birthday.
2. The dancer gave her “fake name” first (Amber) then said she was actually Tracy…either way, that wouldn’t matter so much as…
3. The kids reaction. This proves it beyond a doubt…because while yes, it would be shocking like that however, unbelievable if the name didn’t match.
For more info read this post: The Name Tracy Theory, and thanks for visiting.
One observation (also occurring in “lucky penny” was the comment that the person who got the job had to relocate to ORD “in 3 years” – this episode was set in 2006 – leading you to believe that if he had relocated (in 2009) he would not have met their mother…. So we can assume that he does not meet her until an episode that is set in 2009 or later.
I rarely find good TV but this show, two and a half men, rules of engagement and big bang are some of the absolute best on TV in a long long time.
Excellent observation Lee… I often wonder how much the writers mean to trap themselves into somethings (ex. the goat, Tracy, etc..) and how much the fans just pick up on and enforce as gospel?
Thanks for the visit!
Retraction time!!!!!!
Coincidentally, my TiVo recorded “lucky penny” sometime recently… My fiancee was watching it while I was reading the paper. I did however hone in on a couple of parts and noticed I was mistaken in my earlier post. And quite honestly the correct information is not near as interesting…
It was actually 2007 not 2006. and he said 3 MONTHS not 3 years. So that clearly makes it less of a revalation. Sorry for the confusion.
I think I MAY know what the mother looks like!
In season 3 episode 12 where ted goes to the saint patrick’s day party with barney, at the start of the episode ted says that the mother was at that party…. then later when he goes over to barney to tell him that ashlee is married he bumps into a girl says “oh im sorry” and she replies “thats ok”. Why would they put that bit in there if she was not the mother? Plus she kinda looks like the daughter!?
Thats my theory let me know what you think.
Me again!
I saw somthing else in the episode that kinda points to that girl ted bumps into being the mother, its not huge but i think its something…
At the start of the episode (season 3 episode 12) where they show the mother with her yellow umbrella going into the club, you can see if you look closely that she is wearing blue jeans, and guess what the girl ted bumps into is wearing?…. thats right BLUE JEANS!
again let me know what you guys think
Ok folks. At work today, I was watching the first episode of HIMYM on my new sweet, awesome iPod Classic 80gb. My job is quite lame, and I got a lot of time to spend.
Anyhow, about the Tracy-theory:
Robin is named several times, and even introduces herself. And yet at the end of the show, the kids are surprised that he talked about Robin.
Therefor, it leads me to the conclusion that future-Ted does not reveal the names of some of the people in the episodes.
Bam. Lawyered.
Wow..How did I miss all there comments!
@ Lee – thanks for the retraction. I suppose I should follow up on these things more instead of taking them as Gospel.
@Steve – I have read and discussed this with quite a few people on some different sites, and while we know that “the Mother” was at that party, very few people think the girl Ted bumps into is “the Mother.” Mainly because we believe the writers like screwing with us but also because though intense HDTV analysis many have concluded that the shoes of the “party bump” girl and “the yellow umbrella were different”…I think the jeans look different too but I digress. Good thoughts either way.
@Ludde kic….I’m not typing all that…anyways. – First off, congrats on having an awesome 80gb ipod…also on having a job like that; However, you should probably use it to watch the episode once more because throughout the entire episode Robin’s name is NEVER mentioned. Not during the intro, not during the news cast, nada, nill, nothing…(so much for lawyered…but good use of the phrase)
Also, in the episode “How I Met Everyone Else” from Season 3 he tries to remember a name and says he can’t so calls her “Bla Bla”, this shows that the names are important enough to make mention of not remembering/ mentioning one.
So I guess what I’m trying to say is…oh hold on, I need to make a call..
Hello, Leg factory?
Yea Ludde needs something to stand on…
What?!? Nothing for him to stand on.
Well thanks…
Hold on to your seats cuz ima about to drop some premium knowledge brau(bro)
It cant be the girl from the party because near the end of the episode ted says that their mother was at that party he just didn’t meet her, and hes lucky he didnt cuz she wouldn’t have liked him.
LAWYERED
@nahom…another good point to add to the “not the girl Ted bumps into” theory. I could get more technical but I’ll stand with just my original explanation earlier… This seems to keep coming up..Maybe time for an updated post.
Technically Ted did not meet the girl form the party, they just bumped into each other. The girl that he bumped into was wearing jeans and was carrying a burgandy pocketbook. I kept rewinding and viewing the beginning sequence that showed the girl with the yellow umbrella in line, the pants look close, though the girl in line appears to have baggy pants as opposed to the girl he bumps into. Also in the opening scene there is no clear view of the umbrella girl carrying a pocketbook.
now in the 1st episode
ted says” and there she was”, then a break…….
then barney breaks in and directly introduces him to robin……….
and we all know that barney has crush for robin and it could have been possible that he thought ted saw robin first, so as a wingman he should give robin to ted…….
so guys its possible that the mother was there in the first episode but not introduced…..
Then in second episode he says he was seeing robin and also in bla bla episode, but those statements could be made to make ppl believe that he had seen robin…..
Hey guys
What if those are not his kids?
Then Robin is not their mother and he marrys Robin.
Yepeee.
guys
there are three episodes which gave me an idea of flaws and may be an idea who the mother could be, ofcourse it can be a stretch but i’ve been watching himym quiet a lot lately….
season 2 episode 4- ted moseby architect
1. ted talks to a random girl in a bar, but never introduces himself…..
2. barney steps in and impresses the girl in his own way taking ted’s name….
3. barney and the girl end up sleeping together and barney says her name was anna, and while writing her name on the letter he forgets her name, so was her name really anna???
4. anna was brunette….
season 3 episode 14 bracket
1. there is a girl who is sabotaging barney’s deal with girls
2. he has problem remembering name, alan aulda or something which reminds him…
3. the search begins, and there are some dreadful reasons why a girl wold hate barney, but anna reason is not one that could take her to top 4….
4. barney remembers her name(strange)!!!!!
season 3 how we met each other episode
1. there seemed to be a lie/manipulation which was told by characters during their first meeting, barring robin and ted
2. if there was a lie/manipulation in ted meeting the mother then barney taking his name could be one………..
and the whole theory that the children had done a bit with the mother in season 2…..
I just noticed something in one of the episodes that might mean something? It stood out in my head as a clue with regards to who the ‘mother’ might be.. In season 3, episode 12 (the one about the St. Patrick’s day party and Ted taking the yellow umbrella at the end) he bumps into a woman at the club on his way to meet Barney at the bar – it seemed random because Ted and the mystery woman seem to share a little secret look and I don’t see how else him bumping into a stranger could have anything significant to do with the plot for that episode. What do you think?? We’re told that the ‘mother’ was at the party that night but Ted just didn’t meet her – maybe he only bumped into her? 😀
@rishlin:
I love that theory…thats what my angle is on the whole things, coz im really rooting for robin and ted and i honestly cant imagine anyone who would be awesome enough to be accepted by the audience (thats what its about)…so I was looking all over for the scences of 2030, coz I’m pretty sure one of the kids says “Dad” at one point…couldnt find them…does anyone else have evident for or against that theory?
To paula & rishlin:
I had offerred this supposition to people over the years (more as a gotcha)… I would half jokingly say, “just because he calls them ‘kids’ and says ‘your mother’ doesn’t mean he is the father.” I also believed that supported the theory he could marry Robin.
HOWEVER I was watching sometime this year and do not have the recall to cite the episode – BUT, Ted is called “Dad” at some point by the kids. That shot my theory to hell…
It did not occur to me to post it here since I had not seen anyone else sharing that theory – plus hate publicly admitting when I am wrong!
i’m watching this show religiously… and in all honesty… i don’t think we have seen the mother yet, the writers are just messing with us. making us think we have.
I have to agree with some of you that the whole mother thing still could be aunt robin and uncle ted
I’ve just recently became a fan after getting the 3 season box set. I’m so intrigued by this storyline!!!
The “Tracy Theory” makes sense. The “Ted not the Kids Dad” makes sense too. I’m not too sure about the girl he bumped into at the St. Patty’s Day Party.
I want to bring up one awkward moment in Season 2. I would have to go back and watch it again, but I recall a moment at the bar where Ted & Barney were talking to each other. And there were 2 girls right behind Ted with their backs turned. It was awkward because while Ted & Barney were having this conversation, the camera seems to be focusing on these 2 girls. Did anyone get that feeling too?
I will need to get back to you guys on this!
alright so the st. patrick day theory doesn’t hold cause if you look at what the “mother” is wearing in the beginning, baggy blue jeans, no clutch, and also you can see that she isn’t wearing a low cut top (take it frame by frame and you can see wear the skin ends, t-shirt, then coat.)
i could be wrong cause i just noticed that at the end when he goes to grab the yellow umbrella there’s a clutch on the chair that’s the came color and type as the one the girl he bumped into was carrying.
maybe in a future episode when they meet, they just missed each other when she went back to get her things…recognizes her umbrella…icebreaker?!?
update: ted is the father. first season, second episode, two minutes in: Future Ted tells kids how he said “I love you” to Robin on first date. Daughter says “Oh DAD!”
LAWYERED!! To Everyone with the Uncle Theory!
Thanks kidani! I have been meaning to look more into the uncle theory because I honestly just didn’t believe it… I mean I love LOST and all but that plot line is way to far fetched for HIMYM.
In the pilot in the first five minutes future ted says “back before I was Dad…” so the uncle theory is a no go.
But let’s all keeep in mind that many shows go back on earlier canonical material when it actually becomes successful.
another thing – kinda supporting the robin-theory against everything else – at the end of the super-ball episode ted makes a generell statement about how you can still enjoy something although you know how it’s gonna end…so if you think about the whole story it’s always leading to robin and ted…i dont know how, but i still have hope that their is a weird twisted way in which it is possible 😉
and more…considering the similarity between robin, her little sister (who looks like a young robin-version) and the daughter in 2030 sitting on the couch…how could it now be robin!?
I always wonder if we’re being played by the producers. As in: Maybe he and Robin did get married and the kids aren’t his. He always seems to (as far as my memory goes) refers to it as “your mother,” and not necessarily “my wife,” at least not in the flash-forwards.
Lots of stuff to reply to so here I go.
– is the girls Ted bumps into at the bar the mother? Maybe but I doubt it, I lean to towards “the writers are goofin’ with us” theory. I’ve listed my reason’s before and I shall not do it again here.
– the Uncle Ted Theory… this is total crap and I’ll tell you why, besides the other reasons that people have listed go re-watch “Season 2 Episode 1 – Where Were We?” at the very beginning Ted’s DAUGHTER says: “DAD can we just skip ahead to the part where you meet MOM?” …That would be a true use of the word lawyered. But this is fun, I love researching the theories.
Tell me what you think ?
In the episode where Barney succeds in taking Ted at the Saint Patrick’s Club Party, ted says to his kids that its that night he met their mother. I truly believe that the future mom is that one girl he bumps into just before reaching for the bar where Barney is standing with the girl he finally hooks up with.
Any comments ?
( French Fan of HIMYM)
i think ted and robin end up together, it is inevitable thats the engine of the show. whether robins name isnt robin and “robin” is the name of some other chick in media thats friends with robin is a bit of a stretch and debatable. More than likely Ted is telling this story to the kids because they wondered what went wrong between ted and their mother and how they ended up split up. Either way ted and robin will be together in the end… im such a ted
okay, so I COMPLETELY agree with whoever said that the mother is the girl he bumps into at the St. Patrick’s Day party. At the beginning, when she is waiting to get into the club, under her umbrella you can see that she is wearing blue jeans. Then, is it really necessary for the show that Ted bumps into that woman? but oh.. what is this! the woman is wearing BLUE JEANS!!! I’m so convinced that woman is the mom! If not, writers, you suck!
@bob… not to be mean, but have you read through all the info in the post and the comments? Nothing points to the Ted and Robin end up together theory other than a few fans who blindly want it to happen but won’t let the idea go! … plus how weird would it be for Ted to be telling how things went wrong with the mom and then keep calling Robin, Aunt Robin!
It is definitely not a robin… but somewhere on the web i found sth about wendy the weitress, but thats probably bullshit.
Do u think 5th season will end the show???
guys, I am TED MOSBY, SEX ARCHITECT!!! and I can without a doubt confirm that the MOTHER of my kids is…….my wife!
ITS TOTALLY VICTORIA!!! COME ON NOW……
Alright, not an answer as to who the mother is, but certainly an interesting idea. When older Ted talks to his kids, yes HIS kids, he always refers to the mother as “your mother”. He never once says “my wife”. What are the odds that the kids’ mother is NOT Ted’s wife? Maybe a one-night-stand? He’s explaining to his kids how he met THEIR mother, kind of like, sorry it happened this way, but… (Could this be the first time he’s meeting them and decides to explain things a little? Unfortunately, as I wrote this I realized that since they call him “Dad”, it’s probably not the FIRST time, but you see my point?) Now I know some are going to read this and say “one-night-stand? There’s two kids!” Can they not be twins? When are their ages ever mentioned? Don’t they look at least similar in age? I think that the whole storyline of Ted trying to find a wife is not necessarily the same story of how Ted met his kids’ mother. Ideas?
Me again! To some of those out there rooting for Ted and Robin to get married, it might be possible (but I am completely open to debate this). Take this as an example: Ted may have children with a woman, whether he marries her, never get married but live together, or just a one-night-stand went wrong as I suggested above. Providing that one woman is NOT Robin (as it can’t be due to the whole “Aunt Robin” thing), can’t Ted and Robin still get married? The mother isn’t Robin. Say the kids then live with their mother (whoever that may be), and NOT Ted. Ted visits or something and tells the story to HIS kids. Robin, being married to Ted, would be considered what to the kids then? Is it possible they call her “Aunt Robin” as nothing more than a term of endearment similar to how one might call an old friend of a parent?
Another theory (I’ve had too many and I just found out about this forum): How literal could the “Aunt Robin” be taken? Could the mother actually be Robin’s sister? I know she’s pretty younger than Ted, but isn’t it at least possible? Maybe it’s a LITERAL “Aunt Robin”… Besides, who can say without any hesitation that the kids DON’T look like Robin at least a little?
Go ahead now, bash my theories! I’m open to it
The theory about the kids being twins is absolute nonesense (or it would be a mistake by the editors again) because I have just read the script oft the pilote where it says that the boy is 14 and the girl 16, so i doubt that it was only a one-night stand. The theory about Robin’s sister being the mother sounds logical, but I think that the producers would not make it that easy for us to figure out, who the mom is (and by the way Lilly is called “Aunt Lilly” as well, so it could also be her sister)
My personal theory is that we never really saw the mother , except under her umbrella because the producers just need a broader freedom to make up some new stories to produce some more episodes. In the end they will show up with a constructed seemingly logical explanation of who the mother is, and we have no other chance but to wait for this day. (I think they neither know who the mom will be)
But I also hope that he might be married to Robin in the end, although she is not the mother of the kids (which would be kind of sad for the kids, when thinking bout it little longer ;))
Like I said Ted and Robin will end up together. Ted will not be with the mother of his kids. We know names have been changed in the show already, and lots of stuff has been misremembered. Sit Coms are not rocket science, they might go the friends route and make crazy things happen (joey and rachel = barney/robin) but we knew from the beginning rachel and ross would end up together. People like their comfort zones. And im not the one who is blindly rooting for Ted and Robin, but if you can see the outcome ahead of time it seems fairly logical to point it out. This show is not about the writing, albeit it has solid writing, but about the chemistry between the gang. Do not expect some crazy mind blowing finale where every clue falls in place. Its a sitcom, and a damn good one.
p.s. ted & robin 4 eva xxxooo
Great read so far. Thanks.
@Bob, this bit is great….. More than likely Ted is telling this story to the kids because they wondered what went wrong between ted and their mother and how they ended up split up
I really think Bob’s angle is interesting. Also, I haven’t seen the party episode so I must watch that. Not expecting anything so obvious though. I read somewhere that the writers did have a plan for the whole thing. Who knows? After George Lucas saying the whole Star Wars story was all planned at the very start, it’s made me not necessarily believe this kind of thing.
there is a slight possiblity in the tracy theory because of the way the kids react, but also observ to the way they react to other names such as “aunt robin” also another thing on the aunt robin am sure she will recognise her own sister in a strip club.
there is an episode in season three were future ted says listen closly now kids in this story i meet your mother but only for a second. ted is in a party an he bumps into a lady there i strongly believe this is the mother and it is a different person to tracy.
@tony, The “Tracy Theory” never states that the stripper was the mother, only that the mother’s name is Tracy
if they already know their mothers name why do they react only when ted says thats the true story on how i mer your mother