There is a question that has had practically all of America hanging on the edge of their seats for over eight years. How will Ted Mosby meet the mother of his children?

“How I Met Your Mother,” a CBS sitcom which first aired in 2005, promised to answer just what its title advertises. However, it has spent its sweet time giving every excruciating detail on how main character Ted Mosby finally met the love of his life.

Is anyone complaining? Certainly not. While it’s probably the longest story, the kind you hope your parents will never tell, it has left viewers with a lovable, unforgettable cast and more laughs than they will ever remember having.

The series has certainly had its fair share of twists and turns as well as ups and downs in the eight seasons it has been running.

Audiences have eagerly followed the lives of super couple Marshall and Lily, played by Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan; playboy and catchphrase extraordinaire Barney, played by Neil Patrick Harris; beautiful and tough as nails Robin, played by Cobie Smulders; and of course the unlucky in love but still hopeful Ted, played by Josh Radnor.

The show has certainly left its mark in the pop culture world, leaving it with such popular phrases like “legend-wait for it-dary!”, the bro code and a whole plethora of outrageous rules and slogans. “Lemon Law” and “Mermaid Theory” anyone?

The show has been a constant presence at the Emmy Awards ever since its premiere. Its most shining success was Neil Patrick Harris being nominated numerous of times for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. The show has made such an imprint in television history that its popularity has been compared to that of “Friends” and “Seinfeld.”

So what can fans expect for the ninth and final season? The mother!

Last year’s season finale finally gave audiences a glimpse at the elusive mother played by the fairly unknown actress Cristin Milioti.

The scene only lasted for a few moments, at the end of the episode where we see her buy a ticket to the town Barney and Robin are getting married in. This can only lead to answer the question of all questions, how did Ted meet the mother of his children? But in typical “HIMYM” fashion, it’s not going to be so simple.

Access Hollywood gave away some hints about the upcoming season; one that particularly jumped out was that Ted may not even meet his future bride to be until the last episode. In fact, her name may not even be mentioned until then.

This seems a bit daring as Milioti was promoted to a series regular this season, the only character in the history of the show to be given the title outside of the core group.

But Access also hints that while she and Ted’s meeting will be a while away that doesn’t mean the same can be said for the rest of the cast. A promo recently released by CBS shows that Lily is the first to encounter her and there’s a train ride and cookies involved.

The final season kicks off Sept. 23 in its usual time slot at 8 p.m. on Monday nights. Besides promising to answer the obvious question, the series has several other loose ends to tie up as well.

Will Ted leave New York for Chicago? How will Marshall and Lily decide whose promising future career is more important than the others? And how exactly will Barney and Robin’s wedding play out, if they even get married?

The whole of the season’s 24 episodes are supposed to cover only two days, Barney and Robin’s wedding weekend, with flashbacks and flash forwards included. Sound jam-packed? Co-creator Craig Thomas promised at Comic-con, “Season nine, it’s the Wild West, anything can happen.”