Yahoo News Kelly Ripa Celebrates Son Joaquin’s 17th Birthday: 'I'm in Total Denial'
Kelly Ripa‘s youngest son turned 17 on Monday, and the Live with Kelly and Ryan host isn’t taking it well.
“I’m in total denial,” Ripa, 49, lamented on Monday’s show, after referring to Joaquin as her “newborn.”
Joaquin is one of three children Ripa shares with husband Mark Consuelos, and the only one still living at home (son Michael, 22, lives on his own while daughter Lola, 18, is attending New York University). And though Joaquin is fairly grown up himself, Ripa said she still sees him as her baby.
“When I look at him, he’s still so cuddly and sweet,” she told co-host Ryan Seacrest. “He has a big heart. Nice kid, very, very sweet.”
In fact, that’s something Ripa’s had to tackle with all her kids. “Everybody goes, ‘Eventually, they stop being affectionate.’ And they do but our kids, they’re still affectionate,” she said.
RELATED: Kelly Ripa Reveals Son Joaquin Broke His Nose Wrestling — But Still Won the Match
RELATED: Kelly Ripa Reveals She Cried ‘Tears of Joy’ Watching Old Home Movies of Daughter Lola
They’re also all still close. On Sunday, the whole family of five got together to celebrate Joaquin’s birthday, seeing the matinee of A Soldier’s Play on Broadway before heading out to dinner at a steakhouse.
The plans were all Joaquin’s idea. “He chose his celebration… he wanted to go see this play,” Ripa said of the production, which stars Blair Underwood, David Alan Grier and Jerry O’Connell.
“It is so good,” she added of the show. “[It has] powerhouse performances from top to bottom, you have your breath sucked way. It’s still so relevant, even though it takes place so long ago. I highly encourage you [to go].”
As for party plans on Monday, Ripa said it’ll be a smaller celebration for Joaquin. “He’s going to have his favorite chili for dinner,” Ripa said. “Tonight it’s just us because his brother and sister went back to school, so they’re not here. Mark is home, daddy’s here. Which is nice.”
RELATED: Kelly Ripa Shares Throwback Photo of Family Hiking Trip in Arizona with Her In-Laws
RELATED: Kelly Ripa Shares Throwback Photo of ‘Daddy’ Mark Consuelos in Hawaii — with Baby Lola!
Elsewhere on Monday’s Live, Ripa recalled Joaquin’s birth story.
“He was actually born at 9:31 a.m.,” Ripa said. “I checked into the hospital because Joaquin — my first two kids were unintentional c-sections. Not scheduled, not planned. … By the third child, we just scheduled the c-section.”
That scheduled date allowed Ripa to be prepared in a way she hadn’t been before.
“We knew what day he was going to be born, so I rolled in there with a blowout. Hair done, nails looking good, for the first time ever,” she said. “The other two met me, I looked crazy. Joaquin met me and was like, ‘Whoa, are you my mom? You’re so glamorous!’ “
Happy 17th birthday champ. We love you ♥️♥️♥️♥️🏋️♂️🤼♀️!
A post shared by Mark Consuelos (@instasuelos) on Feb 24, 2020 at 5:48am PST
Meanwhile, on social media, both Ripa and Consuelos shared messages of love to Joaquin.
“Happy 17th birthday Joaquin! ♥️♥️ with all my love!” Ripa wrote, captioning a nearly 4-minute video of photos of Joaquin throughout the years. “This is your life my newborn, or at least what i have stored on my phone 😂😍🎂🎂🎂🎂.”
“Happy 17th birthday champ,” Mark said on his post, captioning a gallery of his own pics. “We love you ♥️♥️♥️♥️🏋️♂️🤼♀️!”
During an appearance on PEOPLE Now earlier this month, Ripa said she and Consuelos have big plans for next year when they’re officially empty nesters.
“We’re going to be totally naked at all times! We’re going to change the locks!” she joked. “People are like, ‘Oh you’re going to miss the kids.’ I’m like, ‘I don’t know… I want to experiment with it…’ “
