The Untold Truth Of Kelly Ripa's Kids

Kelly Ripa is both hilarious and honest when it comes to speaking her mind about mothering. After all, many women will agree that motherhood can truly be a challenge. "I think children are like pancakes," the Live with Kelly and Ryan talk show host has been quoted saying. "You sort of ruin the first one, and you get better at it the second time around."

She also shared, "Around the time [Michael] was born we'd just bought one of those widescreen TVs, which were all the rage then. And we walked out of the store with, like, a 6,000-page manual on how to work the thing," Ripa told WebMD. "The hospital, on the other hand, gave us a leaflet that said things like, 'When the baby is hungry, feed him. When he's tired, put him to bed.' Incredible, right?"

While Ripa got her start in the entertainment industry as a young actress on All My Children, her children have given the mother of three loads of wisdom to pass along to fans. From the funny to the serious — and everything in between — this is the untold truth of Kelly Ripa's kids.

Kelly Ripa's kids all have stories behind their names

Kelly Ripa had always wanted to name her future son Joaquin, so when she had a baby boy, she and her husband, actor Mark Consuelos, were prepared. Unfortunately, before his birth on June 2, 1997, both of Consuelos' grandfathers tragically passed away. "We lost them before they got a chance to meet Michael, so we named Michael after both of his grandparents," Ripa explained on her talk show, Live with Kelly and Ryan.

Four years later, in June 2001, Ripa and her husband were excitedly expecting another baby. When she went into labor, they immediately hopped in a New York taxi and headed for the hospital without a name for their baby in mind. Luckily, the ride there provided them with some much needed insight. "Lola was named, because I was in labor and 'Copacabana' by Barry Manilow was playing in the cab," Ripa said. "And 'Her name was Lola! She was a showgirl!'" From there, the name stuck.

On February 24, 2003, Ripa gave birth to her third child, a son who she and her husband were finally able to name Joaquin Consuelos (via PopSugar).

A psychic predicted Kelly Ripa was pregnant with Lola

Kelly Ripa, who's had a stunning transformation over the years, is known for divulging hilarious stories about her children on her talk show Live with Kelly and Ryan, but, during one of her first appearances on the show, more information about her family was shared than she anticipated. In fact, she didn't even work full-time on the show yet!

In 2000, Kelly Ripa was invited to try out as a co-host. That day, psychic Char Margolis was a guest on the show. When the psychic medium began communicating with Ripa's grandmother in the spirit world, Ripa burst into tears. Margolis explained to the young star how her grandmother would always be watching over her family. "She's also showing me another baby," the psychic added. "She's saying that she's going to watch over you when this new baby comes. It's soon. It's not far away. You're not pregnant, are you?"

Ripa was stunned and seemed to quickly shut down on stage. She began laughing as she answered with, "I haven't told my boss yet!" Luckily, it made her so memorable that she was immediately hired as the new co-host, as noted by The Washington Post. That's one way to make a pregnancy announcement!

Kelly's kids had a strict cell phone policy growing up

For a woman who's spent her life working in media, Kelly Ripa surprisingly had a pretty strict Internet and cell phone policy for her kids growing up. She even knew the passcodes to their cell phones, as Ripa shared on The Wendy Williams Show"Parents should never allow kids to surf the Net without supervision," Ripa told WebMD. "Guide them and set limits. They won't like it. But you wouldn't allow a young child to walk down the street alone."

As a kid growing up in the '70s and '80s, Ripa believes that times were much simpler for her parents than they are for parents raising kids today. "There was so much less stimulation then, more freedom. And we were content with less. Kids today are much savvier," she said.

So savvy that even when Ripa does have to ground one of her kids and take away their cell phone — which isn't allowed to be in the room during homework time — the fight doesn't end there. "You still have to toss the room, because they have hidden devices," Ripa explained on her show. "I don't know where they come from!"

Kelly Ripa doesn't care if her kids like her

When Kelly Ripa's daughter, Lola Consuelos, became a teenager, she wasn't happy with the strict rules her mom had in place. "I don't think she likes me," Ripa admitted on The Wendy Williams Show. "But I don't care. I'm not your friend. I'm your mom."

All parents want their children to like them, and sometimes it seems like the easiest thing to do when a child is throwing a tantrum is to give in. However, Ripa advises parents to take a step back and really think about the future first. "Basically, it's my philosophy that doing the easy thing in the short term makes it harder for parents in the long run," she told WebMD. "Giving in when you want to say 'no' may quiet things down momentarily, but you'll just have more of the same — and then some — down the road."

Though Ripa always comes across as having a fun-loving personality on television, it's obvious to see that she's not afraid to set down rules for her children at home. "My kids understand that we love them no matter what," she said. "And they also know that 'no' means no."

Kelly Ripa's kid Michael is an actor

Kelly Ripa's oldest son, Michael Consuelos, seems to be following in his famous father's footsteps. In 2018, acting was something he wanted to pursue. It also happened to be a time when Riverdale, a show his dad Mark Consuelos stars in, was looking to cast a younger version of his character. Who else could be more perfect for the part than his son?

However, the crew required Michael to audition first. "That was the part I was most nervous about," he admitted on Live with Kelly and Ryan. The young actor thought it should be no problem getting the part considering he inherited half his looks from his father, but he was shocked when he entered the audition room. "Everyone there looked like my dad," he said. "Even more like my dad than me."

"You quickly figured it out," Ripa replied, "you're a dime a dozen. Welcome to Hollywood!"

Luckily, Michael received the role and appeared in a Season 3 episode and has had a knack to act ever since. Like father, like son.

Kelly Ripa's kid Lola is camera shy

Kelly Ripa's middle child, Lola Consuelos, is not a fan of the spotlight like her mother. When she appeared on an episode of Live with Kelly and Ryan in 2017, Ripa divulged that she was afraid her daughter wouldn't even show up. Luckily, she did. However, "I'm so nervous," was the first thing she said to her mom as she appeared on screen.

Being a celebrity in the 21st century, Ripa is no stranger to social media. Any fan scrolling through Instagram can see various photos of her showing off her three kids, but Lola wishes her mother would take down photos of her. "She's like, 'You take it down right now!'" Ripa once shared of her daughter's reaction to her Instagram posts, as reported by Us Weekly. "'My friends follow you for some reason, and they will see this!'"

It's understandable that every mother wants to proudly show off their kids, so she wishes Lola would let her. "It's so bizarre. I'm never allowed to post a photo of her — ever," Ripa added. "Why did I have these kids if not to exploit them on social media?"

Kelly Ripa's daughter, Lola, can sing!

Though Lola Consuelos seems to be pretty shy when it comes to hopping in front of a camera, she may pursue a career in the entertainment business after all. She posted to her own Instagram account an incredible video showcasing her voice in December 2019. Though viewers couldn't catch a clear glimpse of her face in the video, she confidently showed off her serious singing skills, and the video drew major attention from many big stars — including one very close to her. "You are gifted," her proud mama posted in the comments.

Turns out, Kelly Ripa's daughter has pursued music as her college major at New York University. Even though she is eager to showcase her talent over social media, it seems that's the most Kelly Ripa, along with the world, will get to hear of her otherwise private daughter's work. "I've been on her because she has been working on this project," Ripa said on her talk show (via People). "I was like, 'I want you to send me your rough draft of your song. I want to hear what you've laid down so far.' And she's been kind of blowing me off and not responding." Kids, right?

Joaquin is the rumored favorite of Kelly Ripa's kids

The baby of any family almost always gets labeled as the family favorite, and, for the Consuelos family, that seems to be no different. "That's the rumor," Kelly Ripa's youngest son, Joaquin Consuelos, admitted when asked about it on his mom's show in 2018. "And that rumor — I think there's a lot of speculation involved in that, but from what I know from the many 15 years I've been in the family, I can say that that is most likely true."

Joaquin's older sister, Lola Consuelos agrees, and explained that it might have to do something with the fact that both he and their mom enjoy staying active, and this is a hobby they can bond over while doing together. "Michael would agree with me," Kelly Ripa's daughter said on her mom's show.

So what is Ripa's response to this? "I don't have favorites," she laughed, as she addressed the rumor on Live with Kelly and Ryan. "I only have least favorites."

Kelly Ripa's kids are all close

Sure, siblings are notoriously known for fighting and never getting along when they're together, but, when Kelly Ripa and her husband, Mark Consuelos, moved their daughter into her college dorm at New York University in 2019, they were shocked to see just how much her sons cared for their sis. "They really are very, very close, and I didn't realize how close they were until it was time to say goodbye," Ripa shared on her show.

The mother of three thinks it may have to do with how close her daughter and youngest son, Joaquin Consuelos, are in age. "It's one of those things that you don't realize how close [they are] — the younger two are really close in age, like, I didn't even know I was pregnant with the third one because I was still nursing the second one," Ripa admitted (via People), so moving Lola into her dorm seemed to be too much for her youngest to take. She noted that Joaquin got "overwhelmed" and fell asleep on his sister's bed. At least he can rest assured his sister is only a short way away from home while at NYU!

Kelly Ripa's kids have to pave their own way

Though Kelly Ripa's kids grew up on her nearly $20 million salary (via Forbes) — not to mention their famous father Mark Consuelos' no-doubt impressive finances — Ripa wants them to work for their money. When her oldest son, Michael, left for college, she told Jimmy Kimmel Live, "He hates paying his own rent, and he is chronically poor."

When her daughter got to college, she seemed to find a way around this. "We signed her up for a meal program," Ripa, who herself eats well each day, explained on her talk show (via USA Today), adding, "But, you know, she doesn't like the meals at school, so she was ordering Postmates." When Ripa saw this on her bank statement, she immediately cut her off. "We shut down that debit card account she had!" she said, as reported by People

Overall, Ripa wants her kids to work for what they want, just like she and her husband did to break into the acting business. When her son Michael's acting career was taking off, her co-host Ryan Seacrest offered him a place to stay in Hollywood, but she wouldn't allow it. "That's too nice," Ripa told him. "You need to struggle."

Kelly Ripa wants her kids to learn this language

When Lola Consuelos was in high school, Kelly Ripa admitted that Spanish was not her daughter's strongest subject. However, the teen had to get good grades in the class, especially with her father being of Latino descent. Ripa would say to her, "You're half Mexican," as she explained on The Wendy Williams Show. She continued, "Your grandmother is a Spanish teacher. You're not allowed to fail Spanish. It's the one thing you're not allowed to do."

However, Lola's father, actor Mark Consuelos, had a confession to make. "I don't speak Spanish," he told Recap Rewind. "I'm Mexican and Italian. I was born in Spain, but my mom's Italian, and we moved to Italy soon after that. I think I was in Spain for two weeks, and my first language is Italian, so when I do try to speak Spanish, it always comes out a little wonky."  

The actor admitted he learned a lot more Spanish since playing his Latino character on Riverdale, but it probably would be even more helpful to both him and his daughter if they became Spanish study buddies!

Kelly Ripa's son Joaquin is dyslexic

While learning any foreign language can be difficult, learning a language while battling dyslexia can be even more of a struggle. This reading disorder, along with dysgraphia, is something that Kelly Ripa's youngest son, Joaquin, has dealt with his entire life. "School has always been a very, very big challenge for us in our household," Ripa admitted on her show, as reported by PopSugar. However, when she started sending their son to a school that specializes in helping those with dyslexia, they saw immediate changes. "He's getting straight A's," she said.

Prior to that, Ripa had shared that, when Joaquin was 9 years old, her son had started doing so well with his studies that he got an opportunity to choose what his classmates were reading. "If you master so many books, you can bring in a book of your choice, and the teacher will read the book out loud to the class," Ripa explained on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Unfortunately, he took Stephen Colbert's book that Ripa had recently promoted on her talk show — and it wasn't so appropriate for kids. He came home and told Ripa his teacher wouldn't finish reading it, and she was mortified when she found out why. 

"Nowadays, parents are so careful, and they're so good at parenting. I became that mom," she said. Whoops!

Kelly Ripa wishes all her kids lived further away

Kelly Ripa wants her kids to pave their own way, and she also wishes they lived much, much further away too. Her two oldest children, Michael and Lola, have attended New York University, which is located close to their family home. "When he [Michael] left his freshman year, I was very concerned," Ripa admitted on Jimmy Kimmel Live. "I didn't think the kids should live in the city where they grew up. I felt like they needed an experience."

So when her daughter started looking at colleges, they visited various campuses throughout the country. "They were, both of them, adamant for different reasons why they wanted to go to NYU," Ripa explained. "So I said, 'Well, then you're going to be like other kids and come home when it's regular visiting hours like Thanksgiving, Christmas — that's it.'"

It's important to Ripa that her children experience what life is like away from home and learn to cope as independent and self-sufficient adults. However, with the close proximity, she finds her two children visiting home quite often. As for her youngest child, Joaquin, Ripa said, "He's not allowed to even apply to NYU."

Kelly Ripa enjoys embarrassing her kids

Anyone who watches an episode of Live with Kelly and Ryan will frequently see the oh-so-honest Kelly Ripa telling stories about her kids, and quite often she enjoys divulging some very embarrassing stories about them.

For instance, when it was time for Lola's high school holiday concert, her school's choir director invited parents up on stage to sing the chorus. Ripa explained on her show how she tried to get her husband to go up with her. "I said, 'Mark, let's do it! Let's storm the stage!' He's like, 'She would die,'" Ripa laughed. "I go, 'I know!'"

Another time, Ripa made her teenage daughter answer the front door early one day only to discover that Nick Jonas was on the other side. "Lola turns and starts screaming, 'How can you have me open the door when you know I look rachet?'" Ripa said.

Most mothers love sharing these types of hilarious stories with their close friends. Unfortunately for Kelly Ripa's kids, their embarrassing stories get shared with the nation. However, the mother of three is just proud to show off her children. "Our kids — well, they're our hearts," she told WebMD.