Mark Consuelos has had a lot of roles in his 50 years on the planet.
Star of now-defunct daytime soap opera All My Children. Roles on American Horror Story, Kingdom and The Night Shift (just to name a few). Resident zaddy on Riverdale.
But, as he'd likely tell you himself, none of these gigs even hold a candle to the role of father to his three children with wife Kelly Ripa. After meeting on the set of AMC in 1995—where her Hayley Vaughan fell in love with his Mateo Santos—life imitated art, and the two eloped on May 1, 1996. A year later, they welcomed their first child, son Michael Joseph. Daughter Lola Grace would arrive in 2001, followed by Joaquin Antonio in 2003.
As their kids have blossomed into young adults themselves, with mom sharing stories about their lives on daily television all along the way, the Ripa-Consuelos household has grown into something of a national obsession. Maybe it's their startling good looks or their charming charisma. Maybe it's just the way Lola isn't afraid to read her parents to filth on the internet.
Or maybe it's just the way they seem to truly, deeply love one another.
"We had our kids so young—we'd only been married for one year when we had Michael, so we have had kids pretty much our entire marriage," Kelly told People last August. "So when it comes to an empty nest, we're looking forward to it, honestly—knowing that they'll still be close to us, and they will come home, and we will still have plenty of times together ahead. We love each other—but we also really like each other, and we respect each other. I don't think any amount of college or growing up will take that away from us."
Whatever it is, we can't get enough.
So, wee thought we'd celebrate Mark's big day with a look back at some of his family's cutest moments.
This story was originally published on Friday, Oct. 2, 2020 at 9:20 a.m. PT.