Kelly Ripa paid a loving tribute to her youngest son Joaquin in celebration of his 20th birthday by sharing a series of adorable throwback photos to her Instagram Stories on Friday.
The talented TV personality, 52, additionally captioned some of the snaps with sweet captions, which include, “Happy birthday baby!”.
The talk show host also shares son Michael, 25, and daughter Lola, 21, with her husband and Riverdale actor Mark Consuelos, 51, with whom she tied the knot in 1996.
The All My Children alum will soon become a permanent co-host alongside his wife after Ryan Seacrest announced his departure from LIVE, renaming the show Live With Kelly And Mark.
In one recent upload, Kelly could be seen smiling happily for the camera as she paused for a quick selfie with Joaquin, who was wearing a University of Michigan sweatshirt in a nod to the college he’s currently attending.
Sweet tribute: Kelly Ripa, 52, shared a series of throwback snaps to her Instagram Stories on Friday to mark her son Joaquin’s 20th birthday
Throwback: One of the photos featured a younger Joaquin sitting in a seat and sharing a quick smile with the caption ‘Happy Birthday’ over the image
Ripa also donned the school colors to show her support, sporting a black puffer jacket along with a bright yellow sweatshirt underneath.
Joaquin held up his hand to show a large ring on his finger, which he received after competing in his university’s wrestling championship, held in October last year.
A few other snaps had been taken when he was younger, and the actress added the number ’20’ to celebrate her son turning a year older.
In another photo, Kelly could be seen hugging her youngest child and planting a gentle kiss on his head while surrounded by nature and numerous budding rose bushes.
The proud mother-of-three also uploaded a cute pic of her husband Mark Joaquin hugging from behind while they both smile happily. “Happy birthday Joaquin,” she added in a quick caption at the bottom of the photo.
During a recent episode of Live With Kelly And Ryan that aired on Friday, the blonde beauty gushed, per People, “Today is my son’s 20th birthday. The newborn.’
Adding that she watched “home videos” that were recorded when her kids were much younger, she explained, “When I look at him, when I look at them, that’s how I see them. Only now they are much bigger.”
Ryan then quizzed his co-host about parenting, asking, “Is it going to be over in the blink of an eye? I know it’s a long journey,” which prompted her to admit, “No, it’s lightning. It’s one minute.’
Growing up: A few other snaps were taken when he was younger and the actress added the number ’20’ to celebrate the special day
Proud mom: During a recent episode of Live With Kelly And Ryan that aired on Friday, the blonde beauty gushed, per People, “Today is my son’s 20th birthday. The newborn
Memorable moments: In another photo, Kelly could be seen hugging her youngest child and planting a gentle kiss on his head while surrounded by budding rose bushes
Father-son duo: The proud mother-of-three also uploaded a cute pic, which features her husband Mark hugging Joaquin from behind while they both smile happily
During an interview with E! News’ Daily Pop, Ripa recalled a humorous moment when she and Mark flew to Michigan to cheer on Joaquin during a wrestling match.
“We came to see one of our son’s sporting events at the University of Michigan and all we did was approach him,” she said.
“We’re like, ‘Oh, I’ll meet you at your dorm.’ And he’s like, ‘You can’t meet me at my dorm and you can’t be outside. And put your masks on your face. And no one can know we’re together,'” the TV personality jokingly added.
The beauty added to the publication that her children sometimes find both herself and her husband “lame and old and embarrassing and humiliating.”
Some of the most recent snaps shared on her Instagram stories featured another loving throwback photo of her son and Mark posing for a quick photo during an outing in the Big Apple.
The star also ended the birthday party with both of Joaquin’s recent daytime photos and a snap of all three of their children together in the past.
Amid a 2021 episode of Live with Kelly and Ryan, she opened up about the feelings she felt dropping off her youngest child at college in Michigan.
“We dropped him off at school and we hugged him, it was really brutally painful,” she recalled, according to People.
Goodbye teenage years: She added on Live With Kelly And Ryan that she watched “home videos” that were recorded when her kids were much younger, explaining: “When I look at him, when I look at them, I see so you. Only now they are much bigger’
In the past: Some of the most recent snaps shared to her Instagram Stories featured another loving throwback photo of her son and Mark posing for a quick photo during an outing in the Big Apple
Happy family: The star also ended the birthday party with both of Joaquin’s recent daytime photos and a snap of all three of their children together in the past
Funny: The beauty told E! News’ Daily Pop that her children sometimes find both herself and her husband “lame and old and embarrassing and humiliating.”
‘And I said, ‘I didn’t know 18 years would go by so quickly.’ And he didn’t say anything, he just hugged me,” Kelly said. “But he turned to walk away and I said, ‘Wait, Joaquin, one more!’ And he went on. And I knew it happened to him too, the emotion.”
“It’s one of those things you can never be ready for,” added the talented star. “We’ve done it before, but the other two stayed in New York, so we knew they were there, even though their visits weren’t as frequent as we thought.”
While ringing in their son’s 20th birthday, Kelly and her husband also celebrated a new milestone together.
Following Ryan Seacrest’s announcement that he will be leaving LIVE after co-hosting the show for six years, it was also announced that Ripa’s husband Mark will take his place. The actor has appeared on the talk show occasionally in the past, with those episodes receiving high ratings.
During an interview with Us Weekly published on Wednesday, the actress excitedly explained, “We figured that since we started our careers together, we might as well finish them together.”
The two lovebirds crossed paths on ABC’s All My Children in 1995 and tied the knot the following year.
A milestone: Mark will join his wife as permanent co-host on LIVE and rebrand the talk show as Live With Kelly And Mark after Ryan Seacrest’s exit, which will take place after the spring season; the couple was seen in NYC in September 2022
Respect: Ryan announced his departure during an episode that aired on February 16, and gushed that his experience was “bittersweet” and that he “looks up” to his co-host. The duo was seen in June 2021 hosting the talk show
“We thought, what could go wrong?” is something we would definitely like to explore. Now we have the chance.”
She continued, “So many wonderful moments happened at ABC so it only makes sense that we come full circle and work together again or the show that brought us so much joy and so many years of memories.”
Ryan revealed his departure during an episode that aired Feb. 16, and gushed that his experience was “bittersweet” and that he “looks up” to his co-host.
Kelly then said to the star, who will be returning to the West Coast to host the upcoming season 21 of American Idol: “You are a gem. You are one of my best friends…’