Kelly Ripa and her hunky hubby Mark Conseulos have loved spending time with their kids while quarantined together, but recently revealed they can’t wait to be empty nesters! The pair, both 49, share three children: Michael, 23, Lola, 19, and Joaquin, 17. “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 as part of the outlet’s Family Issue. “So when it comes to an empty nest, we’re looking forward to it, honestly.”
The Riverdale actor said that he couldn’t wait for their youngest to head to college in 2021, for one very specific reason, “Rob Lowe says that once your kids leave, you pretty much never put clothes on ever again; you’re just naked all the time,” Mark revealed, “So there’s that too!” Nevertheless, the daytime talk show host said she still expects her kids to visit. “They’ll still be close to us, and they will come home, and we will still have plenty of times together ahead,” Kelly told the outlet.
Their eldest son Michael graduated from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in a virtual graduation ceremony back in May and aspires to be a screenwriter. Meanwhile his younger sis Lola is currently enrolled at NYU as well and wants to pursue a career as a singer. Baby bro Joaquin will head to college in 2021, and has been using the spare time in quarantine to hit the books ahead of college admissions testing.
“He’s doing all the ACT and SAT testing and trying to apply to schools, all during a pandemic,” Mark said, while Kelly added that he, “sparks all the debates in the house about anything — political, social, environmental, poetry … 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.”
