Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos aren't ones to shy away from candidly discussing their family life while hosting LIVE with Kelly and Mark, with the latest debate being no different (and just as amusing).
On the November 20 iteration of the ABC show, Kelly, 55, and Mark, 54, broke down several stories in the run-up to Thanksgiving on November 27 and the holidays in general, especially Christmas. The couple joked that this year for Christmas, they should just give people the "gift of us" after Kelly confessed she was behind on her shopping.
© Getty ImagesMark added: "Kids are old now, I'm not getting them anything," which momentarily stumped Kelly, conflicted by his admission and trying to figure out whether he was kidding or being serious. "You're not getting them anything?" she asked with a slight grimace. The former All My Children stars share sons Michael, 28, and Joaquin, 22, and daughter Lola, 22.
"They get money," the Riverdale star continued, adding: "Give them a check or something and say, 'Merry Christmas'," to which Kelly simply nodded while slowly going "Yeah," then ending with an unenthused: "Yeah, maybe!" followed by the studio audience's applause. You can learn more about their family in the video below...
At this point, Mark, seemingly to indicate that he was only kidding and to assuage any reservations Kelly had, chuckled and responded: "I don't know. That sounds bad…That sounds really bad." They quickly moved on to the show's recurring fan favorite segment, "Stump Mark."
Last month, speaking exclusively with HELLO!, the show's longtime executive producer Michael Gelman praised the pair for being "fantastic" parents, plus commended their authenticity, explaining that the couple we see on screen is the same one away from the cameras.
© Kelly Ripa/LIVE with Kelly and Mark"They have the same relationship on-and-off the air, and that's part of the magic, so you see their interaction every day, just like a live married couple," he gushed, adding that it was "wonderful to have the LIVE family grow even more with a real married couple as part of the everyday show."
Kelly and Mark began co-hosting the show together in 2023, following the departure of Ryan Seacrest. Their stint as hosts has been a ratings success, and even won them a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host in 2024. They previously spoke exclusively with HELLO! about some of the highs and lows of finding that balance as married co-hosts.
© Getty Images"Well, the comfort is that I always know I have somebody next to me that, even when I mess up, will always lift me up and move on and reassure me that it's fine," Mark said of Kelly, who then quipped: "I guess the challenges are somebody not being there to let the dogs out in the morning, that's kind of a big challenge." The couple own their dog Lena, and at the time, also had a pup named Chewie.
© ABCMark also added that conditioning himself to look into the camera proved to be a surprising challenge. "I can tell you, as a former actor, it was very hard for me [at first]," Kelly concurred. "It took him a couple of weeks to get over it, it took me years to actually look into the camera. Because you're so trained not to look into the camera. That was a big challenge."
