How Mark Consuelos Told Kelly Ripa ‘I Love You’ for the First Time

Not many Hollywood marriages stand the test of time. This year alone, we’ve seen the divorces of Tia Mowry and Cory Hardrict, Miguel and Nazanin Mandi, and Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet. But Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa have proven that “I DO” can be an eternity. They’ve been together for 26 years. Ripa recently revealed the first time Consuelos declared his love for the longtime TV personality. The moment was unexpected for Ripa, considering she was in a relationship with another man at the time. But it didn’t stop Consuelos one bit. “I wanted to deliver a message without anyone else knowing,” he said during a recent live broadcast of her daytime talk show. “I grab a glass and ask. ‘would you like another glass of champagne? I love you’.” Consuelos repeated the message, leaving her confused. His sister was there to witness the moment. His boldness worked. The couple are parents to three children.

They longtime couple first met in 1995 during a screen test for the soap opera All My Children. They began dating, unbeknownst to anyone on set. “I thought she was adorable, hot and sexy and all that stuff,” Consuelos remembered during a 2014 interview with HuffPo Live.”But I was very focused — I didn’t really think I had a chance with her, so I wasn’t really focused on that.” He proposed in 1996. They eloped in Las Vegas.

Their first son Michael was born in 1997, followed by a daughter Lola in 2001, and a son Joaquin in 2003. In honor of their children, they founded a production company, Milojo, in 2007.

Despite being busy with parenting and their careers, they remain each other’s priority. Consuelos gives all the credit to Ripa, telling Us Weekly, “I’m crazy about her,” he said. “She’s an extremely patient and tolerant woman, and I think that’s the true secret to our marriage.”