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Kelly Ripa’s Sons Returned Home for Christmas (& Got an Extra Special Welcome from Her Dog)

The boys are back!

Last week, talk show host Kelly Ripa documented the moment her two sons, Joaquin and Michael Consuelos, returned home for the holidays. Naturally, their arrivals were met with plenty of excitement— but there was one family member in particular who was extra thrilled to be in the thick of things: their pet dog, Lena.

On her Instagram Story, Ripa shared a recording of the Maltese/Shih Tzu rushing to greet Joaquin when he walked through the door. But the family's second dog, Chewie, was nowhere in sight. Ripa wrote, "Lena loves a homecoming! @Joaquinconsuelos back from @umichwrestling. Chewie, not so much."

kelly story joaquin

In the short clip, Joaquin picked up the pup and gave her a cozy hug. But this wasn't the only reunion she got to be a part of. Next up was Michael, who arrived just after his brother.

kelly story michael

This time around, Lena had to work a bit harder to grab Michael's attention, since he started greeting other people. Sharing a clip with "Linus & Lucy" playing in the background, Ripa wrote, "Lena will not be ignored Dan!!"  In case you didn't know, this is a reference to Glenn Close's line in Fatal Attraction.

After a determined Lena stood on her hind legs and waved her paws, Michael finally picked her up and embraced her. (Once again, Chewie was nowhere in sight.)

The heartwarming stories came just a few weeks after Ripa debuted a festive holiday photo of Lena and Chewie, which she cleverly captioned, "Two nutcrackers and two ball busters."

In the photo, both dogs are all decked out in red, while on either side of them stands Nutcracker figurines. One fan wrote, "So regal! I’m hearing the nutcracker as I gaze at these two." Another fan added, "Two ballbusters styling in some awesome sweaters. Runway worthy."

Always a treat to see these two pups on Kelly's feed.

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