Melissa writes:
"Jersey in the house! I hope you loved last night's episode. Thank you for coming back to watch the show and for investing your time, thoughts, and energy into it as always. It's been almost two years since the show has been on TV and I'm not going to lie -- I did like the long break. As much as we love sharing our lives with you, Joe and I really did enjoy not having the cameras around for a while. It was a nice break. Our kids have so much going on now that they're getting older, we just want to soak up every single second with them as much as we can.
As you can see we are back in our house in Montville and we couldn't be happier. It is our home! We have been in that house since Antonia was two-years-old and the boys were born there. We did build the house in Franklin Lakes and it is currently on the market for sale. It's a beauty!
One of my favorite moments from last night's episode was Gino's football game. I absolutely loved seeing Joe coaching. He works so much, but takes the time to get involved in the kids' activities and is an amazing coach. As parents, these are the moments that matter to us. Gino is turning out to be an incredible athlete. I live for going to his games and love being a football mom!
It's also super exciting that you will get to see my new boutique Envy be built from the ground up. I found an awesome location in Montclair, New Jersey, which has some of the best restaurants, shopping, and nightlife! For me, Envy was a natural progression after having success with my jewelry line. With the kids all in school, I really felt like it was time for me to take the plunge. Joe didn't hide the fact that he wasn't into the idea of me opening up a clothing store. He felt that retail was down and that it would be too time consuming. He didn't want to invest money into the store, so I decided to figure it out on my own. I found a great partner, Jackie Robinson, who already owns a boutique in Florida and decided to make it happen on my own. Of course the location I found was a hair salon, so I needed to turn it into my vision. I asked Joe if I could hire his company to do the remodeling. He accepted, and yes, I paid him! I can't wait for you to see how we got the boutique ready because it was not an easy road working together!
This episode also gave us an update on Jacqueline and her family. It was good to see all of the progress they have made and Nicholas is truly such an amazing little boy. You also got to meet the new girls! Dolores and Siggy are both incredible mothers, have amazing children, and are a ton of fun! They fit in with us so well. I can't wait for you guys to get to know them better this season.
I have to say that last year was one of the hardest years for our family. While Teresa was away, everyone was worried for her and wanted to make sure that she was doing OK, but our main concern was her daughters. It was a time for everyone to open their eyes and see that life can change at any minute and it really put things into perspective. Last year, Joe and Teresa were emailing each other to keep up-to-date on the family and I was sending her pictures of her girls and her parents and writing her letters telling her I was praying for her. Before Teresa came home, I didn't really have any contact from her, so I had no idea what was going through her mind or how she was feeling about me and our relationship. You will have to watch to see what happens when we finally see each other. I will say, she definitely is a strong woman. She got through it and watching her walk through the door and see her children was another favorite moment from the episode. It was so emotional, so heartfelt, and I cried happy tears to see her hugging her girls, back in her home where she belongs. I love how the girls jumped into her arms. We can all take a deep breath now and try to regroup.
Thank you again for watching. When I first started the show I really feel like I came on young and naïve. Looking back, I would've done so much differently. I've grown into someone with a stronger head on my shoulders. Thank you for growing with me and my family.
Keep watching. This season is our best yet!"
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