Love Don't Cost a Thing

Sorry I missed last week’s blog, but I was in California with Joe all week. What a crazy, emotional couple of weeks! We got hit with an earthquake then Hurricane Irene. My kids went back to school. Milania started kindergarten. And now it’s the tenth anniversary of 9/11.

It’s still hard to look back on that day. It seems like yesterday. Gia was eight months old. I used to work in the city every day. Like so many other people, I would take the bus to Port Authority and then walk to my job. I worked until I had Gia and I was supposed to go back to work after six weeks, but I just couldn’t leave her. That morning, as I watched the TV in horror, Joe called me (he was already at work) to check on me and he said Gia was our miracle or maybe I would have been in the city that day. My girls are definitely my miracles. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone who wasn’t so lucky that day. Every day we have with our loved ones is a miracle.

Again, I cannot thank you all enough for your support and kind wishes for my family and me. First, you allowed our craziness into your homes, and then you actually cared about us. It means the world to me. I know it’s been a tough season for my family and me -- it’s been a tough year for a lot of people -- but things are getting better. The sun is definitely coming out!

So, on to the episodes! It meant so much to me that my brother and Melissa and Kathy and Richie came to my book signing. Just so you understand the timing and where my husband was coming from, my book came out in May. I had dozens of book signings all summer long and into the fall. The book signing they all came to was at the end of January. That’s a long time not to come out and support me, no? I talked to my whole family about them all the time. It was a big deal to me and I was hoping they would come. When I finally heard the reason they didn’t was because they were expecting some kind of formal invitation -- I had no idea -- I called and invited them.

I was delighted Joey came, but you have to understand that Joe watched me cry over Joey ignoring my book for NINE MONTHS. When it got on the New York Times bestseller list, my friends all called me and congratulated me. My friends surprised me and showed up at my book signings to support me. My parents and my in-laws and Joe’s family came. My amazing Twitter and Facebook family were so great about celebrating with me. But my own brother and cousin… not so much.

We started filming this season in September. They all had Twitters by then. They knew about my books signings. (They certainly read my Twitter and Facebook messages for other things and didn’t hesitate to comment!) And I never got one public congrats. Not one. (I still haven’t…) For the record, I have congratulated Melissa and my brother for her song on Twitter several times and I’m happy to do it here on my blog as well: Congrats to both of you!

My husband Joe saw how much this hurt me, watched me cry over it, and he was understandably upset when I called to personally ask them to come and they finally showed up. He felt like the only reason Joey finally came this time -- late and he really missed it, but I loved that he came! -- was to look good on the show. I hope that’s not true and we’re all working on getting to a better place now, but I just want you to know where Joe was coming from. He’s always going to defend me and I love him for it.

I’m so glad you got to see Milania’s birthday party and how we were able to have a fabulous, over-the-top party that didn’t cost a lot. That’s how we did all our kids’ parties for years. When the economy was great, we all spent more, and the big parties were fun, but they were never about the stuff you could buy. Especially for birthdays, it was always about showing our kids we love them and you can do that for free!

I was so impressed with both of Gia’s songs. I knew she could sing, but I had no idea she was such a good songwriter! For ten-years-old! I’m so proud to be her mom. I can’t wait to see what she does as she gets older. Of course I thought the song about me and Joey was sad, but it wasn’t surprising to me because I live with her. I know what she knows and how she feels. And we really do try and keep her away from as much as possible -- that’s why I’m always throwing her out of the kitchen when we’re trying to have adult conversations! -- but she’s smart, she knows. But she also knows how much my brother and I love each other, and most importantly, how much we all love her. I think you could see how much love we all have for each other. That’s what kids should be surrounded with.

And yes, Gia is fine. She was fine ten minutes later. She’s not screaming out in pain or whatever Caroline said. She’s a normal ten-year-old girl who’s creative and passionate. She’s blessed to live in a house with two parents who are still happily married and love each other. She has tons of aunts and uncles and cousins on both sides that adore her. She has all four grandparents nearby who adore her. That’s not the case for a lot of her friends, and she knows how blessed she is.

I was surprised to hear Caroline and her kids making fun of me and my books. I had no idea they did that. I’ve always adored Caroline’s whole family and have never said a word about them, so it was a little shock. I know they like to laugh a lot and they have silly senses of humor though, so I don’t take offense to it. (It takes a lot more than that to get me going!) I think we should all play the “Fill-in-the-blank Italian” book title game. “Sexy Italian,” Table Flipping Italian,” “I’ll Put My Butthole in Your Face Italian.” Life’s too short to take offense to the small things!

Thank you to everyone who’s ever come to one of my book signings. (LOVED meeting you all this week in Chicago at Water Tower Place! What a beautiful city with beautiful people!) I cannot believe how many of you come out to see me -- and wait in four hour lines! -- but please know that I always stay late to see every single person who comes out because I appreciate and love you all!

I’ll be in Virginia Beach this weekend. So excited! Check my website www.teresagiudice.com for more information and other appearance dates. And follow me on Twitter (@Teresa_Giudice) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Teresa-Giudice/122688361577) for daily pics of my insane life and fabulous girls!

Fabulicious is doing so well, I can’t even thank you enough. It’s on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and even Kindle and the iPad.

I have a huge announcement for you all coming soon. Can’t wait to tell you! Stay tuned!

Tanti Baci,

Teresa Giudice