A Timeline of Teresa and Joe Giudice’s Love Story

Joe and Teresa started their long love story in their early twenties, but they’ve known each other for a lot longer than that. As teens their families were friends so they’d hang out every once in a while, and they even went on their first actual date when they were 17. As it turns out she’s always been attracted to his “bad boy” style, a style that has obviously not gone out of fashion for her over the years.

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Some couples may think twice before fashioning a wedding after a Shakespearian tale, given the writer’s penchant for tragedy. Not Joe and Teresa. Their 1999 wedding was themed after the movie Shakespeare In Love, which now that we think about it may have been a warning sign of things to come. Regardless, the Bellville reception was as romantic as it gets—the couple even danced to the 98 Degrees song, “I Do (Cherish You).”

Six months after they said their vows, Joe and Teresa were expecting their first babe. Gia was born nine months later, the first of four daughters. Parenting seems to suit them; even though Teresa has admitted that Milania was a bit of a surprise (she and Gabriella are 16 months apart), they still went on to have one last baby girl, Audriana.

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When we first met Joe and Teresa on RHONJ it seemed like they were a perfect match. Aside from their growing family and a brand new $1.7 million mansion, Teresa famously told us all that Joe was actually turned on by her (now famous) table-flipping incident with Danielle. If that isn’t love we don’t know what is.

The couple had a lot of stressors in their life by 2010, as they attempted to straighten out their finances and Joe was arrested for a DUI. About a year later when he was arrested again for using his brother’s ID to get a new license, rumours of Joe cheating and even fathering a kid surfaced. Teresa just brushed them off and laughed though, coining the nickname “Juicy Joe.”

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It’s no secret that Joe and Teresa’s financial woes reached a breaking point when they were indicted on federal fraud charges in 2013. And because going to court isn’t stressful enough, more cheating rumours also surfaced. In the end they pushed through the tabloid fodder, but as we all know by now both husband and wife were ordered to serve time for the crimes they’d committed.

The way Teresa describes her 11-month stint in prison (which ended at the end of December 2015), you’d think she was living in an episode of Orange is the New Black. According to her, the room she was in was rife with sex-capades, to the point where it supposedly became known as the “Boom Boom Room.” She stayed away from all that sexual tension by working out three times a day. Meanwhile In Touch Weekly reported that Joe had been seen making out with a woman named Jamie Jackson while Teresa was pumping iron.

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When Joe took his turn behind bars in March 2016 we all wondered if he and Teresa would last, especially because we knew that when he was released he’d be facing immediate deportation back to Italy. Sure enough he said addio to his friends and family this past October and got on a plane following a court order. Before he did, Teresa admitted publicly that she didn’t know if she could do the long-distance thing with anyone — even Joe.

Meanwhile Teresa has faced some recent cheating rumours herself after she was photographed earlier this year holding hands with a 26-year-old named Blake Schrek. Some thought he was the Housewife’s new “boy-toy,” but Teresa’s lawyer cleared up the matter to media. Apparently he was just a nice gent helping someone in heels to her car after she’d had a bit too much to drink.

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We’re all curious to see what happens next in Joe and Teresa’s love story, especially now that Teresa has confirmed she’s headed to Italy to figure things out. For now, thanks to a special edition of Watch What Happens, we know the love these two have for each other is still intact. Now we just have to wait and see if love really will conquer all, or if prison time, tabloid rumours, and a few thousand miles between them will just be too much.

Watch now: Watch What Happens Live with Joe and Teresa Giudice.

We can't say we didn't see this coming. After 20 years of marriage and both of them serving time in prison, the drama ended with Joe Giudice being deported to Italy. During a trip to Italy in 2019, the couple discussed their future according to People. A source tells People,“Joe has been out on a few dates, Teresa has not. She has been too busy with the girls, with work obligations and taking care of her father. She is happy for Joe . They have been very friendly with one another and are very supportive of each other’s happiness. They still love one another, but as Teresa told Andy Cohen on the WWHL special, they are separated by the Atlantic Ocean. Neither is interested in a long distance relationship.”