AKM-GSITeresa Giudice is very grateful for the kind words during this hard time.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey star, who was released from her 14-month prison sentence in December, is currently facing yet another difficult obstacle as her husband Joe Giudice began his 41-month prison sentence today, after being convicted of bankruptcy fraud and failure to file income tax returns.
However, fans of the reality star have been pouring love to Giudice on social media, and it has not gone unnoticed.
"I want to thank all of you for the love & support you have shown my family during this difficult time. It means the world to all of us," Teresa tweeted this afternoon.
"Joe Giudice surrendered himself to the Federal Correctional Institution at Fort Dix today at 12 p.m. to begin serving his sentence," family attorney James Leonard Jr. told E! News in a statement earlier today.
"His brother, his sister and several other members of the Giudice family, as well as myself, were present when he turned himself in to the prison, including Teresa. It was obviously a very emotional day, but this is a very strong family with a tremendous support system and they will get through this, just as they did when Teresa was away."
Teresa, who will continue to take care of the couple's daughters Gia, Gabriella, Audriana and Milania in his absence, previously told E! News, "I feel bad for my daughters just having to go through this again. That's what breaks my heart."
Before surrendering himself, Joe had a special going away party with his loved ones. E! News exclusively learned the soirée was held at Blu Alehouse in Riverdale, N.J., which is owned by one of the couple's good friends, John Harms.
Harms is a partner of the restaurant and tells us, "I've been friends with Joe and Teresa since before the show. My partners and I have gotten to know Joe over time and we wanted to do something nice for him two nights before he went away—a way for everyone to say goodbye."
He adds, "It was amazing, as perfect as I would have wanted it. It was just family and true friends...Teresa and the girls were there, obviously. Joe's mom and his sisters and brothers and aunts and uncles. It was a family reunion. There ended up being about 150 people. The restaurant was filled. It was great. About 50 kids."
"There were toasts, [and] Joe had a few words to say. He told everyone, 'Stop making me cry, I'm not going to the electric chair,'" Harms revealed. "His attitude is as good as it can be. You can tell he's being strong for everyone else. There were a lot of tears."
Though 41 months may sound a little daunting to most of us, Joe has remained calm, calling his sentence "no big deal."
(E! News and Bravo are both part of the NBC Universal family).