Grab your tanning mousse, pour out a shot of Ron Ron Juice, and pass the tissues, because an era has officially come to an end.

RIP GTL.

After 16 years of fist-pumping, t-shirt time, absurd tax-evasion redemption arcs, and more duck phone screaming matches than our millennial brains can handle, Jersey Shore Family Vacation just aired its series finale on September 3.

If you were tuned into MTV back in 2009 when nine complete strangers walked into a tacky Seaside Heights house wearing statement belts, bedazzled jeans, and enough hairspray to destroy the ozone layer, watching this finale hit completely different. We grew up with these people. We watched them go from blackout college-age disaster humans to actual parents with mortgages, businesses, and actual emotional maturity (well, mostly).

Jersey Shore inspired many ‘shore’ spinoffs too, including: Aussie Shore, Warsaw Shore, Floribama Shore, All-Star Shore, Super Shore, Geordie Shore, Canada Shore, Acapulco Shore, and Germany Shore.

Before we get to how it all ended, I want to highlight some of my favourite moments from the series.

– “Are you friends with her or not“
– The boardwalk stalker vs Pauly D
– Angelina’s dirty hamster trashbag suitcases
– The Situation and his neck brace
– JWoww fighting (anyone at all, but especially that first season when she molly whopped that man who punched Snooki)
– CABS ARE HERE
– Watching each house member struggle to work a 3-hour shift at the T-shirt shop with a hangover
– THE NOTE

Jersey shore gave birth to plenty of other spin-offs, including Family Vacation.

Jersey Shore: Family Vacation: The longest-running and most successful direct continuation, following the original cast as they reunite for vacations and deal with adult life.

Snooki & JWoww: Followed Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi and Jenni “JWoww” Farley as they moved into an apartment together and navigated long-term relationships and early adulthood.

The Pauly D Project: Focused on Paul “DJ Pauly D” DelVecchio as he pursued his professional international DJ career.

The Show with Vinny: An MTV talk/interview show hosted by Vinny Guadagnino at his family home with celebrity guests.

The Sorrentinos: Followed Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino and his family members.
Nicole & Jionni’s Shore Flip: Followed Snooki and her husband Jionni LaValle as they renovated and flipped real estate.

Moms with Attitude: A digital spin-off web series starring Deena Cortese and Snooki managing motherhood.

Double Shot At Love: Twenty women compete for the affection of both Pauly D and Vinny in a style reminiscent of The Bachelor, but with a fun, unscripted Jersey Shore twist. A title that I hope is paying homage to A Shot At Love With Tila Tequila.

Cooking in the Crib with Snooki & Joey: A digital cooking and lifestyle web series featuring Snooki and her friend Joey Camasta.

Here is how the gang closed out sixteen unbelievable years of reality TV history:

• Sammi Sweetheart Got Her Fairytale Finish: In the ultimate full-circle moment, Sammi Giancola walked down the aisle and married Justin May! To make things even more deliciously reality-TV chaotic, the wedding happened on her ex Ronnie Ortiz-Magro’s 40th birthday. You literally could not script a better capstone for Sam’s journey if you tried.
  
• One Final Sunday Family Dinner: After the wedding festivities wrapped, the entire crew headed back to the original Jersey Shore house for one last Sunday Family Dinner. Seeing Snooki, JWoww, Pauly D, Vinny, Mike “The Situation,” Deena, Sammi, and Angelina sitting around that iconic table where all the OG drama started was pure, unadulterated nostalgia.
  
• The Final Walkthrough: The episode ended with the roomies walking through the house, turning off the lights, and saying a tearful, quiet goodbye to the place that changed pop culture forever. No giant blowups, no thrown drinks—just real love and a group of friends realizing they made history together.

It feels genuinely wild to say goodbye. For sixteen years, whenever life got stressful, we could count on Pauly screaming “CABS ARE HERE!”, the duck phone ringing, or Snooki running down the boardwalk asking where the beach was. They were our trashy, hilarious, fiercely loyal surrogate family through our entire 20s and 30s.

Jersey Shore might be officially over, but Jerzdays are forever.