Why Vicki Gunvalson's Daughter Briana Culberson Won't Appear in Season 13 of The Real Housewives of Orange County

Now that you've caught up with returning Housewives Vicki Gunvalson, Tamra Judge, Shannon Beador, and Kelly Dodd and met the new girls on the block, Emily Simpson and Gina Kirschenheiter, in the new season of The Real Housewives of Orange County, you may have noticed that a longtime member of the O.C. crew is missing: Briana Culberson. 

For the first time in 13 seasons, Vicki's daughter did not appear in the show's opening sequence (clip above). "It broke my heart,” Vicki recently told ET. “But, I'm happy for Briana.”  

In fact, we won't see Briana on RHOC at all this season, Vicki confirmed to ET. That's because she moved to North Carolina, along with her husband Ryan Culberson and their sons Troy, who turns 6 in October, and Owen, 4, last November. “She wanted to just have a break and be kind of incognito, keep the kids off camera,” Vicki said. “The unfortunate part about putting your kids on camera and yourself is, the trolls come out, and the negative people come out, and the people that have their 'opinion,' and she's like, 'I don't want to hear it anymore. I'm a good mother, a good wife. We have a good family. I don't want to hear any negativity,' and that happens. You know, people were trolling bad about Ryan or bad about her. It gets exhausting.”

Briana continues to work full-time as a nurse in the Tar Heel State, while Ryan looks after their sons after completing his time with the Marine Corps last September. Though Vicki said she understands that Briana and Ryan are building a life together in his home state of North Carolina, she still said she wishes her daughter wasn't so far away from the O.C. “This is my new normal now, flying cross-country. Could you have moved any farther away?! This is not, like, a weekend trip!" Vicki told ET. "So, I'm doing the red eyes out, getting there in the morning and just spending as much time with them, and then heading back. So, it's my new normal.” 

Vicki most recently paid a visit to Briana and her family earlier this month to celebrate Owen's 4th birthday. "Quick trip to see my beautiful daughter and her family and it’s hard to always leave. I’m so proud of her and she has adapted so well to NC. She is working FT as an ER nurse, incredible mother, wife and hostess," she gushed on Instagram. "Until we meet again, know that I [heart] you and miss you more than words can say."

We'll see Vicki take another very memorable trip to Mexico in the next episode of RHOC Monday at 9/8c. Catch a preview, below.

Next on RHOC: Hola, Puerto Vallarta!