a beautiful day in the iris gardens

up on the hillside of Piazzale Michelangelo, it is covered in a rainbow of Irises! After a day of sitting in the sun & painting outside with Brittani, we met up with some friends and walked through the beautiful gardens!!

Cono and I!

forza violaaaa

A bunch of my friends and I went to a Calcio (Soccer) game at the Florence stadium--

Fiorentina vs. AC Milan!

Clearly the majority of us were rooting for FLORENCE, while two were die-hard Milano fans. 

sitting on the steps of Santa Croce waiting for some friends

My Fiorentina jersey!

the stadium

sippin' on some espresso at a soccer game...like true italians.

I was amazed at the rediculously vulgar chants Italians were yelling! I won't repeat them, but lets just say they wouldn't fly in America. haha. Unfortunately we lost 2-1, but we had a great time anyways!

the proposal!

I'm sure most of you have already heard, but to reiterate: PJ AND KELLY ARE ENGAGED!!!

On Thursday we headed out to Castello di Verrazzano, a vineyard out in Chianti in Greve--the Tuscan countryside. We went for wine tasting and a tour of the vineyard, oh yeah and a proposal!! PJ put the ring (Kelly's Grandmother's ring I believe) inside a treasure chest, and I went and hid it in a fountain. The two went on a walk, and, well the rest is history. I creeped behind them secretly and got pictures of the proposal :) Kelly's Aunt, Uncle and their son surprised her by showing up, and we all went to an incredible Italian dinner overlooking the countryside. We spent the night at the Castello.

the proposal. so happy!

the treasure chest

her ring! how beautiful :)

I cannot express HOW HAPPY I am for the two of them. I love you guys :)

new painting ladies and gents!

My most recent painting I am working on is of a bar in Amsterdam. It looked like you were sitting underneath a bunch of giant mushrooms!! I loved the colors and the lighting.

Its not done yet, but well on it's way! 

Oil on canvas, 80cmx100cm

what a beautiful life!

Day ONE in Florence, with my wonderful family! We started out the day with a giant breakfast/lunch consisting of: banana pancakes, eggs with bacon and bell peppers, and potatoes. Breakfast of champions.

I took them all around Florence, showing them all of the wonderful piazzas, churches and streets and I'm pretty sure they loved it :)

Important stop on our tour: The PJ Statue. 

Everyone I know that came to visit and know PJ told me that this Poseidon statue looks 

JUST LIKE HIM. 

I agree.

UNDENIABLY HIM.

PJ and Kelly in Piazza Signoria

Mama and I in front of the Ponte Vecchio

I wanted them to get a good view of the whole city, so I took them to a cafe that sits on the rooftop of a department store in Piazza della Repubblica. We ordered some drinks, rested our feet, and enjoyed the beautiful weather (and view!)

I love them :)

Pops and I 

That night we went out for Pizza and it was delicious, as always. I'm really going to miss the pizza when I go home, it's just not the same back in America.

Ironically, that same night, there was the MTV TRL Awards happening in Piazza Santa Croce, so things were pretty crazy! Florence was packed with young people and there was a huge concert. PJ, Kelly and I met up with my friends later that night. They all absolutely LOVED PJ and Kelly, and kept saying "now that we met your brother, you make so much sense!!!" and "Becca now I see why your so cool, because of PJ!" and another comment from Alessandro (who had an instant infatuation with PJ) "Your brother held me longer on his bosom than my mother ever did"....yeah.

We ended up at Brittani's house, with all sorts of people there. Brittani, the lovely caring giving person that she is, made PJ some food like a true Italian mother.

Oh but this was not just ANY type of food.

It was a Piadina ( a sandwich made with a tortilla). Inside it was:

Prosciutto (ham), formaggio (cheese), rucola (lettuce), cipolla (onion),

and

POTATO CHIPS.

Britt used all her food to cook for PJ because he was "our special guest". :)

That is why we are friends :) such a sweetheart!

let the sun shine

a lovely song by William Fitzsimmons Beautiful Girl

la mia famiglia...in Firenze!

After a two week Euro-trip with my family, I finally made it home to Florence. 

Slept for 13 hours, made some banana pancakes, and now will begin to post some photos of our trip.

So the first night that my family arrived in Florence, my roommates and I made a big ol' italian style dinner for them.

il menu:

Bruschetta

Crostini con sausage and cheese

Pasta primavera

Salad

Vino

....and...

Chocolate covered strawberries!

one big happy family

I have a feeling one of the things I will take with me from Italy is the importance of sharing meals with people you love. Allw we do here is cook for each other, have dinner parties, and...eat!! buon appetito!