Olivia Rae Braheem

Well the cast is off and Livy is back to normal. It was strange, those thirty days or so, having her tied down by a cast. She is such an active and energetic soul that loves to get out and do just about anything, yet there were things that she simply was inhibited from doing such as swimming, riding a bike and beating the crap out of dad in pillow fights on the bed! On October the 2nd just 28 days following her accident on the playground, the cast was removed. It was so wonderful to see her skinny little arm cast free and after a day or so of it being stiff and sore, she was back to her old self again. One of the first things that we did was buy both her and Trey bikes and now it is our mission to slowly ease her into riding without training wheels for the first time! Soon Olivia will be starting swim lessons at the gym near our house which she is really excited about. Swimming will be great for her arm and will give her something to take pride in. Olivia has not really found an activity as of yet that she shows and affinity and passion for. However with that said, she did express a great desire to “play” with the camera (both video and snapshot) in the Dololmites (see the section on our weekend there) and I have duly noted the photos that she took that are posted in this months edition of FB. Video photography requires narration and asking of questions of the subject being filmed, which she has a natural knack for. One morning she and I woke early and ventured into the pastures near our hotel. The crisp mountain air and rising sun were the setting for her first photo lessons with dad. She seemed genuinely interested in framing shots and how the sun and clouds affect the appearance of the photo. I will gladly continue to foster this possible hobby of hers!

We have been taking the kids to museums and into the center of the city for them to view the street artists in hopes that an artistic fire will be lit but as of now, neither have expressed a desire to take art lessons. School continues to be fun for her and she has excelled socially (no big surprise there!). The day after Trey was elected to student council, Olivia came home to announce that she decided to run the following day in her first grade class and won as well! So two of the schools ten children on student council are Braheems!

For those of you that know Olivia, this next story will come as little surprise as her outlook on life is always so positive. One night Anna and I decided to surprise the kids after school and take them to the annual street festival in Scandicci (a suburb of Florence where Trey used to play soccer). Our housekeeper Stella had continually told us in the weeks leading up to the festival that it was a big event and she wasn’t lying! Every year they close off a few dozen streets in Scandicci for one week and fill the sidewalks with food stalls, carnival rides and vendors with various items for sale. The kids and I went on several rides that evening including the ferris wheel. At one of the ride's revolutions, we came to a halt at the top with a wonderful view of the sun setting over the city. Olivia then said the following: “Dad, I know that sometimes we miss home, but just think. If we weren’t in Italy we wouldn’t be on this ride right now”. That’s Olivia. The glass is always half full.

The highlight of Olivia’s month (Trey’s too) was on the 11th of October, a date that she had been waiting for since we arrived in Italy more than two months ago. This was the one and only day that the “Simpson’s Movie” was playing at the American Theatre in Florence! It had been marked on our calendar for weeks and the kids ate it up! The theatre is a remarkable building, in a city of never ending amazing architecture. It is four stories high and has a large dome in the center. When you sit in your seat and look up to the ceiling, it looks a lot less like a movie theatre and a lot more like the convergence of a classic Opera House and a Gothic Church! The domed ceiling is stained glass hanging over three stories of beautiful balconies. The seats are extremely comfortable too! However, without a doubt the best part is that they have a full OPEN BAR in the theatre! Man, how the hell did we miss this one in America, there is something really special about watching a movie with a popcorn in one hand and a Heineken in the other!

Both kids continue to learn Italian in school but are hesitant to use it in daily life, something that Anna and I are trying to bring out of them by speaking Italian to them when at dinner and on road trips.

Finally, I have interviewed Olivia regarding some of your most pressing questions. Here they are:

Q1: Tell us about your kitty Iris:
Livy’s Answer: “I like her because she is really cute. It makes me feel good to have her. I love her so much that I could squeeze all the stuffing out of her.”

Q2: What do you like the most about school?
Livy’s Answer: “I like art the best. I like to paint and do puppets. I also like recess. I mostly play on the swings and I like it because I swing high. Mommy told me to keep pumping and lean back when I am going up, so now I can swing high without anyone pushing me.”

Q3: What do you like the most about Italy?
Livy’s Answer: “One of my favorite things about Italy is seeing mountains. I like finding flowers too. I like our forest at the castle a lot because it has lots of trees and sticks. I can see my favorite trees from my room. I love the pasta and the veal. The shrimp pasta is really good. I like lasagna and roasted potatoes. The fruit is delicious too. I am tired of gelato!”

Q4: What do you like the least about Italy?
Livy’s Answer: “I don’t like missing home. I don’t really know what else I don’t like. Missing home is probably the only thing that I don’t like.”

Q5: What do you miss the most about home?
Livy’s Answer: “I miss Tasha, our backyard and fluffy and our couch! I miss my friends. I miss my grandpas and grandmas and cousins and Sassy Pants (Elizabeth). I also miss Emily.”