bell peppers stuffed with basil cous-cous

Last Night's Dinner

ingredients:

red onion (about 1/3 cup chopped)

garlic (1-2 cloves, pressed)

fresh basil (about 6-10 leaves, we have a basil plant so leaves are HUGE, chopped)

1 box of  plain cous-cous

bell peppers (yellow, orange, green, or red - you choose!) (cut the top's off to create a little bowl)

gouda cheese (cause it's good) (would also be yummy with, pepper jack or feta, whatever you have on hand)

vegetable broth (or chicken, if that's what you use, but, i am a pretty big advocate for vegetable broth. it's good.)

olive oil

salt & pepper

preheat oven to 350 BEFORE you start cooking, that way it will be hot & ready

1. saute onion with garlic in 2tbs(about, i don't really measure) olive oil, until the onion is a tender (2-3 min)

2. pour cous-cous in with the onion and garlic and saute (1-2 min)
3. add 11/2 c of vegetable broth and bring to a boil, and then let simmer until cous-cous is tender
4. add chopped basil and grate a little bit of gouda into the couscous and stir
5. scoop cous-cous into the bell peppers, top with a couple of pieces of fresh basil, and more gouda
6. Bake at 350 for about 15-20 min (my oven cooks like superman, so they were done in 15 min)

we paired this with a huge spinach salad (with cranberries & sunflower seeds) with oil & balsamic dressing!

as of right now, little Paige,
Christopher's beautiful baby sister
who isn't little in character or courage
is having back surgery for scoliosis,

taking her s-shaped back and reconstructing it
with the use of metal rods
she was diagnosed a couple of years ago
and went through trials of different back braces
that were uncomfortable and limiting without feat
so the doctor's have decided that this is the best thing for Paige
the surgery is 4 hours long, and
she will be in ICU for 4-5 days
with months of rehabilitation to come

Paige, has a beautiful quiet soul
with more strength than most I know
a boldness to overcome obstacles
without even a hint of complaint departing her lips

this is something she has wanted for over a year
and has been a long time coming
and, we believe the goodness of the Lord,
that His hand is in this, not leaving us alone in the dark
that His light is guiding us to places of healing and
of refuge for the road ahead

so if you think of her
please say a little prayer
for a quick healing without complications or infection
and that her heart, mind, and body
would be abundant in strength
and that the peace that surpasses all understanding
would consume us all

we love you Paige and are in continuous prayer for you

love,
m

grannyism #65

ah, the sweet life! oh, how i love this dress i got from India, it has everything i love, it's homemade and fair trade, it's whimsical, the perfect length, it's a mix of my favorite colors & patterns, and It's from INDIA. i mean, that's the only reason i need to love and wear it everyday, the other stuff is just bonus. you know like having a shake too.

yesterday, we spent the day looking at rental houses and packing. and packing. still have a lot more to pack up and figure out what to keep back, as we kind of, sort of, are going to be camping/living in jehu/staying with friends. our apartment is pretty bare - i have been enjoying the simple life - it's good to just get back to the basics for a bit. the only thing we have laying around are necessary clothes, two chairs and a little ottoman that make up our 'table' - a rather cute table i must say, coffee maker (and a handful of other kitchen appliances, pillows, and a blanket. oh, and my yoga mat. that is just necessary for me to stay sane. and my husband's guitar. can't live without music! oh and our cute little furrie babies, magnolia and estrella. i am trying to find them a good home, either a rental home until we move into our new place or a permanent one.

But, all the same i love this crazy life we live and i love being married to my best friend. and i love having impromptu, relaxing by the river kind of dates. with my favorite tea, hummus, grapes, man, and a little baguette thrown in!
and this is by far my favorite grannyism, i think i am going to go ahead and make that my life motto! can ya dig it? so remember, Life is a garden, dig it!
love,
meg

which side are you on?

it's late or early, however you look at it. and i am all farty, my hubs thinks it's gross that i like the smell of my own farts, but hey, ya know, it's whatever. so i just finished taking this quiz online to see if you are 'right brained' or 'left brained', pretty interesting stuff. they summed me up with, holistic, random, concrete, intuitive, non-verbal (i like illustrations), and fantasy-oriented.

i scored 17 right and 2 left. hubs, who is apparently a very balanced person, scored 10 right and 9 left.


 check it out, ya know, only if you want to

are you a righty or lefty?

moving day

so we are in the middle of a transition, moving out of our apartment, but really no place to go. but, please don't worry, we have friends with couches and have plans for camping in the mean time. all of our things, that i can't seem to throw away or get rid of (vintage chairs, bar stools, chirp china, a gazillion paintings, bamboo candle holders, vintage dresser that i sanded and re-painted that has been following me everywhere since i was a freshman in college, pillow-top mattress, two couches that were given to us, a dining room table that i sanded and re-painted w/chairs that i actually hate and want to eventually re-place, lamps, a drafting table) you get the idea, we have only been married one year (and no babies mind you - yet we have so much stuff) i have bags of fabric, some i got from thrift stores, Ikea, Joannes fabric when she has one of her lovely sales, and some from my grandma. bags of yarn, tubs of paper - really pretty patterns for you know when i have the urge to make cards or randomly start scrap booking, and books. and books. and books. and art supplies. and spray paints. and gallons of paint for bedroom walls, living room walls, and dining room walls. oh, and boxes of clothes. boxes. and did i mention all of those lovely gifts you get for getting married? pots& pans, kitchen aid (that i LOVE), bamboo dish drainer, bamboo utensils, plates & bowls, and coffee cups, waffle maker, 12 cup coffee maker that we rarely use because we are a french press kind of couple. oh, and a crock pot. all of this in a storage unit. oh, and did i mention my husband is a musician? so we have a piano, an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar, a djembe, a violin, and a huge amp. i can't even imagine what moving out of the country will look like for us.

i did manage to give away a coffee table, 7 bags of clothes, picture frames that weren't really 'me', dishes, a bed, purses, scarves, and some shoes. and i earned a measly $3.00 at Plato's closet! I know, that's only one pumpkin spice latte w/soy at Starbucks. i guess my clothes are too eclectic for them, at least that's what i keep telling myself.

and I managed to throw away some random things (like pieces of paper with a favorite artist or musician or silly joke jotted down that I have been keeping for years. movie stubs. concert stubs. okay, i admit it, i am a pack rat, i have it under control i promise please don't send me to rehab (to be fair so is my husband, hey if i am going down, he is coming with me as my partner in crime). i keep joking that he is going to find me buried under our treasures crap. you know like those pack rats that find their spouse who have been missing for 4 years!! and one day decided to check the linen closet. and voila! there you are Lucy.

I have this really funny photograph of our box spring on top of our car 'secured' by zip ties, to give you a visual picture of what 'moving' really looks like for us. and oh man is it funny. and yes, we are mourning the death of our mattress. on September 11. oh the irony. please don't be offended by my dark humor. my little bloggy is being moody and won't let me upload it here so just click photograph if you want to have a good laugh at us.

love,
meg

Dear India,

Even though it feels in my bones like a lifetime ago, a whirlwind of a trip, your memory is still with me, still beating strong. It's like you put a spell on me, connecting our hearts together with string that won't give, coming alive in my dreams, visions, and paintings. It's not something that will ever relinquish, and not that I would ever want this love in me to cease, I guess I just thought my tears would have run dry by now.

the sounds. the food. the bobble head gesture. the smells. the people. the one elephant, the two peacocks, the roosters, the chickens, the cows and the pigs that roamed so freely. the children, whose faces I can't erase and small voices I can still hear. the little girls who loved to sing and dance, and the nick-name they gave me, 'meghan dance master'. the way the women managed to be so graceful riding a motorcycle in their beautifully wrapped sari's as the driver swiftly moved through traffic. the way we ate with our hands. the widows i sat next to at church, and afterward asking me for prayer, strife and struggle painted on their faces, the tears flowing. the way old man Moses face lit up when I gave him bubbles to play with, the way he gripped my hands and hugged tightly, his tears staining my cheeks. having ginger tea every night with appa and amma. amma's smile and the way she held me the night before we left, asking me not to go to bed yet, wanting that moment to last as long as I did. the way the small curve of a child's hand safely fit in mine. pastor blessie, who loved to hear american action songs. John Mark, paralyzed from polio, had a smile and a servant's heart that could move mountains. prayer and crystal, an inspiration to me, proving that nothing is impossible through Him.

These are all dwelling so deep in my heart. 
the regrets, the selfishness, and the jealousy being forced out to make more room for love. to make more room for all these moments, wanting space in my heart.

I am so love-sick to get back to you, India. Sometimes i feel lonely because i am not there. Sometimes i feel incomplete because i am not there. People said, I would be emotional from leaving, I just never thought it would feel like a baby being ripped out of my hands.

i haven't developed any of my film yet, a little scared to do so, not sure if i can handle my heart being broken again as my eyes meet theirs. right now, i haven't forgotten the smiles or shrill of voices, once my mind starts to forget, then that will be the time.

at this moment, i don't need anything tangible in my hands to remember, all i need to do is close my eyes.