seventeen::newlywed::relationship

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so, we learning that marriage is a lot of give and take. those of you who have been married for longer than a minute, can stop rolling your eyes.

sunday was a great example of this.

to say le boy is an ardent rugby fan is a bit of an understatement. and while i appreciate that rugby-mania might not have entered your household, particularly if you live on the other side of the pond and are in the thick of football season, but here in england, it's been the main topic of conversation for months. the rugby world cup is currently playing, the final is next weekend. and while we may live in england, we are decidedly all blacks fans (we support new zealand).

the haka done prior to every all blacks game - see one in action here.

to be honest, when i first moved here, i had little to no understanding of rugby, but my friends are pretty much all rugby fans and so i learned the rules of the game. however, i don't think i ever imagined waking early to watch games streamed over the internet, or as was the case yesterday, hopping on our bikes on a chilly october morning to head over to our friends' house for breakfast, copious coffee and tea, and a tense 80 minutes.

you see, to add to the excitement - new zealand is hosting the rugby world cup - and it would be so fantastic for a win on home soil! yesterday's game against the australians was hard fought, and no walk in the park. and so i'm gearing up for another early morning bike ride next sunday to cheer on the all blacks in the final against france. it will be fun to be sure!

sunday afternoon was a little bit more 'me' focused, shall we say with a mid-afternoon lounge on the couch catching up on the latest bbc drama, and a walk around our neighbourhood park. this is where le boy particularly gives - i take the camera with us on these walks and i stop constantly - he's so kind to indulge my creativity.

finally, i'll end today with a quick kitchen tip:
 
i've been making chicken stock almost weekly - after we've had a roast chicken i throw the bones into the freezer in a zip-loc and wait until i've got a few hours over an evening or a weekend afternoon to simmer the stock. add in a carrot, an onion, a couple of celery stocks and some salt and let it bubble gently for the next few hours - topping up the water level as it evaporates.

after you've strained the stock from the bones/vegetables (be sure to pick off the extra meat that can only be found when everything falling apart and save for later!) chill the stock in the fridge so the fat rises to the top. skim off.

grab a coffee mug and line with a plastic baggie, fold over the top of the mug. ladle the stock into the baggie, remove from the mug and seal with as little air inside the baggie as possible. you now have stock in one-cup measurements, freeze and use as needed!

this one-cup method works very well with any liquid-ish food you want to freeze - soup, stock, sauce. (perhaps the item needs to start with the letter 's'?)