...Alabama Day 3...

...it was another gorgeous day...and Our Airman was in class all day...

...so we headed to the museum...he actually wanted to go with us and has not had time to do the tour by himself...but it doesn't look like it will work out for him to be able to go to the museum with us on this trip...

...it looks a lot bigger on the inside...it's like a Tardis...haha...

...around the Christmas tree are soldiers in different dress by period...1920s, 30s...etc...

...inside the immaculate facility are lots of full size aircraft...mostly rotary wing...

...there are several vignettes...

...this one shows the type of helicopter that was in the TV series MASH...

...and this 'most survivable' helicopter has had a crash in a swamp...

...and this one is a lot like the one Our Airman will fly on...

...it got to be lunchtime...so we left the base and went into one of the small surrounding towns to this castle style German restaurant...

...complete with a knight in the corner...

...I love it when there is a vegan menu...

...we got to talking with the owner after the meal...the Man knows some people from near Heidelberg - her home town...so we visited with her for a while...and then on our way out...she gave these little heart necklaces to me and the Airman's Wife...so that we could remember our visit...how sweet was that...

...then we drove back across base...and past this beautiful cotton field...I love to see cotton fields...they're so unusual looking...

...and into another one of the small towns surrounding the base...Enterprise...

...this is the famous Boll Weevil Monument...memorialized for changing the local economy from cotton to peanuts...because the boll weevil devastated the cotton crop...it was sweetly weird...

...but otherwise...Enterprise was all decorated for Christmas...as Whoville...

...it was all very cute...there's going to be a street festival over the weekend...so I hope we can come back...

...they have the adorable wings painted on the wall for photos...there's an adult sized set too...

...and the Airman's Baby posts her first letter to Santa...

~Have a lovely day!

...Alabama Day Two...

...we spent most of the day touring around the base...it was chilly and windy...but nice...

...Our Airman's dorm...

...the Aviation Branch...

...the original base chapel...

...lots of helicopters...

...a monument...

...Veteran's Park...

...and we all thought it was surprising and funny to see this old Vega...mine was white with orange trim...

...and I did this a lot too...it's the BEST!...

~Have a lovely day!

...On the way to Alabama...

...we packed up the truck and headed south...the Man drove the entire way and it was a long way...mostly on back roads like this...just because that's fun to do sometimes...especially when you're not in any particular hurry...we just needed to get there in time for dinner as Our Airman was in class all day anyway...

...but we finally arrived at Fort Rucker...went to the visitor center and got our passes...

...and drove through the gates onto base...

...then right out the other side to our adorable AirBnB house...just a half mile outside the gate...

~Wishing you a lovely start to your week!

...12.6...Dinner and a Movie...

...I made my favorite chili...it's a veganized version of a copycat Wendy's Chili recipe...

...but this time I used lentils instead of the soy crumbles...

...and it turned out perfectly...

...and I'm afraid to say that I 'let' the Man chose the movie and he chose rather badly...and we didn't even finish watching Step Brothers...I think he chose it because in general he likes the actor Will Ferrell...and he is one of the authors of this film...but it was a mean kind of funny movie...so...not so funny...and it was quite raunchy...also not funny...I think we may have watched half of it...maybe we'll finish it and see if it has any redeeming parts...

...it is a movie about some people...but just not my kind of movie...

...have you seen it?...what did you think?...

~Have a lovely day!

...12.6....Friday Favorites...

...this is such a quick and easy Christmas-y desssert...

...I took a vegan boxed Red Velvet cake mix...and just mixed in enough water to make a cake batter consistency...and baked it in one 9 inch pan...it doesn't rise as much as it would with eggs or egg replacer...so just one pan...and if you want cupcakes it'll just make 12...

...and then the icing is super easy as well...a vegan store-bought icing...and some vegan cream cheese...

~Have a lovely day!

...12.5...What I Ate in a Day...as a Vegan....

...breakfast was tofu (with kala namak - black salt)...and toast...

...and the star of the show was the peach jam I got at the Church Bazaar...it was so delicious...

...Lunch was with the Man at a new to us Mexican restaurant...that was good too...

...fresh pineabpple for a snack...

...for dinner I heated up a box of Thai sweet potato soup...and it was ok just out of the box...

...but I thawed out a muffin cup of garbanzos to add to it...

...and more sweet potato...it was REALLY good then...

...and made a crispy vegan cornbread...

...because really...the crust is the best part...right?...well...not if you ask the Man...haha...

...and a vegan grilled cheese sammie completed our dinner...

...what did you eat yesterday?...

~Have a lovely day!

...12.4...W.I.P. Wednesday...

...Christmas cards...

...and presents...

...just general Christmas prep...

...what about you?...what's in your workbasket?...

~Have a lovely day!

...Tuesdays with Julia...Vegan Sauce Mousseline/Chantilly...

...we made a fluffy creamy Hollandaise variation...Vegan Sauce Mousseline, Vegan Sauce Chantilly...

...it was delicious...and all of the particulars are over at The Vegan Version...

~Have a lovely day!

...Over the Weekend...decorating...

...we finished up the outdoor decorations at the parsonage...

...and then headed over to the Church to decorate there...

...it's always a lot of fun...with everyone working together...

...to get the tree up and the lights on...

...and then the moment when they turn off the lights and try the tree lights to make sure they have good coverage...it's always so pretty...

...and then all the Chrismons in place...

~Wishing you a lovely start to your week!...