Gettysburg + NYC

Historic Gettysburg is chocked full of history.  So much happened over three days in 1863.  Nearly 50,000 lives were lost from both the Union and Confederate Armies.  We saw the battle fields that have become hallowed ground and there are even two "witness trees" that were there during the war and later to hear Abraham Lincoln give the Gettysburg Address.  Nick was a bit bored, but Sam and Jake enjoyed the double-decker bus ride with the taped story through the headphones.  Jake especially loved climbing on the ginormous rocks around the battle fields.

We couldn't truly do Gettysburg justice in one day, but we did get a great overview about all that history that happened, enjoyed lunch at one of the many "haunted" buildings that still had the bullet holes in the wall from that July, 1863 and found some AWESOME ice cream.  


Then we were off to Princeton, NJ for Drew and Alison's wedding.  Before the festivities, we did make a trip into the Big Apple to explore Gotham.  We took the train into Penn Station and walked out to see Madison Square Garden and looked up to the Empire State Building.  The boys were overwhelmed at first and it was wicked HOT!  We swarmed with other tourists to the hotspots.....  Rockefeller Plaza, Times Square, and even Central Park.  We rode the subway a bit to avoid walking an additional marathon.  We even made it down to Ground Zero.  Lady Liberty was ensconced in haze, but we could still see her and Ellis Island out in NY Harbor.  Wish we had time to take the Ferry to have a better view.  If we hadn't had our map we bought at the train station, we would have been lost.  Sam liked Times Square the best, Nick was thrilled with Nintendo World and Top of the Rock, and Jake loved climbing on the rocks in Central Park.  All the boys loved riding the subway and the train.  I know they were all exhausted after all the walking.  Between Washington DC and NYC, they were spent.  

Drew and Alison's wedding was gorgeous.  They are truly in love and absolutely darling together.  It was wonderful to not only have our own family together for the weekend, but to meet Alison's family.  The Princeton Chapel and campus was truly unbelievable.  Again with all the history that has taken place there and the shear number of years the University has been in existence, it was a treasure trove of information.  I did not know that Princeton had briefly been the nation's capital, and the Continental Congress met there.  I wish I had taken more time to explore.  I loved the architecture and all the ivy covered walls.  Actually, each graduating class plants an actual ivy plant around one of the buildings and there is a plaque designating that year next to their plant.  The class of 1900's plant is to the roof, while the class of 1992's, only a sprout.  Absolutely, Ivy League.  


Alison was a stunning bride and her attendants were beautiful.  Drew was an adoring groom and even a bit nervous during the ceremony.  I think it will be an everlasting love.  The wedding was really the inspiration for our trip.  Thanks, Drew and Alison for planning your wedding in such a great location so we could enjoy the history.  

The long overdue update on the rest of our vacation has been completed.  I am still working out of laundry hell even from the vacation and trying to get the boys ready for this new school year.  Summer always goes by too fast.  I love fall as the weather cools and the leaves change color.  Good-bye summer vacation.