Travel Log - Gettysburg, PA

With my husband and I taking a vacation for the last few days, I thought it would be fun to do a few Travel Log posts, like I have done in the past. Both my husband and I love to travel. We like to “get out of Dodge”, so to speak. We like to see new places and try new things, but we also like to revisit places we have been before. A number of years ago we passed through Gettysburg, PA on our way home from a conference. We spent one night so we didn’t have much time, but we saw enough to know that we wanted to come back. This time we spent three nights and were able to see and experience so much more.

For my first day of travel this is what I was wearing.

I apologize for my crummy selfie photo taking. I always seems to focus more on the selfie stick than the outfit, I am taking a picture of. Ha, ha. I really need more practice, but time is forever chasing me down like some sort of spectral wraith reminding me, I will never have enough of it.

The outfit was meant to be comfortable and easy, which it was. It was starting to warm up, so I knew I wanted something that would be warm enough, without being to warm. Both my top and the sweater were recent thrift finds. The jeans are a brand called Angel that Kohl’s carries. They are extremely comfortable as they have that perfect bit of stretch, but still hold their shape well. Here is a skinny pair, and here are a boot cut pair.

This is the outfit I wore, the first full day we were in Gettysburg. I got this skirt at JC Penney just before our trip and I love it. It is stretchy, swingy, tiered for extra room and comfort and you don’t need a slip underneath. I thought it would look pretty with yellow, so I grabbed this thrifted tee, which I used before in my Pantone Spring/Summer series. I added my blue, fringe necklace, my blue Keds, and my white jean jacket.

This little shop in Gettysburg makes and sells, period clothing. Most of the clothes are geared towards the mid 1800’s or the time of the Civil War. Think Scarlet O’ Hara with her big hooped skirts and fitted bodices. That is exactly the styles they sell. They also sell men’s period wear as well. I wish I could have taken pictures, but they had a no picture policy. It would have been fun to try things on and model them for a photo shoot. Ha, ha. The pieces were beautiful and they also sold, bonnets, hair pieces, jewelry and other period type accessories. If you are interested you can visit their website.

This was my next outfit. On this day we spent time hiking around a few specific battle sights from the Battle at Gettysburg, like Devil’s Den and Little Round Top, and we also did a two hour horse tour, so I wanted to be comfortable, but also covered, from the sun and from bugs. This plaid top and the blue tank underneath were also recent acquisitions from Penney’s. They were having good sales that day I went and i had a coupon. My Christopher and Banks jeans are some of my faves, although most of them are stating to look worn, so I thought they would be good for the horsey ride. You can see my blue fringe necklace made another appearance. Who says you can’t look stylish when you are riding a horse.

The next picture is Little Round Top. It doesn’t look like much, but it was one of the decisive parts of the battle that day. If you haven’t see the Gettysburg movie with Jeff Daniels as Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, it is a must see!

The group that we did the horse tour with was Horse Tours of Gettysburg. I had been wanting to do this tour since we first passed through Gettysburg, 13 years ago. I love horses and horseback riding, but have never had the money to own my own or take lessons. When I was younger, I had a friend down the street that had horses and she would let me get on them once in a while. Also, when my girls were young, my older daughter had the same bug for horses I did, so we were able to find someone with horses that gave her that exposure. Of course, I went along too. Ha, ha. A horse ride and a bit of history? Sounds like a win, win situation and it was. I would recommend this for anyone, especially families. The licensed tour guide gave such good, detailed and interesting information about what events led up to the war, the actual battle and the aftermath of all that fighting. It was excellent. And yes, my butt hurt when I was done, but it was worth it.

Here I am on Dixie.

Here is my hubby on his handsome boy, Patriot. We both thought it was funny that he had the Union horse and I had the Confederate. Sounds a bit like our marriage at times. Ha, ha.

Finally, on the day we left Gettysburg, I wore this outfit. This fun sleeveless top was a find at the end of the season last year from H&M. They have such fun prints and unique pieces that I have to go in there every once in a while, just to see what’s new. However, I do have to try things on, because often times what looks great on the rack looks silly on me and other times, I’ll try something really different and it’ll be perfect. The distressed, jeans were a Kohl’s clearance find and the suede oxfords are older from DSW. Here is a fun blue pair, an espadrille version, and a leopard print.

I hope you enjoyed this look at the first part of our vacay. We have a few more days left and are spending the last two nights in Oxford, MD. I hope to have enough pictures to do another post on Thursday. Until then, I hope you had a great weekend and that your week is off to a good start.

Thank you for your support. I would love to hear if you have any plans for the summer to travel, or garden, or just chill. Let me know in the comments section below.

Have a great Tuesday.

My Favorite Memorials - The Lincoln Memorial

I really like the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. Funny thing, I've never been to Washington and I have never seen the Lincoln Memorial in the flesh, or should I say in the stone! However, I have seen plenty of pictures, not only of the building, but of the man himself sitting in his great white marble chair.

Wikipedia - Public Domain

There are several things that charm me about this memorial. The building itself is stylized as a Greek temple. I love the clean look of the white colonnade surrounding the exterior walls. The position of the building on the green and at the one end of the reflecting pool also adds to its beauty. Having never been there, I can only imagine, that like the Mt. Rushmore Memorial it is much better in person.

Another thing I like about this memorial is the sculpture of our 16th President. I absolutely love this photo taken by Jeff Kubina. See his link below the picture.

Photo Credit Jeff Kubina

The sculpture was designed by Daniel Chester French and sculpted by the Piccirilli Brothers. I love the facial expression, the weathered hands and the wrinkles in his clothing. He really looks as though he could stand up and start reciting the Gettysburg Address. The designer and the sculptors did a marvelous job showing the weight this man was under in his lifetime.

I also chose this memorial as a favorite because of the man himself, Abraham Lincoln. He is by far one of my favorite presidents. The things that he accomplished in his lifetime are phenomenal and I believe he was a man of deep and thoughtful character. There have been more recent findings that suggest that he struggled with depression. I think to myself, how could a man not struggle with depression who was leading a nation engaged in civil war and who had lost three of this four children. However, even in his states of melancholy he led our nation through a war and ended slavery. If you have never seen the movie Lincoln with Daniel Day Lewis and Sally Field, by all means do! It does a great job of capturing the man and the times.

The final reason I like the Lincoln Memorial is that it stands in Washington, DC. Having that memorial there stands as a reminder to every president since 1922, that this was a man who had a standard that should be strived after. I wonder how often our leaders look out from Capital Hill and see that Memorial and remember. Isn't that what memorials are for?

My Favorite Memorials - Mt. Rushmore

The summer of 1988 my bother was getting married out in Denver, Colorado.  Kevin, four years my senior asked myself and our older brother, Jeff, to stand up in the wedding. My spouse and I decided we would make a vacation out of it and planned a trip that would include the Black Hills, Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone. We figured we might as well take advantage of the drive out and do some sightseeing. It was hot that summer. That was the summer much of Yellowstone National Park was hidden under clouds of billowing smoke. Fortunately, Mark and I were still able to see a number of beautiful scenes and plenty of buffalo and elk. 

Downloaded from Wikipedia site - Public Domain

One of the most memorable things we saw that summer was the Mt. Rushmore National Memorial. This is one of my favorite memorials. There are many reasons I like it. Let's start with it's massive size and the idea, motivation and work behind completing such a colossal project. From the conception of the idea by Doane Robinson to promote tourism in the area, to the actual sculpting of the granite mountain by Gutzon and Lincoln Borglum (father and son), the work took from 1927 to 1941. Read more here. Pictures really do not do it justice. You have to see it face to face, ha, ha.

Another reason I like this memorial is the men whose faces are carved into the rock. These were men who made a difference in our country's history. All of them were presidents, each with his own unique style of leading this nation. But they all did great things. George Washington, our nation's first president, fought in the Revolutionary War. Thomas Jefferson our third president, authored the Declaration of Independence. Abraham Lincoln our 16th president is famous for The Gettysburg Address, The Emancipation Proclamation and the 13 Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which permanently ended slavery. Theodore Roosevelt our 26th president was the main force behind making our national parks, forests and monuments, a way to preserve our natural resources. He also began construction of the Panama Canal.

When we arrived at Mt. Rushmore it was day time. The sky was blue and the sun was shining on the stone faces. We walked around, read the signs and tried to stay cool. We discovered that at night there was a multimedia presentation and lighting of the monument. My husband who had seen it several times before thought I might enjoy it. So we left to go set up our tent at a campground and came back when it was getting dark. I am so glad! It was phenomenal! The multimedia presentation included music and photographs of the work in progress as well  interesting background information. Then it all went black and they lit up the massive portrait in stone. It was impressive!

Everything about this memorial makes it a personal favorite. It is history carved in rock, a memorial, not only to the four men whose faces grace the granite cliff, but to all the people who have lived and served and died for our country. If you ever get the chance to see this memorial in person, don't pass it up.