Gettysburg Getaway

Joel's parents were kind enough to send us away for 24 hours while they and Aunt Liz watched the kiddos.  They live just 45 minutes away from Gettysburg, so it was the perfect distance.  We stayed at the cutest Bed and Breakfast.  It's called the Baladerry Inn.  The place is absolutely charming with the old brick fireplaces and 1800s decor.  The original part of the home (the brick section pictured above) was used as a hospital during the battle of Gettysburg.

I hadn't been to Gettysburg since my 5th grade field trip, so it's been a while.  They've really built up the place.  The new visitor center is huge!  Joel and I decided to spend the morning taking the self-guided car tour.  I've always found the Civil War very fascinating, so it was a very interesting visit.  The picture below is the view off of Little Round Top - the valley below is where "Pickett's Charge" took place.  Lee lost over 5,000 Confederate men in one hour charging across open fields.

Total casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing) for the 3 days of fighting in Gettysburg were 23,000 (Union Army) & 28,000 (Confederate Army).  It was pretty sobering to think of so many men fighting and dieing here.