Chippewa

Today was all about Chippewa Falls. We had lunch with Amanda -- the last time we'll see her. She brought her boyfriend and seems to be doing very well. She was the most talkative she's ever been and shared several of her plans for the future -- looking for a new job, dental hygienist school, exercise, etc. She's in a good place and seems so at peace with everything. We are thankful for her beyond words and have so much hope for her future.

Downtown Chippewa Falls -- much smaller than Eau Claire, but full of old charm.

Local post office.

Small town treats.

Beautiful country roads and open spaces.

We couldn't leave without a visit to the Leinenkugel Brewery, established in 1867. Who knew it was the 4th largest microbrewery in the United States and right there in this small town of Chippewa Falls!

Everett's first brewery (he didn't drink much).

I gravitated to everything copper (and there was a lot of copper!)

The lady giving out samples was a kick and made us take this picture.

I made her take this one.

We took the tour, which was 45 minutes and incredible! They only allow photography outside the building (darn!) Inside was very cool and we saw everything from fermenting grains to bottling. They do some serious production here and the beer wasn't half bad either!

Here they are separating out something from something else. Yes, I realize that sounds like I wasn't paying attention on the tour, but not so. I was only one in the group to correctly answer the post-tour trivia question correctly. I won a car ice scraper. Great. When we told the tour guide that we were from California, he said I could use it as a lottery ticket scratcher.

After beer sampling, we drove through the major park in Chippewa Falls, Irvine Park. It is massive with scenic drives, a mini zoo, river look outs, historic buildings and major open space.

It was a full day and we are glad to have spent time here in Everett's birthplace. It really is a cool little pocket of the world and without him, a place we would easily have overlooked. That being said, we are looking forward now and more ready than ever to bring this little guy home. Plus, he's got a big sister waiting for him. We miss our Amanda terribly and can't wait to introduce her to her little brother!

Strengthening those neck muscles.

Thinking of San Diego.

Speaking of home, we received wonderful news -- hurdle 2 of 3 (Wisconsin's approval for us to leave the state) was cleared today. That leaves California's approval and we are very hopeful that they will give their okay Friday after receiving the physical paperwork via Fedex Friday morning. We currently have plane tickets for Saturday, but if all goes well, you can bet that we'll be on a plane Friday night. Will let you know....