Amanda had started a great list of those of us in the US who have ties to Ireland. I know this thread wasn't getting a ton of use before, but I just wanted to restart it so that we would be aware of who is from where and can help each other out with ideas when we have 'em.
If you are new to this thread, please add you and your SO's name and location!


Name..............County ............ Name........State
Amanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)

Thanks for fixing that James & Julia

Name..............County ............ Name........StateAmanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)

Just wondering if anyone had to call the Dublin embassy ever and what time of day you did it. I know they only deal with visa stuff from 1-4pm, but does that count for phone calls from a US citizen too?
I really want to call in the morning before work, but then it would only be around 10am there... Does anybody know if they will still talk to me then?
Thanks for any info!

My grandfather's grandfather was from Golden, Ireland..... at first everyone thought he was saying "golden Ireland" (like as an adjective.... "long-lost beautiful golden place of lore").... then, long after his death, his grandson looked at a map and by God there it was ! (You have to have a really detailed map as it's a rather tiny place.)



-MK

Hi Julia
I sent you a PM bout that, and you can only call between 1 and 4pm. Sucks I know, but hopefully you can find a way to contact them .

Wife of Mahmoud...yip, lots of little villages in Ireland!
Amanda

Hi,

Add us to the list!..

Aidan – Co. Tyrone & Melissa - Florida

Add us too :

Colleen-Philadelphia Gavin-Dublin

:-)

Name..............County ............ Name........State
Amanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)
Aidan...............Tyrone.............Melissa.......Florida
Gavin..............Dublin...............Colleen......Philadelphia

Thanks Mand,

add us on to the list,

Mel............Kildare...........Chris.............MA

Hi everyone,
We're new here but have been lurking for a while!
You can add us to the list
Jason.........Chicago........Ruth.......Dublin

Name..............County ............ Name........State
Amanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork.................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)
Aidan...............Tyrone.............Melissa.......Florida
Gavin..............Dublin...............Colleen.......Philadelphia
Mel.................Kildare..............Chris..........MA


Mel and Chris: what part of MA and are you still living there?


I have a big question for you all now!

James just checked his voicemail and had a message from Friday (silly man wasn't expecting any calls, hadn't checked since then!!) from the embassy. A woman left a neutral message asking him to call her, gave an ext. number and everything and said call anytime Mon-Fri 10:00am- 1:30 pm. he will of course call at 10 on the dot tomorrow morning, but we are so nervous!!

Does anyone know what a phone call means? Does it mean something is missing or don't bother, we won't give you a visa, or does it mean, hey get in here tomorrow we want to speed you through??
Sorry for the panicky post, we just weren't expecting this and are a little scared!

Name..............County ............ Name........State
Amanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork.................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)
Aidan...............Tyrone.............Melissa.......Florida
Gavin..............Dublin...............Colleen.......Philadelphia
Mel.................Kildare..............Chris..........MA
Ruth...............Dublin...............Jason.........Chicago

Name..............County ............ Name........State
Amanda...........Limerick...........Rob............Ohio
Wes.................Londonderry.....Rebecca.....WV
James..............Cork................Julia...........MA
David...............Cork.................Erin............NY (Although we are currently living in FL)
Aidan...............Tyrone.............Melissa.......Florida
Gavin..............Dublin...............Colleen.......Philadelphia
Mel.................Kildare..............Chris..........MA
Ruth...............Dublin...............Jason.........Chicago
Denis..............Cork.................Doria..........IN

Hehe, nevermind my frantic post of yesterday. James called this morning and got an interview!!!

He's going in Feb. 3rd, I am SO excited!!!

uh....this thread is starting to confuse me.....could we put the VJ member name after the real names so I can figure out who everybody is??

Pretty Please?

Hi, could you please add us too:-)

Name..............County ............ Name........State

Trish...............Galway............Patrick.........NY

Hi all

Please add us to the list Mand


'Zinka' Zoe.....Dublin .......George........ NJ

Good to see some Irish here


Zoe

yes it is

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ Name
Amanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka

Oh thank you!! LOL

No problem! it was a great idea to add the usernames, I like that we are keeping track, will make asking for advice and just sharing general info so much easier!

James just got his visa today!!! For those of you still going through it, I will post as soon as I hear the whole story about how Dublin was. We only talked real quick since I got home late from work and his friends are taking him out to say goodbye. He did say it was really easy. We had worried so much about what he should bring, trying to think of every possible detail or piece of evidence and then he said they didn't even ask to look at a single picture or anything!

He got a ticket for Sunday, we'll be together in less then 48 hours!!! AND as I had mentioned to some people, we were really hoping for a Feb 11th wedding so my Marine brother who's going to Iraq could attend while he was on leave, and this is just perfect timing

Hope all is going well for the rest of you!

~Julia

Aw...now that makes me smile!

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ NameAmanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka
Martin...............Dublin...............Anne..........Seattle.................
..........grrltraveler

Morning all!

Just adding in a link HERE for The Irish Independent. I find it great for all news and sports stories. You can also see the actual front page which is pretty cool too. I signed up so I can read the full stories if I want and have never received any spam or rubbishy e-mails from them, so it's definately a good one.

Amanda

Well its official, the man from Cork is here in Indianapolis tell the midwest to watch out! he got in last night with no trouble at all and it was such a RELIEF to see him again. i'm sooooo happy today, grinning from ear to ear. poor fella just went to take a nap, the jet lag is catching up a bit, but i've got us booked for a couples massage this evening so i think that'll help get him in order too.

i can't believe we made it this far..well actually i can, it just seems like a dream. three and a half years, most of it long distance, save for six months together in edinburgh...and that was followed by the toughest month apart that we ever spent. but that month ended yesterday when he came down the escalator and spotted me hauling his bags off the baggage claim!!

so all is well in Indiana. it finally feels like i can really get on with my life now.

Thanks guys.

Doria and Denis

Congratulations! I know what you mean about the dream... it is a great feeling, almost surreal, but wonderful, to be back together again. I know I am getting used to the idea that we don't have to worry about a return flight coming up too soon ever again.Hope you had fun at your massages!

Can you add me

Donal .... .Galway ........ Kristina......NH

We are moving overselves on the 7th of march and we are really excited. Did ye guys and gals have problems finding a job when ye moved over. Im in the IT sector and we will be moving on the outskirts of boston after the wedding.

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ Amanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka
Martin...............Dublin...............Anne..........Seattle.................
..........grrltraveler
Donal................Galway.............Kristina.......NH.......................
.........galwayman



Galwayman,
Where exactly in the outskirts of Boston? We live on the South Shore.

My father is in the IT sector, he's an Oracle DBA and I think the industry is a little tight, but not horrible. I actually know a few people who can provide limited help, especially to DBAs, I think. What kind of job are you looking for exactly? PM me if you want an attempt at help, I warn you my connections are very limited, but you never know when getting in touch with someone can be helpful. Good luck!

Hi all

Just wondering on how you're all getting on since ye got here. And Julia..are you excited about the upcoming wedding!! Don't forget to post some pics afterwards and of course enjoy and savour the day Married life is great and just gets better

Amanda

Hey everyone, just thought I'd add an update about our status, hope everyone else will do the same, I would love to hear how your processes are going.



James got his K-1 exactly a month ago today He came over here a few days later and we had a great reunion. The timing ended up working great for us. His parents and brother were able to come over a little while after he did, and my Marine Corps brother was on leave so we had a small wedding ceremony in our living rooom for just the immediate family. Actually, to most people we only announced an engagment and are planning a larger, church ceremony for the summer after my brother is scheduled to come back from Iraq.



We've run into a few bumps with the SSN/AOS/EAD business which is a bit frustrating, but we are really happy to be together and we know it'll work out eventually so we're taking it all in stride.



How long did everyone else wait to go get their SSN? We took the advice of waiting a couple weeks to ensure James was in the system, but apparently we didn't wait long enough. The lady said she would keep checking the system for us till the end of the week and then finish the process and mail his card but that if by the end of the week he wasn't in there, she would have to send the documents for verification, which I hear takes forever... And he can't get his license till he gets a SSN, we tried, so it kinda limits his ability to start settling in. He's trapped in the house till I get home everyday.



Our other issue so far is with the whole medical thing. The civil surgeon won't sign off on James's vaccination supplement till a blood test comes back saying that he has had chickenpox, which doesn't make much sense to me but whatever. Everything else seems to be in order but for some reason the govt is nervous people will get chickenpox and won't take his word for it that he had it as a 5 year old. Its making the process longer and quite a bit more expensive, but should be all set within the next couple days. If you have access to old medical records, I would suggest trying to bring those with you to the civil surgeon, maybe that could avoid delays?



I really am not trying to complain by posting these issues, just thought others might like to hear the bumps in the road we have run into so that you can either think of a way to avoid these or at least have an idea of some things you might have to deal with. Like I said earlier, we really are just so happy to be together that we aren't stressing too much about delays.



I tried to attach a pic of us on the day of the ceremony, we'll see if it works. It was very small and simple, didn't even have traditional wedding atttire on (saving it for the church ceremony) but it was a wonderful day and so far we are loving married life! So nice to have him here when I get home from work and not have to worry about when his flight home to Ireland is anymore!!



Hope everyone else is doing well! and sorry for the long post!



~Julia

Ye look great lads! And the bumps do smooth out after awhile!

I went in about my SSN about 2/3 weeks after arriving and it took about 7/8 weeks to get it!

If James has a full Irish driving license, try and get him an International License. Check out HERE. You can print the form and post it off, with James' address in Ireland (for AA to mail it back). His family can send it on to James there. Ring your own insurance company and see if they will insure him on this? I'm insured with Rob at Progressive Insurance on my International License and it really has helped.

I had to get the chicken pox vaccine which added $85 to the already high fee of $50 for the supplemental, so I know where you're coming from on the money side...it's all a money gimmick!!

I'm glad to hear everything is going well for you two and wish you unlimited years of happiness!!

Amanda

Thanks!

James never needed a license in Ireland, and was only in the process of getting one there so we just have to wait till the SSN comes through. The house actually needs some repairs and stuff at the moment, so at least he is able to keep busy doing useful things until he is able to go out and get a real job.



As for the medical thing, the blood test and supplemental already cost $180 and could be $150 more if it turns out he needs the chickenpox vaccine! We tried calling around a little bit but other civil surgeons weren't all that helpful. Oh well!



Wishing for happiness and good times for everyone else as well!



~Julia

Hello all! Just popping in to check on everybody and give our update.

We had our successful AOS interview last week - no green card yet though cause the FBI name check is not finished. But will be happy to answer any and all questions any of you have about this process as you all begin filing.

And also waiting on pins and needles to hear about a job for Wes. Supposedly they are supposed to let him know by - get this - St. Pat's day!

Ooooh!! Fingers and toes crossed for Wes here!!

Just wanted to give this a little bump up and check how everyone is doing.

Our little update: We finally figured out what has been taking James' SSN so long... apparently on his I-94 the N in his name was mistaken for a W, so he's misspelled in the system (although why the handwritten part is what got him in SAVE rather then the 10 printed documents he also had at POE is beyond me, we understand this is because of his less then neat handwriting!) Even tho the delay kind of stinks, at least things are back on track now and we now how to fix the problem! So all is good here, just awaiting EAD and AOS!

Hope all is well with the rest of you!

hi...i'm late to this thread, but i'm going to add us to the list! *waves to the folks here she already knows!*

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ Amanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka
Martin...............Dublin...............Anne..........Seattle.................
..........grrltraveler
Donal................Galway.............Kristina.......NH.......................
.........galwayman
Anthony.............Armagh............Danielle.......MO.........................
......dani_christine

Let's bump this up, aye.....

Hey all my fellow Irish

I haven't had anything fun to report lately, but since Mand reminded me about this forum-I thought I would pop in and say "hello" to everyone.

Hope everyone is well

Hi everyone!! Good to catch up on how everyone is doing. Denis and I had our "real" wedding on April 1 and it was fantastic, simply the best day of my life. All of his immediate family were there and stayed for a few days which really made things special.

his AOS interview is coming up on June 19, we're hoping his EAD comes before that. but the one we were really happy about was his AP- my brother is getting married in mexico in 12 days and we didn't think Denis would be able to make it... but lo and behold the gov't came through for us! now if we had an EAD waiting in the mail upon our return from mexico we'd be really excited.

Anyhow, i hopw all the other irish newbies are doing well here in the states and settling in. there's certainly been some difficult moments for us but each day things get a little easier. it'll be much better when he has permission to work.

Take care and hope to see you all posting updates soon

(off to bed with the hubby who unfortunately got his second really bad American haircut today. i dunno if the stylists can't quite understand him or if he's just having bad hair luck!!)

Glad to hear everyone is doing well. We don't really have any updates of significance here, but all is well. James got his driver's license, which is a plus and just today his EAD application was 'touched' - hope that means an approval is coming soon!

OK this is the first time I have noticed this thread, so if you dont mind could you add us as well?
Niall.......Cork..........Sherry........NC
We sent all our papers in and we are on our way to a hopefully not too long Journey,as I'm not to sure what kinda timeframe we are looking at, tho I am positive we wont be together for our wedding anniversary. Well ya cant win them all. I am just trying to stay positive and looking forward to when Niall comes home. I hope everyone else is doing well

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ Amanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka
Martin...............Dublin...............Anne..........Seattle.................
..........grrltraveler
Donal................Galway.............Kristina.......NH.......................
.........galwayman
Anthony.............Armagh............Danielle.......MO.........................
......dani_christine
Niall..................Cork.................Sherry.........NC...................
............sowens

All done

Hi Sowens, welcome to the Ireland page!! Just wondering where in Cork Niall is from? My hubby is from Cork as well and is always excited to know when a new Corkman is on his way to the States. Denis is from Bishopstown, born in Bantry but claims Durrus as home typical Irishman! Hope your visa journey goes smoothly, keep us up to date.

Hiya ddurkin, nice to meet you as well, Niall is always glad to meet a fellow irishman in the states, especially when they are familiar with the same locale. Niall was born in Dublin but raised in Cork, hes from the Old Blackrock Road area. I know what ya mean about the typical bit....LOL. have you been to Ireland with Denis? I love it there, cant wait to go back! So far the journeyhasnt been to eventful, we recieved our NOA1 on the K-3 friday afternoon....now were just waiting! Anxiously I might add...LOL. Thanks again for the welcome.

Hi Amanda,

Can you add us too please?

James...Galway...Rita...Chicago....RK1031

Thanks! Congratulations on the pregancy!

Hi again Sowens, hope all is well. I've been over to Ireland too many times to count now and I love it. admittedly, the first time i was there i was a bit mystified by the place...i found it very different than where i grew up in michigan but loved it all the same. I'm hoping we'll get back there this fall with my parents. They haven't been yet and are really looking forward to it. Someday we will likely end up in Ireland, but not for a good few years. I'm just starting my career, and as we've gone though so much just to get Denis here we'll be sticking around a while.

Anyhow gang we're off to Mexico tomorrow for my brother's wedding. We'll let you all know how the AP goes...we're not nervous but it's a bit difficult because we're on two totally different flights thanks to AP arriving at the last minute! But hopefully we'll both make it to Cancun and back without any hassle.

Hiya ddurkin, LMAO at the coincedences. I was born in Mi. tho not completely raised there. How wierd is that? Anyways I understand what ya mean about the whole mystified experience, my first trip was a bit overwhelming, but then by the second trip I noticed that i was able to remember my way a bit. I cant wait to go back, hopefully I will be able to go when Niall has his interview. We'll see. Have a great trip to mexico and be safe, hope all works out for ya going and returning.

Name..............County ............ Name........State..........................VJ Amanda...........Limerick.............Rob............Ohio.......................
.......Mand
Wes................Londonderry........Rebecca.....WV............................
...rebeccajo
James.............Cork...................Julia...........MA.....................
...........j&js
David...............Cork...................Erin............NY (current: FL).............David&Erin Owens
Aidan...............Tyrone................Melissa.......Florida.................
.........aidan80
Gavin...............Dublin.................Colleen.......Philadelphia...........
........irishgirl73
Mel..................Kildare................Chris..........MA...................
............melmaid101
Ruth................Dublin.................Jason.........Chicago................
.........Dub-Chi
Denis...............Cork...................Doria..........IN....................
.............ddurkin
Trish................Galway...............Patrick.......NY......................
..........galwayshore
Zoe..................Dublin................George.......NJ......................
...........Zinka
Martin...............Dublin...............Anne..........Seattle.................
..........grrltraveler
Donal................Galway.............Kristina.......NH.......................
.........galwayman
Anthony.............Armagh............Danielle.......MO.........................
......dani_christine
Niall..................Cork.................Sherry.........NC...................
............sowens
James...............Galway..............Rita............Chicago.................
.......RK1031

Welcome aboard James and Rita

Hello all, another quick update- Denis got a job and started working yesterday! So far so good, he seems to enjoy it and it should be an excellent starting point for his career in the U.S. We have our greencard interview on June 19 and I'm starting to get a little nervous. We haven't put anything together for it yet, and he's just started working and I'm starting my first "real" job (not an internship or summer job) on Monday. So we'll have our work cut out for us the next couple of weeks!

Hope the rest of you are well!

It's good to know that everything is going well..................good luck to both of you with your new jobs & with your interview.

Colleen