Even if some churches might allow non-religious services, that's not one of our options. It just can't be. That doesn't sound appropriate for any of us.



well, kidding or not, I don't want dogs to mess up everything on my wedding day, so yes they'll have to be tied up!

Good morning everyone!

Cecile - I'm glad you like your dress! It was a good idea to go away and think upon it before returning and making a list of alterations - the initial disappointment must've been huge, but as you say it's your dress and it's still a great deal cheaper than it would be in the shops.

I'm not having a photographer for my wedding - the ceremony itself isn't important, and it's really just a means to an end. Perhaps if we were having an expensive or fancy do we'd have one as then we'd want a reminder of how fantastic everything looked, but as it is I don't see a need for one. I've never looked back on photographs from other parties or birthdays or special occasions and don't miss having them.

Having a wedding in a botanic garden sounds wonderful!

Well here I am! I have posted around in several places...my poor man is getting so fed up with the highs and lows of this process...doesn't help all his belongings are already here in my flat in America! Poor guy really do feel for him but man I cannot help but research and get obsessive about everyone else's timelines too as sure helps pass the time ha ha!

Don't worry - I think many of us here are pretty obsessive at times!

The process will become a lot easier once we start to receive our NoA2s and can fix more secure wedding dates, I hope!

I kind of wish my belongings were already with Alex...it'd be frustrating at times, but at least I wouldn't be worrying about having to sell/ship everything I own.

Good luck to you and your fiancé

Oooh I see people speaking wedding on here as well another fun topic for me to obsess over

I also got my dress from China and ADORE it!!! Cost me 140 dollars as opposed to 500 in the local shop here!

We are hoping for a "fall" theme so here's hoping he actually gets here so we can make that happen! I figure September through November will be ok for fall theme haha. Our first date we have scheduled and reserved is Sept 27th 2008.

So many things to be obsessed over... the visa journey, the wedding (with everything little thing that is included), the moving and what we're going to do with our belongings... but we'll make it through!

sunnybear, are you planning an inside or an outside wedding? where do you live?

What can I say but

We might be having some changes to our wedding plans again... our Oct. 3 is not yet set on stone and we are planning to have it on 8-08-08 again like we originally planned. if it will be the case then at least the wedding guest platter we ordered last november would be put to use... but then again, we still don't know. when you have kids, there are just more things to consider.

BTW, didn't we see december filer approved 1st or 2nd week of march? Next week it will be April already, NOA2 is definitely coming for you guys. I am getting excited for all of you!

Obsess? I don't know what that word means

Good Morning all and welcome to this thread Sunnybear. I agree with you on the difficulties in dealing with the highs and lows. They can be spectacular at times. The only thing I've noticed is that I've gone into a pretty comfortable numb period - at least until I move closer to approval, then I'm sure the rollercoaster will speed up again. It is good to see you again Rachel, I hope you had a good time away from the computer. Could someone post the website for the Chinese dresses or is that only through e-bay. I hope everything will be organized once the NOA2 arrives - but with school starting for Olga's son, finding a way to ship her belongings from the Ukraine to the US, getting the visa and making flights.....and getting a wedding organized, I have a feeling stressful times are ahead. Honestly, I really don't know how I'd be able to handle all this without the advice and support from people on this site. I feel for those trying to do this alone.

Me thinks that the bartender at the local pub will be able to afford that addition to his house he's always wanted after all

That's the best way to describe it.

Hey - at least if you're going to the pub you're getting out there and enjoying human company! I think the worst thing to do would be to sit around on one's own.

dbears - I originally would've liked 08/08/08 - it'll be handy to remember!

EDIT: Forgot to say, thank you for the welcome backs

Once we will be closer to approval it is probably going to be more stressful than now. right now the only thing we can do is wait. but once people will start getting their approvals, that is going to be another story!

My dress was on e-bay, I believe the seller had another website though. i'll try to find it if you want, but I'm not sure that's the best place to get one since it was not made at the right size.
Maybe sunnybear's seller was better.

Didn't know there was one hehe

BUT.... I just posted there


well I think I did, not sure if that was the one tho :S

Welcome to you, svache!

Post here, ask questions, and help us pass the time. Welcome.

Thanks for the welcome ppl.. glad to be here ^^

Most of the questions which raised through time were already answered thanks to this great website and it's community.. it's now only the wait that is bothering me (and all of you obviously ).

Welcome!

I've not had to make any new threads making questions either - but it's still fun to post here to pass the time.

Thanks and yep, I totally agree on that

plus its good to hear all the successtories of people who got approved (especially those with fast approvals, it gives us good hopes ).

Approval times are slowly but surely coming down! I'm back in June instead of July!

I watch my approval times closely (nothing else to do) it popped up a day because some July filers finally made it through the system and got approved, but the trend is certainly down. I'm thinking approval around the first week in June or something. Perhaps we should poll the January filers at csc and see what their guess is - it would be interesting to see what peoples expectations are. My estimated adjudication date has dropped a month since I filed at the end of January, I'm hopping this trend continues.

I know when it comes to the consular stage I will be asking questions, but the regional forums, embassy reviews, and portals are very helpful in answering country specific questions. There is so much good information out there I don't think I'll have to be posting any new threads - until, of course, comes the one where I say "Approved!!!" followed by a long series of OMG's, dancing figures, and thumbs up. Hopefully there will not be many January filers left when my application gets approved since I filed at the end of the month.

Hey Rachel,

The next time your out at your local pub - give a look for Ruddle's County Ale or Bitters - that's from the branch of my family that didn't get kicked out of England 300 years ago. I think it's outstanding, but I'd like a resident's opinion. That is, of course, if you're looking for an excuse to have a drink!

I live in Michigan and we are planning an inside wedding but we are getting married right at same place the reception will be held. It has a back balcony type deck area though so if it is a nice night we may get married out on that! It is right on a lake as well. Too bad huge boats seem to block the view of the lake though!

Oh and I got my dress from Peridress.Com

Blake - I shall definitely have a look out for it, although I'm not too well versed in the knowledge of ales! I've just drunk what my dad drinks - Old Speckled Hen and Abbot's Ale.

Oh goodness, my stomach I made the mistake of going round to a friend's for dinner...mini chocolate donuts and dried pineapple while we waited, then an apple and feta salad, followed by huuuuge portions of lasagne (bolognaise, spinach, courgette, carrot and mushroom) and then chocolate melt pudding with tiramisu ice-cream and raspberries. As per usual it was a joint effort - collaborating with my friend (slim, athletic) and my housemate (also slim, athletic - where do they pack it all away?) over meals is deadly for one's diet.

Your description of the place seems so lovely.

I've been checking the site you mentioned... there's so many lovely dress there and the price is not bad ... are they really giving that 80-86% discounts?

BTW, anybody know I could buy will power? will power to resist food! Gosh, i'm soooo weak when it comes to food Right now, I am giving excuses that I won't be eating filipino foods for a long time so I might as well stock up.. YEAH RIGHT!!! the thing that is really stocking up is my hips and the belly. ARRGGG!!! Maybe I should buy some straps and have myself strapped during meal time and snack time.

Well - at least you know not to look to me for tips

Hmm all this talking about weddings make me a bit curious.. What kind of wedding will you guys be having? Will it be a big one with lots of family or just a quick and plain one?

For us it will most likely be a quick and plain wedding, mostly because family and friends would be coming from all over the world and there is not enough time to actually plan a wedding like this in our point of view... We think the K1 might get approved early september and then I should be flying september/october so basically you could say there is enough time to figure this one out but what if we get denied for some odd reason? Then we have to file for a waiver and it will take longer for us to be together, the wedding has to be postponed then and...well, i guess you get the picture.

We kinda go for a quick and plain wedding first and for a more 'normal' and bigger wedding a year or so later so we can do it really like how it should be. But yeah, kinda curious what your views are on this and how you guys do it yourselves ^^


edit: maybe I should've created a new topic for this but oh well, too late now lol

Quick and cheap!

Between 20-40 people (I really have NO idea!), held in Alex's parents' back garden, and home-made food/BBQ (at least, I'm really pushing for the BBQ). My parents, most of my siblings (the twins and one of my brothers want to attend, my other brother and sister don't but probably will under pain of death from my mother ), hopefully four of my friends + boyfriends and a couple of family friends will be flying over to attend. It's a long way to travel so I think most people are going to try and make a proper holiday of it. In the run-up to the wedding I'll probably be acting as tour guide and attempting to divide my time equally between all the guests. It's going to be hectic!

The problem does lie with trying to judge when the visa will be approved. I was originally going to go with a wedding date roughly 6 months from our NoA2 but I'm concerned that that may not leave us with enough time. I've tentatively suggested sometime in February as a new wedding to Alex although he's not very happy at that thought. I'd probably fly out on Christmas Day if that were so - cheap flights and empty airports!

Sigh...today is going slooooowly. I did bring my DS into work although I don't always like to play it - doesn't seem very professional! The great thing about secretarial work is the way you can obsess over the details. I can get a real bee in my bonnet over the most inane things. I just spent a good half-hour formatting a word document so that every indent aligned perfectly and it looked as neat and professional as possible. I can get unnaturally frustrated over improperly aligned/arranged word documents.

Well, it seems like we're going to do just like you: quick wedding when we get the visa and then next Spring/Summer we'll do a more traditional wedding. That will not be a big ceremony, from my family there will probably be only my parents, brother & sister. And maybe one or two friends. From his family there will be more people of course (that's easier when you live in the same country)
I would have prefered to do everything at once right after we get the visa. I'd like to think of my wedding day and not of my two wedding days. It's going to be strange to be ask if I want to take him as my husband the second time if we're already husband and wife. I would have prefered a small traditional wedding (by "traditional" I only mean "wedding not at a courthouse") even if it's only half of a real wedding instead of doing it that way.
But I do understand that everybody else would prefer to have the ceremony later. That's the way Bryan wants it and that's the way my parents and everyone willing to come from France like better. So yeah... that's probably be like you. Courthouse at the end of this year, and ceremony later.

Gaye, I dont know where you can find any will power but maybe this will help... Getting2Goal < my site... read the tips.

btw... there has got to be places here in the states you'll be able to get your favorite foods from home.

CSC seems to be pushing the approvals out a little faster these days. Could it be they're finally catching up? I hope so! Looks like a lot of you will be approved around the same time we hope to be. Maybe I should start posting here!

Maybe you should! The more the merrier, after all. I'll even host a tea party.

Speaking of food and diets:

Anyone using gmail knows that google places adverts to one side of the e-mail which are based on the e-mail's contents - just as the google ads here draw upon the contents of the page you have open.

So in my usual nightly e-mail to Alex yesterday I talked about the meal I'd eaten with my friends - didn't so much as mention a diet! - and I received the following adverts in my sent folder:



Google's telling me I ate too much, guys

Gawd you look like me hahaha... I'm not a secretary tho but yah, I do have my PSP with me during work (and like you, I dont play it constantly, just once in a while during breaks lol)






Good to hear we're not the only ones doing it like that... I was kind of wondering about it since I read some stories from people and was wondering if we were beginning to be the only ones who would do it like this haha

Anyways, about my own relatives, I wish my mom and sis could be there when we 'redo' the wedding with ceremony but thats not even sure as of yet. Airfare is about €1000/$1500 during the low seasons and I doubt they're all willing to pay for it (I kinda don't wanna pay for them all lol, it will only be for my mom and my sis if any but then again, mom doesn't want to travel about 24 hours ). Oh well, maybe we will have to redo it even later on again for my family over here in the Netherlands.

As for the 'quick' initial marriage, I think only Michelle's mom and maybe some friends will come.. well maybe some of the people who rent a room at their place. Her brother and such are on the mainland and it is a bit ackward to have them coming over for this and then about a year later to ask again if they can come over lol. And a BBQ... hmm... lol.. it's pretty sure I will get one after the wedding.. they are doing a BBQ so much there... everytime when I hear about it I'm like "I WANT!" haha

Once Gmail assumed I was looking for "lesbian fun nights". I've never figured out what information from my emails they chose to make that one!

Kim, I've bookmarked your site, it is AMAZING! I have opened it a few times before when you shared it on the other thread but its my first time to really browse the different pages. all i could say is WOW!!! I am not really overweight, just need 2 shed off about 10-15 pounds and get a little toned. Gosh, if you and the people on your site have lost those 100pounds and more, I'd probably be able to do so also. i'd surely be checking your site more often.

I just hope and pray that you will soon have news about your brother.


RE Wedding: We haven't finalized anything yet but it will also be really simple and low cost. We can't afford any grand wedding even if we want to. This immigration process is already very costly for us and we will probably be financially tied up for the next few months to a year to the time of "removing conditions"... well, as long as we will be together and as long as it will be with God's blessing, no matter how simple it will be it will still be beautiful.

I love you put it there and I totally agree on that

Now that's a good one

When you figure it out let me know

Seriously though, I stopped trying to figure it out a while ago. but it did make me laugh a lot.

Thanks Gaye, I appreciate it. The site was started almost 10 years ago and I can vouch for the fact that it's a lot harder keeping it off! It really doesn't matter how much weight you have to lose cuz in the end it's all about feeling good and living well!

Thank you as well for the wishes regarding my brother. We hold out hope that he will come home to us someday soon.

AGREE & AGREE!!!

You are a very strong and amazing woman Kim. I have told myself I can survive anything just not losing any of my kids, that would totally break me. But you have survived losing a father and a brother and even survived every mother's worst fear. That's probably where you're drawing so much positivism, what didn't kill you have totally made you! KUDOS to you KIM POSSIBLE!

well, i've never been called that before!

Thank you, Gaye. I appreciate your kind words. Life certainly has dealt me quite a few blows...some I barely survived. But I am also truly blessed ...in love, in family and in friends. That's where I try to keep my focus most of the time. Life's too short not to, eh?


I'm still kinda intriqued by what would make 'lesbian fun nights' links come up in google search!

For some odd reason I don't really want to know

And anyway, this was a while ago and I don't think I can find which message was in my inbox folder at that time... so we will never know!


K1 processing time changed on the USCIS website. We're now 125 instead of 134 on Igor's list It probably doesn't mean anything, but that's still a move!

I moved up on Igors list too haha hey makes me smile at least

Argh - I lost the link to Igor's list! Where can I usually find it?

http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/igor/vjdata/
You should paste it in your "personal note pad" in "My controls". That way you'll never lose it!

Thank you, and an excellent suggestion! I'll go do that now.

I know. Was only playing.

A&R... in IE click file and send shortcut to desktop or save it to favorites, that way it's a click away instead of a c&p. I have a K1 folder on my desktop with shortcuts to all user created lists, the vj lists and important information i've found so it's always easy to locate. Just an idea.

You do know Igor's list is based on the vj database? We are a very small percentage of the true number of filers. On that note... to anyone reading...it's so important to update your timelines because that is really the only way to get a more accurate idea of times. There are people waiting but many folks left on those lists that have simply stopped updating their timelines here on vj. That throws all the numbers off so take that into consideration when viewing these as a way to track your own progress. btw... we're last!

It's great to see CSC moving along!

Since I'm at work I don't usually bookmark things on the browser itself but I do use http://del.icio.us - that reminds me to install the firefox shortcuts; makes bookmarking extremely easy to do!

I know Igor's list isn't a true representation but it can give a rough idea - and that's good enough for me!

Kim, I am looking forward to you announcing that you've sent your petition off! It'll feel great!

Ah, French fashion, how you put us to shame!

Following a link on the BBC I ended up on a 'bespoke designer' British bridal website - full of some of the most expensive but hideous dresses I've seen. They pale in comparison to the dresses Miss Yoko was showing us!

Hi Rachel (I assume you're rachel!)... thanks for the wishes! Ahhh makes sense you can't do that at work!

you're from Sheffield??? I have a friend i've known for years that's from Sheffield! He married and moved somewhere closer to London a few years ago but his family is still there. He's wonderful and I adore him!

Yes I am indeed Rachel - perhaps I should change my screenname to 'Just Rachel' since Alex has said he won't post. Boo!

I am not originally from Sheffield but I've been living here for seven years so it is my home now! I do love Sheffield - fantastic city; very friendly and safe and lots to do. My grandmother lived near here in her childhood, though, so I'm not without connections!