Wow!, I didn't realize this was going to be so difficult being apart after marriage. I just go married 11/19/07 in PI. Had great wedding and a great time over there with my new bride. Now like everyone else I had to come home and be by myself. This is the pits. My new wife started balling her eyes out before I even left. After two weeks I am very sad and now I know this is going to probably take at least a year to get her and her kid over here.

I am sure a lot of you have had to go through this.process. Just wondering what you did to offset the process. We will be filing a CR-1/ I-R/1 petition as soon as I get the true certified copies of marriage certificates and birth certificates. What did most of you do to offset the blues of being apart? Unfortunately, I can't afford to fly over there again next year. Sitting here feeling very sad.
Martin

I haven't applied for this kind of visa but I wish you good luck!

WELCOME TO THE CLUB BUDDY!!!

We got married Feb 5th and I spent another 3 weeks there after the wedding. It will seem like a long wait for each step of the way, but our case was forwarded to the embassy yesterday. One of the things that kept us sane was being able to chat on yahoo messenger almost on a daily basis with some phone calls added in. From the news I've been reading, the visa process in now taking even longer, so I can feel for you. You can pick up a lot of good hints here about how to save a little time, and have all your paperwork correct so that you avoid the delay of a request for information.

when i filed my I-130 i files with all xerox copies of marrage lic. the you get not the one from nso and birth certificate they were all xerox and i had no problems nothing was even said i am now in the ncv process and now i have all the originals so i will be able to send now but i wouldnt worry too much about haveing originals if you have xerox already send it off
after few month contact congressmen and it will help speed things up i would wait for the 120 day make though
good luck

It is very difficult to be apart. My husband, fiance then, and I did everything possible to communicate. We talk constantly on the phone, email each other, try to see each other on webcams.

We were so depressed but we persevered. We couldn't have done it on our own though, we trusted God and prayed so hard and so much that I'm sure He felt our best intentions for each other.

Hang in there!

If she doesn't have her own PC buy her a laptop and set her up with DSL.

You can do a LOT of things with a web cam!

Also plan on making another trip even if you have to borrow to do so.
Not only "shrinks the horns" but helps a LOT when it gets to her embassy interview in proving a bonafide marriage.
They always ask how many times you met!

We all been in situation like that , all the kind of stress, agony, fraustration , i think i had suffered from this process just be strong and be patience along the process and when u get to the goal it will be worth it . Goodluck

It is alot easier seeing each other everyday. I agree with the computor idea. That's what I did too. Wife didn't have a landline phone so we used wifi. Keep yourself busy.

Martin it is not easy to be seperated, but this is what I do:

1. Be strong

2. Keep yourself busy

3. Use Yahoo with webcam and headset

Also, I had Meryll get a certified xerox copy of the Marriage Certificate from the Local Civil Registry. This will do for USCIS and NVC. You will need the NSO copy for the USEM. The NSO copy can take 3 months.

Martin, I too have had a very hard time. The answers to most problems will come from within. As others have reccomended try to stay busy. It may be a good time to develop a hobby. There are many constructive alternatives. Only you can decide what is really best. All the opinions gained are just that. OPINIONS. Stay strong, try to find whatever it takes for YOU... best wishes, John&Jean

I am in the same situation for 2yrs now..

What do I do to keep me busy?

#1. Work, Work, Work...

#2. $2 phone card a day.. Or subscribe with a Long Distance carrier. You will need the proof on the interview process..

#3. I go to the gym to forget problems and homesickness..

I hope you find these helpful..

Try yoga... Hehehe!!! Just kidding

Keep yourself busy with work, hobbies, friends, and other activities as much as possible. We all definitely understand how hard this part of the process can be. Please come here and vent a little too. I found that writting that letting it out here on VJ to also be a comfort, but keep it in the Philippines forum because the rest of the VJ is not always that accommodating (if you get my drift).

Thanks for everyones support on this. I have to accept the fact this is going to be a very slow process. I am bracing myself for around a year in a half of waiting or more. I mean what am going to do? It's out of my hands. But I have a question about the marriage certificates. Do I have to send in original copies or can I just send in a copy of her marriage and birth certificate? I have everything ready to go but have been waiting on them to process the true certified copies over at the NSO office. They said it would take around 3-6 weeks to process.
thanks,
Martin

To file for I-130..

Copies from the Original NSO docs..

But save those originals, you will need them at the interview. The embassy will take a copy if they need it, but want to see the original. I just saw on the news last week that they are esimating 14 months right now, so not good, but better than 18 months.

When my husband filed for K3 , he just bring the copy from the local civil registrar of our marriage certificate and my NSO copy of bc . Im just not sure about the CR1/IR1 case

Its actually the same thing..

I think NVC is the only one that wants Original Docs to submit..

It is very hard being apart. We spend a lot of time on Yahoo messenger and the phone

Wow, I remember those days. What we did? We talked, talked, and talked some more. Exchanged pics regularly. Chatted, webcammed, texted. I included her in every part of my day, small things like what my work schedule was, how things are going, stories from the day...she did the same with me also so now we sort of joke about our daily "updates". The last couple of months, we've been kind of working on how we want to make our home look, she has been buying some traditional things and sort of planning how she would like things to lay out and look.

The waiting can be very, very frustrating, we have used the time to learn to know each other, grow together, and have pretty much laughed our way through spotty internet/phone service, dropped calls, delayed text messages, and general technological issues that further aggravate the problem of maintaining closeness at a distance.

We're done, at least with filing, all we need is NVC/issue to Embassy, then we can interview and end this separation. It wasn't easy.

Good luck to both of you

Regards,

David and Nitadyah

Hang in there hun, we are in the same boat and dont see the end of the tunnel yet. What has really helped us alot is that we have Yahoo IM with cam (ooopsie) and mics and speakers. So even tho I may be working (self employed) or even cleaning the house, I leave the speaker on so its like he is here. Does not help when you go to bed at night but in time, this all will become a distant nightmare and you can say that we went thru some pretty stuff, we are stronger together.

Good Luck

Susie