Magnolia31

You are right! I live in one of those places now and am glad that I no longer have to deal with that. It was very frustrating for me because that is what forced me to return to Germany, which caused me to lose permanent resident status which I have had since the age of 7.

My daughter is half Mexican so I have nothing against Mexicans, obviously. I do however have a problem with the lack of equal opportunity and discrimination that I felt just because I couldn't speak Spanish. I felt like i was living in freaking Mexico. I did complain several times but their excuse was always "Oh, well we live in a border town." I can completely understand but why did Mexicans get jobs without speaking English?

Fortunately, there are still many cities and towns where you can communicate solely in English without having to feel guilty and even land a decent job if you only speak English. Or English and another language other than Spanish. Those cities really still exist.

A few countries are like that but you're obviously missing the point. It has nothing to do with the constitution, but equal opportunity which was non-existent at that time. I stated I was living in America where English IS the primary language, not spanish - DUH, ding - ding! Perhaps you have not ever lived in a place where you were denied a job because you couldn't speak a certain language, which shouldn't have been that way unless you were trying to be a translator.

You're from Poland? So let's say you live in Poland and are trying to get a job but you get denied because you can't speak German. Yet, you go to a store with German workers who can't speak polish and you can't communicate with them. Would you still find it funny?

You have got to be kidding me. Yes, your dim-witted response did drift off topic. We were on point until you decided to drift off on the stupidity subject. You're welcome to buy yourself a clue and try again next time.

I mean afterall, I was living in freaking America.

I do however have a problem with the lack of equal opportunity and discrimination that I felt just because I couldn't speak Spanish. I felt like i was living in freaking Mexico. I did complain several times but their excuse was always "Oh, well we live in a border town." I can completely understand but why did Mexicans get jobs without speaking English?

American constitution doesn’t recognizes any official language. Nowhere states that in America people should speak English.

This is funny for me actually.

But this is OFF TOPIC

Heh. I wish my husband could go to at least one appointment with me. He will be in Iraq until August next year though and I have to deal with the pregnancy all by myself. This sucks.

Can you get them to print out an ultrasound pic for you? You can also go to a place with your husband together, that does 3D and 4D ultrasounds around a time which would be convenient for both of you. I have an appointment at this place here:

http://www.babysfirstimages.com/packageschicago.htm

I mean, you do have to pay for it but I am gonna get it done so i can send a CD to my husband with the baby's images. i think it is worth the price.

If you really want your husband to be a part of an ultrasound, go to one of these places!

we are going to tell people the sex of the baby so people know what kind of things to buy.... we are not going to tell people the name though..... that will have to wait until after the baby is born....

it turns out that hubby has no more days off this year and my ultrasounds are always in the morning and at my next ultrasound we will probably be able to find out the sex... I really wanted my hubby to be there ... he says just to get them to write it down and we will look at it together when he gets home from work... but who knows maybe my next ultrasound won't be till next year...

I lived in El Paso, Texas from 1983-2002 and I gotta admit, I was annoyed with the job situation there a few times. i mean, there I was, abandoned by my ex-husband with a newborn baby, trying to find a job to support my baby, and for EVERY job I applied for, I was told I needed to be 100% bilingual in English and Spanish. Yet, I could walk into Walmart and the cashier who rung up my items, couldn't speak one word of English, not to mention, understand what the hell I was saying. I was more than annoyed. I felt like if I had to be bilingual and couldn't get a job because I wasn't, then it should be like that for everyone, including hispanics who can't speak both. I mean afterall, I was living in freaking America.

My daughter is half Mexican so I have nothing against Mexicans, obviously. I do however have a problem with the lack of equal opportunity and discrimination that I felt just because I couldn't speak Spanish. I felt like i was living in freaking Mexico. I did complain several times but their excuse was always "Oh, well we live in a border town." I can completely understand but why did Mexicans get jobs without speaking English?

my stepdad is an idiot and told me that I shouldn't learn spanish because it contributes to all the mexicans taking our jobs. lol

Seems to me that he mas making a joke and again on VJ, people are taking things the wrong way. I really hate when that happens.

I have an american brother who wears his pants backwards, sagging down off his butt with his boxers showing. he also wears a grill in his mouth. You'd never think that he is a food inspector and also works as a cook in the army. However, i always tease him and tell him he looks like a thug or gangster. I grew up in El paso, TX and gang members did wear their clothes like that.

So, the OP I believe, was just being funny. Lighten up.

????? WHAT???? I am sooo confused....thankyou for your warnings about the embassy and all....but, my husband IS from Zarqa and I have spent alot of time there and i don't know if ''street ghangster'' ever came to mind there. The people in that city are poorer than the ones in Amman, but i don't believe that makes them a ghangster...also, i don't think a tattoo makes someone suspicious or a ghangster???? I am just really confused about ur post. Are you from Jordan???

I do not miss putting a euro in a shopping cart to use it. I also don't miss having to bag my own groceries LOL.

I do miss real ice cream - that stuff here doesn't taste real to me LOL .... I miss currywurst, and the ability to take a train all over the country if I needed to.

It is more common to hear people talk about things that they miss back in their country. My wife decided to let go of her "attachments" so she can be free of the emotional baggage everytime she misses a thing or a person or anything. I can agree to a certain point, because it is always hard to let go. She has had struggles letting go during the first few months. And now that she's gradually adjusting to life here in the US, it seems to me that there are things that she used to love/is passionate about back in her country, but doesn't miss/care much about anymore (for example, certain foods, hobbies, choice of movies, people) . For this purpose, we would like to know what are the things in your country that you really like/love/feel passionate about, but don't really care about (at least not that much) anymore. My wife was surprised with her own list.

I have lived in places where alot of Turkish people lived all around us. i have never encountered what you are saying about being turkish friendly as americans are mexican friendly. When I lived in Bavaria though, the people in my town were not too fond of Russian people.

I am a male U.S. citizen who met a wonderful Turkish woman this summer. She was here on a work visa and we spent a month together before she returned home to finish her last two years of college in Izmir. We promised to see each other in the time before her graduation and then hopefully marry in the U.S. I understand it is difficult for her to return to America right now for a personal (non-work) visit, so I have proposed that we meet somewhere in Europe and have a mutual vacation and time to see each other. Does anyone have a suggestion for a country? We were thinking Germany because they seem to be "Turkish friendly" but we are open to any place in Europe. As a student, what is her best course of action to get a visa approval somewhere over there? Is this easier than her trying to visit the U.S. to see me? Any advice is much appreciated ! Thanks...

I am not sure how long the germans will stay 'turkish friendly' if turkish people are going on to chase kurds with machetes through the city of Berlin.

I think the germans are the same way 'turkish friendly' as the americans are 'mexican friendly'. The situation is similar and it always depends...

If you want to see her in the near future I would recommend a country in the mediterranean. Like Italy or Croatia. There the weather is better and the temperatures are higher.

LOL, I used to make my ex husband go to the truck stop at 3am to get me a BIG T-Bone steak. Towards the end of that pegnancy I always craved meat. Oh, he'd also go to IHOP at 3 or 4am if I was craving strawberry pancakes. I would actually wake up out of my sleep because I had dreamt about strawberry pancakes. Then i couldnt go back to sleep until i had them.

Autumnchik-I'm sorry I forgot to say it earlier...congrats on your pregnancy too!!

I haven't had strong cravings. Sometimes a smell will trigger something I want or a commercial (lol). For a couple days a couple months ago I wanted Arby's melts. But that didn't last long. One day I want one thing, the next I might not want it anymore. I've heard about women sending their husbands to the store at 2am for a craving but that hasn't happened to me, haha.

Sara & Anna-Do you have a name picked already for your baby?

We already have our name picked. Before the ultrasound we had already narrowed it down to a girl's name and a boy's name, which were variations of either.

Anybody sharing their baby's name before it's born? Everyone we know already knows his name and we call the baby by name a lot now, I like it. But I don't know if I should keep it a surprise on VJ?

Yep, i eat McDonalds cheeseburgers all the time. i am glad I am not the only one. I also crave chinese food alot.

Food aversions are normal, as well as aversions to smell. Spaghetti is one of my favorites but I had a strong aversion to it until 2 weeks ago. Same thing happened with pizza. I threw up all over the floor one morning when i petted my dog and smelled his breath. It didn't stink but smelled like dog food because he had just eaten. i couldn't stand the smell of raw meat either.

I have always had really bad morning sickness and it always lasted until i was about 4 months. I swear by the ginger capsules and vitamin b-6 now, along with Unisom. I know they helped me because if I went one day without taking them, the nausea would come back the next day. As soon as i took it though, the nausea faded away.

MMMM ... McDonald's cheeseburgers!

I haven't really started having cravings yet (I am probably only about 6 weeks) ... but last night, I had a really weird aversion to my husband's mouthwash. He got into bed after brushing teeth and it made me nauseous. Is that weird??? LOL

Yep, that is what they told me. I had a DR and a midwife and the DR was ready to have me sign papers for a c-section. he said my baby would never fit through my pelvis and it was a waste of time to even try. My midwife pulled him outside the room but I heard them talking. She was in disagreement with him and they got in an argument. My DR never returned back in that room and my midwife delivered my baby. So, had i not went against it, i would have unnecessarily had that c-section done.

@Anxcious: I don't understand. ARE they doing a repeat C/S with you now? I'm sorry about that.

I will go for a VBAC even if it has to be a home birth OR some doctor can actually prove that my pelvis is too narrow...which should be close to impossible unless they are scanning me while pregnant.

Oh gosh, i agree there. That's pretty rude! Plus, I don't see what exactly that proves - someone can just make something up. My husband did not even tell me where he got my ring. I mean, he surprised me with a new ring. If they would have asked me that, I would have been sarcastic and said $1 million LOL.

Hehehe, they did not ask us for phone records but they did ask me to show them my house key, which i did not have on me because I left my purse in the car.

Congratulations!

Thanks Magnolia

We were asked where we brought our wedding rings and how much they cost That was a question I didn't think she would or should have asked

Hehehe, they did not ask us for phone records but they did ask me to show them my house key, which i did not have on me because I left my purse in the car.

Congratulations!

We completed AOS today!! We had a nice woman she swore us in and asked for what proof of joint assests we had which I gave her. Then asked for any phone records we had??? I told her that I wasn't informed that we needed to bring those. She then asked me how we met and when. How many trips I made to visit, what type of work I did and for how long I had been there.... She asked me a lot of questions ... She mostly interviewed me. She only asked my husband 4 questions... Name, address, phone number and birthdate. Then told us congrats and that we should receive the green card in about 2 weeks. No more immigrations for 18 months

The whole thing took about 15 minutes and was pretty painless. Best wishes to everyone else still waiting

Congratulations!

Hello Everyone

My fiancee had his interview today and was APPROVED!! He has to go back November 6th to pickup his visa. I don't have any details from the interview just yet. I can't wait to hear how it went. He will arrive November 22nd and we have planned our wedding for December 1st. I would like to thank everyone who lent me their listening ears and who were very encouraging to us through our first part of this journey. I know it's not over until he has his 10yr card but right now we are happy and thrilled that we got over this first hurdle.

Anika and Tani

Yes, I am too. Our application got backlogged for a few months because of the new form that came out in April of 2006 - may have been march. However, so many people's applications got put on hold because of it. Therefore, it took a long time for me to hear anything from them at all. matter of fact, took 6 months to hear anything after sending in the application. had this thing with the new form not occurred, i would have probably had my visa much sooner.

Took us much longer. I didn't get my k-1 until 8-9 months later.

Wow, I just went on the USCIS website and saw that the timelines for K-1 approval have now been set at 6 months. I called them and they said the timeframe from NOA1 to NOA2 is much longer now because of the large number of applicants and it can take up to 6 months. This is crazy. It is bad enough that our case took one month to get from Nebraska to California but now we have to wait an additional 3 months from what used to be a 90 day process. Boy, you have got to love red tape.

I was refering to time to get NOA2

It's a good thing USCIS can't see his myspace page

I'm 23 and Michael is going to be 22 in a couple of weeks...I have an interview in 1 month. A lot of things are worrying me....except the age ))

Oh gosh, I'm an idiot - sorry! I usually use m/s for morning sickness and thought you meant me! I now see what you are talking about. Oh gosh, I apologize!

Joel'sWife: I think I am being a bit slow but what is m/s?

I thought m/s was morning sickness. But I assume she meant m/c.

I just saw that. i thought she was talking about my post because i say m/s. I just posted back to her because I can't edit my post.

As far as I know Joel's Wife miscarried so she did mean miscarriage with m/s (i'm sure she meant m/c instead).

This didn't work with my second either. It worked for my first though. My second was due feb 16th, 2001 and i had her feb 24th.

I was told to run up and down the stairs for like 15 minutes. i did it and went into labor at 2am that same night! LOL

BIG SIGH!!!

I feel like I have been pregnant for friggin EVER!!

Twice been to the hospital for false labor...but they were regular contractions

I have tried primrose oil, blue cohosh tea (yuk), laundry, and walking....

I am 2cm though, but with back aches, insomnia, night sweats, and heartburn.

I went to Scalini's Italian Restaurant...they have this supposed eggplant parmigiana meal or whatever

that has a claim to induce labor in 9th month desperate pregnosaurus women like myself. It's supposed to

start labor in no later that 48 hrs....we'll see!!! Why does it seem like boys are more stubborn than girls inutero?

current mood: desperate but hopeful

Oh, and Congrats to all the new moms to be.

I ran stairs, drove bumpy roads, had sex, drank raspberry leaf tea and ate some eggplant. I was induced at 41 weeks. Doesn't always work. Baby is ready when it's ready. Good luck.

It could be round ligament stretching. This usually starts around 20 weeks or so but can occur sooner. I actually started getting it this week (on my right side) and went to the DR because of it. Didn't they tell you what it could be? Look on google and do a search for round ligament stretching and read what it says - then you can compare your symptoms and see if it perhaps, is that.

If you don't feel your baby moving as much, try drinking a glass of orange juice. This usually gets them moving!

Gosh, I feel for you since you are barely 26 weeks - wait til you get even further along! Oops, i shouldn't have said that! Do you have a body pillow? those really work at making you more comfortable when sleeping! For back pain, get back massages! I hope you get some sort of relief.

I am really getting frustrated

Baby boy is killing my right side - I'm not sure if one of his feet are positioned on that side but NOTHING relieves the pain, I'm literally hunched over when walking. When he moves it feels even worse. I had to go to L/D early this morning because he wasn't moving like normal but as soon as they hooked me to the monitors he wants to be training for the Olympics, kicking and moving and whatnot. They gave me one Vicodin (which worked like a dream) and they told me to follow up with Tylenol (650mg every 4-6 hours)...that does not work. My friend recommended ice on the spot to see if that would make him uncomfortable (and he moved - temporarily). I need some serious RELIEF. On top of that my damn tailbone hurts too I'm wondering if this is a long baby (I'm 5'1 and he's 6'3).

Anyone been thru any of these symptoms during pregnancy? If so, what did you do?

m/s is morning sickness.

Joel'sWife: I think I am being a bit slow but what is m/s?

m/s is morning sickness ... why would you assume I meant m/c when the subject was clearly about morning sickness??? Not trying to be rude but i don't want people thinking about something that I'm not talking about. i would hate for someone reading this to freak out.

Joel'sWife: I think I am being a bit slow but what is m/s?

I thought m/s was morning sickness. But I assume she meant m/c.

My husband added me to the cable, phone, electricity, etc. and they did not ask for my SSN. Same thing with the bank .... well, one bank did ask for it for identity purposes but our other bank only asked for my ID.

As far as the house goes, I did not want to be added because I have bad credit. My husband did add me onto his title for property he has in Florida. Did not need SSN for that either.

I would like to know if the SSN is required by any Banks or Utility companies.

My fiancee does NOT have the SSN yet, I was wondering if I could add her name to the following items to prove a bonafide relationship.

*********************************************

1. House (currently I'm the only owner)

2. Bank Accounts (Wells Fargo)

3. Stock Trading Account (E*Trade)

*********************************************

4. Cable Bill

5. Utility bills

6. Land-line Phone Bill

7. Cellular Phone Bill (get her a new one as well)

8. Any other items if you can suggest.

*********************************************

Thanks.

Can't give you a definite time but I believe it took me 8-9 months from filing, to get the visa. You can check my timeline since I'm not exactly sure.

Hey everbody. Me and my fiance decided to apply for a K-1 now because it sounds like the easiest and fastest option for us. So what i want to know know:

-How long will it take from sending the pedition to holding the visa in my hands and finally can travel to the US to get married? (i know you can't tell the exact time, just "it's about ..... days or months would be helpful)

-How much money will we have to save for a K-1. And for AOS and all that stuff later. (like above, no exact number needed, just want to know how much you all paid to get a little feeling for that)

I would appreciate your answers so we can plan a bit better for that

Congratulations!

As for which one is faster, I have no idea since I have no knowledge about a K-3 visa. We decided to go the K-1 way because we were told it would be faster.

As to how to deal with being apart .... it gets hard and frustrating. I met my husband in 2003. he got out the army in October 2005. He came back to Germany in December 2005 until Feb. 2006. I didn't see him again until November 2006. Got here march 2007 and we are now separated again because the reserves sent him to Iraq for 18-24 months.

When I was in Germany waiting for the visa, the thing that kept me going was talking to him on the phone frequently. We talked several times a day and stayed on the phone for 3 hours sometimes. We emailed all the time too. What helps alot is keeping yourself busy. i was in college at the time so schoolwork pretty much kept me busy when I was not on the phone with him. The weekends were the hardest to deal with.

I don't know what to tell you. Thinking that there is a light at the end of the tunnel usually helps alot.

VJ'ers, this is my first time ever posting on this site here.....So let me give my store here- I am engaged to a fiance from Negril, Jamaica. I met here in March of 2006 on vacation in Jamaica, it was one of those instantaneous feelings where I just knew, LOL. Well I have visited her a couple of times in Jamaica and we have vacationed together in the United States (she has a tourist visa). We just got engaged on June 2nd of this year. I couldn't start filing the visa as of yet because I am in school and I want to make sure I give the application process my undivided so I am not missing anything. I am going to Jamaica for a visit and talk more about our future and direction we are going.

It is very hard to be away from her and vice versa when you have those bad days at work, school, whichever and you need their shoulder to cry on you know? So to my fellow VJ'ers that has been there and done that I have some questions.

-With the new immigration fees, etc....Which one is still better to get us together faster: K1 or K3?

-How do you all 'do it' and what do you do when your S.O. is away from you and you can't handle it sometimes?

-What did you all do to to past the time by and lower that anxiety, stress, difficulty from being away from your S.O.?

-Any other advice, pointers on the long road to reuniting with your loved one?

These are all questions where I know I am going to get different answers and that is what I want (to hear different sides of the story).

Stay tuned for more contribution from me!

Took us much longer. I didn't get my k-1 until 8-9 months later.

Wow, I just went on the USCIS website and saw that the timelines for K-1 approval have now been set at 6 months. I called them and they said the timeframe from NOA1 to NOA2 is much longer now because of the large number of applicants and it can take up to 6 months. This is crazy. It is bad enough that our case took one month to get from Nebraska to California but now we have to wait an additional 3 months from what used to be a 90 day process. Boy, you have got to love red tape.

Congratulations for getting in. However, not everyone will be treated as you were. Some may be turned around.

Hi,

I just thought I would let people who are worried about getting in that I entered the US to stay with my boyfriend in NYC yesterday and it was all fine. I am from the UK, but was travelling on my B2 visa as I have research to do here (for more background you can see my other questions), and the officer at Newark was so friendly, in fact he also let me in back in April and July. He wanted to see my letter from university saying that I was enrolled, and writing a dissertation, but only after I volunteered it. He then asked to see my dissertation so far, also after I offered, but more out of interest I think,and said he wished he had time to read it and let me in!

He never mentioned the K1, although he asked what Sidiq does for a living, and it was really very easy, and now I am stamped in until March 6th 2008. So I know its only one story, but for all of you out there worrying, for me it was easy, and he did not seem to know or care that I have a K1 visa in process. We are together until we hear from the embassy, all fingers crossed, so I would say to all you wondering to try, especially from the UK, definitely give it a go!

Have a lovely day

Lily

I was told to run up and down the stairs for like 15 minutes. i did it and went into labor at 2am that same night! LOL

BIG SIGH!!!

I feel like I have been pregnant for friggin EVER!!

Twice been to the hospital for false labor...but they were regular contractions

I have tried primrose oil, blue cohosh tea (yuk), laundry, and walking....

I am 2cm though, but with back aches, insomnia, night sweats, and heartburn.

I went to Scalini's Italian Restaurant...they have this supposed eggplant parmigiana meal or whatever

that has a claim to induce labor in 9th month desperate pregnosaurus women like myself. It's supposed to

start labor in no later that 48 hrs....we'll see!!! Why does it seem like boys are more stubborn than girls inutero?

current mood: desperate but hopeful

Oh, and Congrats to all the new moms to be.