m&n

A Big Congrats for you!!

Good Evening and thanks for the prayers...Love ya all right back!

Well, I had the stent replaced, so another who knows how long that will be in .Sheesh!

I had a litho and a cysto done and Im feeling like #######.

Did someone say party?

Hope you're feeling better soon

Just wanted to shine the spotlight on those who have been waiting in AP for over 1 year, not matter what the consulate. I know of the ones going through Egypt but are there others who are going through other MENA countries as well?

My prayers are with you all every single day that a phonecall will come stating that the visa is in hand. You all are so very strong and incredible I don't know how you do it. I know some have stopped posting and I can only imagine it is because of the pain of seeing those after you get their visas time after time again with no word on your own case. I hope you all find your answers soon.

AshkiA (Egypt, CR-1) Interviewed 8/17/06

deb and ali (Egypt, K-1) Interviewed 9/14/06

gotmeahunk (Egypt, K-3/CR-1/IR-1) Interviewed 11/19/06

CairoBound (Egypt, K-3) Interviewed 11/21/06

aj1 (Egypt, K-1) Interviewed 3/12/07

gotmeakunk received their visa last year some time.....her husband has been here for a while now

Congratulations on your visa...............and absolutely...............we have to remember Cairobound & AJ1 & everyone still waiting.........I sincerely hope they are granted their visas soon......and until then, I hope they are granted patience to help deal with the waiting.

Many congrats!!

I am soooo happy for you..........Congratulations!!

Congratulations WOM!!

Good luck 2 the 2 of you!

You are K-1 and had to fill out a DS230??

yeah..........the DS230 is the immigrant visa form.......those aren't for K-1's

Congratulations!

We had a thread like this a looong time ago and I haven't wanted to indulge in these thoughts since then but now I'm ready to bring 'em on baby!!!

What things do all of you folks recommend on doing (other than the obvious ) that first week? I've heard people that planned and planned for the first night and all they wanted to do was sleep and eat a good meal.

What's a good foodplan for the first week? Did any of your hubbies have tummy problems adjusting to the water/foods here?

My husband tried a calzone for the first time ever......with lots of cheeze, olives, and brocolli.......he LOVED it!!

He also tried Chinese food that first week........with exception to the white rice...........he HATED it!!

That's awesome news!!

There is a train station about 10 minutes away but there are buses that pass from in front of our apartment complex that go to the train station, downtown, and elsewhere. That's been extremely helpful. He loves taking the buses and has memorized their schedules and I was impressed at how quickly he learned the names of roads and highways. So, yea.....having mass trasit nearby is important.

My husband is taking a conversation class that meets one night a week. He likes it and it gives him the chance to meet people from other nations. He said to me that in Egypt, most people are Egyptian. But in his class, he got to meet Korean, Japanese, Hispanic, Indian, and Chinese people to name a few. I never thought of it like that cuz I'm so used to living in a state that is so diverse.........so, his take was interesting.

He told me that his homework this week is to find 10 phrasal verbs and 10 idioms. I was like.......what's a phrasal verb? He couldn't believe I didn't know and then said.....I'll teach you and started giving me all these examples like.......turn off the light.....take out the garbage.....he kept saying them and i said OK.....that's enough you're gonna drive me nuts with the phrasal verbs.....he was like.......that's an idiom.....you're gonna drive me nuts!!

So far so good.......my husband is settling in OK thank God. He DOES NOT like the cold weather and will NOT go anywhere without his thermal underwear.

He likes going to the supermarkets and can not believe all of the different choices we have for any one item......like toothpaste for example......there was a whole aisle just for toothpaste & mouthwash. He also loved the self serve machines at the supermarket where you do your own checking out. When he used it the first time he kept saying out loud.....really loudly......Da 7aga momtaza.....meaning "this is something excellent!" It was funny. Eating out is fun and I love to watch him order off the menus and communicate with the waiters. I love chinese food and now we both know he does not

He gets along great with my family and has gotten a chance to meet a few of my friends' spouses and that helps because I know he misses his friends and family back home. Now, he sits on the webcam and talks with them the way we did not too long ago.....it's weird sometimes when I wake up and find him next to me......I still can't believe it sometimes.

It's tough on a man when he's is not working, even if he doesn't come right out and say so..........so, we definitely need to find him a job cuz he's gonna get restless if he's not working soon.....so we're continuing to look and apply in many places. So far so good. One day at a time. Hope your hubby gets his visa soon.

So far you're the second one who said their Egyptian husband doesn't like Chinese food! I wonder if there's a trend here? I'm glad he's transitioning smoothly!!!!

I know my husband will find it hard not working for the first few months but he's going to go to an ESL school which is held from 9am to 4pm M-F for one of the months so hopefully that will allow him to network and find some friends to hang out with during the other times. Are you near public transportation? I feel so lucky that we have the train station a few blocks away and the bus stop into Boston is just around the corner so he can go exploring while I"m at work.

So far so good.......my husband is settling in OK thank God. He DOES NOT like the cold weather and will NOT go anywhere without his thermal underwear.

He likes going to the supermarkets and can not believe all of the different choices we have for any one item......like toothpaste for example......there was a whole aisle just for toothpaste & mouthwash. He also loved the self serve machines at the supermarket where you do your own checking out. When he used it the first time he kept saying out loud.....really loudly......Da 7aga momtaza.....meaning "this is something excellent!" It was funny. Eating out is fun and I love to watch him order off the menus and communicate with the waiters. I love chinese food and now we both know he does not

He gets along great with my family and has gotten a chance to meet a few of my friends' spouses and that helps because I know he misses his friends and family back home. Now, he sits on the webcam and talks with them the way we did not too long ago.....it's weird sometimes when I wake up and find him next to me......I still can't believe it sometimes.

It's tough on a man when he's is not working, even if he doesn't come right out and say so..........so, we definitely need to find him a job cuz he's gonna get restless if he's not working soon.....so we're continuing to look and apply in many places. So far so good. One day at a time. Hope your hubby gets his visa soon.

Water, congratulations on the wedding! Monnik, congrats on the visa! And Yasmine, congrats on your new bundle of joy! Bridget, I think I know the book you're reading.......Three Cups of Tea........it's the story of Greg Mortenson but, I don't think he's the author. I agree, the beginning of the book is a little slow but it gets better. I attended a fundraiser and book signing a few months ago and he said that they had a really hard time finding a publishing company to accept the book and the reasons were interesting. The first chapter of the book is titled "Failure". One publishing company said that a book should not have a depressing opening chapter and insisted that the first chapter be called something more positive such as "Joy" or "Success". But, I remember him saying that he refused because his success in life came about only after he initially failed to reach his goals.......there can be success after failure. I found that inspiring.

It's our first snow day of the year and I was SOOOOOOOOOO happy to get to sleep in late this morning.

Have a nice day everyone.

Oh I'm glad the book gets better! He actually did author the book but he had a co-author so I'm putting in my mind that the co-author sung the praises for him, otherwise it just seems too much like patting oneself on the back. Don't get me wrong, what he did was amazing and courageous but I just think that charity done in silence is a lot more valuable than that done for show.

How is your husband settling in? Has he had any major adjustments to make or is he finding the transition easy?

Water, congratulations on the wedding! Monnik, congrats on the visa! And Yasmine, congrats on your new bundle of joy! Bridget, I think I know the book you're reading.......Three Cups of Tea........it's the story of Greg Mortenson but, I don't think he's the author. I agree, the beginning of the book is a little slow but it gets better. I attended a fundraiser and book signing a few months ago and he said that they had a really hard time finding a publishing company to accept the book and the reasons were interesting. The first chapter of the book is titled "Failure". One publishing company said that a book should not have a depressing opening chapter and insisted that the first chapter be called something more positive such as "Joy" or "Success". But, I remember him saying that he refused because his success in life came about only after he initially failed to reach his goals.......there can be success after failure. I found that inspiring.

It's our first snow day of the year and I was SOOOOOOOOOO happy to get to sleep in late this morning.

Have a nice day everyone.

Terrific News!! Congratulations!!

Many congrats on the visa & I sure do hope that typo can be fixed ASAP!!

Many many congratulations!!!

I am so happy to read this......congrats!

This might be a stupid question...........I'm not really sure but.......when papers are sent from the embassy to Homeland Security, is that the same as when they are returned to USCIS like the cases that the pinned thread in the MENA forum addresses.......or is that different?

Where is your I130 petition......was it sent to the NVC after USCIS approval and assigned a number but you never went through with the paperwork because you followed through with the K3 or was it retained by USCIS after approval at an offsite storage facility.......

If your papers are already at the NVC and if it has not been more than one year since a case # was assigned, perhaps you can contact the NVC and get the I130 papers moving.

Cairobound.......you have been waiting for WAYYYYYYYY too long.......I sincerely hope this gets resolved soon.

Who did your husband have as the consular officer at the interview?

If it was a young, kind, African American woman with hijab.........then you really might be hearing something within the two weeks.......maybe even sooner.

Also, for those of you who have been & are waiting forever in AP in Cairo for a K3 visa.......if your I130 is not expired and you can somehow get it forwarded to the NVC and pursue a CR1/IR1 visa........go for it.

I thought long & hard before filing an I824 to have the I130 forwarded to the NVC to pursue a CR1 visa alongside the K3.......but, in retrospect, I am really glad I did because my husband got the CR1 visa 7 days after his interview........meanwhile, the K3 is still in AP.........since May. At the interview he was told he'd get it within 2 weeks.

I honestly feel that there is a complete lack of communication between Cairo's immigrant & nonimmigrant visa units. I also honestly feel that who you get as your CO at your interview has a lot to do with how long you'll wait for a visa.

Good luck to everyone still waiting. This process is very frustrating.

I think its too early to know

I think so too. I'm not going to stress it yet, but I'm also not going to be calling DOS again anytime soon

thanks for the response though

I sure hope not......the way they're working it's as if they take most of the year off anyway.

They don't take the first ten days after Eid off do they?

This is not that confusing........basically, you're stuck in the USCIS black hole. This is very similar to the_dip_sticks case situation. They also filed an I130 and then an I129f thinking it would move the I130 along..............however it has been well over a year and still no approval notice #2.

I feel really bad for anyone in this situation and I really hope this gets resolved.

Congratulations on the visa!! I hope you find a nice halal turkey......this talk about turkey is making me hungry......7 minutes left to go 'til I can eat.

I agree, have your husband go & ask in person.

I hope he gets the MC soon and that your visa is issued soon as well.

Good luck 2 you 2 and 2 everyone waiting.