Beth wa Salim

Happy Easter to all. Should be an intersting day in a Muslim/Christian household. LOL There has been a lot of animated discussion this week about the holiday, lots of food for thought. Will probably be the most "disputed" holiday on the Christian calendar. ("Disputed" is probably too strong a word, but for lack of a better one, I've used it....) This is our first official holiday together (well, there was St. Patrick's Day, but it kind of lacked the same punch...LOL) and so for his point of view, we are also recognizing it as a celebration of springtime/rebirth of nature. That way everyone can rejoice without compromise.....

Hope everyone enjoys a beautiful day no matter what your beliefs. =)

p.s. Bok, Bok, Easter Bunny!!!

Good morning, and Happy Easter to those who celebrate...

I apologize if this is a bonehead question, but I have been reading this morning until my head aches and I can't seem to find any reference to the timeframe in which one must file for AOS after marriage. My fiance' entered the U.S. on a K-1 visa on 3/6/10, and we were married this past Friday 4/2/10. HOW SOON AFTER MARRIAGE MUST AOS BE FILED? Many thanks in advance. =)

Good afternoon to everyone!

It DOES seem to have been a little quiet around here lately, maybe the late winter doldrums have taken their tolls! lol Ah, but spring is just around the corner, and I am jealous of those who have already gotten a taste of it. I'm ESPECIALLY jealous of Sara enjoying 70-degree temps in Casablanca....and by the way, what a precious picture of Fatimah lounging on her babba!!

Anyway, just finishing up the final touches in preparation for Salim's arrival this Saturday, insha'allah!!! Do you think 4 drawers and 2 feet of closet space is enough for him??? LOL Being a girl, it's REALLY hard to sacrifice closet space, you know. Those shoes have to live somewhere!!!!

Hope everyone has a great weekend and I send my best wishes to all those preparing for interviews....

~Beth

It's possible that someone has a brother (who would would be a sibling), who is also one's father, but such cases are rare.

OK, all I can say to this is....EWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

We recently found a well-priced one-way ticket from Morocco to Boston on Alitalia. I had never considered this airline before, nor had it come up on the search engines I had used for pricing tickets. But during a recent search on (I think) Orbitz.com, a decent fare with Alitalia popped up. I checked their site directly and found I could get it for about $20.00 less than the clearinghouse site, and we bought it for Salim. It is a one-stop flight from Casablanca through Rome and then on to Boston for $663.00. I was pretty psyched when we found it because most of the other one-way tickets were averaging AT LEAST $800.00. It might be worthwhile to check Alitalia's website directly, just like it often is on other airlines. I also called them to make sure I was getting the absolute lowest price because someone had recently told me they got an even lower fare when they CALLED the airline instead of booking online.

Good luck to everyone travelling to or from Morocco, especially those who are booking their one-ways for their loves to come and join them for the first time. Mine will be here this Saturday, insha'allah.....WOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!

We were not asked for our affadavit of support at the interview....

I think you can start to relax Kim, and at least LOOK at prices for plane tickets!!! At Salim's interview they kept his passport and gave him the blue slip as well, and called him one week later to come and pick up the visa. I am SOOO happy to hear of this development for you, try to be patient a little while longer and I think you will be rewarded! WooooHoooooo!!!!

Oh my gosh, how stressful!! But once you get over the shock, put on your thinking cap and attack the situation from a "troubleshooting" perspective. If you can remove the emotion from things, I'll bet you'll be able to negotiate some kind of compromise with the woman who owns the venue. Someone else mentioned a shared event, which might work depending on what time of day you had planned to be married. If they want morning or afternoon, could you do an evening wedding? You also might be able to barter this mishap to your advantage, because the owner will very likely want to make amends for the "confusion". You could end up still having the venue at a considerable savings!

And if all else fails and you have to find another location, try to keep an open mind. Sometimes doors close and windows open for a reason! But no matter what, GOOD LUCK in working out the details, and enjoy your reunion with Bijad this Saturday!! (Salim arrives one week later, on the 6th, so I am sharing in your excitement!!)

Keep your chin up, Teresa...everything will work out the way it's supposed to.....

~Beth

Ahhhhh, the weekend!!! What a week it's been, but only a few more hours until quittin' time! Our good news this week is that we got Salim's plane ticket, he will be here on Saturday March 6th, insha'allah!!! POE: Boston. The long wait will be over, hooray!!!!

Have a safe trip, and good luck once you get there with all the luggage and your sweet little girl. Hopefully the "tool box" will reconsider and meet you to make your life easier!!! Enjoy your reunion with your honey!!

I didn't send anything...we talked on the phone and then I stayed as busy as possible the rest of the day. I did my best to forget what day it was.

We will make up for the missed time...Hopefully soon!

I did pretty much the same thing. Our visa was in hand on February 5th and I was hoping he'd have been here for Valentine's Day, but we couldn't arrange it. So I tried to swallow the lump in my throat and remind myself that once he is here (looks like it'll be March 6th), we'll try to make EVERY day Valentine's Day......

Mabrook!! Wishing you a long and happy life together!!

CONGRATULATIONS!!! Wonderful news, even if it came about in a rather "breathless" manner!! lol Enjoy looking forward to a happy reunion!

YAY for teachers!! I truly enjoy working with the little ones day in and day out. It really is such a rewarding job!!!

I agree!! Salim is a teacher and I am hoping he will be able to find work in education once he gets here. Anyone have any experience with their SO coming to the U.S. and working in the education field? I'd be very interested to hear any stories.....

Hip Hip Hooray!!! What a sweet day it is! I was sooooo excited to receive your call this morning with the good news, and equally as happy to call you when I heard mine. It was such a pleasure to talk with you last night, it really helped me to relax for a good part of what was a very long night. CONGRATULATIONS to you and Abdel, Paula......I can't wait to see pictures of when he arrives on Sunday. Hopefully Salim won't be far behind!!!

Salam again everyone!

The news for us from Casablanca this morning was wonderful.....we were APPROVED for our K-1 visa!!!! I was only able to talk with Salim for a short while, but I will try to tell you what I remember:

He had the blonde lady, so he started off feeling even a little more nervous. She asked him to tell her about where I was born, when my father finished his Air Force enlistment, what schools I had attended, and some information about Maine , the city where I live, and some towns surrounding it. I guess she gave him a few smiles during the interview, and he was able to relax a little, although at one point she asked him if he was nervous, and when he answered "yes", she said something like, "You don't have any reason to be." He answered all of her questions, and corrected himself when he made a mistake about one date. I guess she laughed at him and said, "I think if I ask you to tell me about your fiancee, you could talk all day!" LOL So in the end she told him that we are approved, and they will call him to come and pick up his passport and visa.

I want to thank each of you who has been so encouraging to us along this journey, answering questions and offering prayers, and especially to my sweet new friend Paula, who was also approved this morning. We kept each other company on the phone last night for several hours before getting a few winks and awaiting the news. Hamdulillah, I am so happy to report that we received good news, and I will continue to pray for all of the couples who are waiting to be reunited with their loved ones. As soon as I am able to talk with Salim and get all of the details, I will post a full interview review on my profile. I know it helped us tremendously to read of others' experiences with the consulate, and we'd like to "pay it forward".

Thanks once again for all your prayers.

~Beth & Salim

Salam to all.....

Today my fiance' Salim is traveling to Casablanca for his interview tomorrow morning for our K-1 visa. Please pray for us, and especially for him, that he feels peace and strength during the interview. I feel quite humble asking for your prayers, because I know that there are many, many Moroccan/American couples who have been waiting a long time to be together, and our journey began just 5 months ago when we filed our I129-F. But please know that I include in my prayers all of you who are waiting and fighting for your right to be together as well. May we all soon hear those two little words that mean so much...."You're Approved!"

Thank you all so much for your support.

Fondly,

~Beth & Salim

Abdslam also got the call today to pick up his visa tomorrow at 3:00 pm! We're both soooooo happy they didn't take too long to call him! Now, we're looking into airfare to get him over here ASAP! Any suggestions on cheap flights from Morocco?

Congratulations on a quick turnaround time for your visa!! I would check farecrawler.com for some one-way flights to the U.S.....I found some for under $1000, although they did involve 2 stops. (The more stops, the less expensive the fare!) I hope we have a need for a flight over soon as well! We wish you much happiness as you begin your new life together.

All the best,

~Beth & Salim

Bijad had his interview! Woohoo and it went well...

I called DOS today and I got Ms. B!tch on the phone. She informed me that his interview was only a week ago. Duh! I know this. I asked if our AP was at the Consulate or if it was sent back to the USA for extra background checks and what not. She told me the file never leaves the Consulate- only electronically. Ok, so? haha... she told me I wouldn't hear anything for atleast 6 weeks. Grr!!

Bijad called me a few hours later. The consulate called for him to pick up his passport (with VISA) tomorrow after 3 pm!!! WOOHOO!!!! (It's super big so you can read it ok. )

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!!! I just saw the "approved" on your profile when I was posting on another thread you replied to tonight!! (I hadn't made it to reading "One week ago today..." yet!) We are SOOOOOO happy for you!!!! You are very fortunate that your AP only lasted a week, what a sweet phone call that must have been from Bijad when he called to tell you the exciting news! CONGRATULATIONS, now it is on to planning for his arrival on U.S. soil.....any idea how soon that might be? Enjoy your celebration, we look forward to hearing more about your upcoming reunion as your plans unfold.

Once again, congratulations....hamdullilah!!

All the best,

~Beth & Salim

I did the same as Teresa....it was not requested in the packet 3 that Salim received in preparation for his interview, but I preferred to include it "just in case"!! I would hate for that to be the reason they denied us: I would kick myself to the moon and back!!!! Our interview is Thursday and afterwards I can post whether he was specifically asked for it or not......

Oh, Sandra, I want to start by first wishing you a happy anniversary date, although it must be a bittersweet day for you and Ahmed. I hope that you are able to reminisce today about the happy times that you have shared over the last 3 years, because I am sure there must be many of them. Hopefully you can take some comfort from them, and in your love for each other, which must stay strong to help you through these hard times.

I read your review of the interview a year ago, and I can tell you that my heart is breaking for you. I don't know what I will do or feel if we do not succeed at our interview on Thursday, but reading your words made me feel the sadness and disappointment that came out of that experience for you and Ahmed. I hope that you are pushing on in the process, and that there will be some way that you can be together in the future. Remember that true love "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends." Be blessed as you continue your journey with your love, Sandra.

All the best,

~Beth

Congratulations and all the best for your future together!!!

Oh, happy day!!! Congratulations, and remember to savor every moment....you've waited a long time for this. All the best to you for the future!

~Beth & Salim

Hi everyone....

A few weeks ago I asked for suggestions about the quickest and most reliable way to send something to Morocco. I wanted to report back on what I found out, in case anyone else is in need of sending something to their SO.

DHL was not the bargain I thought it would turn out to be. They do NOT deliver door-to-door, so Salim would have had to go to Rabat to pick up the envelope. At the time I did not know exactly how much the mailer would weigh that I planned to send, so the rep I spoke to just informed me that there is a 5 lb. limit on documents mailed to Morocco, and for the whole 5 lb. it would have cost me $212.07 and would have taken 5 calendar days.

Next was FEDEX: Before I called, I weighed the stuff I needed to send, and came up with 2 lb. 6 oz. Fedex, like most companies, charges rates on a system of "no more than X (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.) pounds", and I was quoted at the 3 lb. rate of $139.15 with a 5 calendar day delivery time. I was told they do deliver to the door and tracking is available.

UPS was the worst, coming in at a whopping $284.82, door-to-door delivery, with tracking. They promised delivery in 5 BUSINESS days.

The best deal was surprisingly the US Post Office by using their "Global Express Guaranteed" service. It cost me $132.30 (discounted 10% because I paid online instead of at the post office, which would have been $147.00), it was guaranteed in 1-3 business days, and they provided tracking, something that UPS told me USPS doesn't provide on overseas delivery. I mailed it on a Tuesday, and Salim had it on Friday. The only bone of contention for me about this method was that I was told it would be delivered to his home, but on Friday he received a call to come to the bus station in his town, as it came into town from Casablanca on a bus. LOL I will be going into the post office tomorrow to have them clarify that point for me, because my understanding was that it was door-to-door delivery. Hmmmmm .... maybe they'll give me a little rebate on the postage?? It can't hurt to ask.....

If anyone is interested, I've provided the link to the USPS page for Global Express Guaranteed. There is a calculator there that you can use to figure out how much your package or envelope would cost to send:

http://www.usps.com/international/globalex...sguaranteed.htm

Of course, planning WAY ahead is the most cost-efficient way to send something to Morocco, as they get you coming and going if you need it there in a jiffy. And if it's not something critical (like interview documents!!), regular post at bargain prices is quite sufficient.

Hope this is helpful to anyone who, like me, had no idea where to begin when looking for a fast and guaranteed way to send something to my fiance'. Thanks to all who made suggestions when I asked, they gave me my starting point.

Take care, everyone!!

~Beth

p.s. You'll probably get sick of hearing from me by the end of the week.....our interview is Thursday, just like Sandrasellam and Gugusitolindo. Our little trio is keeping fingers crossed, so any extras that you can cross for us all would be really appreciated!!! THANKS!!!!!

Good luck on that upcoming interview Beth..hopefully you'll be jumping off Jackie's waitin couch.

Thanks so much! I'll try to take a page from your "patience book", because I know how long your wait has been! Here's to hoping for good news all around VERY SOON!!!