Current Status; Green (Immigration update)

http://newnamenewlife.weebly.com/blog/immigration-status-sent (- might be useful to refer back to...)

This post should have been written well over a month ago. I have been very behind on my blog posting recently along with just about everything else in life, but attempting to get on top of things now so please bare with!!!

So let's set the scene.. shortly after I got my work permit I received another letter from the USCIS. Half of me playing with the assumption that it was just another form receipt and the other half fearing that I'd done something wrong again. Yes, again.. let me explain.
I received a letter mid July explaining that I had filled out one of the forms inefficiently. Luckily, and pleased with myself for being such a forward-thinker.. all that time I had spent scanning the forms post-being filled out but pre-being sent away, payed off. Instead of redownloading and filling out the whole form from scratch; I could now easily reference exactly what needed sorting, print off that specific sheet only, change what needed to be changed and send the updated paper right off again.. super quick and super painless. For anyone thinking about applying to immigration, I ENTIRELY recommend scanninng and filing everything you send off in your package for potential future referencing purposes.

Anyways, I open my USCIS letter and there in my hands is an appointment date for my immigration interview. Thee immigration interview. I received this letter at the end of August and the interview date was set for as soon as the 25th of September. We couldn't believe it!!

The requirements were long listed but the process was very easy. In fact if anything I can 1000% say that we over-prepared for the interview. The night before, we tested each other on what we know about the other one and brushed up on the stories of how we got together, what night Juan proposed, what happened the day we got married etc... I also brought two binders of all possible documents, information and identification that might be additionally required; one binder containing all original documentation and a duplicate binder (as they had warned in the letter that they might detain a piece of original documentation if they did not have a copy).

Juan and I attempted to leave with plenty of time the morning of our appointment but still this effort was insufficient. I will not tell you what speeds we reached up to that morning, but will instead tell you that there were most definitely points in the journey that I feared for our lives. Needless to say, my husband is sometimes a reckless but determined soul and we got to the Immigartion office in record time and at 8.28 (two minutes before our appointment time!!!). Very thankful to be on time (and alive), Juan and I hastily made our way to the fourth floor, through the metal detectors and on into the seating area where we sat and waited anxiously for our case to be called.

"Talia Diaz", up we get and shake hands with a particularly sweet man before following him down a long corridor to an especially light office. I think all the horror stories we'd heard about immigration interviews had led us to believe we were heading into some kind of near interogational torture chamber. Somewhere dank, dark and definitely not accompanied by a sweet, plump, middle-aged man in his late twenties.
We sit down and the man does some stuff on the computer whilst he looks through our file. He asks for literally one piece of documentation out of my non-exagerated amount of 150 - 200 pieces of paper and simply and UBER casually inquires on how the two of us met, whilst continuing to look at his computer screen and tap his keyboard.

After the interview was over, Juan and I discussed how we had both thought that this part of the interview was only the introduction part and that we had both expected to be spilt up and interviewed, in depth separately in another room pretending this... But that was it. That which I have just described in the paragraph above ladies and gentlemen, was honestly it. All this hype that we had created for ourselves. We could have been no longer than fifteen minute. Then a click of a few buttons, a printed sheet, a few signatures and "congratulations... you can expect to recieve your green-card in the mail within the next two weeks.. and here, take this really useful piece of paper and update you're permanent social security' SAYYYYYY WHAAAAAATTT??!??!?!?!?

OVER THE MOON. OVER THE GIANT BIG FREEKIN' GREEN-CARD LUMINOUS MOON!!!!

Juan and I could not believe it! We called our parents immediately with the good news. They were extatic. To celebrate we found and then swiftly drove too and raided an English goods store. The only English goods store in Utah, and it just so happened to be a five minute drive down the same road as the immigration office. Seriously meant to be.

The best thing about getting green-card authorization for me was knowing that I was now free to go and visit England whenever we wanted too. (And please know that we are planning to and are planning to V. soon. EEEEEKKKKKKK:) I'm excited. What a crazy journey and still only at the beginning of such a journey. New life has come with it's fair share of difficulties but has been incredibly exciting and fantastically inspirational so far.



Peace out.