ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
CanadaCountdown to Christmas Thread
I want one too!

Really what I want is to live in Arizona again and have an actual palm tree to put the lights on. But I guess I can count my blessings because if I had been the one to move instead of my husband, we'd seriously be freezing our butts off. It is -18C in Edmonton today. And 55F--above zero--here. Granted, that isn't going to last (it is supposed to snow in a few hours!), but I'm about to go out and enjoy it for a few minutes.

I mailed the rest of our Christmas cards yesterday. I think I might go order some Christmas cookies because I'm really hungry right now. (Ant is eating for 2 but I think I'm eating for 12--myself plus an entire college football team---there are 11 big huge teenage boys on a college football team, right?).
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-12-09 14:45:00
CanadaCountdown to Christmas Thread
Hahahaha!! Krikit's lights and Mrs Cat's dog picture are hilarious! And Dale is awfully cute.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-12-05 16:28:00
CanadaCountdown to Christmas Thread
QUOTE (Cassie @ Dec 2 2008, 11:45 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I got to watch "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" last night -- the REAL version. Me so happy. yes.gif


I love the Grinch! In college, we had a Grinch Who Stole Christmas drinking game---you took a swig whenever the Grinch was mean to his little dog, Max. Of course, meanness is in the eye of the beholder, which is really convenient for those who wanted to continue to get soused after the Grinch's heart grows three sizes. Hey, he pat that dog's head a little too hard! That's mean! *hic!*

I sent out all of our Christmas cards that are going overseas today. We will send out the cards to the US and Canada over the weekend.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-12-03 10:36:00
CanadaGood luck with your interview today thebradshaws
Congratulations!!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-13 11:41:00
CanadaVancouver Embassy Interviews
This may have changed, but when we interviewed, it was more like 4-5 weeks from when you returned your packet 3 until your interview (unless, like us, you requested a specific date after that time).
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-13 16:20:00
CanadaWhat did you want to be when you a child?
I can see the appeal of being a duck. My college roommate said she wanted to come back as one in her next life so she could live in the Boston Public Garden and fly around pooping on all the Saabs and BMWs parked in Beacon Hill!

Like most kids, I went through different phases of wanting to be different things, but the main one was I wanted to be a writer. Although what I had in mind was writing novels, not legal decisions for an appeals court judge, I'm sorta-kinda doing what I wanted all along now. smile.gif

SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-15 11:38:00
CanadaUSCs travelling to Canada by plane
If the person renews their passport now, they should have it by summer with no problem. However, it is possible to pay extra to have it expedited so you can renew your passport in less than two weeks.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-15 15:06:00
CanadaPackage 3 has finally made it here!
If you are going through Montreal, I think you mail them. For Vancouver you fax them. There should be instructions telling you how they want you to send them.

For the question about previous visits, what they are really looking for is any visa overstays. They are aware that many Canadians live near the border and have been to the US more times than they can remember. What we did was attach a supplement listing all of my husband's major trips to the US (two three-week road trips, a few one-week visits with friends in Texas), all the trips he took to visit me, a few weekend trips to Missouri and California where he flew and had stamps in his passport, and then said "numerous weekend trips to Montana." Other people have said "numerous visits, none over 3 weeks" or something along those lines.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-13 11:39:00
CanadaAdd Five More Canadians to the LPR Count
Congratulations!

And make that six. We got the CRIS email in the wee hours of the morning letting us know my husband is now officially an LPR.


SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-01-23 11:41:00
CanadaLooking for Support, or Not!
QUOTE (Emancipation @ Feb 12 2009, 07:30 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
As for the bills.. honey.. you are in a partnership.. right now might be a time where it feels you are leaning on him, but I'm sure there have been times and will be times in the future where he will lean heavily on you.. please don't be tempted to keep score.. that is not where it's at..

And you are a beautiful person, and I know there is not a bone in your body that would take advantage of any situation.. you need to take care of you in this situation..


Exactly!

Can't say much that hasn't already been said, but you really should say something to your doctor about the sleep thing. Sleeping well could really make all the difference in the world. Also wouldn't worry too much about HOW you talk to Gene (ie not being emotional). That's the beauty of being with the right person.

(((((((((((((((Hugs)))))))))))))))))))))))))
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2009-02-12 12:39:00
CanadaAfter reading this..
Right. Amy Winehouse's visa never should have been denied because she is not coming permanently, FFS. On the other hand, were she not a celebrity, it never would have been overturned so quickly. Neither of those things is particularly fair in my opinion.

Ron and Sharon's visa never should have been denied because even though he IS immigrating (and therefore reaonably subject to stricter scrutiny than someone who is coming on a short-term basis), there is no valid reason for it being denied. And that is waaay not fair, and also ridiculous. Comparing their situation to Winehouse's may be an apples-and-oranges comparison (because she isn't immigrating), but think about all the people here who need tourist visas to visit their American fiances and are denied, or whose relatives can't attend their wedding because they can't get visas, or who are turned back at the border because of "insufficient evidence of ties to home country" just becuase they are self-employed. I doubt any of them will get those denials reversed in 48 hours.

For that matter, I'm guessing there are plenty people in this forum more deserving of a Grammy nomination than Amy Winehouse, but that's another matter.

PS: Ron rocks!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-11 12:37:00
CanadaBridal shows
QUOTE (Sprailenes @ Feb 12 2008, 08:02 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
You get tons of free champagne and food. biggrin.gif


If I knew that sooner, I'd have actually gone to some!

I still go to open houses and look at real estate ads and I bought my house three years ago.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-13 11:35:00
CanadaTornado
I'm glad you guys are okay!

Last week the temperature dropped from 71 to 26 in two hours. We were under a tornado warning AND it was snowing at the same time!

I live in southern Illinois, so we have tornado watches and warnings all the time. I have a friend who lives in Oak Ridge, and according to him, Tennessee actually has the highest number of tornado fatalities in the US, although I assume he means Dyer County, which is directly across from a part of Missouri that seems to be under a tornado warning every time there is any remotely inclement weather anywhere in the vicinity at all.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-07 17:18:00
CanadaMUMSIE, LITTLE MUMSIEEEEE
Spice it up with more electric appliances. Then I'll want my hypothetical kids to grow up to be just like Mumsie.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-13 16:43:00
CanadaGood luck trailmix!!!
Congratulations!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-19 11:52:00
CanadaQuick dumb question
QUOTE (trailmix @ Feb 28 2008, 10:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
No, it's only for places lived since the age of 16 - Unless there is a criminal record - if there is a criminal record it doesn't matter what the residency period was or what age they were (I added that in case someone else has the same question - I assume your fiance was a good baby smile.gif )


Thank you. I suppose the information we get in the packet three would specify that about age 16 (plus it makes sense). I just asked because a friend of mine from Ethiopia sponsored her father and they got delayed because having to get a police certificate from I think it was Lebonon, where he had lived for 6 months as a very young man, took them by surprise. And yes--he was a very good baby.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-28 11:36:00
CanadaQuick dumb question
We have exactly the same question, so thank you for posting this! And thank you also to the people who answered.

Here's one more related question: my fiance has lived all of his life in Edmonton EXCEPT for the first six months. He was born in England and immigrated with his parents when he was a baby. We don't actually need a police certificate from the UK as well since he lived there for 6 months as a little baby, do we?
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-28 11:11:00
CanadaWill my ignorance be deemed immigration fraud?
I don't have any advice to offer on your situation, I'm afraid, but I wish both you and your wife the best of luck.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-28 11:01:00
CanadaLosing a furbaby...
I'm so sorry to hear that. Losing the furbaby who has been your faithful and loving companion for so long is devastating. My mom's dog slept in his brother's bed when his brother died too. It was really sweet.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-21 12:05:00
CanadaWOoooooooooooooooooohooo!!!
Meridien, yeah, we should be pretty close.

Carla, thank you. That was what I wanted to know--about 3 to 5 weeks from when they schedule the interview until we actually have it. I am going to take the soonest interview they can give me, but I'm going to want to schedule some other things around it while I'm out there so I don't have to make an extra trip. Bellingham is so close to Vancouver. We are going to have to wait for him to sell his house to make the move, so it just depends when it sells. He's decided he will just leave the house with the realtor to sell if it's not sold by September 1, so anywhere between when we get the visa and September is when he will move. We're having a full-on wedding in Bellingham in October. Depending on the timing, we may need to get legally married before then. I'm kind of tempted to do it in North Dakota, either as soon as we cross the border or in Rugby (the geographic center of North America!).
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-29 12:08:00
CanadaWOoooooooooooooooooohooo!!!
Thanks, everyone. Yeah, just a little happy. It has taken the edge off that missing-him feeling that is starting to creep in because I'm taking him to the airport in a few hours.

By the way, does anyone know about how much advance notice we will get from Vancouver of the interview date? I am going to need to make a few appointments in Bellingham for wedding related stuff and the only time I will be out there before the wedding is for the interview.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-28 10:53:00
CanadaWOoooooooooooooooooohooo!!!
We finally got it!

I'm going home now to celebrate the NOA2 and my fiance's birthday now. Tomorrow I'll have to say goodbye to him at the airport, but.... Vancouver, Bellingham, and Victoria, here we come!!!!!!!!

Thanks for all the encouragment, information, and entertainment.

kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif kicking.gif
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-27 17:34:00
CanadaI got a puppy!!
Awwww!!! Puppies!!! They are SOOOOO cute!!!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-03 12:33:00
CanadaWhat Is Love.....
Those are really sweet.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-05 15:01:00
CanadaDumb question
I also have an I-134 question, and (unlike Laura's) this one really is a bit dumb (so I don't want to ask out in the general K1 board). I know that if my income is well above the poverty line so I don't need to rely on assets for support, I don't need to give any information about anything other than my income. But what do I put in the boxes asking about assets? Is it okay to just put N/A? I'm a bit concerned that this will lead them to think either I am withholding information or that I make a pretty good salary but have no assets because I spend too much time at the riverboat casinoes or something.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-05 13:14:00
CanadaDumb question
Laura, Nick can get the I-134 form on line, and you can get the DS-230, DS-156K, and DS-156 forms on line as well. The DS forms are here: http://evisaforms.state.gov/. The I-134 is in the "immigration forms" section of USCIS's site. There are also links in the "downloads" section on VJ, but there is one that does not work (one of the DS ones, but I can't remember which one). There is another financial form--the OF-167--which is not available on line.

For Vancouver, you just have to fax back the checklist they send you and part I of the DS-230; the rest you bring with you to the interview. I am not sure whether Montreal handles this differently, but as Amy suggested, if you look at the consulate reviews for Montreal, you should be able to find the actual packet 3 checklist. I know this is not going to help Laura, but for anyone else, here is G&A's Vancouver review, which I have found very helpful (with links to just about everything you need): http://www.visajourn...p;cty=Vancouver.

CBR, we are at the same stage. I'm not sure exactly when he should be scheduling the medical either (as in can he do it now or does he need to wait until he has packet 3?) but I am pretty sure you don't want to wait for packet 4. Theoretically, when you send back the checklist, you are supposed to already have all the documents, so you should probably at least have scheduled the appointment at that point. I'm hoping someone who is further along can give a better answer than this. If you are going to the interview with him, I don't think there is anything you need to send him. At least for Vancouver, the only things that need to be sent back before the interview are the DS 230 part I and the checklist (which he will get from the consulate0, so everything else you can bring with you.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-05 13:03:00
CanadaOMG OMG !!!! our petition left already NVC !!
Congratulations!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-06 15:26:00
CanadaDS-230 question 25
I asked this the first time I saw the DS-230 because I could not imagine my fiance could possibly remember every trip he'd ever taken to the US. What people told me was to put his visits to me and any long trips he could remember and then something like "numerous visits between ____ and _____". I'd say be as accurate and specific as you can, but don't worry about it if you don't remember every single trip you ever made. They are aware that people from border towns in particular are not going to remember each and every visit they've ever made.

I discussed this on the phone with my fiance last night, and it's actually scary how many trips to the US going all the way back to the mid 70s he can remember. But he's not from a border town (as I am) so to him it was a big deal to cross the border into Montana for 10 hours as his first visit to a foreign country. I probably went to Canada for the first time before I was a year old.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-06 12:18:00
CanadaConsidering divorce, k-1, remarrying
QUOTE (Delicia @ Feb 8 2008, 10:13 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
NOA2?? I would settle for a NOA1 to tide me over for a few weeks.

No offense to the K-1 filers, but having this K-3 and CR1/IR1 take nearly twice as long makes absolutely no sense to me. Is it possible that fiances are less of a security or visa fraud risk than spouses?



Doesn't CR1/IR1 take longer because it includes adjustment of status stuff and results in a real immigrant visa? Also probably the fact that only one consulate handles them. Why a K3 takes longer than a K1 when it's the same process, I really don't know. It may be a simple matter of numbers. Supposedly doesn't take MUCH longer.

I think it could raise red flags if you did that, plus you would have to start completely over.

Good luck to you whatever you decide to do, Delicia.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-02-08 13:25:00
CanadaRCMP and medical in Edmonton
Okay, thanks, everyone. I will pass the info on to him.

I remember the thread with the picture, actually, but I wasn't expecting our NOA2 this soon when you posted it. I told him it was in a house--I remembered that much.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-07 16:25:00
CanadaRCMP and medical in Edmonton
QUOTE (Carlawarla @ Mar 7 2008, 12:38 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I would suggest that given his age, and vaccination requirements for school, that he already had all his immunizations, and all he'd need is tetnus shot. He can also have a titre test done to see what he has had, and needs to get done.


That's what I thought, too, but he did get the measles as a teenager. His thinking on this is getting the boosters will give whatever antibodies he has a workout. From what CBR says, that sounds about right.

Two more questions now:
1) If he wants to get the titre test, does he get that from the Health Department as well or from his regular doctor?
2) Will he be okay on the visa if he has the 2nd chicken pox booster after the medical exam but before the interview? We don't really have our act together on the stuff we need to get together for packet 3, so this may not be an issue, but I'd like to know in case it is.

I honestly did not know chicken pox was that big a deal. When we were kids, my parents brought us around to the houses of friends who'd had it so we could get it and get it over with.

As always, thanks to everyone for your help!
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-07 14:05:00
CanadaRCMP and medical in Edmonton
Thanks, Earmuffs!

Would the Health Department have records of it if he had the MMR as a baby? He still needs the chicken pox and tetanus shots, but it's worth a shot to check, I guess.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-07 13:28:00
CanadaRCMP and medical in Edmonton
Okay, first of all, the medical. My fiance needs to get the three vaccines (chicken pox, MMR, and tetanus). I am pretty sure tetanus is just a single shot (because I had to get that one when I went to Peru) but I don't know anything about the other two. It's actually news to me that there even IS a chicken pox vaccine! Anyway, my question is this: can Dr. Chana just give him the vaccines the day he goes for the appointment, or does he need to get them in advance? Do the chicken pox and MMR vaccines require a series of booster shots or is it just one like the tetnus shot? (He had chicken pox and measles as a child but can't document that, he knows he is overdue for a tetanus booster, and he does not know whether he got the MMR.)

One more question about Dr. Chana: how long does it take to get the results after the appointment? And how long of a wait will it be to get the appointment?

Now the RCMP: a few people mentioned one in Sherwood Park in another thread. I have no idea what or where that is, but he said it is a few miles from him and he's going to go there. How long does it take them to order it? He has no arrest record.

(Okay, I'm going to breathe now....)
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-07 13:10:00
CanadaDS-230
All you fax to them is the first two pages of the DS-230 and the checklist. The rest you bring with you to the interview.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-07 12:10:00
CanadaDS-230
Yes, you send it to your fiance to sign and send back to you.

There are a few other things to fill in as well as the signature (this is obvious looking at the form, but I was not looking at it when I answered and I want to correct what I said)--his name and address, your name, relationship to sponsor, marital status.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-06 12:37:00
CanadaDS-230
OF-167 is two pages of instructions and one page with a statement basically just saying that you know your obligation is to support your fiance for whatever amount of time it is. There is nothing to fill out except the USC's signature, which is why it is not available to be filled out on line, I guess. I think it is required only for K1s, though I could be wrong.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-06 11:57:00
CanadaDS-230
It's confusing because the G325A does ask for full addresses. The first time I looked at the DS230 I did not notice it did not ask for full addresses. I'm the USC so I don't have to provide that info, but I was bored one day and tried to see if I could remember all the addresses I'd had since age 16. I could actually remember most of them, except for the zip codes, and I could not remember the apartment number on one of my old places. I'd still have the same problem people here have---there were quite a few times I moved back in with my parents, then to an appartment, then sublet an off campus apartment over the summer for 3 months, and so on. Luckily, my fiance has only lived in Edmonton so it will be easy for him.

Meridien, if you were primarily based in one city in Australia and just travelling for weekends or a week or two at a time, you could probably just put whichever city it was.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-05 17:46:00
CanadaDS-230
I just looked at it. It asks for the "places" you have lived and gives spaces to fill in only city or town, state or province, country, and dates. For the date, it just asks for month and year. It does not ask for full addresses. Not sure if that helps ATeam or Meridien.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-05 17:30:00
CanadaPOE for Vancouver to Seattle
Here is a link that shows current backups at all the border crossings in the area:

http://www.borderlineups.com/

Usually the lines are longest at the Peace Arch crossing. I have never had a backup at the Sumas, WA/Abbottsford, BC crossing, but that may be out of your way. I've heard the Pacific Highway is a good way to avoid delays, but I've never used that one myself.

I haven't crossed by land there in a long time, so it's hard for me to give you an idea of how long the waits might be now. Last time I went home (my parents live in Bellingham, which is 20 miles south of the Peace Arch crossing), it was Thanksgiving weekend, the Canadian dollar had just surpassed the US dollar, and the lines were running about 3 to 4 hours at all crossings, so we just flew into SeaTac and did not go to BC at all. Right now, it looks like there is no delay at the Peace Arch and a 20 minute wait to cross at Sumas. I would guess that on a weekend there would be more of a wait, although I don't know how much. Back when I used to cross regularly, there was never a backup at Sumas, and at the Peace Arch, it was usually less than an hour.

If he is catching a plane at Sea Tac, you also need to take into account the possibility of a bad traffic back up going through Seattle. I'd actually suggest going down the night before his flight and staying over near the airport.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-10 16:45:00
Canadaugh story of our lives, I swear.
Sounds like he is working for A-holes, to put it mildly. Even if it isn't b.s., getting the frig out of there and into a better position (ie, one with actual human beings running it rather than ####### orafices) would be a good thing. Which doesn't make it easy.
SonoranSongbirdFemaleCanada2008-03-11 12:02:00