Maura

Quote: Originally Posted by naga0066 Hi... I'm in the same boat. I am a US citizen and my FI is from Canada. Any help would be greatly appreacited... the process seems a bit overwhelming and we really want to try and do it ourselvse w/o lawyers (as we are 2 poor college students). My FI is currently in the states on a student visa that will expire in May 09. Our Jamaica wedding will occur in Jan 09 but we are considering doing the legal part here in the states sooner than that. This morning I just started looking at all the papework/requirements. It's my understanding that the easiest way to go about the citizenship process is file the paperwork (I-130 Petition for Alien Relative) AFTER we have our marriage license. Is that correct? hey becky, yes that's correct that you file the I-130 after the legal wedding. i know our attorney told my FI that it would expedite the process if we have a legal civil ceremony in the US first, as it is generally more difficult if you legally marry outside the country due to documents being in different languages/having different legal requirements etc etc. we are meeting with the lawyers early to prepare the work so that all we have to do is give them the civil ceremony certificate signed after we do it. as long as you legally marry before his student visa runs out, he can adjust his visa status. my FI has an H1B professional work visa and all he has to do is get his status adjusted right after our attorneys file the papers after the wedding while we wait for the interviews. here is one of the information circulars from the dept of homeland security that explains how to go about it. http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/A1.pdf i would really recommend hiring a lawyer to at least file your papers, because ive heard from others that it goes much more smoothly to have an attorney handle the filing.

Quote: Originally Posted by StephanieMN You know I think I forgot to mention this huge detail---They are NOT getting married. This whole thing had wised her up and she is making him leave her house. She has his key back and once he gets a ride home he is gone for good. I will breath easier ONCE he is totally out of the state. She actually has wised up...thank freaking GOD! oh thank god! glad your mom wised up a bit from this whole incident!!!!!! now she just has to get his butt out of her house...getting the key back was a good first step! she ought to still change her locks anyway for good measure though

Quote: Originally Posted by Morgan great advice. I have been checked for scoliosis. They did checks all through high school. I don't know if it's something that would come up after high school, but if not that is not likely the problem. my cousin developed scoliosis in high school, but the school nurse nor her GP ever caught it early on in all of the physical checkups... it got bad during college and she ended up having to do physical therapy and wear a back brace, so don't rule it out based on being checked in your teens i do agree with kelly, get checked by a regular doc before seeing a chiropractor to avoid doing any damage. my cousin first went to a chiropractor when she started having flare ups, and luckily he directed her to her regular doc, but not all chiros will do that...

there are lots of hilton brides here who can help you!

Quote: Originally Posted by amyh Thanks Maura, I do use the IP locator often but I honestly think its rude when people don't identify themselves. When I view someone else's website, I log on as "amyh (BDW)" so that they are aware. But when someone logs on as "asfs" it really pisses me off. Sorry. I tried finding the link but didn't see one and photobucket is down so I'll try uploading the pick later. good to know that someone else is hip to how to figure out who's looking at our websites! im a very private person and wanted to password protect the whole site because im a member of the news media and often random people who call me at work for business stuff say they got my phone number by googling my name and the name of the publication i work at, but my FI thought that it was unnecessary to go that far to protect the whole thing. we will be protecting our travel info and the rsvp sections as soon as we get the booking info up there. i agree its good to login to other peoples websites on here identifying yourself with your bdw user name and BDW -- i dont freak when i see those, but i do freak when i see ones that are like sdlsf too. Wedding websites are meant to be a private, but partially public, way to communicate with your guests and friends attending your wedding and i dont think enough people respect that when they log in with ask;sd type names. OK im getting off my soapbox, but that's why i only show my website to people who PM me, so I can know who is looking at it.

Quote: Originally Posted by Gretchen I don't know the way to get it off of there. But I want to say that it's sad that you can't leave it up. I have found this forum really friendly (for the most part) and it stinks that you do not feel comfortable leaving it on there. : ( Gigi, some of us have had problems with unwanted people logging onto our wedding websites. Amy -- I had the same problem with unwanted guests not identifying themselves properly. My ex would check our site and use his coworkers personal email addresses as the email to log in with. So creepy. You have a wedding window site, right? On the visitors activity page within the interface, it will tell you the IP address of where someone is logging in from, even if they dont identify themselves with their correct email address. You can block specific IP addresses. To find out where an IP address is located, go here IP Address Locator - Enter an IP address to find its location - Lookup Country Region City etc to get it off your siggy, log into your user CP and see if there is a linked code with your image to direct it to your website, if so, delete the website direction. you can easily just resave your logo as a jpg and repost in your siggy and that should take care of it too. let me know if you need more help if that doesnt work!

you have to file all the paperwork to become a citizen regardless. what have you done already to start your process?

morgan if your insurance wont cover a chiropractor, they SHOULD cover a visit to an orthopaedic specialist. depending on the kind of insurance you have (like HMO versus a PPO) you may need your general physician's referral to see a specialist.

britt! the resort i'm getting married at has incredible modern architecture you might want to check out -- Los Cabos Hotel Mexico - The Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos if you PM me with your email address, i will send you a link to a photo gallery of over 100 photos of the resort

how much is the deposit? i cant imagine it's big... at least you were nice enough to go through a TA so they could pay it incrementally! with our hotel block, the FULL balance is due upon booking, and we aren't too happy about that. you are NOT being a bridezilla. hardly any of my family is coming to my DW because they are too lazy to travel or would rather spend their money doing something else like finishing their basement. yes, im serious. you cant let it get to you too much though --- ask them for a definitive answer and if they say no, then yeah you will be disappointed, but if they say yes you can make sure they get their deposit in. sometimes, sadly, you have to hold peoples hands to make them do stuff.

Quote: Originally Posted by Christine Maura, you should PM Raeka, she and her Hubby had to go through all of this process for her. Thanks, Christine! I didn't know that! I will definitely give her a shout as well.

Hey girls, I know there are at LEAST 4 of us brides who are US Citizens but are marrying a FI who isnt a US citizen. It can be a confusing process with a lot of requirements and lots of paperwork. I thought it would be nice for us to lend each other some support and talk about the process, what you've done so far, where your FI is from, etc etc. The only other person I know in "real life" who went through this is a friend of my FI's and is now in the process of getting divorced, so I can't really ask her any questions... Most of you know by now that my FI is from Mexico City and is a Mexican citizen with a job here in the states. We haven't met with my FI's attorneys yet, but plan to later this month so we can get started on the paperwork. He's spoken with a partner at the firm and she says that it's relatively straightforward and easy. Although my main question right now is, what do you estimate your legal fees to be? I know our initial consultation with the partner is billable at $300/hour, and then we will hopefully have an associate prepare and submit all our paperwork to cut down on the cost. What are your plans?

wow carly those are so cool and unique!

leigh, these are some of the most beautiful wedding photos i have ever seen!

for any chicago people who wanna join in...

omg bre, everything looked so amazing! i cannot even tell you which ones were my favorites, there were so many. vincent did a BEAUTIFUL job and you looked divine! cant wait to see the rest

Quote: Originally Posted by timelsel Wow! Thanks so much. They are getting married May 20, but not moving until mid-July as he'll be going to medical school there. The Sam's/WalMart cards say they are only good here and in Puerto Rico (at least that's what mine says on the back of it). Also, how hard is it to get stuff across the border and through customs? Thank you so very much! in that case, i would say they should register for mostly gift cards from the mexican stores so they can pick stuff out when they get down there. and i think people will be more likely to give cash gifts knowing theyre moving shortly after the wedding. when you move there, its not a problem bringing possessions, but the less you have to bring the better. i think just the costco gift cards are good both here and mexico -- the membership card for both countries is good in both the US and MX -- my FI has a Mexican Costco membership card and uses it here in the US all the time with no problem.

Also I forgot to mention this, but there are some American dept/chain stores in Mexico. I would bet you there is a Sears and a WalMart in Guadalajara. Also, if they want electronic items (like DVD players or digital cameras) it is best for them to buy those things here and then take them with. The reason why is that electronics are really expensive in Mexico. My FI's family has frequently asked us to purchase things or bring things with us because they cost hundreds of dollars less. When we visited in July, his mom bought a flat panel TV from Sam's club for his parents' bedroom, and the same thing in the US cost about $400 less. Oh! Also...they have Sam's Club AND Costco in Mexico Gift cards bought here work down there according to my FI. I also just thought of these dept stores: www.elpalaciodehierro.com.mx www.suburbia.com.mx and .: Sears en Línea :. is the link for the Mexican Sears

Quote: Originally Posted by timelsel I have a question: My daughter is getting married and moving to Guadalajara. Obviously they don't want gifts to have to ship down there. Do you have any great suggestions? Places to register in Mexico? Would it even be appropriate to have a shower where people give them money towards their household furnishings? ($$ towards a sofa, $$ towards a lamp?) you have come to the right place to ask how soon after the wedding is she moving there? or is she moving beforehand? all of the weddings i've been to in mexico, and my sister in law who lives there has been to, everyone registered at Liverpool which is kind of like Macys. Here is the website. There is definitely a Liverpool in Guadalajara. Liverpool - Es parte de mi vida I know they allow you to purchase online and have it shipped, so perhaps if they have their place in Mexico before the wedding, they can register there in person --or you can register online too I believe-- Here is the direct link for the wedding registry part: Liverpool - Es parte de mi vida In Mexico, it's customary for shower guests to give cash gifts. They can always also register for Liverpool giftcards and whoever hosts her shower can explain the situation to people. I know sometimes in the US people think it's tacky to give cash, but when you're moving abroad, the last thing you want to do is pay money to ship gifts. Let me ask my sister in law for some more places to register that are Mexico-wide and Guadalajara specific and get back to you. PM me with your email and I will get in touch with you! For now though, Liverpool is fantastic, and if we lived in Mexico City where my FI's family is from, that's where I'd be registering!

i agree it might be best if you give a day or two for him to leave... if he doesnt, then i would totally call the WI dept of corrections and see what they tell you to do. when you speak to them you should mention the incident of verbal abuse and say that you're concerned for your mom's safety. im guessing they can probably also put you in touch with local law enforcement to talk about how to best deal with the situation.

Quote: Originally Posted by coreyphil I'm using Deena at Sweet Dreams ... a lot of girls have used her and have LOVED her! You can see a picture of one of her recent cakes in Jak27's (Jill's) Wedding Review. Jill's cake was amazing and she had like 5 different flavors! Another bride that I know told me that her guests told her it was the best wedding cake they'd ever tasted --- she said they still talk about it! (Tracey's was a fall wedding and they had an apple spice cake with this vanilla rum sauce that you poured on it!). Another perk - Deena is super-sweet - she was super-nice in helping me with all my indecisiveness. Here's the contact info that I have for her: Mrs. Deena Abdiano - [email protected] The website is: Sweet Dreams Good luck! Corey, what kind of cake did you end up going with? How many people does it serve and what was the pricing like? Jose wants a tres leches cake and I'm trying to shop around to find something cheaper than what the Westin wants to charge, so I'm thinking about having my FMIL email Deena for a quote (since everybody seems to give her lower quotes than they give me)...

steph, i was just thinking about this... what do you mean by he wanted to get married in 2 weeks to be in the state legally? is he violating his parole or something?

Stephanie, I am so sorry you are going through all of this so close to your wedding. If this incident doesn't show your mom that a leopard can't change its spots, I don't know what will.... praying for strength for both of you and sending a big hug your way!

Here's some new photos I found! Steph, this is for you, its a reception on the Bugambilias Terrace this is the pool deck cleared of chairs and everything this is in the foyer of arricefes entrance to regina club lobby standard guest room

if you do some searches there are a lot of posts on this topic already. i believe it was cheaper for many people to do the courthouse thing at home first, and that way you also dont have to get your documents translated for insurance purposes and whatnot when you get home, so that's another fee to take into mind that you wont end up paying until after the wedding...