So much has happened in the last month but while it was happening it didn't seem "blog worthy". But let me fill you in and tell you a little story...
At first we were all three going to go to Guatemala to visit the fam for Holy Week, the week before Easter, and while there spend a couple of days getting some paperwork for Beto's residency. Well, maybe I should start even before this. Nah, let me just say that since we live in Honduras we of course decided to apply for Beto's US residency here at the US Embassy in Honduras. but any/all foreign paperwork has to be authenticated, apostilled, basically signed and stamped till you can hardly even read what the actualy contents of the document reads.
Well, after not hearing from the embassy and getting nervous since we want to move to the states in July, and it was already april and they say it takes three months just to give us an appointment, i called and told them our situation and the very nice lady on the phone was very helpful and got us an appointment for May 9th. Great! But then I started to panic becuase getting all the necessary paperwork is like a part time job and then I was afraid we wouldn't get it in time. the government wants to basically see that Beto isn't going to end up on welfare, but since we don't have enough money to prove that we had to ask my mom to be our "sponsor", which means she had to send us about 5 pounds of paperwork ...tax forms, passport copy, W-2's, proof of job, assets, plus a general form required by the embassy with basic information, and all of that I have to provide too.
so Beto goes to Guatemala alone since we didn't want santi on a bus for 12 hours each way if we were only going to stay for two days. But of course it didn't just take two days since Holy Week fell and everything shut down for a week. So he had to wait till the following week when everything reopened. After he arrived in Guatemala he then traveled on his second day four hours each way to his birthplace to get more birth certificate originals, because the only original he had he already gave to the embassy and they didn't give it back. Note: when "buying" originals, always buy like 10 at a time! So on his third day he goes to the police station to get two different types of police reports, and after holy week he went to the embassy there, and three different places to get them authenticated.
Now, Honduras asks for the "Long, Literal" form of the birth cert., but now Guatemala says they don't print those anymore, so we're praying that the embassy here will accept them. I mean, other countries like the US don't print their certs on long paper, so Guatemala doesn't either.
All this time Beto was sick either with respitory or stomach probs and Santi and I were staying with Amber in TGU also with sicknesses. The air here was so smoggy and smoky that the airport even closed down a couple of times, and us country folk coming from the mountains where the air is always clean, well, i guess our systems just couldn't take it.
Beto arrived two weeks after he left and showed up with a bad virus that's going around in Guatemala city that his family all had too. We were told many months ago of a good ear dr. for me, and Beto had to get a general checkup for his residency interview from one of three dr.'s and one of the choices was at the same hospital as my ear dr. So we already knew about this place, it's close to Amber's house. Well, that same place has a 24 hr. clinic and ER, so in the morning we dropped off some, ahem, samples, and then hung out at the mall, went to a movie, did some shopping, etc. until 4pm when the results were in. Beto got the meds he needed and thank God is all better.
Last Sunday we went back to LE only until WEdnesday. Beto had to get two different types of police reports here in TGU also for his residency since he's lived here for about 8 years. One of the papers he got in about 5 mintues, but the second one took a week. It was ready yesterday. So we called one of our friends who lives here but we know from Southwest School where we all worked in La Esperanza. He lives around the corner from that hospital where we went when Beto was sick. We went to pick him up but then when Beto tried to start the car again it wouldn't start.
thankfully we were right by a place to eat and in walking distance to a mechanic. Beto first had to take a taxi to pick up his police report but GET THIS! He wasn't aloud in in his shorts (cargo shorts, people, not like Richard Simmonds type shorts). So he had to walk about half a mile to the mini mall and buy some really ugly pants, then go back and pick up his paper, which had his name spelled wrong, so thank God they actually changed it right away, because Beto says the lady at the desk was a little "agressive" and not willing to help him out at first, saying it was going to take another week, which we don't have.
so Beto finally made it back to the car and the mechanic helped us push it to get it started just to drive it around the block to the mechanic. Beto called our personal mechanic in LE and he told us how much parts and labor should cost, etc. so we would know we weren't getting ripped off.
Then, the best thing happened!!! Our friend that was with us this whole time called HIS friend who works at a private social club where we got to go and have lunch poolside! too bad we didn't know. we didn't have our suits. but i was ready to jump in with my clothes on it was so hot! There were bout 6 different playgrounds for santi and htey were clean and nice, not like the ones at the mall where parents let their 12 year olds on a playground for 5 year olds and don't supervise them! That really drives me crazy.
At the club our friend saw another one of HIS old friends that we talked to for a couple of hours (I mean, we spent AAAALLLLL afternoon there!) and he gave us a ride back to the mechanic, who said our car wouldn't be ready till today. So we walked to our friends house and hung out there for a couple of hours, then took a taxi to Amber's. I was in bed early I was so tired.
today we are hanging out, watching cable cartoons, until noon when our car should be done, then putting finishing touches on Beto's paperwork, probably eating out at Micky D's or something.
We are really praying that Beto gets his residency on Monday. If he does we want to celebrate BIG! Like a one night stay at the Marriott or other hotel with a pool. Any ideas????
At first we were all three going to go to Guatemala to visit the fam for Holy Week, the week before Easter, and while there spend a couple of days getting some paperwork for Beto's residency. Well, maybe I should start even before this. Nah, let me just say that since we live in Honduras we of course decided to apply for Beto's US residency here at the US Embassy in Honduras. but any/all foreign paperwork has to be authenticated, apostilled, basically signed and stamped till you can hardly even read what the actualy contents of the document reads.
Well, after not hearing from the embassy and getting nervous since we want to move to the states in July, and it was already april and they say it takes three months just to give us an appointment, i called and told them our situation and the very nice lady on the phone was very helpful and got us an appointment for May 9th. Great! But then I started to panic becuase getting all the necessary paperwork is like a part time job and then I was afraid we wouldn't get it in time. the government wants to basically see that Beto isn't going to end up on welfare, but since we don't have enough money to prove that we had to ask my mom to be our "sponsor", which means she had to send us about 5 pounds of paperwork ...tax forms, passport copy, W-2's, proof of job, assets, plus a general form required by the embassy with basic information, and all of that I have to provide too.
so Beto goes to Guatemala alone since we didn't want santi on a bus for 12 hours each way if we were only going to stay for two days. But of course it didn't just take two days since Holy Week fell and everything shut down for a week. So he had to wait till the following week when everything reopened. After he arrived in Guatemala he then traveled on his second day four hours each way to his birthplace to get more birth certificate originals, because the only original he had he already gave to the embassy and they didn't give it back. Note: when "buying" originals, always buy like 10 at a time! So on his third day he goes to the police station to get two different types of police reports, and after holy week he went to the embassy there, and three different places to get them authenticated.
Now, Honduras asks for the "Long, Literal" form of the birth cert., but now Guatemala says they don't print those anymore, so we're praying that the embassy here will accept them. I mean, other countries like the US don't print their certs on long paper, so Guatemala doesn't either.
All this time Beto was sick either with respitory or stomach probs and Santi and I were staying with Amber in TGU also with sicknesses. The air here was so smoggy and smoky that the airport even closed down a couple of times, and us country folk coming from the mountains where the air is always clean, well, i guess our systems just couldn't take it.
Beto arrived two weeks after he left and showed up with a bad virus that's going around in Guatemala city that his family all had too. We were told many months ago of a good ear dr. for me, and Beto had to get a general checkup for his residency interview from one of three dr.'s and one of the choices was at the same hospital as my ear dr. So we already knew about this place, it's close to Amber's house. Well, that same place has a 24 hr. clinic and ER, so in the morning we dropped off some, ahem, samples, and then hung out at the mall, went to a movie, did some shopping, etc. until 4pm when the results were in. Beto got the meds he needed and thank God is all better.
Last Sunday we went back to LE only until WEdnesday. Beto had to get two different types of police reports here in TGU also for his residency since he's lived here for about 8 years. One of the papers he got in about 5 mintues, but the second one took a week. It was ready yesterday. So we called one of our friends who lives here but we know from Southwest School where we all worked in La Esperanza. He lives around the corner from that hospital where we went when Beto was sick. We went to pick him up but then when Beto tried to start the car again it wouldn't start.
thankfully we were right by a place to eat and in walking distance to a mechanic. Beto first had to take a taxi to pick up his police report but GET THIS! He wasn't aloud in in his shorts (cargo shorts, people, not like Richard Simmonds type shorts). So he had to walk about half a mile to the mini mall and buy some really ugly pants, then go back and pick up his paper, which had his name spelled wrong, so thank God they actually changed it right away, because Beto says the lady at the desk was a little "agressive" and not willing to help him out at first, saying it was going to take another week, which we don't have.
so Beto finally made it back to the car and the mechanic helped us push it to get it started just to drive it around the block to the mechanic. Beto called our personal mechanic in LE and he told us how much parts and labor should cost, etc. so we would know we weren't getting ripped off.
Then, the best thing happened!!! Our friend that was with us this whole time called HIS friend who works at a private social club where we got to go and have lunch poolside! too bad we didn't know. we didn't have our suits. but i was ready to jump in with my clothes on it was so hot! There were bout 6 different playgrounds for santi and htey were clean and nice, not like the ones at the mall where parents let their 12 year olds on a playground for 5 year olds and don't supervise them! That really drives me crazy.
At the club our friend saw another one of HIS old friends that we talked to for a couple of hours (I mean, we spent AAAALLLLL afternoon there!) and he gave us a ride back to the mechanic, who said our car wouldn't be ready till today. So we walked to our friends house and hung out there for a couple of hours, then took a taxi to Amber's. I was in bed early I was so tired.
today we are hanging out, watching cable cartoons, until noon when our car should be done, then putting finishing touches on Beto's paperwork, probably eating out at Micky D's or something.
We are really praying that Beto gets his residency on Monday. If he does we want to celebrate BIG! Like a one night stay at the Marriott or other hotel with a pool. Any ideas????
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