3 sleeps

Until we're all in the same room!

Ok, sorry it has been a while since I've updated here.  I've been keeping my blog www.hollymayb.com more up-to-date about our US adventure.

So, we had an interview on the 23rd of October.  It went very smoothly - and was a lot shorter than I expected.  After it was approved, we only had to wait a few days for our passports and visas to arrive back at our place in Te Anau, New Zealand.

And now...  we've booked flights, we'll be arriving in the US on the 26th of November.  Just in time to celebrate Thanksgiving with our US family.

Roy has been in the US for 8 months, while our little boy and I have been in New Zealand waiting for visa paperwork.  It's been Tough, with a capital T.  But we're here.

3 sleeps until Roy arrives in NZ to gather us up and 7 sleeps until we get back on a big plane to head to the US.  We're coming, Arizona!

Can't wait to meet you!

Holly

xx

The ball is rolling

Last week we had our medical exams in preparation for our interviews in a couple of weeks.  This is fantastic news.

So, from the previous post, about our visas being approved... that meant that they then got forwarded to our country of residence for processing/medicals/interviews.  It has been such a long process, so much longer than we imagined and anticipated.

In-between hearing of our interview date (only heard a week ago), we had to send originals and copies of important documents to the US Consulate General in Auckland, along with a 'notice of readiness' for our appointment.  SO much paperwork, and they still need more before we have our interview.

But, at least we are here now, actually preparing for the interview.  Praise the Lord.

I've written here about our little trip up to Christchurch for our medicals.  Our interview date has been set for 23rd Oct in Auckland, a little under two weeks away.  So, we're expecting to be in the US of A for Thanksgiving.  Yay!

What a great, momentous anniversary for us to begin our US adventure.

Roy is doing well, he's settled into our apartment and is, basically, waiting for us get there.

Soon, Babe.

That's us, for now.

Holly
:)

Approved!

You got it.  Our petitions to apply for visas have been approved!  There are one or two mega things that happen next, interviews being the main thing (I think), but we're a step closer to being a family under ONE roof (rather that two that are about 1200kms apart).

Check out my brief post at hollymayb.com

YESSSS!!!


Holly

Latest update (Roy)

So apparently we haven't updated this in a while.  There are probably a bunch of reasons for this.  Holly has been pre-occupied in Te Anau, and I've been pre-occupied in Arizona.

We are STILL waiting.  It is very hard on us.  I miss my wife and my little boy so much.  They miss me so much.  They have still not been processed by immigration and therefore are not allowed to enter the USA until that happens.  This is how I ended up going over on my own in the first place.  It seemed fairly sensible at the start, as it would give me a chance to get a few things set up but the problem is that we are in limbo.  Even though it shouldn't happen, there is always a chance that the USA says they won't accept Holly and Levi.  If that happens we're probably looking at legal options, and whether we continue to pursue this dream or not.  So it makes it tough when considering whether to start purchasing things we'll need for our house/apartment, a car, etc.

I could go on and on and on about my views on immigration here, especially with all the drama at the border, but I would probably just bore most people to death.  I will say it is very tough seeing how things are playing out at the southern border, vs legitimate immigration process following citizens such as me who just want to be with their family.  Arizona is a border state, so a lot of the negative stuff that is going on with illegal immigrants is right in our back yard.  Rant over (for now).

Aside from all the frustration and loneliness (probably for Holly too), I have really been enjoying living here.  That's what makes it so tough is knowing that Holly and Levi will love it here and they can't be here right now.  Anyway, as I was saying... 

I recently got to experience my first 4th of July in America.  It was super cool.  My cousin Jenny and her husband Eric and son Nathan (who is A LOT like Levi!) took me to a display and I loved it.  I am impressed and encouraged by the love the average Americans have for this great nation and the pride they have in their country.  It seemed like for one day all politics was set aside and everyone united to shoot off fireworks and celebrate the United States of America.  It made me very proud of my heritage, and thankful that I can say I'm an American.  I took some photo's but they didn't turn out too well.

I also experienced my first Haboob (dust storm).  I got some good photo's and will put some in this blog post.  It was kinda cool, kinda creepy, and quite weird.  But mostly cool.  And I went to my first baseball game!  My team is the Arizona Diamondbacks.  They're not having a good year but that didn't matter the game was super fun and hopefully I get to hit another one up soon.

My job is going well too.  I'm learning a lot, and I'm starting to feel like I'm able to contribute more and more to the team each day.  I work for a company called Caretaker Landscape and Tree Management as a project manager.  They are a great company to work for, and I'm pretty stoked to have landed a job with them. 

It has been very cool getting to know my family here better.  They have been so good to me, and I really appreciate all they've done for me (and Holly and Levi!).  Everyone is super excited to meet my beautiful wife and super cool son.

I've found a great church, Redemption Gateway.  I haven't joined the band, but maybe soon.  I'm enjoying just taking a break at the moment, but at the same time itching to get back into it.  I've mainly held off because of not knowing where things will end up with Holly and Levi's immigration applications.

I guess that's a very brief update of what's been happening the last 3 months since I last posted. 

The latest from USCIS (immigration processing place) is that we will hear within the next month and if not I need to call them again and rattle a few cages.  So we would appreciate prayer for this to go through, and that God would provide everything we need to be reunited in the USA and get a place to live and all that jazz.  Also for prayer for us as a family that we would stay strong and encouraged and in faith that God is working this out.  It has been a discouraging time and as each day goes by it gets harder to keep believing that this is where God wants us. 

To everyone who has been praying, thank you so much.  We really do appreciate the support, and we are doing our best to stay strong in what we believe God wants us to do.

Monday July 14th is Levi's 3rd birthday, that could be a very tough day for us as I won't be there.  I sent over a parcel with a bunch of small gifts which was very fun and Levi was stoked.  But just knowing that we're not together for his big day is tough.
I hope everyone back in New Zealand is staying warm.  The overnight low here tonight is meant to be a cool 30 degress celsius. 

Next update will hopefully be done a lot quicker than this one was!!!

Roy

 Baseball

 Dust storm rolling in

 in the dust storm

 4th of July

A bit of a Family Reunion

This past weekend, we had somewhat of a family reunion here in AZ. 

My sister Jess (who has been in the USA for 6 months, and was working in Sun Valley, Idaho), my Cousin Travis and his daughter Beyonce came to Arizona for a visit.  Jess starts a new job in Denali National Park (Alaska) in a few weeks time, so in the meantime she is staying in LA.  It's not too far to drive here so Jess, Travis and Beyonce came out for a visit.

I hadn't seen Jess since September (I think) last year, and aside from me she is the coolest one of the Bruce siblings so it was a real treat to see her again.  They got here on Friday evening, and on Saturday we had a good ol' cousins hang out day.  My cousin Alex, and my cousin Jenny and her husband Eric hung out with us for the day and took us up to Cave Creek.  It's a pretty cool old town, has elements of the wild wild west, and has a super good mexican restaurant called El Encanto.  I definitely recommend it if you ever find yourself in or near Phoenix.

A carpark in Cave Creek.  This photo was meant to be of the desert, cactii, wild west, etc...

Our generation - addicted to our phones.  Waiting patiently to get a table at El Encanto

After a bit of a look around, we went back to Scottsdale for some Starbucks and a look around Desert Ridge Marketplace.  I am not a fan of shopping so in my mind we spent far too much time there.  But at least the company was good!

That night, we headed back to San Tan Valley to regroup, without Alex who had to ditch us for the evening, but not before getting a couple of group photos.  Jenny and Eric had to grab some things to drop off at the babysitters (my Aunt and Uncle who were looking after their little man), then we headed out to San Tan Village to catch the new Captain America movie. 

It was a lot of fun, and Travis and Jess were definitely impressed by the vibe here. 

On Sunday, the travellers from California left us to go to the Grand Canyon, then headed back from Flagstaff to LA on Monday.

It was so good seeing them again, but also a hint of sadness that Holly and Levi still aren't able to be here with us.  When they get here, hopefully we can do this weekend all over again! 

Group photo of the cousins.  Jess, Eric, Jenny, Travis, Beyonce, Alex and me

Oh and I got up to look at the blood moon the other night.  It's a shame I didn't get any good photos, but man it looked amazing.

I've been applying like mad for all sorts of jobs, both online and in person.  There seems to be a fair bit of interest in me as soon as they look at my Resume but no job at this point in time.  Maybe my next blog will be about the incredible job I land, who knows?

Roy

Update from AZ - Roy's update

**WARNING - This post has ended up being quite a bit longer than anticipated!**

Roy here.

At the time I write this, I have been in the USA for almost two weeks, and I've been in Arizona for 9 days. I really miss Holly and LJ, but thank God for Skype. At least I can talk to them and see their faces.

My first week here has been intense to say the least. I started off with the following "to do" list:
 - Open a bank account
 - get my AZ drivers license
 - including learn to drive on the "wrong" side of the car, and the "wrong" side of the road
 - change my address with the USCIS and NVC (visa applications for the fam)
 - file tax returns for the last three years (yes believe it or not, even though I earned well below the threshold to pay tax to the Fed while in NZ, I still have to file tax returns here...)
 - get a cell phone number sorted, and hopefully a new phone because my existing one is a piece of.... trash
 - go through my CV and make it more "American", including remembering it is called a "Resume"
 - suss out the job market
 - apply for jobs
 - get set up (finally) on Linked In
 - register with Manpower and Experis
 - get a gift for Holly for our anniversary
 - mail said gift, and MAKE SURE IT ARRIVES ON TIME!!! (turned out to cost a tad more in postage than I thought)
 - sample the local "cuisine" (actually only talking about fast food here!)
 - land a job

 I have so far achieved everything on that list apart from my tax returns (which are a bit trickier than in NZ), and land a job.

I have seriously applied for around 35 jobs in the last couple of days alone, a few that I don't feel qualified for but I figure it's better to shoot above my comfort zone and see what happens. I don't want to close doors on myself just because I feel unsure/unconfident.

I think I'm only just coming to grips with the time difference - at the moment we're 4 hours ahead of NZ but a day behind (which will change to 5 hours when NZ finishes daylight savings). It is definitely a lot harder than I thought it would be!

Driving here is still very weird. But I got my license! Apparently, even though I've had my NZ drivers license for more than ten years, it is not even recognized here. So I had to sit a written test and a practical test in order to be issued my Arizona drivers license. Thanks to my aunt and uncle who let me drive them around a bit in the days before hand, I breezed through it. Only a few things are different to back in NZ (apart from the obvious) so it wasn't too hard to adjust.

My cousin was awesome enough to help me with getting my phone sorted. I was able to get added on to his plan, which made it cheaper over all, and get a brand new phone for a lot cheaper than back home so I'm pretty stoked with how that turned out. He also just happened to be off work the week I arrived so he picked me up from the airport and took me to my aunt and uncle's house where I'm staying for the next little while. LEGEND. Oh and he introduced me to Chick-Fil-A.

 My aunt and uncle are awesome. So hospitable, and have been so helpful to me adjusting here. My aunt went through my resume with me and made a few changes to make it more "american" for me and has been great with leads on where to apply for work. Not to mention they are the reason I have my drivers license already and got my bank account set up so soon.

 I have been going for at least one walk per day. I'm still struggling to get up early and go for an early morning stroll, so often I head out around dinner time when it is a bit cooler outside. I still prefer the morning walks but as I say I'm still struggling with the time difference, especially morning and night. I've managed to get some cool photos on my strolls, so I'll add one or two to this post. My daily walk abouts have been super helpful with getting my bearings here and fixing up my sense of direction which has been out of whack since I got here.  Where my aunt and uncle live is about 40 miles west of downtown Phoenix, in a place called San Tan Valley.  It is really nice and nothing like the big city, lots of new houses and subdivisions, with a lot of open land all around.

I don't know if there is too much more for me to add at this point in time.  So enjoy the photographs, and leave a comment below if you wish.  Let me know if you have any requests for me to blog about regarding life here. 

Typical view to the north.  Desert.

Another view to the north.  Note green grass and trees.  A rare day with clouds and chance of rain.

Weather forecast for the next five days (Celsius)

Weather forecast in Fahrenheit

The First Leg Ch2

Library card - check.
New reading for our 2yr old - check.
Sussed out where the best local yarn shop is - check.
And the 'thrift' store - check.
Changed addresses on everything - check.
Set up a mail redirection just in case - check.
Find out about local upcoming markets for stall opportunities - check.

It seems we're in practice for when we make the big move to the USA.

Our immigrant visas are still pending which an uncertain date of arrival - potentially up to 8 months at worst, only a few months to wait at best.