According to plan...

So if my green card moves along EXACTLY like my EAD card (which is has so far), I should get the 3rd final e-mail (approval notice sent) tomorrow and my green card should be in our mailbox on Friday. We'll see...

List of things to do once I get my green card:

1. Change name/remove condition on social security card;
2. Go get new driver's license with correct name/remove condition;
3. Change name with banks, credit cards, school, etc.

I'm excited to get started! Can't wait to start using my new name!

Approved!

Everything went smoothly! The only glitch was that there are discrepancies in my name.

I have two names recorded on my passport - one is my legal name translated from Mandarin, and one "as known as" name which is the English name my parents gave me when I was born. I have used my aka name my entire life. When I applied for college in the States, I never even mentioned my translated legal name anywhere. Since that name also appears on my passport, I had no problem obtaining an I-20, visa, school ID, and even my social security number/card in that name. Thus my bank accounts, old driver's license, credit card, etc. are ALL in this name. My translated name only exists on my passport.

I first encountered a problem when I tried to get a new driver's license. They refused my aka name despite it being on my social security card and old driver's license AND passport. The DMV lady basically told me, "Look, if you want a driver's license, then THIS is your name." Well, fine then. It would've been really fine until she insisted that the 2nd syllable of my first name is, in her professional opinion, my middle name. I tried to explain how it's just a syllable of my first name and that I have no middle name. All she said is, "if you want a driver's license, then THIS is your name." I asked to talk to a supervisor but she said that the supervisor is on break and he's going to say the same thing anyways. Besides, "here in America, this is how we write names."

I was pretty upset by that point but decided that it's probably not worth making a scene about. I gave up, took my new driver's license that bears a name that's not ANYWHERE in any other records and left. I just needed to be able to drive before my old out-of-state one expires. For fear of getting stop by the cop and carrying a wallet full of credit card/debit card/atm card with my aka name on and a driver's license of another name, I photocopied my passport info page and stuck it in my wallet. Just in case.

Anyways, I'm totally sidetracked. That DMV lady is why I have a weird name in the database. Our immigration officer was very understanding, "Our database doesn't allow hyphens. They have to leave a blank." At the end of the interview, she said she'll change the names to what I submitted (my aka name plus my new last name) and send the letters through the mail.


I look forward to the day when I can walk into DMV to demand that they correct my name to what it should be.

Model US Citizen Husband

So our green card interview is on Monday and although I've gotten all the supporting documents organized and ready to go, I've been a bit worried that we'll get a scary mean officer. So yesterday my darling husband told me not to worry because on Monday, he's going to be the "model US citizen husband." Whatever that means.

I'll keep you posted!

When they say card production, they meant card production...

So while I was anxiously awaiting my EAD card, I actually received my AP instead. OK that's great but where's my EAD card?? As it turned out, I got an email from USCIS yesterday about a status change. I thought it's another card production notice (since they sent it twice last week), but alas, this is what I saw:

I hope this means that they've finished producing the card and have already put it in the mail! While I've been waiting for the EAD and AP, our interview is creeping up on us! It's in less than 2 weeks. Now since I did everything for the application, I think I need to help my hubby review his role in the application otherwise he'd be very confused about what or who he is "sponsoring"... (I did all the forms and all he did was sign where I told him to.)