Oh my sweet Lord… yes, it’s really been nearly a year since this idea of Scotland rooted in our brains. Honestly, I can’t even express to you how trying this has all been. Getting the application together for Ryan’s endorsement was a frigging nightmare because of all the moving parts, it was like herding cats. After we got everything together for the application, our attorney told us that she felt that Ryan’s chance of getting the endorsement was low but in my mind a “low chance” indicates there’s a chance (cue Jim Carrey in Dumb and Dumber), so we filed the application anyways.

We didn’t get the application filed until February 2018 and in March we were informed that Ryan was denied the endorsement. We talked with our attorney about whether or not we should bother filing for a review of the decision and she said she thought our chances of getting the decision overturned were low and if she had to bet money on it she would bet they’ll still deny it. Again we heard “chances are low” and that translated to us as “there’s a chance.” Ok seriously, if you haven’t seen Dumb and Dumber you MUST watch this scene because this is us through this whole process (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX5jNnDMfxA). So we proceeded with filing a review.

Early April, Ryan is at PAX in Boston helping show off a game he did audio for. I wake up, look at my phone and there’s a message on my screen saying the review was denied… it’s fine, we thought that might be so and it was worth a shot just so we didn’t have to live with “what if we would have filed the review?.” I put my phone down, realized I should send a quick “thank you” to our attorney, picked up my phone and reread the email before responding (keep in mind I was barely awake yet) and the email actually said that they reversed the decision and Ryan is getting the endorsement!!! I immediately started yelling “OH MY GOD!” over and over and was trembling and crying, I was absolutely blown away. I was freaking out the whole day and it was so awesome hearing the shock in Ryan’s voice when I told him over the phone.

What now? The excitement is still there but stress is taking ahold. We still have to apply for our visas and I will tell you the process is a pain in the ass. I’m so thankful that we have our attorney and her paralegal assisting us with this, but there’s still A LOT of leg work on our end. Once the application is in we should have our approvals within two weeks. There is so much to this process, I’m going to have to make it a separate post or this post will become much longer than intended. There is just a lot of stress right now which makes sense when you realize that a plan to permanently leave the country involves completely shutting down every aspect of your life only to get to the new country and have to start it all up again. Most expats leave for marriage, jobs, school, something that offers them assistance, an address, financial security on the other end… we are literally starting from scratch, we don’t have anyone making living arrangements for us, we don’t know where we’ll be working. Stress, stress, stress, but we’re both pretty damn excited.

I have so much to write (ok, type) but I’ll save it for future posts. I’ll end by saying that getting to this point has been a rollercoaster ride, not a fun one. I was so sure at one point that this dream was done that I dragged my blog drafts into the trash bin on my computer… though I wasn’t sure enough to empty the trash bin. I think something in my heart felt that this had to work out. I’m hoping I stick to documenting this journey for at least the first year. It will give me something to look back on and allow me to share my adventures with friends and family. If I don’t know you and you’ve stumbled across this blog somehow I am glad you’re here to join me on this adventure.

WE’RE MOVING TO SCOTLAND!!!!