Hey Love_Young,
Thanks for the reassurance! I'm hoping this nightmare will be over soon. And when I called the CIC centre, the rather rude phone rep. told me he couldn't tell me the decision made on my file. UGH. So I have to wait for the thing to come in the mail. Hopefully I'll get it next week. Next Tuesday will mark 14 calendar days since they mailed it.
I'm 24 and my husband is 25, we've been married about a year and a half and we've been dating for eight years as of February 15. We met while we attended the same high school near Atlanta, GA, in the U.S.
This whole immigration process has been completely overwhelming. I HATE not being able to work. I'm a journalist by profession and sitting at home and playing the accidental housewife is driving me insane. But, I have to say, the economy here is so much better than in the U.S. I've gotten several job offers, but I have to wait until I get my OWP to take any.
In our application, I sent a good bit of evidence, even things they only ask for in the outland application. I sent copies of our engagement and wedding photos, joint bank account statements, photos from trips we've taken over the last several years, etc. Mostly, I sent a ton of photos (my husband is a photographer). I'm pretty sure they're tired of seeing our faces after processing the application.
I have another question. Even though I'm hopefully getting my AIP soon, my visitor visa expires in July 2011, which is before the estimated time I'll get my full permanent residency (according to the CIC application processing times, it'll be sometime in September 2011). Does that matter? Or does AIP count as some sort of status in Canada? I've gone back and forth between here and the U.S. on my visitor visa pretty easily, but I don't want it to expire and then have trouble getting back into Canada. Blerg.
Thanks for your informative answer, Love_Young! And I hope your last three+ months will pass with a quickness. Stay strong. In the wider scope of our lives, nine months isn't really too long. Even though it feels like eternity.