I realise that I haven't updated my blog since my partner and I were about to apply for the partner visa.

August 2016 - We had been engaged since April 2016 and were still young. However, we successfully applied for the Partner Visa in Australia. Gathering everything was a bit stressful. I had to get my family to send me my birth certificate and other important documents. At the time of applying, I wasn't able to work. The visa fee was also crazy expensive! We paid for the visa and had money left over for a cheap car. I was granted a bridging visa a month later (a visa granted to people waiting on permanent visas) which allowed me to work (yay!) but I wasn't able to travel outside of Australia.

We were still living with my partner's family at the time, but we moved out in October and moved in with some friends. We lived in a small town on the South Coast, so finding a job was hard. We rescued a puppy in December 2016 which was an amazing step for us to take in our relationship.

In March 2017, I was granted my Temporary Partner Visa! This didn't change much because I was legally allowed to work anyway. I could study, but I would have had to pay international student fees. This meant my education was put on hold again. We survived on my partner's job alone, but it worked out because living with friends allowed us to save money. I FINALLY got a job in October 2017. My job was about a 50 minute drive north, but I was okay with that since that meant I was able to make money.

I was anxiously checking the immigration website trying to find out when/if I would be granted my visa. It was a very upsetting thought that the government was in control of the outcome of the relationship (if I could stay or if I had to leave).

We moved up closer to my job in April 2018 into our own place. Unfortunately I lost my job and my partner had to travel an 1 hour down south to get to his job. It was exhausting for both of us. We took the next step of moving into our very first place together and it should have been full of joy and happiness. Instead, it was full of stress and exhaustion. My partner asked for a transfer within his job to the closest location to us (which was literally a few streets away from us) and his boss denied him. Now, we were in one of the bigger cities just before Sydney, so the job opportunities were better. I applied and applied for work. My partner started applying for other jobs as well, we both knew that it was time for a change. He got a job in a really big company in August 2018 and I got my job around that time as well. The funny thing is, when my partner put in his resignation notice with his company, the manager then said, "We can transfer you to the location closest to you." Personally, that was a load of BS because my partner asked quite awhile ago if he could be transferred and they said no. We talked it out and decided it was time to leave that company. I was worried that the manager would go back on his word weeks later and transfer my partner back down to his old location. Ultimately, he declined and went ahead with the new job.

August 2018 also meant that I had to update things for my visa application. To put it in simple terms, the government doesn't consider the permanent partner visa until 2 years after applying for the partner visa (It's a two-step process). They only require the applicant to upload more evidence to show that the relationship is still genuine and continuing. This was easy for me. I submitted things that showed how our relationship continued (lease, travel together, photos, bank account info, etc).

After getting into the new jobs, things were looking up for us. We started saving and making plans for the future. In December 2018, my mom flew to Australia for the first time to meet my partner. Now, for those of you who know my story, my family has never met my partner. He tried to get a US visa twice in 2015 and was denied. Anyway, my mom stayed for a few weeks over Christmas and into the first week of January 2019. My mom and partner got along really well. I knew they would because my mom knew him well when he and I would Facetime in the beginning of the relationship.

Early months of 2019 - We had been engaged or almost 3 years and wanted to start planning our wedding. My best friend and I started going to wedding expos to figure out what I liked. My partner and I were never in a rush to get married, we were 19 and 20 when we got engaged. We started planning our wedding more in depth and figured out on a date (Oct 2021). Sometime in the year, we booked our venue and our photographer. We decided to have it in 2 years so friends and family in the States could save up if they decided they wanted to come. Anyway, this year we focused on work, saving up money, and being happy together. We moved into another place in April 2019. It was just the change we needed. We didn't move far, just into a more affordable place.

August 2019 - Okay, this month was very significant for me. I checked my email on 01 August and found a message from Immigration. I was successfully granted my Permanent Partner Visa!!!! (Permanent residence). Seriously, it was the best news ever!! It meant a lot of things for me, there was no heavy feeling hanging over my head about the uncertainty of the future of the relationship and that I could finally study (Yay! I've always wanted to continue my education, but moving to a different country meant putting all that on hold).

December 2019 - We decided that it was time to visit my family in the States. My partner applied for another US visa. I was nervous because of what happened in the past, but I was certain that he wouldn't have an issue getting it this time. The wait time for an interview was 2 months. So it was a waiting game after he applied.

February 2020 - It was time for his visa interview. We were really nervous about it just because of what happened last time. We got there and all I could do was wait for him to go up to his interview. Let me tell you, that was the longest 50 minutes of my life! I wasn't allowed to go to the floor where the interview was being held, so I had to wait. Normally these things take 10-15 minutes, but I was waiting for almost an hour. Long story short, he got the visa!! It was another huge moment for us and a huge relief. He was finally going to meet my side of the family. We booked tickets a few weeks later for May 2020.

Unfortunately, with everything going on with the virus, we will probably have to scrap the whole trip. I've been devastated because this was something we had been looking forward to for many years. Now, someone may think that we can go later in the year or sometime next year, but that's easier said than done.

We are expecting our first child later this year!! That's right, we have a little one on the way! Although I'm bummed about not being able to go to the States as planned, I am excited to meet our baby.

Our wedding is next year, so friends and family can still come meet my partner (and the new addition to our family!). It's all about being optimistic about things and seeing the upside to things.

We have been through so much in the last 3 years and even in the last 8 years of being together. Going from long distance, to meeting for the first time, to moving to another country so we can be together, and to now. It's been such a journey. I'm not going to lie and say that these last 3 years have been nothing but rainbows and butterflies (because they definitely haven't been), but it's been something worth remembering and looking back on. I remember back in the beginning of our relationship and just wanting our lives to start together and how frustrated I felt. I'm so grateful for how far we've come and our future is definitely looking up!

~S