Good news, and sad news...

This post is full of mixed emotion, as I got both very good news, and sad news over the weekend. I got the call Sunday morning at 1am that my grandfather passed away. I love him so much, and as you may know, his loving wife, my Grandma-ma, passed away in November.

Grandpa has battled cancer for 6 years now. He's one of the strongest men I know. Below is a picture of him and Grandma, that I posted after Grandma died. It was taken last year on their 60th anniversary.



My grandpa lived every season of life, and leaves behind a huge legacy of family and memories. He's an accomplished and published chemist. He is also a true cowboy, and I will decorate his casket with his saddle on a bed of roses to commemorate the life he lived. His children were all with him, at his bedside holding his hand when he passed on. I can't think of a better way to go. And I can imagine the wonderful reunion he must have enjoyed with his wife, and our Savior.

I recently posted about a special tribute I made to my Grandpa, when I built his casket for him. What a great opportunity to honor him! I'll be traveling home to Idaho for his funeral tomorrow. And while I'm sad to say goodbye, I am happy for him.




On a happier note, I'm very excited to finally be able to tell you that Camila's visa has been approved! I've been checking the Immigration website DAILY to see if there was any progress, and the status on her case still says "processing". But this morning when I checked the mail, there was her approval, all signed sealed and delivered. I couldn't believe my eyes. The funny thing is that it arrived either Friday or Saturday, but because stupid me hates checking the mail, I didn't know this wonderful news until this morning.


So your next question is.....



"When will she get here??"



A perfectly valid question. Her petition is being sent to Rio de Janeiro, where the US consolate will invite her in for an interview. That plus some medical exams takes anywhere from 3-6 weeks. I'll go down for the interview, and then we'll be able to come home together. I can't tell you how excited I am to bring my wife through that US port of entry and to our home.

Just FYI, June 25th is our 1 year anniversary. This process has taken almost a full year for us!! I need to give special thanks to my managers Shawna and Keith for allowing me to work remotely from Brazil and spend some of that time with my wife. Without that, I can't imagine what the wait would have been like.

I'll post more as I know more about the rest of this process. But we're hoping to have Camila here some time around the end of May or first of June. Check back for updates!