RETIRING TO ECUADOR - Thanksgiving Weekend in Oregon!

On Thursday, we had a great Thanksgiving day celebration visiting my mom, and then we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with our friends, feasting on a fabulously delicious spread.  We're making more memories with family and friends during our wait to leave the country.

On Friday, we received our overnight Fed Ex return from NYC.  My Birth Certificates were returned without the apostille seal because I hadn't sent them to the County Clerk in NY first!  I was not happy!!!  I had no idea that there was a step before the Secretary of State - go figure!  My NYC documents are turning into a real pain and expense!  I immediately called the NY County Clerk, and a fast-talking impatient New Yorker gave me all the details to accomplish this, and then she added that it was taking 5 to 7 weeks for processing.  No way!  A sinking feeling overtook me.  How can this be?  She proceeded to tell me that if a third party delivered them to both the County Clerk and the Secretary of State, they could process them the same day. 

Thanks to GringoTree and the connections I've made reading forums and ex-pat blogs, I remembered a gentleman in NY whom I had corresponded with last month because he was going through the same process of acquiring his documents for his move to Cuenca end of December.  I decided to call Jim and ask him if he could help me.  What a guy!  He offered to pick up my Fed Ex overnight documents on Saturday, and then he would take them to both places on Monday and immediately overnight them back to me.  I could kiss his feet.  Bo and I quickly drove down to Fed Ex and got the envelope off - and today, Jim called me and told me that he had my documents in hand and would deal with it on Monday.  WooHoo! I'M SCREAMING WITH DELIGHT!!!

Without Jim's help, Bo and I would be in quite a conundrum about when to leave, and how to get those documents forwarded to us so we would receive them in Cuenca.  We have no clue yet how mail delivery works in Ecuador, and we don't even have an address there.  So, thank you Jim!  I told Jim we were going to buy him a fabulous dinner once he arrives in Cuenca, and I so look forward to finally meeting him and thanking him in person.  I understand now why some people choose to hire an attorney or a relocating service.  This really is a costly undertaking and one that takes much patience.  there will always be the unexpected glitches and delays.  I continue to remind myself we are in training now so when we finally are in Ecuador, we will have more patience and tolerance for what's ahead when we begin the process of applying for our visas.  I also still know that gathering these documents ourselves has saved us a considerable amount of money instead of hiring an attorney.  I've learned so much about the process, I hope I can pay it forward and help someone else out who is planning to move to Ecuador.

Today is the Duck VS Oregon State "Civil War" game.  In the last 3 years, I've become a devoted Duck football addict. I still have to bug Bo and ask him "So, why did they just do that.....What does that mean.....?"  But I'm loving learning the game, and I'm understanding it more and more.  Because we have Direct TV, we are unable to watch the game today.  Bo asked me if I'd join him at a sports bar, but I declined.  A crowded noisy bar is not my idea of a fun time - I'd rather sit here in peace and listen to it on the radio (which I'm doing!!!), though it's not as exciting as watching it.  Bo just called me!  He left an overly crowded sports bar in Springfield and was heading to find a better place in Eugene.  I hope he lands where he can enjoy the game.  He's really not the rah rah high five type, and he doesn't even wear a ball cap, nor does he "Duck Attire" himself - he just wants to watch the game!!!!

It's another rainy wet day in Bluegene.  I think I'll curl up and watch a movie,

and later I plan to begin going through my clothes and repacking my bags.

Bo and I visited mom for Thanksgiving dinner.  She'll be 87 in January, and I'm thankful we still have precious visits together.  We LOVE our mom!!

Can it be that in one more week we may be exiting Oregon?  Until we have those documents in hand and definite plane reservations, we're still just doing life here a day at a time.