the pleasure is back

Drew Barrymore's Engagement Ring Bling

2012-01-06T12:25:00.000-08:00

Drew Barrymore's engagement ring finger is once again sporting a diamond - and if her official engagement photo is any indication?

The third time may just be the charm...

Drew's hunky art-consultant fiance, Will Kopelman, put a stunning colorless, 4-carat, radiant-cut stunner on the 36-year-old actress over the holidays, according to USWeekly.com.

"He's madly in love and knows she's The One," a source told Us in October, adding that the actress was "yearning to get married and have kids."

But first, let's just bask in the glow of this new entry to the celebrity engagement ring Hall of Fame, shall we?

Kopelman designed the ring with Graff Diamonds (yes, THE Laurence Graff-owned bling-house that holds some of the world's most valuable rocks - click here for more on that) - and while 4-carats isn't the largest celebrity shiner we've seen by far (Beyonce, anyone?) the $120,000 estimated price tag is certainly Barrymore-esque, to say the least.

Want more celebrity engagement ring dish? Stay tuned for my posts on Jessica Biel's engagement ring and (Oops, She Did it Again) - Brit-brit's ring finger bling. (I guess my fantasy of a Justin/Britney reunion is now officially a 90s-era pop-star pipe dream.)

And check out the sale I curated on Jewelry.com with some of the top celebrity engagement ring looks for less! We're talking Princess Kate, Ivanka Trump, the (still-married!) Khloe Kardashian and more!

Free Diamonds. 'Nuff Said

2011-10-31T09:36:00.000-07:00

What's better than diamond jewelry? Free diamond jewelry.

It kinda doesn't get any better than that, right? And while I could go on and on about how investing in your own jewelry collection is empowering and all that - the truth is? It's MUCH better when all you have to do is click a few buttons and wait for the UPS guy to ring your doorbell.

My favorite Diamond Diva. Who's yours?

So - without further ado - here is how a jewelry hound can get said free diamonds. My sugar momma, Jewelry.com launched their Diamond Diva Sweeps today and they're handing out a 1/2 ct diamond right hand ring worth a cool $1749 this time around.

Not too shabby.

Click here to enter (it's free, people) and check their Facebook Page on Monday, November 7th where they'll announce the winner.

Easy. Breezy. Bling-tastic! Good luck, and weigh in here with any ideas you have for their next giveaway. They picked the piece their Facebook Fans like the best the last time - so just let me know what piece YOU want to win and I'll make sure they get the word.

2011 Emmy Awards Jewelry Roundup: Red, Rubies and Rip-Roarin' Earrings

2011-09-19T01:46:00.000-07:00

Jewelry gawking at the 2011 Emmy Awards tonight was a mixed bag of 'ho-hum' diamond highlights from the usual suspects and a smattering of show-stopping scene stealers!

Somebody must have sent the 'wear red' memo around Hollywood, because everyone from Lea Michele in marvelous Marchesa to Kate Winslet in an elegant Ellie Saab number showed up in every shade of scarlet.

And while that might make for a boring frock fest (there were no less than seven celebs in red at last count), it does bring with it some sartorial perks. Namely. Rubies.

Lea Michele sported some Lorraine Schwartz stunners, and E! Fashion Guru, Kellie Osbourne, was spotted in dangles and a cocktail ring in the rockin' red gemstone.

Sapphires made a showing on comic genius, Amy Poehler, and Entertainment reporter, Maria Menounos in blingy Bulgari.

And mixed gems sparkled on Emmy host, Jane Lynch.

But it was Sofia Vergara's Colombian emerald door-knocker earrings that sent the jewelry hunters into a frenzy during our Live Tweet session tonight (a shout out to my fab #emmyjewelry peeps!) Wowzers.

Others in the 'jaw-drop' category?

Anna Torv's S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G statement earrings and Heidi Klum's floral fabulosity - all by (of course) Lorraine Schwartz.

Elizabeth Moss' swingin' chandeliers (designer unknown)

And Friday Night Lights ingenue, Aimee Teegarden, rocked a unique earring look by Dana Rebecca.

Diamond divas included an understated Minka Kelly in Dior, Nina Dobrev in Neil Lane, Jayma Mays (also in Neil Lane), Taraji P. Hensen, and Julia Stiles (Forevermark).

And there was a 'black & white' mini trend worth mentioning on Gwynnie and Modern Family Emmy winner, Julie Bowen - both in Neil Lane.

So there you have it, jewelry hounds. Red, rubies, and rip-roarin' earrings were the highlights this year.

When you're done processing all these fun Emmy jewelry pics and poses, come browse the Celebrity Jewelry Sale I curated on Jewelry.com with 'looks for less' inspired by all of the best jewels seen on the Emmy carpet.

And - as always - weigh in here with your rants and raves! Did I miss one of your favorite celebrity jewelry moments last night? Spill it!

Andy Whitfield

2011-09-18T08:13:00.003-07:00

Andy Whitfield
Andy Whitfield, the Welsh actor best known for his portrayal of the eponymous hero in Spartacus : Blood and Sand has died aged 39 after a long battle with cancer. Andy was born in Amlwch but moved to Sydney in the late nineties where he switched from engineering to modeling and acting. He started out as a model in commercials, runways and print ads in various magazines and catalogs. His initial reaction to modeling was not so optimistic, instead his aspiration was to be an actor. After a period of struggle, he finally landed his first acting role at age 30 in the TV series All Saints. And has since appeared in several Australian television series, such as Opening Up, The Strip, Packed to the Rafters and McLeod's Daughters. However, Andy got his big break in the film Gabriel in which he played the lead role - Since the beginning of time, Heaven and Hell have fought over purgatory and the souls trapped inside it. Each side has sent seven warriors: Archangels from heaven, Fallen Angels from hell. Hell has attained control, transforming purgatory into a dark, seedy city. The last Archangel, Gabriel endeavours to discover what has become of his comrades and to restore the Light. But it is as the warrior we love so much in Spartacius : Blood and Sand that he will be remembered. The high drama, vibrant sexuality, and strength of story led Spartacus to become an instant hit. Andy was then known across the world for his sensitive and strong portrayal of the Thracian slave who leads his fellow gladiators to overthrow their Linister and escape to freedom. At the end of Blood and Sand it was announced that a prequel, Gods of the Arena, would be shot to allow Andy to recover from non-Hodgkin lymphoma. However it became clear that he would not be well enough to reprise the role of Spartacus in the third season, Vengeance. I think Andy was a beautiful man and an amazing actor. He had an allure about him that could not be ignored. I fell in love with him the first time I watched Gabriel, and that attraction only grew when I discovered Spartacus. It's always a shame to lose someone so young and talented, and he will be missed by his huge worldwide fanbase - myself included. I would like to take this time to send my deepest sympath to his family. Andy is survived by his wife Vashti and their two children.
Andy Whitfield Pictures

andy whitfield

Scarlett Johansson

2011-09-18T08:13:00.001-07:00

Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson (born November 22, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Johansson made her film debut in the 1994 film North and was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in 1996's Manny & Lo. Johansson rose to fame with her roles in 1998's The Horse Whisperer and 2001's Ghost World.
She transitioned to adult roles with her performances in Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation, for which she won a BAFTA Award, and Girl with a Pearl Earring, both of which earned her Golden Globe Award nominations in 2003. A role in A Love Song for Bobby Long earned her a third Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination. Following an appearance in The Island, Johansson garnered a fourth Golden Globe nomination, for Best Supporting Actress, for her role in Woody Allen's Match Point. She also starred in other Allen movies such as Scoop, with Hugh Jackman and Allen himself, and Vicky Cristina Barcelona, alongside Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz and Rebecca Hall. Scarlett Johansson also appeared in other films such as Christopher Nolan's The Prestige and the Summer blockbuster Iron Man 2. A role in the 2010s Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's A View From the Bridge gave her some of the career's best reviews for her acting work and she received a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play.
On May 20, 2008, Johansson debuted as a vocalist on her first album, Anywhere I Lay My Head, which included cover versions of Tom Waits songs. Her second album, Break Up, with Pete Yorn, was released in September 2009
Scarlett Johansson Pictures

Scarlett Johansson

Leila Lopes

2011-09-18T08:12:00.001-07:00

Leila Lopes

MISS UNIVERSE 2011 LEILA LOPES - ANGOLA

2011-09-16T17:22:00.000-07:00

MISS UNIVERSE 2011 LEILA LOPES

The Miss Universe 2011 competition started off with 89 participants from all around the world in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Miss Leila Lopes of Angola was crowned Miss Universe 2011. Lopes is a 23 year old business student in UK. She is 5 ft, 10.5 inches tall.
To an interview question, Miss Universe Leila Lopes said she never had any cosmetic surgery of any kind and her smile was the best weapon in the competition. 'Thank God, I am very satisfied with the way God created me and I wouldn't change a thing. I consider myself a woman endowed with inner beauty. I have accepted many wonderful principles from my family and I intend to follow them for the rest of my life', expressed Lopes.
"I've worked with various social causes. I work with poor kids, I work in the fight against HIV. I work to protect the elderly and I have to do everything that my country needs," she said. "I think now as Miss Universe I will be able to do much more."
Three tips for beauty from Leila Lopes is:
1. Get a lot of sleep,
2. Use sun block even when it's not sunny
3. Drink lots of water.
Miss Universe organization is run by NBC and Donald Trump. The president of Miss Universe organization is Paula Shugart.

1st runner up - Olesia Stefanko, Ukraine
2nd runner up - Priscila Machado, Brazil
3rd runner up - Shamcey Supsup, Phillipines
4th runner up - Luo Zilin, China

Leila Lopes

Beyonce's Blingy New Baby Bump

2011-08-29T03:49:00.000-07:00

Beyonce's red carpet jewelry often steals the spotlight - especially when she brings out her best Lorraine Schwartz show-stoppers like she did at last night's MTV Video Music Awards. BUT...

It appears there is one accessory that trumps them all. A burgeouning blingy baby bump!

What better way to share the happy news than with a stunning off-the-shoulder Lanvin number and more emeralds and diamonds than any mere mortal has a right to wear at once! How much do you LOVE that emerald circle ring, jewelry hounds!?!

While metallic minis, bold cuffs, cocktail rings, parasols and um....snakes....were the other accessory trends of the night, you have to give it up for the divine Miss Sasha Fierce for making sure nothing could possibly upstage her big blingy reveal.

Except....maybe.....this....

Stay tuned this week on Jewelry.com where I'll be bringing you the hottest VMA jewelry moments in affordable looks you can bring home to your own jewelry box - or wear while framing a baby bump.

Kim Kardashian's Wedding Ring Bling

2011-08-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries finally tied the knot yesterday at a private estate in Montecito, California - and while pictures of the Kardashian wedding gown by Vera Wang and wedding ring by Lorraine Schwartz are closely guarded by People - the details (gasp!) have leaked and I've got 'em all right here for you.

Read 'em and weep, jewelry hounds!

Kim Kardashian's Wedding Dress

The reality star diva wore a strapless ivory Vera Wang gown with tulle skirt, basque waist and Chantilly lace appliqué on the bodice and “epic” train. She wore her hair up with a veil that had a headpiece bedazzled with diamonds that rested on her forehead. Her bouquet was white roses.

Kim had another TWO dresses for later in the evening, both in ivory and by Vera Wang along with a Judith Leiber clutch. One was a Georgette mermaid gown with Chantilly lace appliqué plus organza petals and sprig embroidery. One was in satin with a crepe-back, a V-neck and a circle skirt.
The groom wore an outfit by Ermenegildo Zegna, which included a white tuxedo jacket and shirt with white bow tie and black tuxedo trousers. He changed into an outfit to match his groomsmen at the reception.

The groomsmen and the bride and groom’s fathers, Bruce Jenner and William Humphries, wore Zegna black tuxedos and silk ties with white tuxedo shirts.

The bridesmaids and maids of honor all wore ivory and changed into matching white tracksuits at the reception.

Kim Kardashian's Wedding Ring

Kim's favorite jewelry designer, Lorraine Schwartz, designed the wedding rings that made their appearance in a pink box, according to entertainmentwise.com. While details of the carat count are still pending - why don't we all just gasp again at the $2 million engagement ring that will be its blingy partner for life (also by Lorraine Schwartz).

Sigh....

The Wedding Party/Guests

Kourtney and Khloe were Kim’s co-maids of honor. Kendall, Kylie and Kris’ sister Kaela were bridesmaids. Kim's nephew, Mason, was the ring bearer and her stepfather Bruce Jenner walked her down the aisle.

Mom, Kris, was lowered from the ceiling into a bubbling glass of champagne, wearing nothing but hundred dollar bills and a four-year contract from Ryan Seacrest....

The eclectic guest list included a who's who of D-listers and reality darlings including - Demi Lovato, Babyface, Vera Wang, Mario Lopez, Mark Ballas, Ciara, Eva Longoria and Eduardo Cruz, Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough, Alan Thicke, Cheryl Burke, Melanie Brown, Maria Menounos, Sugar Ray Leonard, Serena Williams, Kathie Lee Gifford, Brittny Gastineau, Greta Van Susteren, Jillian Barberie, Brody Jenner and Avril Lavigne, Scottie and Larsa Pippen, and - the topper of them all?

The original-gangsta momager, Dina Lohan, and her illustrious offspring - Ali and Lindsay Lohan!

But Kris Jenner wouldn't want us all to live out our days without a front row seat at her OWN daughter's wedding. That's why she and Ryan Seacrest are bringing us - Kim's Fairytale Wedding: A Kardashian Event on Oct. 9th AND 10th!

C'mon, looky-loos! Keep up!

Katy Perry: Smurfette in Sapphires

2011-07-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

Katy Perry's dress at the Smurfs movie premiere in New York yesterday almost stole the show from the little blue guys themselves!

Sporting a bedazzled Smurfette corsette designed by The Blondes, a smurf manicure and blue Louboutins - what else does the voice of the world's most famous female smurf need?

How about sapphires? Seems the like the smurfiest choice, right?

Looks like Ms. Perry took the blue bling to heart, wearing a pair of sapphire button earrings and what looks like a sapphire, diamond and gold bangle bracelet (still looking for designer credits...anyone know?)

The other jewelry highlight of the night was violet vixen, Sofia Vergara, in a a gorgeous Missoni gown, turquoise earrings and elbow-deep bangles in every shade of purple - all by Lorraine Schwartz!

Papa Smurf? Eat your heart out!!!

Yellow dress

2011-07-20T10:38:00.000-07:00

How adorable is this yellow dress? (And it's only $40!) I'm thinking of getting it for weddings and date nights this summer.

PB&J bar

2011-07-20T07:34:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, who wants a bite of this PB&J candy bar? Delicious.

Would you wear a caftan?

2011-07-19T11:50:00.000-07:00

Would you wear this beautiful new hand-block-printed Indian caftan by EmersonMade? It would be effortlessly breezy to wear while reading books, curling up with friends or hosting a late-night dinner party. Reminds me of my mom when she was really young in the 70s.

Thoughts? Would you wear it?

Temporary tattoos!

2011-07-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

These days, I'm smitten with all the clever tattoos out there, but I'm too wussy to get a permanent one. So I was THRILLED to discover tatt.ly, a new online shop offering awesome, designy temporary tattoos.

Which would you wear?

My balance of work/baby/life

2011-07-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

My lovelies, last week, seven amazing mothers shared how they juggle work/life, including the ups and downs. It's so wonderful to be honest and normalize what that all mothers are going through. Thank you again to those brave and lovely bloggers!

Now I'd love to share my own juggle post. I have to admit, it feels strange to be sharing my own routine because I didn't have a decent schedule figured out for a long time. After Toby was born, it took me months to figure out a solid schedule that worked well for us, and I'm still experimenting and tweaking!

OK, my darlings, here goes....

*****
1. What's your work schedule?
I work from home Monday through Friday from 9:30am to 4pm, plus a couple evenings a week. I take the other weeknights off, and I try to take weekends off completely.

During the workday, I run Cup of Jo, am an editor for Beso, and do branding work and trend consulting. I'll also be blogging for a magazine again later this fall (yahoo!).

2. How do you handle childcare?
Toby wakes up at 6am, and Alex and I switch off waking up with him. So, every other day, I get up with Toby (bleary-eyed!), feed him breakfast, take a quick shower while he chills out and chews his rubber ducky in the bouncy chair, and take him to the playground really early (we're often the only people there!) or take a walk or bike ride together. Even though I'm usually pretty sleepy on those mornings, it's lovely to spend that time with him, and see the city as it's waking up. Then, every other day, Alex will get up with Toby, while I either sleep until 8:30—bliss!—or get up at 7am and start my work early while they hang out.

(A little note: Alex and I didn't always switch off. I used to get up with Toby every day, and after a while, I felt completely exhausted and run ragged. So, finally, I asked Alex to switch off—and we both were sort of like, wait, why didn't we do this sooner? It's funny how easily and subconsciously we can fall back into long-held stereotypes that the mom is the #1 main caregiver, even while spouses are both happy to share parenting responsibilities equally.)

Anyway, then the babysitter arrives around 9:30am. We have two beloved babysitters: Naudia comes Mondays and Tuesdays, and Sophie comes Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. They stay from 9:30 to 4. Now and again, they'll stay an hour later if I have extra work or a big deadline.

After the babysitter leaves, Toby and I spend every weekday afternoon together from 4 to 7:30pm. I absolutely adore this special time together. Whenever possible, we try to make it 100% hang-out time—no errands allowed!—and go to the playground or meet up with friends or take bike rides. On Wednesday afternoons, we have a playgroup with a bunch of other neighborhood one-year-olds and their mamas. (Once in a blue moon, I'll take Toby along to an evening work event—but then we run the risk of scary camera flashes!) I feel so lucky and grateful to get this wonderful quality time with him every day.

(Afternoon activities might be a bit trickier in the winter, I'm guessing. I have to admit, I'm a little nervous about this coming winter with a toddler who walks! It will take some imagination to make our tiny apartment fun for Toby every afternoon. We'll have to learn to make soups together or something!)

Then, in the evenings, around 6:30pm, Alex gets home from work, and Toby and I will meet him back at our apartment. And we'll spend an hour together feeding Toby dinner, giving him a splashy bath, reading bedtime stories, or just hanging out on the bed in the nursery.
(Toby also once joined for a beauty tutorial photo shoot at our apartment with Jamie Beck:)

3. Where do you work during the day?
When the babysitter and Toby are outside at the playground or the library, I work at my desk in our living room; when they're at home, I work on our bed.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
I feel really grateful that my schedule is flexible. Even though I work full-time hours (40 hours a week), I can decide to work early mornings or late evenings, in order to have my afternoons off with Toby. The other day, I ran into a dear friend who loves her amazing job at a major beauty brand; she looked chic and windswept on the street, wearing a silk dress and a chignon, but she admitted that she was literally running home from work to see her baby. Every work situation has pros and cons, and everyone does such a great job doing it all.
5. What do you find so-so/tricky/hilariously bad about your current set-up? What would you change if you had a magic wand?
You know, I really hate working on my bed! Sometimes I feel like I spend 20 hours a day in my bedroom. It's a nice enough room, but that's a little crazy. :)

If I had a magic wand, I would rent an office space outside the home, where I could be part of a community of people. It can feel really isolating—especially in the winter—to be working at home alone all day. I would love to be surrounded by other creative people during the day, to inspire each other's creativity or discuss last night's 30 Rock episode or order lunch together. (Unfortunately, it's tough to find an affordable place like this in Manhattan, although I'm still looking!)

On the rare day when I have a work lunch or meeting (maybe once a month), I’m always SO revitalized to be around adults and feel part of a working community.

Another thing that was tough, especially at the beginning, was when I was working at home, and I could hear Toby crying in the other room. The sound was heartbreaking to me, but I couldn’t go out to him because I was busy working or on a conference call—and plus I had to respect the sitter and trust her to take care of him. There's a certain stress of being on deadline, and a certain stress of hearing your baby cry, and I was getting both at once. (And when I heard him playing and laughing, I would want to go out to him, too!) I do crave some mental and physical distance from the baby while I'm working.

6. How do you and your husband fit your marriage into the balance?
Toby goes to bed around 7:30pm, so Alex and I have the rest of the evening to hang out together. Alex is a great cook, and he’ll make us dinner—like spaghetti Bolognese, or eggs and sausage, or a big salad with tons of toppings—while I finish up work. He listens to music while he cooks, so it always takes a while (since he'll just stand there, drumming on the counter and watching the water boil:). Then when dinner is ready, usually around 8:30, we'll hang out for the next few hours, and watch a movie or play games or just chat. Also, a few nights a week, we'll go out to dinner with friends, or we'll have friends over. We usually go to bed between 11 and midnight. I cherish that grown-up time at the end of the day.

My parents got divorced when I was little, so I'm really conscious of focusing on my marriage as much as my child/ren. I feel lucky to be able to spend frequent quality time with Alex and love having our own adventures together, separate from the baby. Plus, I think most kids like seeing their parents dress up and go out to dinner together; it's exciting! (There's a beautiful passage in the book Peter Pan about Wendy watching her parents get ready for an evening out.) I love the idea that the goal should be not only to have a happy child, but to have a happy family.

(By the way, a few commenters last week mentioned that it's hard to afford babysitters. I totally agree! At $15/hour, it adds up. Everyone needs to figure out a solution that works best for their family. For daytime babysitters, it definitely makes sense for me to work, financially, and I also enjoy working overall. As for evening babysitters, we talked it over, and we decided we would prefer to spend less on other things so we could afford to spend more on babysitting. It's too bad we don't all live closer to grandparents, aunts and uncles, who would be happy to babysit for free—what a dream that would be!:)

6. Do you have any time for yourself?
Not really! For me, the thing that ends up coming in last place is free time alone. Now and again, Alex will go out to meet a friend, while I'll stay home, have a glass of wine and read magazines; or I'll sneak out at night while he's home and get a pedicure, but overall free time by myself is pretty rare. That's ok for me, though. I'm kind of a pack animal anyway.

7. Do you ever wonder how other women manage the juggle? Have you talked to other women about it?
Yes, I've wondered about it so much, which is why I really wanted to do this series. It's so wonderful to hear from other moms and realize that we're all in the same boat, even though our circumstances might be different. I only wish I'd had time to feature many more parents (single moms, moms working in offices, stay-at-home moms, dads, etc.); but like I mentioned last week, this time, I wanted to feature moms who are in similar work situations, so we could see how they've each created very different schedules that work for their families.

I think sometimes people feel nervous about talking candidly about motherhood and their own scheduling choices, and I understand that. Parenthood is emotionally ridden, because everyone cares so much about their babies—so sometimes it can seems as if, when another mom makes a different decision from you, you are at odds. Differences in parenting choices can make people defensive. But, really, making various parenting decisions is like apples and oranges. We have to remember that there are 824,739,894,536 ways to be incredible, loving parents, so we should all support each other and our lucky babies.

8. What advice would you give to other moms about how to balance work and life?
My own mom often tells me, "Take gentle care of yourself," which I think is a surprisingly profound thing to remember. Of course, it's true for everyone, not just mothers. Everybody feels overwhelmed sometimes, and it's really easy to beat yourself up or put too much pressure on yourself or assume everyone around you has a perfect life. That's not true, and we should be kind to ourselves and treat ourselves like the sweet souls we are.

One commenter last week left a great line: She said, "Bless you new moms. If you're trying, you're doing a great job." We don't have to be perfect; we just have to be gentle to ourselves and take it one step at a time.

Back from England

2011-07-18T07:55:00.000-07:00

Hi, my darlings! We got back from England last night, after a wonderful, dreamy, windy, sunshiny week visiting our relatives in Cornwall. I keep gazing at this photo, which my cousin took while we were on a boat to the beach. I wish I could beam myself right back there. :) How was your week?

P.S. My own work/baby juggle post is coming up today. Thanks to the amazing mothers last week, and love to you all! xo
(Comic by Dagsson)

My balance: Jenny Rosenstrach of Dinner: A Love Story

2011-07-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

Jenny Rosenstrach writes the fantastic food blog Dinner: A Love Story and is writing a cookbook memoir; she and her husband also write a column for Bon Appetit. And fun fact: Jenny has a diary listing every single dinner she's made since 1998! They lives in Westchester, New York, with their two daughters. Here's how she attempts to juggle it all...

*****

1. What's your work schedule?
It isn't the same every week, but it's pretty close. Since I'm currently writing a book, I have to make sure I build in large blocks of time into my week before it fills up. I can write posts for my blog (Dinner: A Love Story) in the waiting room of a 45-minute ballet class or on the 5:20pm train home from Grand Central, but I've found I can't work on the book (or any big project) like that. I need to build in at least three five-hour chunks between Monday and Friday in order to produce at the right pace. So I start with that, then I schedule everything else--meetings, lunches, breakfasts with my dad--around it. I'm lucky because my kids are in elementary school so they get on the bus at 8:09 and come home at 2:57. That's the same amount of time I had when I worked in an office, minus the commute, the long lunch, and (tragically) the office gossiping.

2. How do you handle childcare?
When I was working full-time, we had a full-time babysitter. When I lost my job (I was working as features director at Cookie Magazine when it folded), we knocked the hours back to Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays from 1pm to 6pm, but often our sitter came in only Mondays and Wednesdays. Right now we have no babysitter, which means I am an obsessive clock-watcher. I live in the suburbs, so whenever I have meetings in the city, I have to make sure they are early and somewhat close to Grand Central so I don't miss the 1:54 back to my neighborhood in time to be at the bus stop. My book deadline is rapidly approaching, so the sitter-less schedule is not going to be viable for much longer. I'm going to have to start extending my work day until 6pm again soon.

3. Where do you work during the day?
Seventy-five percent of the time the answer to that question is at my local library on the second floor, at the southwest corner looking west at the view of the Hudson River. I crave routines. Since I worked full-time in an office for so many years, I find comfort in structure. I like to feel like I'm reporting somewhere, even if no one notices whether I show up or not. What I love about the library is also what I hate about it: No one talks to each other. So I get an incredible amount of work done, but I can also get incredibly lonely. I remember last winter talking to my friend Yolanda after a particularly grueling day among the Janet Evanovich stacks and she was like "Jenny! You need to get the hell out of that library! Go see a movie! Meet me for a drink or something! You sound awful!" She was totally right. As much as I crave routines and rituals, I need to remind myself to take advantage of my flexible schedule and not put so much stock on productivity every single day. I've gotten better about that. And also, now that I am a contributor at Bon Appetit, I use their office space, too, which goes a long way towards feeling like I'm part of something big and exciting.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
I love that I can say "yes" when the class mom's email asks, "Help! Can someone bring paper cups to the Halloween party at 1pm?" For so long--eight years to be specific--the answer was usually no. I remember opening those emails in my office wishing so badly I could be the paper cup hero. I had this awful habit of totally romanticizing what was happening on the domestic front in my absence. Not just classroom stuff, but everything else, especially picking the kids up and dropping them off at their various activities. I remember scheduling a tennis class for them that ended at 6:30pm so I could catch the last two minutes and drive them home. The funny thing is, now that I am home for all of this, and now that I spend 95% of my time schlepping the kids from activity to activity, drop-off and pick-up has become the bane of my existence.

Oh! Another thing I love about my current set-up: I can go to Trader Joe’s or Fairway in the middle of the week!

5. How did you decide to go freelance/start your own business?
I worked full-time for eight years and I'm pretty sure every single day during every single one of those eight years I'd have the thought "Am I doing the right thing here?" after kissing my daughters goodbye in the morning. I was so envious of other mothers who seemed to have such conviction in their choices--whether it was staying home or working in an office or something in the middle. I was never that mother. I always went back and forth and questioned my decision to work full-time. Remember that Roz Chast cartoon "The Insomniaplex"? The one where it shows a marquee listing everything that was keeping her up at night? My insomniaplex had nightly double features of the "How do I find more of a balance" show. It's all I thought about. Can we make it work financially if I stay home? Are my long absences the reason why my daughter is having trouble with math? Would I ever be able to walk away from such a great job and such great people? The suits at Conde Nast ended up making the decision for me the day they folded Cookie and I lost my job. I know now that I would have probably been too gutless to ever make the decision to leave on my own. So even though I was bitter, now I think I owe those suits a big thank-you.
Thank you, Jenny!

P.S. My own balance post is coming up on Monday, and I'm looking forward to sharing. Have a wonderful weekend! xoxo

My balance: Amanda Hesser of Food 52

2011-07-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Amanda Hesser co-founded the addictive website Food52 all about home cooking. A former New York Times food reporter, she has written cookbooks and memoirs, including Cooking for Mr. Latte about her adorable courtship with her husband. (Have you read it? I'd highly recommend it if you want a great, fun read this summer). They live in Brooklyn with their twins, Walker and Addie. Here's how she attempts to balance it all...

*****

1. What's your work schedule?
My days usually begin around 7:30am, when my husband wakes me up to do yoga. I am not a morning person, so I try not to be fully awake for yoga or it would be too painful. We do Rodney Yee DVDs on my laptop in our bedroom. Just 20 to 30 minutes. If our kids wake up, they join us and crawl between our legs. Our babysitter arrives at 7:30 during the school year and gives them breakfast while we shower and dress. I'm out the door usually by 9:00.

I'm a big fan of breakfast meetings. Two birds, one stone. Eat and meet. There's a great café, Taralucci e Vino, near our office. I usually have their delicious cinnamon bun, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and a latte.

At the office, our days are packed with meetings--fun ones! Meetings with investors, designers, potential hires, and other companies. Our office has a bunch of sofa "pods" and we have lots of meetings, calls, naps in the pods. It's the office equivalent of a womb. (Two of these facing each other.)

In between, I email and email and email. Sometimes I think that all I do is email. We have a small team--just 8 of us--and we all sit at one long desk, so there are lots of spontaneous discussions, as well. Micro-meetings! Did I just coin that? The micro-meeting might be about functionality on our site, what our next recipe theme should be, or how to structure a partnership.

I usually eat lunch at my desk. Snooze! I know. But I like to catch up on the news--and the lunch is most often from 'wichcraft. Today I had an asparagus frittata on ciabatta bread. 'wichcraft has a half-price coffee happy hour in the afternoon, and we never, ever, ever miss it because we’re hard-core addicts. It's also located right down the street from Burdick Chocolate, and that keeps us well fed and plump.

I work until 6:30, and a couple nights a week I go out to events in the evening. If I can, I'll zip home to see the kids to bed between work and events. Then I usually get back home around 9:30, eat leftovers, drink a bourbon, and then work until 1am. On the nights I'm home early, I get in at 7 and hang out with our kids until they go to bed at 8pm. Then we eat a quick dinner and work until 1 am. Summary: we kind of work all the time.

2. How do you handle childcare?
Our kids are our babysitter's fifth set of twins. She's both unflappable and indefatigable. She works long days, like we do.

3. Where do you work during the day?
One day a week, we cook and do a photo shoot in my apartment. The rest of the week we work at our office near Union Square. It's a place called General Assembly. The guys who founded it wanted to create a campus for start-ups, and that's exactly what they've done. It's an inspiring place because everyone there is working hard to create something new. It's also well-designed and stylish. Maybe it's shallow, but I like a nice office.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
I love that I get to see my kids on Tuesdays when we're doing a photo shoot. They zip in and out over the course of the day, tasting the recipes, playing with toys, tapping on our laptops.

5. What do you find so-so/tricky/hilariously bad about your current set-up? What would you change if you had a magic wand?
We do a lot of our food photos in my bedroom on my bedside table--it has the best light. It's more than a little strange to have a photographer and other co-workers romping around your bedroom when you're not in the porn business.

6. What's your favorite part of your work?
Problem solving--starting a company demands every ounce of creativity and resourcefulness you have and I love that.

7. What's your favorite part of your home life?
Sitting on the sofa with my husband and our two kids, reading together.

8. How does your husband contribute to managing the juggle/house/childcare?
My husband Tad doesn't just contribute. We're partners. If anything, I'd say he's even more on top of it all than I am. And I should work on making it more even.

9. How do you and your husband fit your marriage to the balance, in terms of hanging out together?
We try to go out once a week together for dinner or a movie. The other nights of the week, one of us is often out, and, if not, we hang out and work after the kids go to bed.

10. Do you have time for yourself? What do you do during that time?
I have a family I love, and a job I truly enjoy, and I know that this is a particularly busy time in my life, so I'm not looking for or expecting much time for myself.

11. What advice would you give to other moms about how to balance work and life?
My advice would be to stop thinking about it as a gender issue. Think of it as a parent issue. And demand as much from your partner as you demand from yourself.

12. Do you wonder how other women manage the juggle? Do you think people are open about it?
What I wonder is why no one asks my husband how he juggles? It's not fair to him--because he juggles just as much as I do. And why there is not a blog like this for men?

Thanks, Amanda!

(Second photo by Sarah Shatz)

Duchess Catherine Jewelry Roundup

2011-07-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Now that Princess Kate and Prince Wills have left the continent, I've finally been able to sift through all of the elegant and surprisingly conservative jewelry statements our favorite royal wore on her whirlwind tour.

Before I get to it, I'm thrilled to announce that my sugar mamma, Jewelry.com gave me a little corner of their blingy universe to bring you all the great celebrity looks I gush about here at prices we mere mortals can afford. Click here to see my first go at it - A Princess Kate-themed bauble extravaganza with all of the looks featured in this post and then some!

Perhaps we should have known from the moment we saw her down-low diamond tiara choice for her walk down the aisle that this princess-to-be is not one to 'BRAG' about her bling. Rather, we're seeing a continuation of that 'splash of sparkle' trend I've spotted on the red carpet this summer - along with a few sartorial surprises.

They don't call her the "Discount Duchess" for nothing. I like that she's open to using her accessories with more than one outfit - like the sapphire drops pictured above and below with her diamond cross pendant.

And our Kate loves to bring out the basics - crosses, circles, and studs. Certainly not a 'fashion-forward' choice but a great way to bring the jewelry box classics back on trend.

Chandeliers made a swinging appearance - on loan from the Queen - at the tony BAFTA event held in Los Angeles, where the Duchess rubbed elbows with Hollywood royalty like Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Jennifer Lopez and Reese Witherspoon.

And the surprises? I don't think I've ever touted a celebrity citrine piece - and these barely there drop earrings by Kiki McDonough are just lovely. Citrine. Who knew?

These tiny treasure-esque gold leaf earrings are just the right touch of whimsy. Remember her diamond acorn earrings from the wedding (pictured above)? Somewhere, The Lorax is smiling...

Speaking of tree-themed accessories? Everyone was talking about the diamond maple leaf brooch the Duchess wore on several occasions while visiting our Canadian friends to the north. It's another loaner from the Queen's coffers - and continues to give the brooch category some oomph (Michelle Obama? Watch your back.)

But with 40 outfits making the rounds for her 9 day adventure across the pond, this is just the tip of the 'ice' berg. A reminder to visit Jewelry.com for a complete sale curated by yours truly, where I've collected all the top Kate jewelry looks and paired them with pieces you can bring home to your own jewelry box.

Get in touch with your inner princess, jewelry hounds! Kate's style makes it easy. Jewelry.com makes it affordable. Enjoy!

My balance: Jenna Park of Sweet Fine Day

2011-07-14T05:30:00.000-07:00

Jenna Park writes the incredible blog Sweet Fine Day (don't you love her photographs?) and works as a freelance graphic designer. She lives with her pastry-chef husband and two young daughters in Brooklyn. Here's how she attempts to find balance...

*****

1. What's your work schedule?
During the school year the mornings are quite hectic: getting lunches made and the girls dressed and fed and out the door by 8:20am for school. We also walk our neighbor kids to school two days a week, and it can be like herding cats getting four kids to two different schools. As soon as I get home at 9:20am from dropping the kids off, I have my cup of coffee and respond to emails. Then the work day begins, and it's often a marathon to try and cram as much stuff into 4 1/2 hours as possible, until I have to pick up my youngest from preschool at 2pm. Mark used to have a more flexible kitchen schedule, but he's been consistently leaving the house at 6am to start baking. Sometimes he'll get home by 3pm to pick up our 7-year-old from school. It's a lot of juggling everyday where we're checking with each other's schedules the night before to see which one of us can pick the kids up from school. After the kids go to bed,we'll both work again often until late at night. Then it starts all over the next morning at 7:30am.

School vacations throw everything off. There's a lot of stress, cursing, juggling, drop off playdates and late nights, but somehow things always get done.

2. How do you handle childcare?
We used to have a part-time nanny two days (totaling 16 hours a week) from the time our oldest was three months old up until last year. This enabled me to have two solid days where I could schedule meetings and errands. Mark and I would trade off on childcare the other days. When our youngest daughter started preschool four days a week last September, we reluctantly decided to say godbye to our nanny of six years because we couldn't afford both. We now rely on a combination of school and tag-team childcare to get our work done. It will get a lot easier this September because both girls will be in the same school full time with the same schedules.

3. Where do you work during the day?
On the couch in the living room.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
There are quite a few things I learned about myself after I graduated from graduate school eleven years ago.
1) I don't like working in an office situation every day and I feel lucky that I can work remotely from home.
2) Flexibility is really important to me, and it became necessary when we started having children. It was really the only way I could "afford" to work while not giving over the majority of my paycheck to childcare, and it allows me to spend as much time with my kids as possible while still working full-time hours. Because we value flexibility in our lives, we'll do most anything to protect it.

5. What do you find tricky about your current set-up? What would you change if you had a magic wand?
The number-one thing I would change, hands down, is better, more affordable healthcare for freelancers and small businesses. It's almost criminal what we pay a month for a family of four, and I hate having to choose between better healthcare vs. cheaper premiums, but this is exactly what I had to do this year because our healthcare became unaffordable. Everything else in our situation runs fairly smoothly, for the most part. We've had more than seven years to figure out how to maneuver the freelance life with children. It isn't perfect, and we've lost some projects and found ourselves in some hairy situations (like miscommunication about who is picking up the kid from school which resulted in NO ONE picking her up), but now that both kids are school age, I feel like we've won the lottery and we've made it through to the other side.

6. How does your husband contribute to managing the juggle/house/childcare?
Mark does everything. I often joke that he is a better mom than me. He does all the cooking for the family and generally handles bath and bedtime too. Usually when he gets home from work it's my turn to work, so most days we split childcare and house duties into morning shifts (me) and evening shifts (him).

7. Do you have time for yourself? What do you do during that time?
I really savor the late night hours. I'm a total night owl and will head to bed around 2am. It's the only time in the day when it's quiet from both clients and family. I can actually design work done, or I'll watch a movie on Netflix while editing photos and writing blog posts.

8. What advice would you give to other moms about how to balance work and life?
I'm not sure I've found the balance myself yet, but I tell myself that whatever challenging situation I find myself in now, isn't going to be forever.

9. Do you ever wonder how other women manage the juggle? Do you think people are open about it?
I didn't meet very many people who were in the similar work/life situations when my kids were younger, but I've been meeting more and more freelance moms over the past two to three years. It helps immensely to have someone to talk to, who can relate to some of your struggles and experiences. I don't feel there is enough open discussion about it, however, and it could be because we don't want to appear vulnerable or weak or admit to ourselves or to others that juggling a career and parenthood is often really hard. I do think that women need to talk to each other more honestly about it--we can learn so much from each other.
Thank you, Jenna!

My balance: Elizabeth Antonia of The Littlest

2011-07-13T13:15:00.000-07:00

The beautiful Elizabeth Antonia writes the blog The Littlest, runs an online vintage children's shop, and works as a freelance art director. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two-year-old daughter. Here's how she attempts to juggle it all...

*****

Intro:
My day-to-day life as a sometimes full-time, sometimes part-time working mama has run the gamut over the last two years. I was contractually obligated to go back to my job as an art director for Lucky Brand when Elodie was 4 1/2 months old (heartbreaking) and knew that I would make a jump to freelance the first chance I could (during that time we had a nanny and I would work at home in the other room a couple days a week). When she was about a year old, I took eight months off to be with her (while still freelancing) -- I would work during her naps and at night, which was always a crapshoot with her sleep. At 20 months old, she started going 2-3 days a week to a wonderful little 'preschool' down the street from us.

1. What's your work schedule?
My schedule is always changing! Right now, my work schedule is more crowded that it has ever been since I'm finishing a big corporate project, running a little vintage store and also working on my first line of children's clothing.

No matter what, we start and end the day adhering to Elodie's routine. Toddlers thrive on predictable schedules, so every morning we have the same ritual: She wakes up, we read a book in bed and then get dressed, eat breakfast together and then usually sit in the garden or in her room and read another book or play a game. We then go as a family to the coffee shop and have a leisurely coffee, talk about what we are planning for the day and then my husband and I drop her off at her preschool.

By then it's usually around 10-10:30am, so I go straight into emails. I typically will work 6-10 hours a day and divide it into sections as much as possible. I have heard great things about the Pomodoro technique but typically I just set a timer for 45 minute intervals and will try to stay focused on the task until I hear the timer. If I know I have a really busy 40-hour week, then I will do my best to shift some of the hours to the night, so I can take Elodie for a morning activity such as a pony ride, playtime at the park or a music/developmental play class. I typically work two evenings a week and at least one weekend night (which is great because my husband works on the weekend). There simply aren't enough hours in the day so I usually do what I absolutely MUST and then go spend time with Elodie and Michael.

2. How do you handle childcare?
Because of my current big freelance project, Elodie is enrolled five days a week at the same little school she's been at part-time since twenty months. She's usually there about 5-6 hours a day. For my line of work (art direction), it's less stressful/cheaper overall to pay for five days and be able to have her go whenever I need the extra time instead of scrambling to find a sitter for $15/hour on the days I have a photo shoot or client meeting. We love it! I've become close with a couple of the other moms from the neighborhood, and and we always have picnics after school or playdates on the weekend. The teacher is a very nurturing, traditional woman who really respects the children, and I'm always asking her for advice! She's such an angel. Elodie will probably go back to three days once the summer is over.

3. Where do you work during the day?
I mostly work at home but sometimes go to my husband's office, or to a work session or photo shoot wherever my client is located. I have a little office in our breakfast nook which overlooks our garden. It's also right next to the water cooler and the espresso machine; I typically spend about 5 minutes a day talking to myself at those two locations.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
I love not having a commute in Los Angeles! It's wonderful being 5 minutes away from my husband and Elodie at any given time and having the flexibility to make my own hours. Michael travels a lot for work, and we love to go with him when we can -- I definitely make less money but I wouldn't trade the ability to be with Elodie for anything.

5. What do you find so-so/tricky/hilariously bad about your current set-up?
I sometimes feel a little isolated working from home. I love being around other people and miss bouncing ideas off of a creative team. Also, we live in a little community called Mt. Washington, which is a car drive from coffee shops, restaurants, yoga studios, etc, so if I want to do any of that I have to get in the car. Also my dog drives me a little cuckoo -- he is always under foot or wanting to play.

6. What would you love to change down the road (or would change right now, if you had a magic wand?
I think the biggest problem with my current set-up is that I hate schedules! And I am always winging it. If i had a magic wand, I would have a life organizer come tell me what to do. Tell me how to create the hours I need in the day to accomplish what I want for my brand, but also to have enough time to enjoy life with my family.

7. What's your favorite part of your work?
I love learning and enjoy doing something different every day. Whether it's creating an inspiration board, looking for fabric for my children's line or helping a brand have a more cohesive presence, I love to wear all these different hats!

8. What's your favorite part of your home life?
When it's 5pm, the day is over for my husband. He leaves his computer at work and we really make a conscious effort to turn off all social media until Elodie goes to bed. (Okay, I'm a bit addicted to instagram!) We spend a lot of time before bed on walks, cooking dinner together or having dance parties. I love the buzz of home life -- there is always a bit of music because Michael and I thrive on that; I love when Elodie comes in and out of the kitchen/backyard/bedroom to play with us with the washing machine on in the background, or just sitting on the porch reading a book!

9. How does your husband contribute to managing the juggle/house/childcare?
We've made it a rule to get up with Elodie together (except when he's out of town or has worked late). He makes her breakfast and I get her ready for the day. He'll clean the kitchen after dinner, and I'll run the bath. Basically we have a set of tasks and the counterpart to that task. I think being open to talking about expectations helps make a happier home life.

10. How do you and your husband fit your marriage to the balance?
I am going to go ahead and say it, I think marriage is one of the easiest things to neglect once you have a child. It's so important to foster the connection you have with your spouse. My husband and I are around each other a lot, and I'm thankful that we have the ability to have date nights on a regular basis. I should probably 'schedule' more time together but I really love the spontaneity of meeting for coffee or lunch or staying up late to play backgammon or having a drink on the porch talking until the wee hours.

11. Do you have time for yourself?
I'm a much more pleasant person to be around (and more creative) when I do things for myself. The saying is true: 'If mama's happy, then everybody's happy!' Even though I know this, I have to force myself out of the house and away from the computer. It's so easy to put off exercise for one more item on the to-do list.

I love to read (biographies, the New Yorker and cookbooks are my favorites), do yoga or hike, or go out to dinner with friends -- basically things that clear the cobwebs out of my mind and are life giving!

12. What advice would you give to other moms about how to balance work and life?
Every day I find myself thinking, 'If not the mama, then who?' Women really are extraordinary in their ability to do so much as caregivers, partners, sisters, friends. I think we innately just want to please and to help each other. However, it's of vital importance that we are authentic to ourselves and simply do our best, whatever that is. It's so easy to compare ourselves to other moms out there (especially online) thinking that they have it all, do it all. We can look to each other for inspiration and connection but at the end of the day, how we translate this into real living with our family and friends is the most important thing.

13. Have you talked to other women about how to juggle everything? Do you think people talk openly about it?
I am not sure other people are open about it. I struggle with this. My impression (which could be wrong) is that everyone is so invested in making their own right choice that it is easier to put down another woman's choices. Stay-at-home mamas say that it's awful that a mother is letting another woman 'raise' her child. Some working mothers feel superior because they have their own lives and income. The decisions we make are a culmination of our life experiences and I don't know about you, but I'm still learning how to live and doing the best I can along the way. When Elodie was born, I didn't have any other choice but to work. Many mothers have to work. We are all mamas with unique perspectives on parenting with so much to teach each other. We should spend our time uplifting each other and not trying to prove that 'our way' is the right way. I honestly don't know what way is right. I want to be inspired and I want so much to constantly improve. While we are learning, we are alive! (This is a bit of a rant!)

14. Do you think the juggle is harder for women than for men?
I do think it the juggle is harder for women than for men. I can't speak for anyone else, but I think the day Elodie was born I was injected with a healthy does of guilt -- about not doing enough for her, not doing enough for myself, not calling my grandparents, not letting my husband know how special he is to me, not working hard enough. On and on. There are so many facets to life it really is hard to do it all!

I think men don't feel the need to be with their children the way women do. And maybe women just want to do everything? I sure do! I think it's great to have so much to be excited about so I'll take feeling a little pressured over feeling apathetic about life.
Thank you, Elizabeth!

My balance: Jenny Komenda of Little Green Notebook

2011-07-13T05:00:00.000-07:00

Jenny Komenda writes the design blog Little Green Notebook and runs a fabulous interior decorating business (she actually gave our house a makeover last year!). She's one of the most charismatic people I've ever met, with an easy laugh and contagious smile. She lives in Manhattan with her husband and their three young daughters. Here's how she attempts to juggle it all...

*****

1. What's your overall work schedule?
Things are busy in my life as a blogger, decorator and mother of three young daughters. I like to joke with my husband that I have three full-time jobs, which means I officially have zero hours left in the day to do extracurricular things--like sleep. :)

Here's a typical day when I don't have scheduled childcare:

I try to wake up early before my girls (ages 5, 4, and 1) start their day. I do most of my emailing early in the morning and late at night. I call my approach 'busting it out.' I've found if I respond to emails as I get them, then I feel like I've been strapped to the computer all day. So I dedicate a couple hours a day to sit down, focus only on my inbox and just pump out those emails from clients and readers.

Once the girls start waking up, my focus shifts to them: getting them dressed, eating breakfast, packing lunches and backpacks, then school drop offs. If I have an errand I can run with Evelyn (my 18-month-old), I'll do that with her in the stroller. This is usually when I like to do my grocery shopping. One of the many perks of living in NYC is almost every store, including the grocery stores, delivers! It is so much easier to juggle kids here than I worried it might be.

After I pick up Claire (age four) from preschool at noon, we head home for lunch and some quiet time. Evie will nap and Claire will chill out a little with a book or a movie. I might sneak in some of the more urgent emails here, but I usually use this time to do some projects for my house or a client's home. Projects range from painting a piece of furniture, to upholstery, to sewing, and anything in between. I'm in 'bust it out' mode again during this time. It's so much easier to get messy things like this done when Evie's asleep. She's at that (adorable, but) difficult age, where she wants to be all up in my business all the time. If I've learned anything in my role as a mother, it's that nap time is more precious than gold.

My almost six-year-old is done with kindergarten at 3pm. Sometimes we meet up with friends at the park for an hour or two after school. We try to be out and about in the afternoons as much as possible. There are so many fun places to explore in the city!

When we get home at 4:30/5, it's time to start dinner. The older girls help me or they sit at the table and practice their letters while I cook. Lately, we've been doing a Daddy Newsletter, where we write a note to Dad, explaining what we did that day (these are often heart-breakingly cute messages -- like "Dear Dad, Worms are squirmy. Love, Claire."). After dinner, the kids are allowed to watch a show or play in their room while I get some work done (maybe a quick couple of emails, or more of the project I was working on earlier in the afternoon). A lot of times my girls want to help with those projects. I used to say no when they asked to help paint or whatever, but I've learned that involving them with my work wherever possible really helps to combat any Mommy Guilt that starts to creep in my life.

After the bath/book/bed routine, I try to spend 15 or 20 minutes cleaning up the house. I walk around with a big basket and gather up the misplaced things all at once and then put them back where they belong. I load the dishwasher and then do my 'chore of the day.' Is it weird that I have a calendar for my housekeeping? I don't have a lot of time to dedicate to cleaning, so I've found that if each day I do one big thing, like scrub the bathtub or wash all the towels and linens, then the house doesn't have the chance to completely fall apart. It's probably the decorator in me, but if my house is a bomb, it's almost impossible for me to be in a good mood, so I make it a priority. I also love to exercise and try to squeeze in a run or a Tracy DVD if time and energy allow.

My husband's work hours are pretty intense most weeks, so when he gets home, I try to stop what I'm doing and chill with him for a bit. Even if it's just five minutes of sitting on the couch and talking about our days, it makes a big difference to have that focused time together. We also Google Chat a lot during the day, which works better most of the time than phone conversations (easier to multi-task).

Part two of my work day begins about 9pm. I'll pound through more emails, work on some photoshop mock-ups and put together a post for the next morning, always scheduled to go live at 5:30am EST. It's a rare treat for me to be in bed before midnight, but I always try to go to sleep before 2pm (which feels like the official "this is ridiculous" hour).

2. How do you handle childcare?
I used to not have any consistent child care, but after we moved to Manhattan last year, and my husband started his new job with crazy hours, we decided it was definitely time to get helpers. Every week is different, but usually one or two days a week my part-time admin assistant/nanny will come over to our house to take care of my girls. This is when I run almost all of my errands and when I have my client meetings and drop offs. My husband is usually the one to relieve the nanny because I put in very long hours on those days.

3. Where do you work during the day?
We live in a loft space and were able to dedicate part of the apartment to my home office area. My long double desk is right up against a huge wall of windows; my assistant shares with me sometimes and my husband shares it most nights. There's a big open storage area filled to the brim with fabrics and wallpapers and carpet samples. Another wall is floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. It's great to have all the old shelter mags and design books I collect right there in my work space for instant inspiration when I need it. We also have a day bed in the space for guests (but mostly for quick cat naps during all-nighters!).

4. What do you like about your current set-up? What do you dislike?
Other than not sleeping enough (what I would give to have 30 hours in the day!), I actually really love my schedule. Still though, some days and weeks are very trying. I've broken down to my husband on more than one occasion, feeling overwhelmed by it all. Sometimes I hate having my office twenty feet from my bed. Sometimes I wish I had more time for girlfriends. Sometimes I feel uncontrollably guilty if Evie cries when I leave for work. But at the end of the day, I know the trade-offs are worth it to me. I've always wanted to be a mom to a big family. But I also know that I am a happier mom overall when I am working. And I'm also discovering that I'm a better decorator and blogger when I give myself some distance from work and spend parts of the day with my family.

I had a sort of breakthrough a year or two ago when my blog had transitioned into a paid job. I had just given birth to my third daughter and I was feeling stretched a little thin. Back then my life was a big slew of work and family obligations. There were no boundaries--no compartmentalizing of roles. I felt out of control, and it was a really hard time. My husband (the level-headed teammate) made the suggestion of a stricter daily work schedule, and it has totally saved me. I think it is absolutely 100% necessary as a working mother, especially one who works from home, to separate work time from family time. It sounds obvious, but it is much easier said than done!

Now that I feel like I have more balance in my life, I'm learning how to be more present. I am one of those people that is always looking forward to the next step, always saying "Won't life be great when..." That is so damaging! My dad once told me that the secret to happiness in life is to be conscious of what is uniquely great about your current situation and put your focus there. So right now, I am choosing to not focus on how little sleep I get, or how hard Evie's stranger danger/needy phase can be, or how much great TV I'm missing out on! The flip side is I have three fulfilling jobs that keep me happily busy and we're making it work for us.
Thank you, Jenny!

My balance: Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen

2011-07-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

Deb Perelman writes the mouthwatering blog Smitten Kitchen, featuring delicious recipes and heartfelt, funny thoughts on food and life. Happily for us, she’s also finishing up a cookbook! She lives in the East Village with her husband and toddler son. Here, she tells us how she attempts to juggle everything...

*****

1. What's your work schedule?
My husband and I switch off nights/mornings with Jacob, but lately he's had to leave for work before Jacob is done chatting animatedly with the stuffed aardvark in his crib, so I'm on morning duty. Not that I terribly mind. I get him dressed, make and help him eat his oatmeal, read some books with him, then get myself ready to start my day (I work from home but insist that I'm showered, dressed and able to be seen by the world, or at least a barista, by 9 a.m.). Once the babysitter arrives, it's off to the races -- literally, because I have soooo much more to squeeze in than I can ever finish in the day.

2. How do you handle childcare?
I work three full days and two half days a week. We have the best babysitter in the entire world. When I take him to the park or library, almost every time a complete stranger will come up to me to gush over how they've seen them out together and how great she is with my kid. It never gets old.

3. Where do you work during the day?
In the kitchen or holed up in my bedroom, the room I've been talking about buying a desk for for almost 20 months. Instead, I sit on the bed with a nest of papers, camera, camera cord, phone, external hard drive, etc. all around me. It's both ridiculous as a work environment and also pretty cozy.

If I just need to work on my laptop for a few hours, I'll occasionally go to a coffee shop but it's not my favorite environment -- I find chattering around me distracting and feel so pressed for time that it's stressful if I can't find a seat.

4. What do you like best about your current set-up?
That I get to see my kid all day. That he gets a hug from mama anytime he wants, and vice-versa. That I make all of his meals, which is definitely a hard thing to routinely stop my day to prepare but as someone who more or less cooks for a living, is nice to be able to provide for my kid. Even though space is tight, even though I know I get much less work done than I would if he were at daycare, I know this would be living the dream for most parents, to be able to have a career and not miss out on anything at home.

5. What do you find so-so/tricky/hilariously bad about your current set-up? What would you love to change if you had a magic wand?
Here is the question I ask myself every single day of the week: Why didn't we get a 3-bedroom (instead of the 2-bedroom that we have) so one bedroom could have been my office? My own space to do my job, with a desk and a door? What was I thinking? Was I too prone to self-sacrifice? ("I can work anywhere!") Did I not take my work seriously enough? ("Oh, I'll just squeeze it in with a few hours of babysitting a week!" Ha.) Was I five months pregnant when we were apartment hunting and fell too quickly for the affordable place with the giant living room perfect for baby play? Probably a little of all of it, I think. Believe me, I've had a lot of time to consider how exactly this went down as I've tried to attend phone meetings burrowed in my bedroom while trying to block out the meltdown down the hall. Oof!

6. What's your favorite part of your work?
Waking up and cooking whatever I feel like that day.

7. What's your favorite part of your home life?
Watching my husband and kid try to have a conversation. "Jacob, how was your day?" "Mewww! Bladeek bah de la baka dah dah... BAO."

8. How do you and your husband fit your marriage to the balance?
We are ridiculously, ridiculously spoiled in that we have both sets of grandparents live an hour or less away and are always eager to help out. My in-laws come over one weekday night a week and send us out. Once a week! And usually right on Wednesday, when a beer and burger nicely gets you over the mid-week hump. And, when our friends can give us a few days warning we are more than happy to get a babysitter for Saturday night so they can tease us when we nod off at 10:30p.m.

9. Do you have time for yourself?
I don't. I'm working on it. Every few months, however, I will hit my work wall and take a mental health day that usually involves Laura Mercier products, an overpriced pedicure, a long walk in the city by myself and probably a chocolate sable from Balthazar.

10. What advice would you give to other moms about how to balance work and life?
The less time you spend trying to figure out why things aren't in balance, the clearer your head will be. Life will not neatly balance. My mother always says to me, "What if you had had twins? Triplets?" as in, "Wouldn't it just be impossible to manage?" and I'm like "Mom, you would just do whatever needed to be done. One foot in front of the other. You would have zero expectations that anything would easily fall into place." And yet I totally forget that whatever is consuming us today -- needing diapers, running out of milk, signing up for swim classes and why the tot refused the raisins in his oatmeal this morning -- will not matter one iota a little bit down the road so it's okay to treat it as a little less than life-altering.

11. Do you have a role model when it comes to being a working mom, or other working moms who inspire you?
I don't know a lot of WAHMs -- I blame the solitary way that we work -- but would love to meet more. I bet we could talk for DAYS.

12. Do you ever wonder how other women manage the juggle? Have you talked to other women about it?
It is my hunch that nobody really feels like they're juggling effectively or efficiently. That it's less of an achievement and more of a process where it is hoped that whatever got stiffed last week -- sleep or eating takeout for dinner again or hitting the gym -- gets a more of fair shake this week.

13. Do you think people are open about it?
I feel like the conversation is often set up as SAHM versus "Career Women" and it's a limiting way to look at things. It occludes the bigger issues of why it's a "versus" thing at all, all the shades of gray in between that flow from how hard it is to find flexible work arrangements and affordable childcare, and how these issues nudge women in one direction or the other.

14. Do you think the juggle is harder for women than for men? If so, why?
Yes, but mostly because women are often the ones presumed, or perhaps expected, to be doing the juggling. Really, nobody ever asks a man how he juggles work and having a family.
Thanks, Deb!

My balance: Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day

2011-07-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

Jordan Ferney writes the blog Oh Happy Day about parties, crafts and all things pretty. She usually lives in San Francisco with her husband and two sons, although they're lucky enough to all be spending this year in Paris! Here, she talks about how she balances it all...

*****

1. What's your work schedule?
Now that we’re living in Paris, my schedule is much different than when I was in the U.S. My husband and I share childcare duties pretty equally. In Paris, we work from 5pm to midnight (American hours) so we have the whole day to hang out with our kids. We sightsee, sit at cafes, go to the park and visit museums. Our boys go to bed around 7:30pm, so the last few hours after dinner they watch a movie or play with toys to wind down before we put them to bed. This is the best schedule we've ever had.

In the U.S., I was the primary caretaker. Our schedule was this:
9am-1pm Babysitter arrived, took kids to the park, did a little preschool session, and fed them lunch while I worked.
1-6pm I take care of the kids. We go to parks, museums, etc., and I would do household errands.
6pm-midnight My husband Paul put the kids down while I got back to work.

2. How do you handle childcare?
Being in France has been so interesting. The French support system for mothers is amazing. France has state sponsored daycare and preschool, and they are really good. We just started our oldest son in preschool this spring. His teacher is excellent, and it is very organized. He only goes for three hours a day but he loves it. If your child is younger than 3, then placement in daycare depends on if both parents work and income, and then there is a sliding scale fee. My friend is a stay-at-home mom in Paris and takes her toddler two mornings a week so she can get errands done. It’s a huge burden taken of a mother's shoulders if she has affordable options for childcare.

Another awesome detail is in Paris they have a large section on the bus for strollers. So you can get on and off the bus without ever closing your stroller. In fact its encouraged! So different from the glares you get in the U.S. for getting on the bus with a stroller. I wish the women's movement would jump on this issue, it's so important for moms not to feel trapped at home.

3. Where do you work during the day?
Right now we work in our home. We have a desk set up in our bedroom. When I really need to buckle down and reach a deadline I just close the door. I prefer working in my home so I can pop out and play with my boys during breaks.

4. What do you find best about your current set-up?
Spending the day with my family is a huge luxury. I doubt we'll ever have a situation like this again so we are trying to enjoy it. Since everyone in the US is asleep while we are out I don't even feel a need to check the internet or twitter because nothing is going on.

5. What do you find tricky about your current set-up? What would you change if you had a magic wand?
Our biggest struggle is always setting boundaries. When you work for yourself the success of your business is directly related to how hard you work. We could work forever and still not be done. Setting limits and sticking to the schedule is really important to keep everything running smoothly.

6. What advice would you give to other moms about the juggle?
The main thing I've learned is that you can't have it all. What I mean by that is you are always sacrificing something with any decision you make. For example I have friends that buy really rad clothes for their kids. They are always dressed adorably. My kids have clothes that fit them and that are kind of cute but nothing that compares. That is something that I would enjoy and I wish I had more time to do. But when I choose to have a job I sacrifice some of that.

I think the secret is to try to reevaluate the situation often to make sure everyone's needs are being met. We are constantly tweaking things about our schedule to make sure everyone (including the parents) are healthy and happy.

7. Do you think the juggle is harder for women than for men?
Yes! My husband is very involved in childcare but if he leaves for work he doesn't think about home or worry. I swear he is hardwired differently than I am.

Thanks, Jordan!

New series: Balancing work/life/motherhood

2011-07-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

When Toby was a couple months old, and I was starting to work again, I was shocked to discover how hard it was to juggle everything.

We found a beloved babysitter, but when she would leave in the afternoons and Toby would cuddle up in my arms, my mind would still be whirring with tasks left undone. Instead of nabbing a few hours in the evenings to finish up work, Alex and I spent all our extra hours taking care of Toby. There just weren't enough hours in the day to fit everything in, and I felt stretched thin--like I wasn't doing a great job at work or being a mother. I had always prided myself on being an efficient worker who could get things done. But now I was totally overwhelmed. What had happened to me? Was I not who I thought I was? I just wanted to take a nap.

When I looked around, other moms seemed to have it down. Walking down the streets of the West Village, Toby and I would pass countless picture-perfect moms with crisp white shirts, pretty makeup and blown-dried hair (!). How were they doing it? Was I the only new mom who was floundering? I couldn’t believe that I was, but no one else seemed to be batting a mascara-ed eyelash. I desperately wanted to be a fly on the wall and see how people really managed their time with work + baby + marriage + life.

Finally, one evening at the playground, I asked a fellow new mother, a freelance graphic designer, about her specific work schedule. To my great surprise, we ended up having a hilarious talk about the ups and downs of finding balance (she admitted to getting four hours of a sleep a night and working on her Blackberry while breastfeeding). I walked home with a huge smile on my face. I wasn't alone! In fact, maybe we were all secretly in the same boat.

Happily, things took a turn after that. I was able to take a deep breath, give myself a break, and slowly figure out a schedule that worked really well for us (which I'm still experimenting with and tweaking!).

Although people do talk overall about the juggle, I've never heard people talk about the actual day-to-day of how they do it, and I'm always so curious about that, aren't you? So let's talk! :) Let's share openly and honestly how we structure our days with work, marriage, baby and life. Let's reveal the ups and downs. Let's be supportive of and gentle with ourselves and each other.

This week, while we're in England, I'm thrilled to share a series of posts from eight working mothers (including Jordan from Oh Happy Day, Jenny from Little Green Notebook, Deb from Smitten Kitchen, myself, and others) about how they juggle their lives. I found the posts fascinating, and I hope you enjoy them. The first is coming right up!

P.S. I'm featuring women in somewhat similar situations--most of them work part- to full-time for themselves from home, live in big cities, and are married with young babies or children--because I wanted to show how these similar women have all created different schedules that work for them. Of course, there's a huge variety of amazing mothers with different jobs, relationships, economic means and situations, but I hope these posts are helpful, relevant, and, at the very least, interesting to everyone. xo

P.P.S. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments this week. I would LOVE to hear what you think overall, how you feel about these mothers' specific thoughts and philosophies, what ups and downs you’ve had, and how you manage (or hope to manage) your life as a new mother. The conversation is open and welcoming. We're all in this together!

(Photo of newborn Toby)

Have a wonderful weekend.

2011-07-08T14:30:00.000-07:00

My lovelies, what are your plans for the weekend? This evening, Alex, Toby and I will be flying across the Atlantic Ocean to this little village in Cornwall, to visit my grandmother, aunts, uncles, dad, brother, sister and cousins. We're sooooo excited to swim in the freezing cold water and eat Cornish pasties all day. :) Next week, I'm happy to have some amazing guest bloggers writing openly about family, marriage, work and life. (Alex and I have loved their posts so much, we've talked about them for hours, no joke!) Anyway, have a wonderful weekend, and here are a great few posts from around the web...

Rad new stamps.

Monkey self-portraits!

This chic magazine editor looks like a grown-up tomboy.

Birthday balloons, too cute.

Vintage maps as wallpaper.

Breaking the rules in plus-size fashion.

What a sweet anniversary post.

Crikey, look at Elizabeth's gorgeous jeans. Now I'm dying for a pair (which I tracked down here.)

FASCINATING post about being the breadwinner of your family.

Great supplies for crafts.

Holding a starfish.

The Design*Sponge book trailer is SOOOOO cute!!! pre-order the book here. Congratulations, Grace!

Plus, five Cup of Jo posts you may have missed:
* Seinfeld reruns.
* France vs. America.
* Banana bites.
* Waterfall madness.
* Lipstick trick.

(Photos by Andrew and Carissa)

Paris Haute Couture Shows Bring the Bling

2011-07-08T12:58:00.000-07:00

The Fall/Winter 2011 Paris Haute Couture shows just wrapped in the city of lights, and - as we all know - where there is Haute Couture? There is bling. And wacky hats.

Here are some of my favorite looks from the event - most from Dior (sans their brilliant wretch, John Galliano) and Armani Prive (house of Oscar, royal weddings and all things Gaga).


Dior

Leprechan's Rejoice! We've got a rainbow of oversized statement necklaces and cocktail rings to gawk at this go round!

Armani Prive

Dior

I also spotted a return of the gold leaf silhouette at the stunning Giambattista Valli show.

Giambattista Valli

(P.S. Guess who else is into gold leaf looks these days????)

And no Haute Couture Show would be complete without the chapeau showdown, right?

So there you have it, bling hounds. Colorful, oversized gems, yellow gold, leaf silhouettes and 'hold-on-to your-hair-follicles' headwear are the take-away trends from Paris.

Want the look? I'm thinkin' Jewelry.com's "Bijoux de Chloe" designer collection is the perfect expression of that sentiment - at prices that are frugalista fabulous! Here's a few of their high-fashion looks for less, jewelry hounds. You like?

Summer Uniform: Hamptons Beauty

2011-07-08T10:26:00.000-07:00

I always joke that my friend Susan Cernek is the nicest person in fashion. She has a mouthful of a title at Glamour, but she always looks drop-dead gorgeous and friendly, with a megawatt smile and easy laugh. So, I asked her to share her summer uniform with us (in hopes that we could copy ruthlessly:).

Here's Susan's take:

Here, my husband Rob and I are on grill duty at our dear friend's house in Southampton. I've worn these tortoise Ray-Ban Wayfarers since '06. I've tried on a zillion other pairs since then, but these are the only sunglasses that suit my face/don't make me look like a crazy person.

I got the shirtdress at Zara last year for our honeymoon, and it's now my summer go-to. The special twist is that it looks like a man's dress shirt since it scoops up a bit on the sides--making it a bit risque to wear to work but flirty and sexy for weekends. [Here's a similar dress.] A word of caution: Never use the fabric belt that shirt dresses come with. Fabric belts can look floppy--not exactly a description you want anywhere near your midsection. You need structure to flatter your waist, so go with a thin leather belt.

For beauty, I stay light. I love Diptyque bath oil; I dab it on after the shower for a light scent, instead of a heavy perfume. And my go-to lip "marker"--Revlon's Just Bitten in Flame-- gives you a cheery, pretty hint of color, like you just ate a popsicle from the Mister Softee truck.

Here's how to get the look:
Wayfarer sunglasses: Ray-Ban, $194.
Shirtdress: L.L. Bean Signature, $79.
Belt: 7 Hills, $36.
Thong sandals: L.L. Bean Signature, $69.
Lipstain: Revlon, $8.99.
Messy French bun.

P.S. Another lovely summer uniform.

Dancing

2011-07-08T06:38:00.000-07:00

Isn't this photo of a dancing couple lovely? The print would look beautiful framed (or wrapped up with a red bow as a wedding present).

What are your dating deal breakers?

2011-07-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

Speaking of dating, do you guys have any dating deal breakers? :) My friend recently went out with a guy who wouldn't stop biting her while they kissed, and she woke up with bruises the next day! Isn't that straight out of Sex & the City?

Back in my mid twenties, when I was single and searching in Manhattan, I was riding the subway with a guy I was dating, and we were having a nice night, and all of a sudden he said, "You have the cutest little moustache." What?!?!? I tried to play it cool, but I was mortified. I laughed and asked him if he was serious, and he said, "Yeah, you have blonde hairs so it's hard to see, but you have a little moustache." I was so traumatized that I went home that night and shaved. Like a dude.

What are your dating deal breakers?

P.S. On a happier note, my first date with Alex.

(Photo by Corey Arnold)

A new documentary

2011-07-07T07:45:00.000-07:00

Love, Etc. is a new documentary that follows five couples for one year in New York City: old, young, gay, straight, falling in love, getting married, having babies, breaking up. The film showed the complexities of romantic love--not just the happy stuff of Disney movies. I watched it this week and adored it. It was funny, heartbreaking and beautiful. Here's the trailer...

What do you think, my darlings? Would you want to see it? (Here are show times.)

P.S. 10 best documentaries.

(Via Glamour)

Wednesday giveaway!

2011-07-06T12:04:00.000-07:00

Today's giveaway is from A.Cheng, an adorable Brooklyn clothing boutique. The owner, Alice, curates breezy dresses and easy tops, and she makes her own collection, too. Today she's offering one lucky reader her classic Tina dress ($242) in either denim or stripes. Wouldn't it be the perfect dress to wear all summer, with sandals and a braid?

For a chance to win, please visit A.Cheng and leave a comment below. A winner will be chosen at random tomorrow. Good luck! Update: Julie J. is our lucky winner. Thanks for playing.

Puppies

2011-07-06T10:27:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, this news story made my eyes pop: West Village pet shops have banned "drunken puppy buying." In the evenings, tipsy passersby stumble home from neighborhood bars, fall in love with puppies in the shop windows and drunkenly buy them...only to wake up the next morning and realize that they have a new puppy! Isn't that crazy?

(Thanks, Sophie. Photo by Serena Solomon)

French fries

2011-07-06T06:40:00.000-07:00

French fries are irresistibly delicious, don't you think? Well, Chelsea just shared this recipe for making your own, and it looks super easy. You could give it a Belgian twist and serve them with mayonnaise!

(Photo by Lisa Warninger)

Adventures in babywearing

2011-07-05T20:56:00.000-07:00

At our friend's cabin upstate, Toby loved the friendly grown-ups and wanted to be in the middle of the action at all times. But Alex and I could only chase him around and keep him from falling off the dock for so long, so the sling turned out to be a perfect way to keep him happy and immersed. Here, we're fishing with friends--it was the first time for both Toby and me! (We caught nothing:)

Another early, chilly morning during our trip, we walked by a babbling stream and paused to watch the water flow by. It was so relaxing (I caught myself thinking that it sounded just like a noise machine, ha!), and Toby's head rested more and more heavily on my chest until I realized he had fallen asleep. (My other clue was a stream of drool flowing down my decolletage, such that it is.) So I sat down on a bench while the pink sun rose in the sky, and read Operating Instructions while he slept. I wish I had photos of that sweet moment, but Toby and I were the only ones awake! I took a mental snapshot, though. :)

Anyway, the sling was such a lovely addition to the weekend and a wonderful way to have adventures with a baby as a trusty sidekick.

(The only catch is that it makes it tricky to drink a pre-dinner PBR.)

P.S. This post is part of the Sakura Bloom Styleathon, hosted by my friend Leigh. Read more here, if you'd like. Thank you again to Leigh for introducing me to the genius of slings, which are becoming part of my life in beautiful and magical ways.

Daydreaming

2011-07-05T12:21:00.000-07:00

This weekend, we joined some friends at a lakefront cabin, an hour north of Manhattan. Every evening, after Toby fell asleep, Alex and I would sit on the dock, drinking white wine (my favorite) and chatting about nothing in particular. It was so beautiful and peaceful. I want to beam myself back there right now. xo

How was your Fourth? Hope you had a good one.

Sexy eyebrows (yes, eyebrows)

2011-07-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, how gorgeous are these dramatic eyebrows? When I saw these stunning photos of Oscar de la Renta's recent runway show, my jaw dropped. Makeup artists often insist that eyebrows are the most important part of your look, since they frame your face and can make your eyes look bigger and make your face look younger. Wouldn't you love to recreate these sexy bold brows for a night out?

Happily, my make-up artist friend Suzy Gerstein shared the two steps to getting the look: "The secret to a gorgeous full brow is to layer products. First, sketch in any sparse areas with hairlike flicks of a brow pencil. Use the skinniest, pointiest pencil you can find, so your drawn-in 'hairs' will look natural. My favorite is the Kevyn Aucoin Precision Brow Pencil. Then layer a powder color over the pencil. Two colors that work well for brows: MAC eye shadow in Brun (for brunettes) and Concrete (for blondes)."

What do you think, my lovelies? Would you dare? xoxo

(Photos by Jamie Beck. A similar red lipstick is Rouge Dior in Red Muse)

The Children of the Russian Rich

2011-07-05T07:58:00.000-07:00

German photographer Anna Skladmann's portrait series features children of the new Russian elite. "They live in a secluded world," says Skladmann, who spent years befriending and photographing the little ones. "Their parents are attempting to make up for the Soviet times--they only want the best for their children. They receive private language lessons; they go swimming or play tennis. The lives of these children are very planned and regimented." This interview and these slideshow captions are fascinating.

P.S. The series reminds me of the riveting documentary Born Rich about American heirs and heiresses. (Have you seen it?)

Happy Fourth of July!

2011-07-04T18:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Fourth of July! Hope you had a wonderful, relaxing, firework-y weekend. xoxo

(Photo by Spencer Tweedy)

Charlene Wittstock's Royal Wedding Jewelry

2011-07-02T23:50:00.000-07:00

Monaco royal wedding watchers got two surprises at the highly anticipated nuptials of notorious bachelor, Prince Albert and former Olympic swimmer and all around hottie, Charlene Wittstock today.

No runaway bride. And no tiara.

Despite rumors of cold feet, Ms. Wittstock showed up in a smashing Armani Prive wedding frock that featured a 15-foot train with elegant embroidery and Swarovski crystals. Her look was topped off with a "Diamond Spray" tiara (if you can officially call it that) created by Lorenz Baumer with 11 encrusted pear-shaped diamond, according to Usmagazine.com.

The couple exchanged 18-karat white gold wedding bands from Cartier in front of the usual royal suspects along with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, James Bond star Roger Moore, former supermodel Naomi Campbell, and veteran fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld.

(Click here for my report on her engagement ring bling if you're curious.)

Now that all that formal info is out of the way - can we talk about the 'no tiara' decision for a sec?

Kindof a shocker, considering the royal protocol for such things - but I for one think the look is smashing. Love the 'spray' effect and think it's the perfect fit for her updo. So there. What do you guys think?

And while the palace PR machine denies any 'runaway bride' scenario, I have yet to find a picture where these two look like there's one lick of chemistry left (unlike my fav royal couple - that Swedish sensation, Crown Princess Victoria and her commoner fitness-guru-turned-prince, Daniel Westling).

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden

Speaking of, the serious royal bling came out the night prior for a benefit concert/civil ceremony, where the only fireworks happening were...the fireworks (just kiddin' kids).

Here are my favorite shots from the night (you can always count on the carat-heavy coffers of Sweden to light things up). BA-ling!

Can't get enough royal watching? Stay tuned for my "Princess Catherine (aka Kate Middleton) and Wills Take North America" fashion roundup. Cheerio!

Queen Silvia of Sweden

Princess Madeleine of Sweden

Princess Mathilde of Belgium

Charlotte Casiraghi (daughter of Princess Caroline - granddaughter of Princess Grace of Monaco)

P.S. Anyone have any info on this cool statement necklace the Princess-to-be wore the night of her civil ceremony?

Riding bikes while wearing skirts

2011-07-01T12:21:00.000-07:00

Did you hear this crazy story: In late May, a NYC cop allegedly pulled over a Dutch tourist, pictured below, and reprimanded her for riding a bike while wearing a skirt. He said she was distracting cars! At first, she thought he was kidding, but quickly realized he wasn't when he asked for her ID. How insane is that?! So, as a lighthearted protest, a bunch of girls (and a few guys) came together for a skirt bike ride yesterday evening. My friend Shannen took a few photos...
It was a great night!! Thanks to those who organized, and high five to all ladies who ride in skirts or otherwise! :) xoxo

(Photos by the fabulous Shannen Norman for Cup of Jo. And you might recognize my friend Caroline, above, from the hair tutorials:) And thanks to HUB Bikes and the New Amsterdam Bike Show for organizing.)

selena gomez justin bieber yacht pics

2011-07-01T10:04:00.000-07:00

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REEF�

05-16 05:20 PM

Thanks :).

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10-21 04:01 PM

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amitga

07-01 08:55 PM

I think you should have added June 30th also.

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clockwork

07-18 08:26 AM

I believe so....if your LC is approved in August, then your PD is August. It is not qualified under July VB.

Not True. PD is your labor filing date not approval date. I think, you should be able to apply if your PD falls on or before July 2007. Please consult with your attorney. They can check with USCIS through AILA liason. Thanks -

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ram06

04-11 10:10 AM

The substitute elimination rule is still under review and not in effect yet. The premium processing can be done with substitute labor, by attaching the original labor certification.

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user1205

08-28 11:28 PM

My lawyer received all the receipts for our AOS, EAS and AP applications and today I got COPIES in mail from her.

Wasn't she supposed to send me the originals and keep the copies? After all, it's my application.

I want to call her but I'm not sure what the general practice is. Did you guys get copies or the original receipts from your lawyers?

Thanks!

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07-09 10:43 AM

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indianabacklog

11-12 02:20 PM

Hi all,

What docs are required for re-entry of spouse on H4 visa. The primary applicant on H1 is not travelling.

1. Copy of I-797 of H1 visa holder.
2. Passport copy of H1 visa holder.
3. Recent pay stubs of H1 visa holder.
3. Marriage Certificate.

Am I missing something.

gchopes

Not sure you need any of 2, 3 or 4. However, it is very helpful to have a letter from the H1 employer saying that you are still employed by your company or whatever you work for and your spouse is currently on an H4 dependents visa.

My husband has found this has been adequate on many occasions.

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cokeraj

08-14 08:04 PM

I was just wondering if they stall the 485 processing once they issue an RFE on EAD. Would they hold the case in abeyance or are these two mutually exclusive.
Btw, am not sure of the reason for RFE yet.

Has anyone had their 485 approved with an RFE pending on EAD or AP?

EB2-I
PD: June 2004
I140 Approved: Aug 2006
485 RD: July 26, 2007
RFE on EAD: Aug 6, 2008

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Appu

10-05 07:01 PM

Thanks for the response!

Once I get the I-140, can I directly apply for the transfer and get the new H1 for 3 years instead of extending the current one first?

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leo2606

12-23 07:32 PM

It is up now.

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nixstor

06-24 11:43 AM

In my case i am a consultant, and keep on moving like 8-9 months....... dont have any permanent address.............. i am sure a lot of ppl will be in the same position as i am............. so what are you guys doing for the addresses on the 485/EAD/AP..........

AFAIK, You can file AR 11 online. Once you are done with filing AR11, it will ask you all the applications on file with USCIS. If you give your receipt numbers, it will update the address associated with those applications.

To avoid any confusion as of now, (if your 485 and 693 has different addresses) attach an addendum explaining why you were medical was done in FL, while your permanent address is out of the DC area.

Just my thoughts, talk to your lawyer and see what he will say.

HTH

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terpcurt

January 11th, 2004, 09:06 AM

That is truly a lot of snapping....

USCIS Website Rollout DiscussionSept. 18, 2009 @ 2:00pm [Archive] - Immigration Voice

View Full Version : USCIS Website Rollout DiscussionSept. 18, 2009 @ 2:00pm

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go_guy123

01-05 12:51 PM

Now this is hardball.

More... (http://blogs.ilw.com/gregsiskind/2010/01/hispanic-congressmen-threaten-to-bring-down-health-care-reform-if-immigration-ignored.html)

This is the classic example of the democratic party as described by conservatives:

Democratic party is "A group of warring tribes united for the common purpose of plunder"

democratic party bunch of warring tribes - Google Search (http://www.google.ca/search?q=democratic+party+bunch+of+warring+tribes&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)

Republican party inspite of its problems is generally united

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desixp

10-24 04:28 PM

Hi All,

I have efiled for my AP and EAD. I have received the RN for the same. I am planning to travel out of country by end of November. I am pretty sure AP will not be approved by that time. I am planning to travel on H1B visa. My attorney tells me that AP will not be approved if I travel before it is approved. I have to be in the country in order to get the AP approval. Is that true?

Thanks,

DesiXP

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gprx100

03-31 09:14 PM

My lawyer initiated the PERM process late last year, the timeline was such that the prevailing wage request was filed with State Workforce Agency (SWA) on 12-30-2009. The SWA prevailing wage determination was received back by my lawyer on the 1/11/10.

Subsequently the recruitment process started and everything was going smooth. The PERM was supposed to be filed in the first week of April. My lawyer now is saying that they need to push the application filing because of the new rule which came into effect Jan 1st which requires all prevailing wage requests to be filed with the DOL. The rule states that:

On January 1, 2010, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) changed the way that prevailing wage determinations (PWDs) are processed for the PERM, H-1B, H-1B1 (Chile/Singapore), E-3 (Australia), and H-2B programs. PWDs are now issued by DOL�s National Prevailing Wage and Helpdesk Center (NPWHC) in Washington, DC. Below are updated Frequently Asked Questions about the new process.

From my understanding the new law should not be applicable to me, since we filed for the PWD on 12/30/09. I am not sure why we need to reinitiate the process, since the new law is _effective_ as of 01/01/2010.

Is anyone in a similar situation or anyone has any advice?

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neeshpal

07-12 03:25 PM

Thanks a lot for quick replies. That answer my questions.

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ashokmohan

02-17 03:22 PM

You can go and get it stamped in Canada. I went to Ottawa on Jan 25th and got it stamped same boat as you.

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pandu345

12-19 12:03 PM

Hi All,

Here is my question.
I was working for employer A.I left employer A on Nov 15 , I received my last paycheck from employer on Nov 22, 2007.
I know my employer A did not revoke / cancel my H1b.

I accepted offer from employer B on Nov 20.I came in communication with employer B lawyers on Nov 23.I am based in one state and work
in another state.Lawyer got all the documents from me on Nov 25,Then she said , we will have to get prevailing wages from two states , and she
send the request for them.We received prevailing wages from states on Dec 11.Then she sent my H1b transfer petetion to USCIS on Dec 14.I received
the receipt from USCIS on Dec 18.

Will my H1b get transferred , or will I have any issues.

Thanks,
Pandu

navin80

03-16 11:25 AM

Hello all,

I am looking to consult an attorney.
Does anyone know anyone around Edison area in NJ.
I did google and found
- Tewari
- SK Gupta

Does anyone have any experiences with these attorneys. Please advise.

Thanks.

gc_eb2_waiter

08-01 10:24 AM

The G325A form contain the below text.

Applicant: Be sure to put your name and Alien Registration Number in the box outlined by heavy border below.

My lawyer mentioned that it is A# number. At present we dont need to fill anything.
Is it true?

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07-11 11:53 PM

I applied for the subscription, please approve my subscription

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gs77

08-17 10:24 PM

Hi,

I looked at different forums. But I could not locate a definite answer for my questions.

I have H1. My wife has H4. Both will expire in 11/2009. I don't have stamp
but she has stamp. We both used AP to enter into USA recently. We did not use our EAD.

Questions on EAD paper filing :

14) Manner of Last Entry into the U.S. ?
15) Current Immigration status ?

I believe that the answer to the question 14 should be PAROLEE or Advance Porole. How about question 15 ?

The immigration officer put 'Conditions: AOS DA' in our AP and new I-94 both. What will be the answer, AOS Pending or H1B/H4 ?

Please share your experience. Thanks in advance.

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sodh

07-25 02:20 PM

Yes
I second that.

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qtoask

06-14 11:10 PM

Pl post .. how many of you got I-485 approved since June 1 2007.

I heard lot of approvals coming....

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sdrblr

09-15 04:47 PM

I wonder what the ACLU will come up with :)

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tnite

10-17 06:24 PM

NY members interested in the luncheon are most welcome
---------------------------------------------------------------------
We would like to meet Tristate CT IV members and try and get to know each other. This will be a very casual "no obligation" event where everyone can chit-chat, have lunch, discuss on past / future - IV / NON-IV events.

We would like to meet up at "Coromandel - Cuisine of India " at Orange, CT. Here are the details

Coromandel - Cuisine of India
Hitchcock Plaza, 185 Boston Post Road, Orange - (203) 795-9055
website : http://www.coromandelcuisine.com/

Date: 10/27/2007 - Saturday noon

Time: 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sivalika

04-15 10:29 AM

Hi !!!

i was suffered fm TB long time back around 5 yrs back .... i am scared whether due to this reason my I-485 gonna be rejected. I already went trought the full 9 months medication at that time and been fully cures as my own mamaji was a TB specialist.

Can someone suggest me if they have gone through the same case. And if i need any documents to let them know that i am fully cured because my X-ray shows that spot/scars which says that i had TB and my mamaji told me that the scars will never go because of the medcation thing?? Please help

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kshitijnt

08-27 07:48 PM

Hello All,

I am in a strange situation.

My attorney is about to file my I-1485 this week.

My details:

Previous company:
Perm PD: June 2006 EB2
I-140 EB2 approved in Nov/2006.

Current company:
PERM filed: Oct/24/2007
I-140 EB2 filed on Jan/31/2008
trying to recapture the old PD of June/2006.

Today, when I checked my I-140 status, it says "Request for Evidence sent" yesterday.

What are my options now? I do not know if I am eligible to go ahead and file my I-485 now ? What are the implications if I go ahead and file my I-485 now.? Please let me know your ideas.

Thanks in advance

wait for the RFE. And respond to it first. Or you can go ahead and file anyway.

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bondgoli007

12-20 02:11 AM

This was expected. Tancredo was a single issue candidate and most people of this good country are sensible. They see him for what he is. Economic hardships combined with lots of false information can easily bias even the most well meaning citizen.

He did manage to bring illegal immigration topic to prominence and promoted general hatred towards immigrants. Personally I am happy he is out and I hope this country will be spared from any further "public service" from this abominable politician.

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WeShallOvercome

10-31 01:12 PM

Hi Gurus,
My PD is 04/2002 and RD is 18/June/2007, EB3 India. EAD approved and fp done in Aug.

There are no soft LUDs on my 485 after 7/17/2007. What does this mean? Is there a way to check if I am stuck in name check?

I see many people with later RD and PD getting soft LUDs. Is anyone else in the same boat? Please advice..

thanks
-badal

So now we are tracking Soft LUDs as well :)

Not getting a soft LUD is the norm. It just means your case was not an exception and you can't expect any miracles ..Yet! But Getting LUDs is not guaranteed to result in GC approval either. So please stop worrying about every little thing and enjoy your life... (Like I'm doing visiting this forum every now and then ;)

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memyselfandus

04-21 09:09 PM

Was it paper based filing?

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TO BE OR NO TO BE

05-31 07:22 PM

Thank you very much Bluekayal and NJ09. Appreciate your response.

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gbof

07-15 04:59 PM

What was done under medical ? Vaccination , TB test , XRAY , ..

Thanks for your help.. also would you let me know doc's name if I PM you ?

NO insurance company will cover the medical examination for immigration and this is true. Medical cost may vary.

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TexDBoy

11-22 03:37 PM

I think
- For Perm and subsequently I-140, you can only specify employers that are directly relevant to the number of years of experience claimed in labor. The details of the petitioning employer are most relevant and all your past employments should add up to the experience required
- However, for I-485, which is your application, you have to specify all the employments that you filed taxes for and from whom you received your paystubs (primary/secondary).

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lazycis

01-28 09:16 PM

There will be no FP for EAD renewal.

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03-31 02:04 PM

why is this thread not coming on the HomePage?

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saileshdude

10-16 01:10 PM

I was in a similar situation as you and had to use this firm. H1B filing experience was fine but the entire GC process and filing was not a good experience at all. There were days I had to call the paralegal and teach him the new immigration laws and that's never a good sign ! Because of their mistake I was stuck in Eb3 rather being in Eb2. May be they will deal differently with your case but have a chat with them and your company managers before you agree to use them. I m with another company and another attorney firm and they are awesome !

Anyway, pm me if you need more info. Good luck,

Just sent you a PM

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ragz4u

04-26 11:59 AM

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/20060425-8.html

THE PRESIDENT: I want to thank the members of the United States Senate for joining on a very important discussion, and the discussion was how to get a comprehensive immigration bill out of the United States Senate.
I will report to the American people that there is a common desire to have a bill that enforces the border, a bill that has interior enforcement -- in other words, a bill that will hold people to account for hiring somebody who is here illegally -- but a bill that also recognizes we must have a temporary worker program, a bill that does not grant automatic amnesty to people, but a bill that says, somebody who is working here on a legal basis has the right to get in line to become a citizen.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/images/20060425-8_d-0218-250h.jpg (http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/images/20060425-8_d-0218-515h.html) I thank the members, both Republicans and Democrats, for taking on this really hard, hard assignment. It's important that we reform a system that is not working. It's important that we uphold the values of the United States of America. It's important that we treat people with dignity.
And I strongly believe that we have a chance to get an immigration bill that is comprehensive in nature to my desk before the end of this year.
And again, I want to thank both the Republicans and Democrats for the spirit of hard work. I particularly want to thank Senator Kennedy and Senator McCain for taking the lead on this important bill on the floor of the United States Senate. And I assured the members that I look forward to working with them as they try to get a bill out of the Senate by Memorial Day and into conference.
Thank you all.

dilbert_cal

07-08 03:57 PM

Are you a first time stamper OR have had a stamp before. If you have had a stamp before - read further...

I believe you can change your appointment 2 times ( or probably three times only ). You should be able to change your appointment to Delhi if dates becomes available and you are within the limit of number of changes of appointments allowed.

saikatmandal

02-11 02:53 PM

I didnt mean to burst your bubble...but may be its just that you are getting another finger printing notice. Its expires in 15 months. If you read the other forums July 07 filers have started getting their next set of FP notices. I wouldnt get too carried away.

That definitely sounds like a reasonable explaination .... !!!

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EB3Victim

09-20 10:43 PM

The USCIS provided further clarification and instructions on I-140 premium processing following the initial announcement. They listed three types of cases that are not eligible for premium processing, even if they are within the EB3 preference category. These are:

a second I-140 filing, if an initial I-140 remains pending

a labor certification substitution request

a duplicate labor certification requests (i.e. those cases where the original labor certification is not included)

These cases simply have additional processing requirements that cannot be met within the premium processing timeframe. These exceptions are in addition to the EB3 �other worker� cases which, as mentioned above, are not eligible for premium processing.

Go through the below link

http://www.murthy.com/news/n_eb3140.html

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mdcowboy

12-31 04:31 PM

I have realised that all Legal Immigration hopes ,in this country of dreams, are futile and there are better things in life than just to wait / hope for a change.
I am making a resolution , not to worry for Green card and priority data in the coming year :).

I am in the same boat with you. :o :rolleyes:

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PingMe

06-07 09:52 AM

You should be fine to switch to H4 if you have too !

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05-24 07:57 AM

Alright. Thanks for the clarification :)

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goel_ar

01-06 05:10 PM

1. March 31 , 2008 - I am on H4 with I-94=12345..
2. June 27,2008 - H1 got approved with i-94=12345.. valid from 10/1/2008-9/23/2011.
3. Sep 10, 2008 - I enter US on h4 with i-94=abcdef.....

4. Oct 1 , 2008 - Ideally (as confirmed by USCIS, immigration lawyer) , I-94=12345.. should have been in system (become active) and status changed to H1.
But it didn't happen and I-94=abcdef... is active.

Questions:
1. What is my status from Oct 1, 2008 - Dec 31, 2008? H1 or H4.
Since my h1 status was not in system, i didn't get any SSN & hence no paystubs.

2. What is the safest & quickest way to get my h1 status active in system..

a) Stamping in Canada - Quickest for me. Is it safe ?
b) Get status changed without getting out of country? - But how?
c) Stamping from Home country? -- Last option.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks,
AG

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g.chandan

10-07 06:58 AM

Hi All
I am on a B1 - Visa visited 4 times to USA.But last time (4th time) i over stayed for about 20 days after the i-94 expired.

Normally first 3 times they gave i-94 for 3 months, last time it is only for 2 months, so it's my mistake i haven't looked it till iam

back. All this happened in June 2009. Now i am aproved for H1 - B for the year 2010. I need to face a visa interview. In DS 156

Application, Question No 38. ( Have you ever voilated the terms of a U.S. Visa or Been unlawfully present in,........)
I am checking the option Yes. Can you all help me in this please. Does 20 days extra stay will effect my H1 - B visa or if i get

the Visa, when i go to USA on H1 - B Visa does immigration stop me. Please help me on this case. Thanks a lot for all your

help.

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ricky26

02-07 12:55 AM

Thanks for the reply.

What if, only H4 holder (AOS pending) returns to USA using valid (till Dec' 09) H4 stamping ? Do they (at POE) come to know that spouse's 485 has been approved ?

H1 holder (485 approved) will return afer couple of days.

Urgent please help by giving your suggestions/opinions/experiences.

Thank you.

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rajmehrotra

07-10 01:23 PM

Hi,

Can I work for a couple of days using tax form 1099 while on H1B? The amount for the number of hours while working will be less than $600. Please help.

No 1099 needs to be filed by the entity writing the check, if the amount is less than $600. Declare it as "Other Income" (probably with a Schedule "C", please check) on your tax return. Check IRS.GOV and www.investsafe.com/language.html

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payal_nag

02-26 06:03 PM

Thank you for the response. I correct myself, I shouldn't say Visa. I mean Approval Notice. With the approval notice in hand which is effective May 2007, can I switch employers before that and get a transfer of H1 for the 3 years based on that or will I have to wait till May? Thanks!

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memyselfandus

02-03 08:36 AM

You can always use your own attorney for advice, not related to employer. I use usavisanow.com. Immigration Law Office of Maritza Diaz, PC. (http://usavisanow.com/) guys. Charges are reasonable and response is quick.

I have used them for my H1B and green card process.

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shekhar10c

06-13 06:46 PM

He is probably stucked in name check. If that clears he will get the visa.

Hey people , i need help. as EB-3 is current , my spouse who is on H4 ,applied for change of status(H-4 to F-1) ,so can i file her papers along wth mine in I-485 or not? change of status is in process.
Reply soon!!!!!!

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WaldenPond

04-22 09:13 AM

Surely won't fly.
I-140 doesn't belong to the employee. Period.

Then ownership of I-140 needs to change as well. Maybe this is something we could all work in the long term.... and not an immediate goal at this time. Of'course this will need help from everybody on the forums. Something like this is sure to help all of us.

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Dakota Newfie

08-12 10:44 PM

If you look closely at June 2008's VB, you'll find the following statement:

E. EMPLOYMENT THIRD PREFERENCE VISA AVAILABILITY

Demand for numbers, primarily by Citizenship and Immigration Services Offices for adjustment of status cases, is expected to bring the Employment Third preference category very close to the annual numerical limit in June. As a result, this category is likely to experience retrogressions or visa unavailability beginning in July. Such action would only be temporary, however, and a complete recovery of the cut-off dates would occur for October, the first month of the new fiscal year.

In other words, the PD for EB3 ROW will (or should) be back to March 1, 2006 in October??? So very close for you!

http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4231.html

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January 5th, 2004, 05:14 PM

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To put the 1,092,904 shutter releases into context, it equates to 34 hours of continuous shooting at 8 frames per second.

The camera is one of the bodies used in the Matthaus Photographic Studio in Nuremburg, Germany.

Nikon Germany�s Service Manager Joachim Hoffman said: �This is the most shutter releases I have ever seen. The F5 shutter is, in my opinion, definitely more durable than any other camera�s. Because the F5 in question was well looked after and serviced regularly, that makes it last longer- it�s a bit like going to the dentist!� he added.

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fromnaija

01-09 10:59 AM

Is it possible to have second H1b visa and Labor certificate approved for employer "B" while working on H1b visa and having Labor and I 140 approved for employer "A" ??

Gurus pls suggest..

Thanks..

Omved

Yes, that is possible. However, you don't need to have a second H1B with employer "B" in order for that employer to apply for LC and 140 for you since LC and 140 are for future jobs.

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czar_the_king

04-16 06:36 PM

I am planning to use AC21 to change employers. I signed G28 to allow the attorney for my current employer to represent me before USCIS. Since I signed G28, is it possible for my current employer to withdraw my I-485 application?

Please advise on this...

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08-07 06:32 PM

I know it's a naive question...but i can't guess...Is it last Update?

deba

09-28 01:02 PM

Walk-ins are highly unlikely, if not impossible at any location. Emergency visa appointments are still available, I think. Check the individual consulate for the procedure. However, you need to have a genuine and verifiable reason for an emergency appointment. For regular visitor visas, you must get an appointment scheduled in advance, simply no way around it.

buehler

07-21 11:54 AM

Hi, Please let me know your thought on my situation. I was on H1 thru Company A. I don't have pay stubs for the last 3 months of 2005 since i was on bench, but got the salary that is mentioned on LCA in pay stubs till end of Sept. When I asked my employer to pay me for the time on bench he said that he has paid the LCA salary and doesn't have to pay.
So having said that, am I in Status or Out of Status?

If the W-2 is for more than the LCA requirement, you don't have any thing to worry about.

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krishnam70

07-11 11:02 PM

If you have a job, getting a work permit will take only 4 hrs inside the consulate. No line. Give the passport and come back within 4 hrs to collect it.
No labor certification for computer(s/w for sure, dunno about h/w side for sure) professionals or petition. Need to show offer letter from the company and letter from company to the consulate.

1. Post on canadian job sites with local canadian address
2. get an interview call, canadian employers do not do interviews over phone like in the US. They ask for personal appearances.
3. If you land the job get an offer letter
4. Take the offer letter to the CCanadian embassy and get a work visa.
5. Once you enter Canada apply for Permanent residency.

cheers

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teky

11-13 07:26 AM

Gurus,

This is the latest 485 inventory posted on immigration-law.com. My PD is EB3 I 04/2002.

Can anybody provide some information on how long the wait would be.

http://www.uscis.gov/USCIS/New%20Structure/3rd%20Level%20(Left%20Nav%20Children)/Green%20Card%20-%203rd%20Level/Pending%20Form%20I485%20Reports.pdf

USCIS - Questions & Answers: Pending Employment-Based Form I-485 Inventory (http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=5e170e6bcb7e3210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCR D&vgnextchannel=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60a RCRD)

Really appreciate,

Regards,

Teky.

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gsanthosh

10-15 01:08 PM

Hi ,
Iam also in same boat. Application reached USCIS NSC on Aug3rd. Signed by Kujera. No updates till now.

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05-06 04:24 PM

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fester8542

04-08 02:47 PM

Haha love it, fester! :thumb:

How about a new footer as well? :hugegrin:

:lol:
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Beat or something?

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shri

01-20 06:54 PM

Hello there,

Can anyone please write toll free telephone # for the USCIS Premium Processing (I140, H1-B Renewals). Just wondering if one can obtain Receipt Number for the I-140 filing?

Thanks...

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vidyasagar

11-30 02:10 AM

Hi Vaibhav,

Can you help me.

I want to rotate any 3D object which was uploaded from opendialogbox.

Pls help me in this.

Regards,
Vidyasagar

hi
I am new to wpf. i am working on my project in WPF on 3d objects where i managed to add the functionality of zoom and rotate but struggling to add pan tool. can you please help me achieve that. I downloaded the 3dtools.dll from code plex website and added to reference in blend along with trackball codes therefore my zoom and rotate started working. But doesn't have pan functionality yet.

Thanks
Vaibhav

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jingi1234

08-23 08:55 AM

Hello,
My friend has H1 and working for company A. He transferred his H1 and started working for company B (Its been 4 weeks and he has 2 paystubs from company B).

He is sure that company A didn't revoked / cancelled his H1. Now he wants to move to company A (old one). Is this possible?

or does he need to re-transfer his H1 from copnay B to company A?

Please advise.

Thanks

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08-09 12:40 PM

Bs+5 or masters+1 years of experience

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eswaraprasad73

04-10 10:55 AM

I read in murthy.com that premium processing is not eligible for Substitution Labors for EB3 category.
Can anyone of you please clarify, if EB2 substitution labor is eligible to file under premium process

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edaltsis

06-07 01:51 PM

It's up to the employer if he wants to keep you as an employee and has the right to cancel your H1 if he likes to do so. Just because you left the country doesnt mean that your H1 becomes invalid, but again its up to the employer.

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jliechty

February 11th, 2004, 09:30 AM

Well, the first thing that I noticed was not the ceiling, but rather the cute little Shetland Sheepdog in the middle of the walkway. Of course, I love dogs (and especially Shelties)... ;)

I think if I stare at the image long enough, I can sometimes see the effect you're talking about, though it's not like that effect jumps out at me. IMHO, this picture is still a good study of geometric forms, whether or not it has issues with optical illusions. :)

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GC_holder_tos

08-15 04:13 PM

Hi,
My parents got their second Re-entry Permit approved (applied through Application I-131) in first week of Jan 2008. This rentry permit is valid for 2 years (i.e. till Jan 2010). They had applied for the second Re-entry Permit on 16th Feb 2007. And after applying it they left 19th Feb 2007.

They are planning to return to US in Jan 2010 before the Re-entry Permit expiration. I read on this and other forums that with Re-entry Permit a US resident can live outside for more than 1 year and less than 2 years.

In my parent's case, when they will return back to US in Jan 2010, they will already have spend 3 years outside US.

I was concerned that the 2 year stay limit will be counted from the day my parents left US or the day when the Re-entry Permit got approved?

Secondly, Is there any limit on number of times a Re-Entry Permit can be applied?

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09-24 03:57 PM

People who PMed me, please check yu e-mail/ Pms for response.

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uimv

05-27 01:21 PM

Hello,

If PD is current, are there disadvantages of being outside US (on AP) ?

Thank You.

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scoldme

04-26 09:04 PM

CRAZYMONK,

I have a question, for my fresh petition 2010 will it be subject to the H1B CAP??

There are many diferent opinions, i too understood that renewals and extensions wont be subject to cap. But there is no clear statement on my scenario.

Thanks.

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gc_check

04-12 10:58 PM

This is very good.
Anybody coming to the site for the first time want to evaluate what you are, where you are going and where did you reach. This link will provide some inputs for them to evaluate "Where did you reach"

Media people visiting IV will also know what you were written about.
And I guess there are quite a few of them.

http://www.newsobserver.com/104/story/427793.html

julia0345

05-06 03:58 PM

How to check my DV_2011 result?

walking_dude

07-25 06:55 PM

NumbersUSA and ALIPAC are turning out to be reference sources on Immigration on IV. A lot of us seem to believe in the adage - Keep your friends close, but the enemies closer :D

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gxr

11-06 08:59 AM

I just wanted to confirm that "Document mailed to applicant" on I-131 means that the AP is approved. Can someone who saw a similar message please share their experience?

gxr

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mohanrajgoyal

04-21 08:05 PM

Hi

I have appied EAD and AP together for me and my wife.

I didn't receive the receipt notice for my wife EAD but the check is in cashed. when my wife called TEXAS center, IO told it was rejected by mistake and reprocessed.

She will call again tomorrow to find more. Her online status is still, petition is not signed and rejected. Application mailed back. But I didn't get the any document in mail.

Mohan

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sertasheep

03-25 11:30 AM

If the exec is laid off, the dependent cannot continue working.
All beneficiaries of the petition must leave the US immediately.
I don't think there is any regulation that the employer needs to pay for relocation, but usually, they will provide you a one-way ticket back to your homecountry, but that will be the least of your worries.

Avoid working on L2 if you think the L1 sponsoring company is not trust-worthy or stable.

An L-1 work visa is issued to an executive of a company that has worked with his/her company outside of the USA for at least one year. Dependents receive L-2 visas and a spouse can apply for an EAD. Trouble is, if the exec is laid off, all of the dependant visas immediately expire and both the exec and his/her spouse must leave the USA!

Any ideas how to alleviate this issue? Getting a H1B visa is impractical since they are so scarce.

Also in this case, is the exec's employer liable for relocation expenses?

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PHANI_TAVVALA

05-10 01:20 PM

1) Will immigration department check back with uni if i am still enrolled (note: i got paper signed from my advisor with my graduation dates on it)
Google SEVIS I-20. The SEVIS system will tell USCIS and universities whether you are in status or not as per F-1 requirements. You will need to get a new I-20 and you are out-of-status until you have one.

2) Should i leave US and apply for a new visa and a new i 20 with that community college?
If yes, then what are my chances of getting a visa?
Don't do it. Your F-1 Visa will most probably be rejected due to this out-of-status issue. You might be able to get a new I-20 from outside the country but not a VISA.

3) What are my options??
Stick with Purdue and do as the International Advisor says (you don't have many options). Hopefully you will be reinstated (Purdue should have issued a new I-20 when they re-admitted you from community college. I am not sure why they overlooked)>

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gc_kaavaali

06-03 10:48 AM

Sorry to tell you!!! you cannot work without you receiving EAD approval.

Hello all,

My EAD expired in late April

Prior to that, I applied for renewal but my old lawyer forgot to either include something with the application or made a typo, and it bounced back a few days ago (late May).

I got a new laywer to re-file the EAD, however I will not get my new one in time to start my post-college job in early July, as the process takes around 90 days from what I remember.

If I show up to the first day with a filing receipt, a written letter from the new lawyer explaining what happened, and my old EAD, will I not get the job?

How do employers handle something like this?

Thank you in advance for any help.

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va_il

04-28 01:39 PM

Who would be better to handle a complex GC case Murthy or Rajiv's office.
Any experience? I am looking for somebody who is responsive and can handle difficult queries from USCIS, if need be. How much do they charge for complete EB case?

Do you have any other suggestions?

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sth2009

07-24 03:36 AM

I am in the same situation.I was told by my lawyer that if company A didnt cancel the H1b and as long as u have a valid and unexpired h1b with company A u dont need to retransfer to company A

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Bruce2000

01-11 10:27 PM

I saw a prior post talking about this issue but has no answer. I am very upset about it.

Vermont Center received my OPT Application on Oct 31,2008. But I checked my status online and it said, "Your case can not be found at this time in Case Status Online. Please check your receipt number and try again. If you need further assistance please call the National Customer Service Center at 1.800.375.5283."

Could anyone who experienced this could tell me why? (I inputted the case number correctly.) Can you guys still get your OPT card after this happened?

Thanks a lot!

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h1b_forever

03-03 10:48 AM

I have posted my details in above thread
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum114-jobs-and-networking/2007385-jobs-and-networking-area-on-iv.html

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Canuck

02-17 07:18 PM

I read through the first guy's testimony and all it talks about are the yearly issuance of student visas from FY2001-07. Can you point me to the person who actually talks about EB green cards for STEM students in the US?

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AreWeThereYet

08-12 10:16 AM

Why would anyone pay $2 for this? :D

Some would, if only it can send a push notification as soon as the new bulletin arrives and if it can send a push notification for every soft/hard LUD on your cases. What do you say?

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05-07 12:37 AM

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vskp

12-28 03:14 PM

Following is the situation:

My H1 (6 years) expiring on 7th Mar'08 (have 35 days of vacation might be good till 11th Apr'08)
Labour filed on 06/20/2007 , still awaiting..(so 365 days rule does not apply for 7th yr ext)
Spouse was on H4, got H1 in Oct'2007 (no stamping done for H1).

Falling short of 10 weeks to get the 365 days rule

Options that I learnt for me getting 7th yr extension and staying in the country:

Option1:
Convert to H4 toward the end of H1 6 yrs expiry date till June 20th(to get the 365 days rule in effect)
File for 7th year extension based on the 365 days rule
Convert from H4 to H1 and start working.

Option 2:

Get Canada working visa (not sure how long it will take to get though) and work till June 20th there (to get the 365 days rule in effect)
File for 7th year extension based on the 365 days rule
Stamping in canada to return to USA.
(I am hoping 7th year extension can be done while I am outside the country)

Option 3:

Go back to India for 3 months wait till June 20th,
File for 7th year extension based on the 365 days rule
Stamping in India to return to USA.
(I am hoping 7th year extension can be done while I am outside the country)

Option 4:

Leave for India immediately and stay there for 10 weeks and recapture them along with 7th year extension(while I am in India )

Can the gurus/experts please put in any issues I might be running into or if any of the option above are not at all feasible(may be I am ignorant)

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octoberbloom

12-05 10:43 AM

If we interpret each and every statement, we will come up with hundreds of comments/opinions. But no conclusion. Right now the processing for AOS is 6 months.
I guess Naturalization means citizenship. Did u apply for citizenship or 485?

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MetteBB

05-11 02:53 AM

maybe make the colours a bit nicer? and add a price aswell... makes it look a lot more like a stamp.

But I like the dual stamp idea! Well done :pleased:

/mette

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vvicky72

10-17 02:42 PM

The title is misleading - can be interpreted as "You are leaving your job and wife because you got an RFE and you want to know if there is any problem?"

I know, I saw it now and had a good laugh. Its just the job. I would have many more problems, besides GC, to consider if I were leaving her !!:)

I wanted to find out if my wife's application could get into trouble because I left my employer who filed my GC application. Ideally, her case is dependent on mine and not directly to my employer, so I am thinking it should be fine. But wanted to get some expert opinions.

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Abhishika

09-22 05:20 PM

thank u all. I will ask them to give a copy to apply for SSN

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rockstart

04-14 11:28 AM

Use the AR 11 online process to change address do it seperately for yourself and your wife. When you have finished submitting new address the system will prompt you asking if you have any pending applications with USCIS. At that time enter the receipt numbers of all pending applications. This will do the needful. You can track the success by checking the case status in few days you can see a soft LUD on your pending applications. Also in few weeks you will receive a letter from USCIS at your new address that tells that they have updated the address. Some folks even call USCIS and verify the address change.

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saketkapur

12-28 03:12 PM

I think it depends under which past fee regime did you file then.......people who filed at that time under the old fee structure need to keep ponying up as far as I remember.
Post it on the lawyer's forum side...you might get a more acuurate/updated answer otherwise I guess its 380 bucks now(the fee was again bumped up on nov 23).

Above is just the information that I have and should not be considered legal advice.

peace

ektha123

12-10 02:41 PM

Hi
we applied ap in octoer and we got receipt on oct 24th but we found a typo error on my daughters receipt instead of 'ekthasruthi sakala' it was ektha sakala' will it be a problem at the port of entry . please suggest me.

mdkris

03-31 11:18 AM

Hello!

My H1B got expired in Sep 2010, ( applied for transfer before expiry), got RFE and finally approval last week, but 797 form has the validity from current date(approved date) instead of requested date in Sep 2010. So now is the period from sep 2010 to 797 approved date is considered as out of status or how it is? I have paystubs during this time and on job all the time. Any implications while going for h1b stamping in India and or at port of entry and in future GC.

Any inputs are apprciated. Thanks!

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GCBy3000

01-10 10:06 AM

Can we make use of this town hall meeting? Any Idea?

http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=20340

Town Hall meetings are an excellent chance for you to show your Members of Congress that positive immigration legislation is a priority for their constituents. Check this calendar so you don't miss these opportunities to ask your legislators for their positions on immigration, and tell them yours!

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achu

09-23 07:03 PM

... and ideally it should be copy of your approved labor.

I applied my labor as Software Engineer and BEC approved it with a code of Mechanical Engineer. I got it changed, but took me a year though. They kept my change request until the end when they were ready to shutdown BEC.

I probably go ahead and use what in the approved labor certificate. by the way how do I find exact job-code that I used in the I-140.

thanks.
achu

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cbpds

07-23 06:19 PM

According to the revised law, a law officer cannot approach any legal immigrant and ask for documents unless he is already questioning that person for some other offence

Hence I dont think u need to take the docs to an Ice cream shop, but a copy in the car or something wud suffice logically !!

Has anyone considered: In Arizona, what's going to happen to all of the immigrants who are there perfectly legally and are actually creating American jobs via the EB5 green card program? Will the be harassed? I say probably.

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saketkapur

05-07 05:09 PM

They will take your I-94 at the airport in washington where you will board your flight....

In my experience my previous I-94 was issued to me on AP for one year when I had come in......they did not bother with the I-94 on my H1B.

Anyways since yours is an international flight the agent at the counter will take care of whichever they want.....just present them with both. Mostly they do not bother with the one in I-797 notice.

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saimrathi

07-03 02:39 PM

Just read that if you have sent one check for 1-140 & 485 then the whole package will be returned and you would have to refile your I140. If you have sent separate checks then they will just return the I485 part of your package.

Source: Either Fragromen or Murthy. Check their websites.

Sent in two checks.

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metzkim

09-04 10:23 AM

Hi guys,

I am new to this forum. I am a recruiter and I have a candidate for a position in the US who is close to getting an offer. Here is my situation, any help would be appreciated.

Candidate is a Canadian Citizen currently in the US working with TN (Nafta Visa)

He has renewed his TN 4 times.

He is now close to receiving an offer from my client, but his current company just filed his petition for a H1B visa.

Not sure what is best for him and new employer. Candidate just received an email from his HR that he can't travel during petition, but would the new job, he will need to go to Israel for training. Can he make a request to his current employer to withdraw his petition once he decides to change companies in order to do TN visa again?

Any help would me much appreciated.

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needGCcool

09-26 07:13 PM

I am in the same situation.........

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cantonsale10@gmail.com

09-19 08:52 PM

Friends,

Any EB3-I Approvals for September 2010... How long did you guys wait ?

Thanks
Eb3ian.

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immigrationmatters30

03-15 03:54 PM

Very few members are intrested in discussing H1B as most IV members are on EAD.

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sukhyani

05-24 05:29 PM

Please make sure you pass on information about IV to everyone you know. We can atleast grow 4 to 5 times if not more.
Apologize for my ignorance... can you please educate me how to send invites to my friends from IV website? I couldn't locate the link!

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Datter

June 15th, 2005, 08:02 PM

Although the disembodied lizard foot might be a bit distracting, I think the photo might be improved if it were horizontally flipped.

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redddiv

07-11 10:23 AM

Mention the source... No need for more rumours..

Some news are saying the Senator and the House are about to introduce seperate immigration bills. Do we still have any chances this year? Should it be easier to pass a seperate bill that may be more or less favorable to our legal immigrants?

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gcdreamer05

09-12 10:11 AM

Hi,

There are some changes in applying for US visa from canada.

Please read this article, talk or find someone who recently tried it, make sure there are no issues and then plan your travel.

MurthyDotCom : Change in Procedures to Apply for a U.S. Visa in Canada (http://murthy.com/news/n_chacan.html)

There is a change in the procedure for applying for a visa at a U.S. consulate in Canada, which went into effect September 1, 2010. As many MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers apply for U.S. visas in Canada, this information should help them to plan appropriately.

New Appointment System

To schedule a visa appointment in Canada, applicants must use CSC Visa Information Services to apply for a U.S. visa at a U.S. consulate in Canada. There are no surcharges for phone calls or access to the appointment service. There are standard visa issuance fees, of course, which are charged by the U.S. Department of State (DOS).

More on that link....

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nlssubbu

08-21 01:09 PM

Is it a good idea for Moderators/Admin to create new forum for the GC approved folks. This purposes is to...

To retain them and could be helpful with their experiences for other members.
This is another way of giving it back.

your thoughts...

I do agree. In fact, some of the IV founders also received their GC :D. I hope they will consider this request to help others with our past experiance.

Thanks

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meenu_a

03-30 11:45 PM

Hi Becks,

Thank you so much. I am much relieved now. So, As long as I work for the sponsoring employer(even though the labor location is different) is it ok to file Ac-21 and move to another employer.? My impression was that I was obliged to work for that exact position(the one on the labor) to prove the 'intent'.

Thanks.

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06-30 12:31 PM

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vikramy

06-05 03:00 PM

You can use EAD with current employer. I think your company has to do the change your I9 form to EAD. You don't need to inform as you are not changing any company.
Hi

My H1 is valid until 2010 Feb.
I am also having EAD till 2011 June.
I have been with my employer all along.... and prefer to stay with same employer till GC.

I DONT want to apply for my H1 extension since they are asking lot of questions like Contract details etc with RFE's.

My Q is - Can i use EAD with my EXISTING employer or EAD should be used for only NEW employer based on AC21?

If i use EAD with my current employer, should i have to inform uscis(any process involved)?

Please suggest...

Thanks for any suggestions

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conundrum

12-18 04:15 PM

Unless the dependent is going to have his 140 filed under EB1 I am not sure it would help.

But to answer your question, I think it is ok to file. Check with your attorney before you do that though

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raj22

02-28 08:53 AM

HI,

I am on F-1 visa since Jan 2007. and got started my OPT in August 2009. I have on campus income through out the year in 2009. so how do I file the taxes, n which forms. for tax return 2009.

also I got married to a F-1 student in Jan 2009. She is also having her OPT started in August 2009. She has income only on OPT (from Aug to Dec 2009) so which forms she should also file.

my wife did paid her college fee in Jan 2009. and we have paid the rent through checks on leased apt.
So can she/we ask for deduction of any kind?

also which status we have to fill in. "Married filing jointly/separately".

please reply as soon as possible.

nyte_crawler

04-05 09:13 PM

Pineapple, although I dont have a solution to your problem I can definitely say that something is better than nothing. The senate dont have a problem with legal immigration, as long it is legal. If we can get our EB provisions as a part of this bill, most of them will be happy. There will quirks that can apply to immigrants as well, but that has to be addresed by the part of overall nature of the bill.

anilsal

11-11 08:54 PM

and/or calling USCIS customer service to inform that you have not received the physical card.

Please join your local state chapters.