Visa Fun!

Not the credit card, though those can be fun too. The "you can stay in the country" kind. It was just over a year ago that we were approved for our first temporary resident visa. It had its own era of "fun" as we had to go back to Canada to apply, which with the flooding in Calgary, and the missed mentioning of a document that we needed from Mexico, it turned into a 3 month return to Canada.
We have 2 weeks left on that visa, but on Friday, we gave them up. That is what you have to do when you apply for a renewal. They take your visa card and staple it to the folder with all of the papers you filled out. The agent was very patient and helpful, as apparently I should have brought the folders too, and they have a sign that says they don't photocopy, but he did. It was my 4th visit I believe, but we have officially been registered as having applied. This means we can stay in the country until they reject. If they don't reject us, we will have a 3 year visa!! Which means less time spent filling forms and trying to figure out what the agent told us to do...still hard to keep up with the translating in my head.
Funny thing is it depends a lot on which agent you get. We went in the morning, were told one thing, so I brought our children so they could sign papers, and perhaps give fingerprints. The next fellow didn't want anything from our children so they sat for the 30 minute process and missed some school. He also tossed out 2 other papers the first agent had asked for in the morning.
So, here goes praying that what this last agent asked for matches what the next agent is looking for. And praying that my signatures pass the test...last year I had to return twice to resign papers...my signature looks similar, but never identical. If it is identical, then it is a forgery for sure!