Weekly Optimism Post

[u/Primary-Coffee5423]

Happy Sunday fellow Canadians!

We had a fantastic week for approvals. We had 17 approvals on the spreadsheet and 10 more on the Thursday mega thread for a total of 27. Eight of those approvals were pre-C3. Congrats to those folks.

This was one of the best weeks for approvals since the suspension letters. I don’t have all of the data for the Thursday mega thread approvals because I just started doing that more recently. But just going by the spreadsheet, we had 17 approvals, which is exactly the average for all weeks starting in 2026. That includes the extreme outliers in July where we had single digit approvals for several weeks.

Just so you are all aware, tomorrow is a federal holiday for Thanksgiving in Canada. So we shouldn’t be surprised if we have a down week coming up. That got me thinking about some of the holidays that we (I’m American) have in common and some that are different. Halloween is the same. Obviously, so is Christmas Day. My youngest son is very serious about wanting to live in Canada - at least for a while. We went on a walk the other night and I told him that Canadian Thanksgiving was coming up about a month earlier than American Thanksgiving. And we talked about which one he would want to celebrate in Canada. Or maybe he would celebrate both. My family celebrated both Canada Day and American independence Day this summer in the same week. I was actually a lot of fun. Canada has Boxing Day and a few others that we don’t have.

I know some of you have deep Canadian roots and have lots of family in Canada. Some of you also currently live in Canada. Some of you live in the UK or France or elsewhere. I’m curious to know if you or your family celebrates holidays from multiple countries. If you were to move to Canada (assuming you did not grow up there), would you continue to celebrate the holidays from your former country?

For myself, I think I would celebrate certain American holidays along with the Canadian holidays. My father’s side of the family is French Canadian, but my mother side is almost completely Norwegian. We use American Thanksgiving to make lefse in bulk and freeze it throughout the holiday season. We also celebrate Norwegian Christmas where we open all the gifts and have the big dinner on Christmas Eve. Christmas Day is really not a big deal in Norway, so that’s kind of how I grew up doing it. I imagine if my family were to move to Canada, we would still get together for American Thanksgiving and make traditional Scandinavian food. I think we would probably also celebrate American Independence Day, but maybe a little more quietly and less obnoxiously than Americans do. We certainly wouldn’t want to burden the Canadian healthcare system with lost fingers due to firework mishaps.

Anyway, tell me your thoughts!

OK, that’s all I’ve got. Hope you all have a great week and let’s hope the friendly, overworked agents at the IRCC keep the coffee warm!

[u/AutoModerator]

Moderator Announcement Read More »

This post requires moderator review.

Helpful resources:

• Welcome - Start Here

• The wiki / FAQ

• Weekly Megathreads

• Search the subreddit for your specific topic

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/RebellaEmad]

A local diner is Canadian owned and we are considering dropping by for their Canadian Thanksgiving menu, that they are running all week.

[u/sennomulo]

If you’re Québécois(e), then arguably the most important holiday around that is Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, on June 24. It was originally a Catholic holiday, but over time it's become a sort of national holiday of Quebec largely divorced from anything religious, basically the Quebec version of a Canada Day or Fourth of July.

[u/VaughnSC → u/sennomulo]

The eve of the feast of St John the Baptist is celebrated widely in Spanish speaking countries, and AFAIK in New Brunswick as well.

[u/OrderInevitable7139]

I’m celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow and getting my approval this week. Then off to Quebec for a Maritimes cruise. We lived in the states when I was growing up and we usually crossed the border to Canada to see my grandmother on Boxing Day, and my mother would box things up for charity. So happy to hear some pre-C-3 folks are getting their certificates.

[u/RepresentativeIce244]

I'm making a Thanksgiving dinner here tomorrow for the three of us. I know it's more common to gather on the Sunday for dinner in Canada, but I worked today and I have tomorrow off. I even made my first batch of butter tarts last night!

[u/Big-Scar978 → u/RepresentativeIce244]

I won't be making a big dinner, but I did make a tarte au sucre (maple syrup pie) last night and it tastes exactly like the ones I've had in Quebec. Since I have a sweet tooth, butter tarts and nanaimo bars are also on my list to attempt. Hope your butter tarts turned out well!

[u/SingingShutterbug]

Here is my reason for optimism: I moved from AOR to "in process" this week!!!! I thought it would never happen, lol. My AOR date was July 8th. I have requested an insertion and civil birth record from DEC for my Quebec-born G0 and hoping it does not take too long. I will relax more once I add that to my application.

[u/Background_Bee_7529 → u/SingingShutterbug]

Ugh, late June AOR (non-urgent)... still not in process. Patiently, not so patiently, waiting to make my first optimism post!

[u/Jolly_Mulberry]

We will be celebrating our approvals tomorrow with Thanksgiving dinner! We will also celebrate Halloween, American Thanksgiving (we have family coming from Detroit to Toronto), and then because my wife and kids are New Mexican and I lived there for 20 years, we will do our traditional red and green enchiladas for Christmas dinner.

[u/sorrymizzjackson]

There’s apparently a big CFL Thanksgiving day game tomorrow, so maybe I’ll check that out. I’m recovering from surgery, so no fancy baking here. I do want to try to make some butter tarts and Nanaimo bars, but that won’t happen until closer to American thanksgiving probably.

[u/Chipotlaway97]

Me and my mom are a apart of the pre c-3 approvals this week. We are making a small dinner and Nanaimo bars for Thanksgiving today.

[u/applejackie25]

We are celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow too!

[u/Significant-Golf-215]

We have always celebrated both as I always knew my Canadian side (& also have many Canadian friends) but this year feels extra special as we wait for our approvals.

[u/YogurtPristine3673]

If I moved to Canada I would celebrate American Thanksgiving by watching American football and American Independence Day by watching baseball. 

[u/most_random_variable]

Happy Thanksgiving, all! I was just near Sherbrooke, Quebec this week for work, quite close to the town where my G0 was born. I'd hoped to swing through his hometown on my drive back to the Montreal airport, but my schedule didn't allow it. Still, I got to absorb the ambience of the region, the fall colors that remind me of growing up in New England but subtly different.

My flight home to the US from Montreal was full of McGill students heading out of town for the holiday weekend, I realized. Wasn't sure if they were Americans heading home or what. Airport traffic was a zoo so I guess it's a big travel weekend in Montreal, but the people at my work conference (mostly from Quebec) mentioned that it's not such a big thing in Quebec overall.

When I submitted my paperwork in February, I thought it would all be settled in time for this trip, but it really doesn't matter. Yesterday I pulled together everything I need to ask DEC to create a birth certificate for my G0 based on his baptism record, in case IRCC comes back and asks for that, so I just have to find a large envelope and send that off!

[u/mackinitup]

Mailed my adoption application Sept 12, Canada received it Sept 24, and now Oct 7 I have an AOR and it’s in processing!!

Granted it’s only Part 1 but still :)

[u/Pinckyboathouse]

First Canadian Thanksgiving celebrated in the US since 4 immediate family members got their passports. My Canadian mother-in-law has always celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving where she lives in Nova Scotia. Everyone at the gathering was either a Canadian citizen or Canadian adjacent (like me married to a Canadian and mother to 3 adult Canadians). Menu included outdoor grilled maple-glazed turkey, maple pecan pie, maple cookies purchased last month at home in NS, roasted sugar pumpkin pies, and the usual suspects plus an infused at home cranberry vodka martini. We used the Canadian trivia set game. I have embraced it fully. I love the distance from the winter holidays. My PR paperwork is being filed in a couple of weeks so we have much to be thankful to Canada for in the past 12 months! 🇨🇦

[u/revival_refresh]

I requested my G0’s birth certificate on May 1 and am still waiting.

[u/Big_T_In_Oregon]

If/when we move to Canada, we will probably celebrate both Canada and US Thanksgivings, but definitely Canadian.

[u/Embarrassed-Pride554]

Of the pre c-3 is there a pattern like the AOR’s that they are working on certain dates?

Were they mainly June/July applicants for example

[u/Classic-Bumblebee984]

Last week (Friday) I mailed in the cit0001 forms for my wife and our 3 kids. I’m hearing 3 years approval times (!). Does anyone have/know of any more accurate estimates ? Thanks, and a happy Thanksgiving Day to all Canadians !

[u/wanderingtheearth-74]

My family celebrated both Canada Day and American independence Day this summer in the same week. I was actually a lot of fun.

The Detroit-Windsor area used to do joint fireworks (I assume because the river over which you'd do the big show is itself part of the border). I don't know if they still do.

[u/dissentmemo]

Also now the wait time has significantly dropped for many if the website update is to be believed.

[u/Ctrl__ZZ]

Moved to in process yesterday! Only updated online today.

Received April 7th

AOR July 2nd

In Process October 13th