Passport Prison

I feel like we are being held hostage by the US Passport disaster service. Back in March, everyone lauded us for promptly applying for passports for our August 8th departure date, assuring us that it would not be necessary to expedite them. Surely, we would receive them by the end of June. Here we are, 5 days away from departing, and Em's passport is not here. We only just received Kt's and mine 2 weeks ago. It's a bit suspicious as to the mystery behind how three passports, applied for on the same day, sent in together, paid for together (with check clearing in early May!) would be processed so far apart.

We have called now three times about Em's passport. The first time, it was just starting to be processed. The second time, it was finished being processed, waiting to be shipped. That was Wednesday. Now today, Friday, it's in Passport Prison waiting to be released. What will it take for someone to stick that thing in the mail??? It's not like they send along all the documentation with it or anything. We had to wait another week for Kt's birth certificate and my old passport. My birth certificate never arrived - it's in Passport Refuse I imagine. But I can "write a letter" requesting they try to find it. I'm not that dumb, Passport Personnel. I can see the mess you've created and I'll just assume that there's no way in #@$ you will ever find that.

When we embarked on this missions thing, I knew everything was too smooth to be true, that little issues would crop up and we would soon be enveloped by uncertainty, stress, possible regret. It happens every year and it's really just the way God would have it be. So, my type A persona kicks in, Plan B(eligerant Passport Customer) will have to emerge from this situation. Luckily, Camp Lovegren is still open for business (thanks, mom), but how do we leave our sweet little Em behind while we head off to Hungary? I just don't know if I'd have the heart to do that. It would be one thing if this was some big vacation, but people are counting on us to be there, not that the prison guards even care!

UPDATE: Not in a million years will anyone believe this. OK, maybe you will. T called this morning to check on the status and was happy find out that we had a tracking number for the passport they shipped either yesterday or today. HOWEVER.... upon verifying the address, it appears that some (fill in the blank) put T's name down as the city we live in. I'm speechless.

UPDATE 2: Passport HAS ARRIVED! I repeat, it HAS ARRIVED!! Not only that, but the address is correct. Now just ask yourself, can we read? Just wondering....