I don't know what to do with myself.
-I know, I don't know what --
-I've been through my purse 10 times.
-Anything new?
-Okay, I've got everything I need here.
And then I'm gonna cry it all away when I see him.
-I know.
So, the last time we saw each other was July 2017.
-Salaam.
This is what I'm wearing to see you.
How's Chicago?
-You're always telling me the weather is so cold.
-Oh, my God, don't.
Just because, of course, you come in when it's nice out,
it isn't always -- It's so cold.
Don't.
I think I had started getting so used to life without him here.
It just never seemed like it was going to happen.
How was your flight?
You flew 15 hours.
I saw you over Iran, I saw you over
Iceland and Greenland and New Labrador and Quebec.
-Your husband's coming!
-I'm just nervous that him and my pug will clash, honestly.
Meatball, are you ready to see Yahya?
You're gonna have a dad.
Um, I don't think I'm nervous about anything, honestly.
It has given me a sense of calm
that I've been missing for a very long time.
-Is that your gate, G-13?
Definitely do not miss the flight.
You are so close now, Yahya.
-Am I underdressed?
I feel like I need to change now.
-You're gonna board? -Yes.
-Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God, I love you so much.
-I love you. -Okay.
-I can't believe you're actually doing this.
-I know, I'm gonna bring home a husband.
-Bring home. -Yes, it's a boy.
-It's a man. -Yeah, it's a boy.
-It's a man boy. -Bye.
-I've got goose bumps and butterflies.
-I know. -And we're off.
-Carry through your screening checkpoint.
Please check with your air carrier.
-Will land in 47 minutes.
-Is it really going to still take that long?
-His flight was 15 hours.
-I was gonna say, "Was his flight 17?"
-The total trip time was like 19:50.
-Should I go up and try to find him?
-I was going to suggest that, but then I realized
you also might get lost, so I'm gonna ask that you not.
-Does he have a coat? -Yeah.
Oh, he could definitely come in from that way.
-So, he's made contact? -He's walking to baggage claim.
-Oh, my goodness. -I can't believe this.
-I'm coming. I'm going to baggage claim.
Hi. -Hi.
Are these socks for Uncle Yahya?
-No, they're for me. -No.
-We've been married for three years,
and we were in administrative processing
for over half that time, about a year and a half.
I had no hopes of seeing our way out of administrative processing.
-After I got visa, maybe almost 100 person contacted me.
They asked me about,
"How can I contact 'Washington Post' or media?"
Every single of them had exactly the same story, exactly like us.
-Okay, so, we're calling Ricky and Mona.
-Hi, Mona, hi, Ricky.
-Hey, Yahya, hey, Olivia. -I'm literally in tears.
It's so emotional to see you guys together.
This is something that I face in my life every single minute.
But still, talking about it is extremely difficult.
So, the first moment that you guys appeared
on the screen together,
it was extremely -- it was -- I don't know how to say it.
I was extremely happy for you, but just for one second,
I was just imagining that Ricky and I could live
in the same country together, not be worried that 10 days,
or two days from now, Ricky is flying back.
We have talked and consulted
with significant numbers of immigration attorneys.
I think, if the whole situation was not that complicated,
we would have started our application process much faster.
-A lot of the immigration system is set up for failure.
I think it's set up to scare you.
I found it incredibly difficult to navigate
even just the website.
-Mona's visited the United States six times.
Mona was eligible to enter the United States
until one day she wasn't.
-Wow. -And she wasn't because,
all of a sudden, one day it was decided that people
from Iran shouldn't be able to come to the United States.
-Because we had gotten our interview after
the travel ban had set in,
we were placed on administrative processing.
I don't care the amount of analysis that has to be done
to see that he is not a threat.
He isn't, and it doesn't take a year and a half to see that.
The only way to get a visa
shouldn't be talking to the media,
but I do think that in the climate that we are in,
it might be necessary in certain cases.
I think I want members of Congress
to actually see us as people and not as numbers.
Continually letting these people know that you are serious
and you are here and you are going to continue bothering them
until they give you the answer that you deserve,
I think it's absolutely worth it.
-I am a U.S. citizen, and I have the right
to choose my husband from any country in the world.
-We want to start a normal life. We want to have babies.
-I want to share my voice and my sadness
from separation of my husband.
My family, especially my son,
are affected badly by travel ban.
-We just wanted to spend best time of our lives together.
-Our lives are on hold.