H4 visa stamping in Canada without I797 Approval

[BostonAK]

My EAD on F1 visa expired november 26, 2013 and I applied for change of status to H4 to USCIS. 

 

The processing time says 2.5 months, but its over 4 months, and it is still under review. I wrote to USCIS to check on my status and they cant give me an update at this time regarding why its taking this long.

 

My husbands H1 is extended till 2015, and he has his I797. 

 

We recently received our Canadian PR, and require to land in Canada before June 18th. They cant extend the expiry date under normal circumstances. 

 

I had several questions as I am considering different options. 

 

1. Without a H4 visa, can I go to Canada and return on the automatic revalidation process? What documents would I need to fill out? I was reading that my husbands 797 and a DS 160 would be sufficient to do H4 stamping in Canada. 

 

2. Can you directly go for H4 stamping before you get your H4 approval.

 

3. This question is assuming I get my H4 visa approval (797) notice - can I drive to Canada, and return on the automatic revalidation process without having to do stamping? 

 

We're hoping that my husband can go and activate the PR since he is the primary applicant, and I will apply for an extension on the expiry date for the PR landing date citing visa and health reasons (I am currently pregnant and due june 2nd week), so I can go to Canada to activate my PR at a later date after repeating my medicals. 

 

Not relevant to my issue, but on a similar note, if my husband were to go on his H1B visa, can he return with the automatic revalidation process or does he need to get stamping done at the US consulate? 

 

Thanks in advance for your response.