Even though we just received our "official" birth certificates, I just discovered that these could cause problems because they were issued by the City of Buffalo and not New York State. Either at the Apostille stage or at the Italian Consulate stage, these could be rejected because they were not issued by the state.
So, we're starting over. Today I'm sending out applications to the NY State Department of Health for full, certified, long-form birth certificates for me and Amy. That's another $30 each, which brings our grand total to $252 and we're only a fraction of the way to the finish line.
I'm also sending out a request for my mother's birth certificate to NY State. Technically, the only people eligible to receive a birth certificate are the person themselves and their parents. I adapted the form my father got to receive a copy of his grandfather's death certificate to receive a copy of my mom's birth certificate. I'm including copies of my ID, my birth certificate, my mom's birth and death certificates, a notarized letter saying that I am applying for dual citizenship, and a copy of the citizenship requirements from the Detroit consulate. That's another $30. If they say no, we may need to get a court order.