Christmas update letter

Christmas Greetings, friends and family! I have been long overdue in updating you as to the goings-on in my life so I again apologize. For those who have been reading my blog (http://morrepic.blogspot.com), you may have seen my entry concerning being laid off. I was, in fact, abruptly laid off from WeatherBug on October 23rd. The company went through a huge round of cutbacks due to the economic environment and all 4 full-time and 2 part-time QC/Alerts Meteorologists were let go as the program we had been working on was drastically slashed. Two weeks before my layoff, I had been offered and turned down a job offer from Booz Allen Hamilton in Southern Maryland. A few days after the layoff, I called up the recruiter at Booz Allen and asked about employment opportunities, not even expecting to be able to get the same offer from them. I went on a personal retreat to a farm in Pennsylvania (http://www.mountaindale.net) for a few days and during that time received a call from the recruiter. Booz Allen had been able to jump the necessary hurdles and the exact offer I had turned down before was reopened to me. How amazing is God's provision! The acceptance of that offer with a start date of December 1st threw my life into a mini-whirlwind for a period of time. I arrived back in Germantown from PA on November 13th and immediately began to pack and make arrangements. Thankfully, I was renting a basement in a private home so my roommate was very gracious in allowing me to leave my lease early, having previously been laid off herself. On November 22nd, two good friends (Thank you Allie and Dan!) and my family converged on the townhouse to pack my belongings for the long trip back to St. Mary's. It was bittersweet as I left behind good friends and colleagues that I would miss but looked forward to a new start back home. I started my new job as a Researcher at Booz Allen on December 1st. So far, most of my work has consisted of training, reading, and working with map symbols as I await authorization for access to the 2 military bases I will be working on (Patuxent River and Indian Head). Please pray as it seems this is being held up much longer than anyone anticipated. With less than one week to Christmas, we are looking forward to celebrating with Chelse and my grandmother, Darline, from California. Chelse has now been in our custody since early spring. However, St. Mary's county has done their best to slow the adoption process down. The personnel in California are waiting to push the paperwork through quickly but that paperwork has lingered for months on the desks of those in St. Mary's. Please pray as we attempt to move the process along a little faster and pray for those hands the paperwork will go through, that they will understand the need for expediency in this matter. Also, be in prayer for the Miller family from our church in Leonardtown. About two short weeks ago, their oldest daughter, Victoria, was diagnosed with leukemia. It has all happened so fast and she is currently at Children's Hospital in DC going through her first round of chemo. However, praise the Lord, recently her tests have come back negative for leukemia cells. Her most recent lumbar puncture (spinal tap) results from Tuesday were completely negative. She will have one more today and we are fervently praying that it is also negative. You can find updates at her CarePage on the Children's Hopital site: http://www.carepages.com/carepages/UpheldByHim. I pray that in the midst of hard times this Christmas, you will remember the true reason for the season and His provision in every circumstance. May the God of all peace be with you as we celebrate the birth of His Son! Soli Deo Gloria! Meghan