The BIG news...

Did I trick you? HA HA! I am so kidding with you all. That would be the icing on the cake. Although it would be ok too. But no, the big news is not that we have another Miles baby on the way. The news is that Kent was laid off from his job on Tuesday. We were pretty surprised, especially just after having him pass his Series 7 exam a few days earlier. So the relief and celebration has turned into.... hmm. What's next for us. We have known that they were going to get rid of his department since last fall. They took all of the people in his department and sponsored them to take the series 7 exam, and then they were going to place them all in their retail department. So Tuesday they called all of these people in for a meeting. They all thought that they were just going to get their training schedules. They told them that the economy had changed while they have been studying for this exam, and that they were going to have to lay them all off. Go pack your stuff, no more work, you are done. They were all pretty surprised. Having 75ish people take the exam is very expensive, plus they all got around 100 hours of overtime pay to study during the process. No one really thought that they would pay out all of that money, and then lay them off. It is actually a blessing that he passed that exam, and now has it when he is applying for jobs. It will help - it makes him more competitive for what jobs may be out there. I am grateful that Fidelity let them all finish it. It was a gift. Thankfully they have a severance which will be for about 3 months, so we have a little time to look without being extremely panicked. So, anyone know of a good financial planning job opening? :) I am afraid it is not exactly a booming business right now. We are trying to be positive about it all, and praying that something will work out. I just hope it is not a huge long ordeal. But, even though it is frustrating, and I am SICK of moving around so frequently, I am grateful for this challenge. There are many others I know who are struggling with challenges so much greater than ours. We have always been blessed to have everything work out. It is not always easy, but it does work out. We are pretty much open to going anywhere where we can support our family. Who knows where we will end up. I was thinking that next year for our Christmas cards, I could do a where's Waldo picture with our family "hidden" in it. Where are the Miles this year? :) That is, if I get Christmas cards done. This year it just didn't happen. I hate that. I love getting Christmas cards, so don't give up on me. Next year. So that is the BIG news. Not exciting, just big. Thankfully Kent is very positive about the situation, which definitely helps me. We appreciate all of the calls, thoughts and prayers. I don't know how we would make it without family and friends. We love you all! And watch out, we may just end up in your neighborhood! :)