We are alive!

We imagined a lot of things that might present challenges to us as we entered back into the US and began our life as a family of 5 but we never could have prepared for what we experienced these past 2 weeks.  Jet lag got us the first 3 days, all though we were prepared for that.  But day 4 we were hit with illness after illness.  Blair began battling a kidney stone and infection that landed him in the ER. All boys had the nasty cough and cold crud.  Then Disa and Blair both got upper respiratory infections.  Gibson battled a fever and a nasty stomach bug that has bothered him on and off for a week.  We are now ending with pink eye.  One of those alone with our jet lag would have been a challenge (probably not pink eye) but all of them hitting at the same time just about did us in.  However we are so thankful to the many people who prayed for healing, brought us meals, stayed with our sleeping boys while we were in the ER, brought medicine and groceries and the list goes on and on!  We had planned to blog a few days after returning but are just now having enough energy to do so.

Friday afternoon we began to feel like we were on the mend and so we did get to do some "normal" family activities.  We went to the grocery store and got haircuts.  Then today we took advantage of the beautiful weather and walked to the park.  Many have asked how the boys are adjusting but with so much of our energy focused on our health it just hasn't left us much time to process that.  Considering the 2 weeks they've just endured we feel they are doing pretty well.  They are enjoying American food, playing toys and are back to a regular sleep schedule!

Here are a few pics from the last few days as we finally got to enjoy regular things!

Chillin in the car!

Shopping with Mama

Happy eater!

Happy eater!

Park fun!

Oops!

Cheese!

Hi!!!!

How we roll!!

We've come a long way since our first bath in China!

Final China Update

I can't belied that we are actually typing this, but its our FINAL update while in China!!!!  The last few days have been filled with appointments, sightseeing, and down time at the hotel.  We discovered a park near our hotel and have visited it a couple times.  We also ventured out into the city in taxis and actually made it where we wanted to go and back to the hotel!  We found Shamian Island and loved the feel of Savanah Georgia that it had.  We will probably go back again Friday morning.  Today was our US Consulate appointment and all went well.  Now we just wait to receive the boys' visas and we are free to leave with them!  We leave for Hong Kong Sat am and stay there over night and catch our plane to the US Sunday morning.  Its hard to see all the other families leaving already, but we are just thankful that we got to come in Sept so a few extra days doesn't seem all that bad!  The boys continue to get to know us and we are getting to see more of their personalities come through.  We can't wait to be back home and feel like we can start living every day life as a family of 5.  Here are the last few pics we have from this week.  We would ask for your prayers as we prep for the 15 hour flight from Hong Kong to Chicago.  We aren't sure what to expect from them, but prayers for rest and few diaper changes would be much appreciated!!! Also, please pray for the jet lag for all of us.  We know it will take several weeks to get completely back on schedule, but quicker would be great too!  We will post once we get back home and keep everyone updated on their progress.  Thanks again for all your support!!

Caffrey's hat choice!

Cavin's hat choice!

Fish Watching

Gibson's hat choice!

US Consulate Day

Med day done!

We have now been a family of 5 for a whole week.  As a family we've now traveled on a bullet train, taken a trip on an airplane, had many long bus rides, taken a river boat ride and as of today survived the dreaded medical appointment.  We were so thankful that the medical stations went fast and the boys were mostly happy until the blood draw for the TB test.  Of course Blair was waiting with a camera to capture their pitiful crying faces as the nurses brought them out to us.  The cries didn't last long and our afternoon was filled with plenty of fun and even Starbucks for mom and dad!  We now wait in the hotel room tomorrow for the results of the TB test and pray we don't get called back for a chest x ray.  Then the next day we have our consulate appointment and then wait 48 hours for the visas to arrive so we can travel home.  We are thankful now to say with each day that it is our last Monday, Tuesday, etc.  Again we thank all of you for your prayers as we near the end of this portion of our adoption journey.

Sweet and Sour: The Past 60 Hours

The much anticipated Gotcha day was on Monday and we were so anxious to become a family of 5.  We had no idea which boy would arrive first and were excited to see Caffrey was already waiting for us.  The pictures are on our camera and so we will have to post the actual reunion another time.  He was scared and cried most of the time we were there.  Cavin arrived about 20 minutes later and began making friends with the american children and didn't shed a tear.  Once all the initial paperwork was signed we were able to go back to the hotel to begin bonding.  The rest of the night went really well and the boys enjoyed playing with the few toys we brought with us.  Gibson did great keeping them entertained.

Day 2 with our boys was busy with a trip to sign and receive official adoption certificates for both boys.  This 2 hour adventure was followed by a trip to get Caffrey's passport photo and paperwork started.  When we returned last night we were exhausted but extremely excited to hear the boys asking for us to hold them and calling us mama and baba already!

Day 3(today) has been filled with challenges.  We had to wake the boys at 6:30 to be able to take the bullet train to get Cavin's passport started and to visit his orphanage.  The boys did well on the trip to the city but on the way back the early wake up and the fact that they both missed their nap made for a restless ride.  Once back at the hotel it was too late to put them down for a nap and so we did our best to keep them busy by visiting the pool.  Neither were huge fans, but they tolerated the water and even started splashing toward the end.  Since both boys were tired we didn't want to venture too far from the hotel for supper so we ate at the hotel's italian restaurant.  This was asking too much from our sleepy crew.  Many tears and tantrums later we did finish our pizza and got back to the room for a very early bedtime also filled with tears.

We are so thankful that our only trip tomorrow is here in the city to visit Caffrey's orphanage.  We should not miss naps and should get much needed rest.   Living out of a hotel in a foreign city with children who do not speak your language isn't ideal but we know this part of the journey will soon be over.  Please pray for needed sleep.  Overall we are so thankful that both boys seem to be bonding to us well.  Gibson too has been phenomenal and does all he can to make sure the boys are happy!    

Here are a few pictures we've taken with our phone.  Both boys have great personalities and their smiles just melt our hearts!

Bedtime stories with BaBa

Cavin's Nanny

This guy is a ham!!

Mommy's All American Boy

Bullet train to passport office

His bedding/nametage were still there just in case we decided no

He loves Daddy's sunglasses

Officially a Benefield

Officially a Benefield

Breakfast with Mommy

Beijing adventure

Wow!  That's about the best word to describe the last 4 days.  We had a long day of travel to get to Beijing (almost 24 hours from the time we left home until we arrived at our hotel in Beijing).  Even though it was long it was a smooth trip.  We even ventured out from our hotel and had our first local meal-Pizza Hut.

The next morning we met up with our travel group and began touring the city.  We visited Tiananmen square, the Forbidden City, took a ricksha tour of Old Beijing and ate lunch with a local family.  In the evening we were exhausted and on our own but we did find a Starbucks and walked around a shopping mall.

Today we got an opportunity of a lifetime, and walked on The Great Wall.  After climbing for about 2 hours we stopped at a Jade showroom.  Then we ended our afternoon with a acrobatic show.  We were so worn out we decided to skip dinner, walk around and take in the local food at the street vendors, and just pack up for our early flight in the morning.

Below are a few highlight photos from our last few tour days.  Thanks for all those who are continuing to pray for us.  We are so close to meeting our boys and are getting very anxious.  Our next blog will include pictures of our boys in our arms.  We can't wait to post those pictures!

The last wait

We received notification that our article 5 was picked up in China today.  This means they recognize we have visas to travel and now we just wait for their invitation to travel.  It is the last unknown wait left in our journey.  The wait could be short but will feel so long!  We are so excited to make it to this step but here is the reality.  We must get the travel approval by September 1st (in 4 days) to travel by Septemebr 9.  That seems crazy to even ask or imagine but our God does amazing things.  It's also scary because that would mean we would get approval and leave just about a week later!  As much as we have prepared for this day there seems like a million things to get done if those dates work out.  If we do not receive approval by September 1, we most likely will get approval soon after and travel after the big Chinese holiday and leave October 8.  Either way our boys will be home soon.  Thank you to those continuing to follow our journey!  We appreciate the support we have been shown and ask that you continue to pray for God's timing.  We look forward to updating the blog next as it will mean we have travel news and the big question , "When will you get the boys?" can be answered!

Good News and New Names

Well today was another big day in our journey to get the boys.  Our Article 5 (proof that we have applied for their U.S. visas) was dropped off at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou today.  The turn around is a standard 2 weeks and then we wait for Travel Approval.  We are still praying that God would do a miracle so we can travel in early September to get the boys.  If we don't make the cutoff we will have to wait until mid October to travel.  In order for a Sept 9 travel date we need either
a) the Article 5 to not take the entire 2 weeks or b) if the Article 5 takes 2 weeks, the CCCWA to give us travel approval within a few days of receiving our file.  Both A and B would be even better!!!  Whatever the outcome we know God is still in control and we praise Him for another milestone in the process today.

On another note, many have been asking about the boys' english names. Well ask no longer because we decided that when we got to Article 5 drop off we would reveal their names.  Drumroll please....... I now would like to introduce you to...

Cavin Tao Benefield (Tao is his Chinese middle name)

Caffrey Xing Benefield (Xing is his Chinese middle name)

Now that you know their names, we would love for you to pray for them by name.

A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
and favor is better than silver or gold.
Proverbs 22:1