Is there anyone out there who works in Family Law in Oregon (Eugene/Springfield) or knows someone who would be willing to let us contact them before 8am on the 23rd (tomorrow)?
Briefly- my daughter had her twins prematurely on the 1st. Life has not been easy since and they are still in NICU. Last Thursday (17th) her mother-in-law called CSD with 'concerns', and a caseworker came to the house unannounced Friday morning. I let her in because I thought she was someone we were expecting from the church. She did a long 'interview' (grilling) of my daughter, who'd been up most of the night and was really not awake. She wandered around the house and took pictures. We left violated, to say the least. We understood that there would be some sort of follow-up, maybe with a family meeting or a list of what specifically they wanted changed. We got nothing (and today the worker sniffed at me and said "We don't give out lists!") and could not get the worker to return our calls until this morning. She claims to have gotten only one. She came to the hospital today and served us with papers for a hearing tomorrow morning. And she made it very clear that she's going to recommend the babies be put into foster care- and placed with the very woman who called in the complaint. And it looks like they will do this on CHRISTMAS EVE.
We are sick with worry. All of this came out of left field. I tried to get help at Legal Aid today (after being served) and as it turns out they only take intake applications for two hours, midday. When we were at the hospital, natch. I completely broke down there in front of the receptionist, and she would only point her pen at a rack of pamphlets. She didn't even offer me a tissue.
I'm afraid we're going to lose the babies, and know the mother-in-law as we do, she will not let us see them, my daughter will have to discontinue breastfeeding, and I will have failed in helping them, and I tried SO HARD. Please, please can't someone help us?
** Update: We lost. This round at least. The babies are going home with the other grandma, Christmas Eve. I get to try to get an inconsolable young couple through the weekend, and then meet with a lawyer and map out what we do next.
I'm exhausted and ill. If I can, I'll try to update again soon.