A Grandmother's Christmas Wish as written by Shelia Burnham Finley....

* Shelia  is one of my facebook friends. I am helping her to spread her story. No family should have to go through what she and her family have had to endure. So please help Shelia and her family by sharing her story, lets help her to get these precious grand-babies home with family that love and care for them. 

 Let's help make Shelia's wish come true and give her a happy holiday, please share her story with all you know.

I have one wish for Christmas and one wish only and that is to be able to bring these 2 sweet angels home where they belong for Christmas surrounded by the family that they know and love!! This is our story and alls I ask is that you take a minute to read it and then please share it every where you can!! We have tried everything we can as you will read, but it just isn't working, so I am turning to social media because I know the possibility of it getting in the right hands and getting the help we need are pretty good♥ I am willing to try anything and have tried everything!!
Our story starts back when my daughter was 16 and yes pregnant. I am not going to say we were ecstatic with the news of having a 16 year old daughter that was pregnant, but we knew she was going to need all of the love and support that she could get so that is what we did. Mikey was born in September and both sets of grandparents pitched in and tried to give them all what they needed. With a young couple with lots of added stress it was a very rocky road with plenty of ups and downs. Their relationship sadly couldn't survive it. We continued to support them all, and then we got the news that she was pregnant again!!
Once again we pulled together as a family and supported her, but sadly the dad was also very young and immature and made some wrong choices in life, and wasn't in their life at all
We made sure that they had everything they needed on December 13th I was by her side in Labor and delivery as she brought this beautiful little bundle of joy into the world. During labor and delivery we had a very close call as the chord was wrapped around his neck and as they rushed her out of the room and down the hall I had a long talk with God and prayed for them to be okay and promised that I would take care of him and always protect him!! They were able to get the chord from around his neck and with one push Tyler Alan Finley was born!! I cut his chord and I will never forget holding him that very first time!! We spent the next 13 months raising him in our home and making sure that he and his brother had everything they needed!!
The stress with a young daughter and 2 babies and 2 families trying to help them and give them advice wasn't always happy, but we loved them all, and did everything we could.
Amanda got involved with another young man and ended up pregnant again and didn't want to be at home with the rules etc so she took Tyler and moved out and got married and had baby #3 Beau was born in November and things for this young family continued to be beyond stressful!! They were in and out of court with daddy #1 fighting for custody of Mikey. If I said or did anything to make them mad the. We weren't allowed to see Tyler.
We tried our best to keep the relationship positive so that we could continue to help and be in the boys life. We didn't see things eye to eye when it came to the care of the boys. I began to get worried when I couldn't get them to answer phones till late in the day and Beaus weight was alarming to me, so in February of this last year I began to call CPS. My first call to them before I told them anythingI made them promise me if the boys were ever removed that they wouldn't end up in Foster Care they would come to us, and I was promised this is what would happen!!
We were hoping that CPS could get them the help they needed as a young family with counseling etc. We thought they would listen to them and all would be well.
They were charged with failure to thrive but CPS remained in their lives helping them.
We continued to stay in the picture but it was a very rocky road for all.
In August they decided to move about an hour and a half away and once again I worried constantly!!
Things seemed to be okay until September when we noticed a very large bruise on Beau's face We asked a lot of questions and asked for them to meet with us at the house. When they refused I told Amanda my concerns and told her that if they didn't come talk to us we would have to follow up with CPS This is what we did and were asked by the new CPS office if we were interested in custody, and we said yes. she said good because they were getting ready to have enough reasons to remove the boys from the home. She told me to wait till Monday and she would let me know if we needed to go back to Fauquier County to petition for custody or if we would need to come to Orange County. When I didn't hear from her I called the out house in both counties and was to,d to start in Orange since that is where they were currently residing. We made the appt and went and filed the paper work. We called CPS back and let them know that we had filed and that we were concerned that they would run away with the boys when they found out. They didn't return our numerous phone calls. We then got a phone call a couple days later asking if we knew where Amanda and the boys were because they weren't answering the door or returning phone calls!!! That was the worst feeling ever!! Our biggest fears were coming true We were able to find them and they were out of state at the other grandparents house. I told CPS I was afraid they were going to run it was a very emotional call alls that was going through my mind was that I was never going to see my grandbabies again. The CPS person got very aggravated with me and hung up on me and quit taking my calls
They came back to town and we thought things would be okay until our upcoming court date. CPS still wasn't returning my calls and I was told they couldn't take my calls anymore. I then began calling the Sheriff's Dept but I was told this was a CPS matter:(
Then on October 25th while I was doing a vendor event at our local pre school I received a text that I needed to call my hubby ASAP, and he never says this!! I texted him and reminded him I was working and was everything okay? He texted back it is about Amanda and the boys!! My heart stopped!! I excused myself and went I to the chapel of the preschool to Mae the phone call that I knew it my gut wouldn't be good I can still hear his words now the boys had been removed and placed in a Foster Home!!!! Are you kidding me well it got worse they said Beau needed stitches over his eye and that his leg was fractured!! Once again I prayed to God and cried and added my husband to consult with their lawyer. I pulled myself together as best I could and finished out my obligation for the day. Thinking to myself it is going to be okay they are safe, and we will get them home where they belong and get my daughter and husband whatever help they needed, and we would move forward.
Well we soon learned it wasn't that easy we couldn't get the kids till after court and our court date was a little over a week away and the boys had already been with strangers in foster care for a week. We met with a lawyer and told her our story. She agreed we should have no problem and in her opinion we don't need a lawyer. We left her office and went to Walmart and put together care packages for the boys of their favorite things and then went to the CPS office and pleaded to talk with them. We told them that they appreciated everything that they had done, but we really needed the boys to be home with us!! We left the care packages for the boys and they had us fill out paper work agreeing to a background check and then went to the Sheriff's office to be fingerprinted. We wanted to have all of our ducks in a row!!
We then received a letter fro the boys ad litem attorney so we made an appt with him as well!!
In the meantime we Lund out that our court date had been rolled into theirs and was now weeks away We heard from the Foster Mom and she had agreed to let us have a visit with the boys!!! We had a long phone conversation, and in some ways it made me feel better and in some ways it made me very uneasy and even sad:( She and her husband were having Tyler call them mom and dad and they were hoping to be able to adopt them!! My grandchildren weren't up for adoption. I called my mother in law and my husband and voiced my concerns.
The day had come for us to go visit the boys!! We were so excited and made the hour and a half drive that seemed like an eternity!! Tyler was so excited when we got there!!! He sat in my lap on the floor just about the whole time!! He hugged my neck so long and so hard you could feel the emotion and his fears in that hug!! It was heart wrenching I didn't want to let go!! I asked him if he wanted to sit with PePaw and he said yes, so then I picked up and played with Beau. We didn't want to leave when our visit was up but the Foster Mom said we could keep them over the weekend while they moved and we were beyond excited!!She also assured us she was on board with us getting them!! We attended doctors appts and had weekend visits with them. I knew in my heart Beau was good he was getting the love and attention he needed and he being younger didn't understand as much as Tyler about what was going on. Anytime over the weekend visits that I went to put him in his car seat to go anywhere he would have a melt down and cry I love you MeMaw!! I want to stay here with you!! Please don't take me back I will be good!!! It absolutely broke my heart so we would do the exchange at night when he was asleep.
Beau had slot of doctors appts etc so I began to keep Tyler while they tended to Beaus needs. One of Beaus tests got postponed and when the Foster mom texted me she said you can still keep Tyler but what time will you be bringing Beu back? She kept saying in her texts that they had a real bond with Beau and that it was going to be hard to let him go. I began to worry again!! Both the Foster Mom and CPS said maybe it would be better for Beau to stay with the Foster Mom till he was finished with all his medical stuff!! I assured them we were fine doing all of that and that I was willing to keep him at UVA and with his current pediatrician till he was on the mend. They seemed okay with this!!
The last weekend we had the boys we had Mikey their big brother come visit!! Tyler and Mikey had the best time, and we talked to Mikey's dad and worked out that we would like to have Mikey 2 weekends a month so the boys could be together!!
We took Tyler back Sunday night and we had court the next day and I had every reason to believe we would be getting the boys!! Even though Amanda and her hubby were still mad at us and weren't talking to us they had said they wanted the boys to be with us!! CPS and the Foster Mom said they would be there and there would be doctors there, and that after court we could come get the boys!!!
Well that isn't what happened at all!! The Foster Mom wasn't there or the doctors:( They asked the judge for a continuance and the judge ordered the boys to stay with the Foster Family until the next court date, and CPS and the boys attorney didn't say a word We weren't allowed to say a word and didn't have an attorney because no one thought we needed one!!
I tried to pull myself together but I was an emotional wreck. When we saw CPS in the parking lot she said she had called the Foster Mom and she said she was so excited because she was going to get to keep them longer!! I remember feeling like what you all aren't supposed to be happy you should be happy when you reunite them with their family!!
That was Sept 18th and Beaus first birthday was the next day!!! I texted Ashley and told her how devastated I was she asked me to call her so I did she assured me we would get them back and we were all on the same page and that we would see them Thanksgiving and continue visits with them. I hung up the phone and cried for the remainder of the night:(
I texted Ashley the next morning and asked her to give the boys hugs and kisses and tell Beau Happy Birthday and she texted back saying she couldn't all to me anymore and that I had to deal with CPS Then CPS went to not returning calls again we were very confused and decided we needed to consult with an attorney.
We were then told we needed to deal with one of the supervisors with Foster Care and we did an hour and a half meeting just days before court and were told Ashley would be there, doctors would be there and everyone was on board with us getting the boys.
We ended up running into our daughter and assured them we weren't trying to take their boys we just wanted temporary custody till they got their lives together and we all agreed.
We went to court to no Ashley and everyone saying that we were bonded with Tyler and not Beau and that the boys were doing well in Foster Care and shouldn't be removed till the next court date. The judge said that if I could learn the exercises the boys needed and meet with the pediatrician by the 20th we could get temporary custody and everyone agreed!!
Then I get a call on Friday morning Tyler's 3rd birthday was I was already emotional that we wouldn't be getting them on the 20th because they weren't able to get all of our appts set up. I then asked about Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and was told no that they would be with the Foster Parents. We would have to wait until court on the 6th of January:'(
Please help me get our story out there and our grandsons home for Christmas!!!!!

Pictures provided by Shelia Burnham Finley:

Once again, Let's make this Grandmother's Wish come true, and help her to spread her story!