The next morning Amy was feeling better, not great but better. She was hungry, which the nurse told her was a good sign. The color was starting to return to her face, and even though she still tired easily, she was excited to see her baby again and hold him. She fed him and was cooing softly to him, with her face close to his. His eyes were open and looking up at her as if to say, "Hi, Mom." He had Ty's eyes, bright green and so full of personality, if that was possible for a newborn baby. Amy could hardly wait for Ty to see his son's eyes. He was going to be a great father.
Ty woke up to the sun shining through the loft windows. It was a beautiful fall day, and with any luck Amy and the baby were coming home today. He was so excited at the thought of bringing his new family home. He was standing at the counter wondering what to eat for breakfast when the sound of Lou's voice brought him back to reality.
"Hey, Lou. What's up?" he asked, turning to see her enter the loft.
"I hope I didn't wake you, Ty, but I brought over some breakfast for you," she said.
Ty looked at her and said, "Are you kidding? Thank you; it smells great. I wasn't sure what I was going to eat this morning since we haven't been to the store since the baby was born."
Lou placed the tray on the table and sat down. She motioned to Ty to eat and asked, "How are Amy and the baby doing?"
Ty gave her the good news. "I hope to bring them home today if Amy's feeling good."
Lou was ecstatic. "Don't worry about shopping. Katie and I will go do the shopping for you, and we'll have the kitchen stocked by the time you guys come home from the hospital."
"Are you sure?" Ty asked.
"Absolutely," Lou said. "It's the least I can do for you."
When Ty reached Amy's room, he opened the door slowly, stopping to watch his wife holding their son and cooing softly to him, her infectious smile lighting up her face. He stood in awe, smiling at his new family. Amy was going to be a great mom; she had so much love and patience.
Amy looked up to see Ty smiling at her, and she blushed. "How long have you been standing there watching us?" she asked.
"Not long, how you feeling this morning?"
"Better."
Ty came into the room and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek and kiss the baby as well. The baby turned his head towards Ty's voice, and Ty gasped, "He has green eyes!"
"Yes, he does, just like yours, Dad," Amy said, kissing Ty softly.
Ty asked if Dr. Virani had been in yet, and she shook her head no. The baby started fussing so she handed him to Ty so he could walk with him while she finished eating her breakfast. Ty had him asleep in no time and had just laid him in the bassinette when Dr. Virani walked in.
"Morning, Ty and Amy. How are we feeling this morning?"
"Good. Can we go home today?" Amy asked.
Dr. Virani smiled. "Yes, you're cleared to be discharged. However, you're restricted to the loft and lots of bed rest for a week." Ty and Amy were okay with that restriction; they just wanted to go home and settle into their new family life.
The next week went by uneventfully as the Fleming-Borden family adjusted to the newest member of their family. He was a good baby and easy to care for. Amy was doing well; she took care of the baby during the day, and then Ty took over when he arrived home from work each night, allowing Amy to have some time to pamper herself. Amy was nursing, but they had gotten a pump so she could store a supply of her milk in the fridge, allowing Ty to join in on the feeding routine as well.
Ty was feeding the baby one night when Amy came out of the bathroom from a nice soak in the tub. She walked over to the couch and sat down next to Ty and said, "You know, we need to start thinking about the naming ceremony. We can't keep calling him baby Borden forever."
Ty nodded. "Yeah, I've been thinking about the same thing. The only issue is, I haven't talked with my mom in a while and I'm not sure if she'll be up to coming or not."
"Well, how about you call her tomorrow and see how she's doing and if she feels up to coming for a visit. We could plan the ceremony around her visit if she can come in the next couple of weeks."
"Yeah, I'll call her in the morning." Amy watched as Ty cuddled with the baby, he was so gentle with him. She leaned into him and smiled up at her husband, touching his cheek softly with her hand.
"Perfect. I'll talk to Lou about having Lily and Wade stay at the dude ranch."
Ty called Wade the next day to see how things were going with Lily's rehab. Wade told Ty he wasn't so sure Lily was ready to travel yet and maybe they should just go ahead and plan the naming ceremony anyway. Ty was a little disappointed but understood that it takes time to get over an addiction like his mom had. She had battled this most of her life, so he knew it wasn't something she would overcome in short order.
Amy and Ty talked about it again that night and decided they would plan the ceremony for the following Saturday. The baby would be a month old, and it was time for everyone to know his name.
"So who should we ask to be the godmother and godfather?" Amy asked.
"Well, I wanted to ask Caleb to be the godfather, if that's okay with you," Ty said.
Amy hesitated for a moment and then said, "Yes, Caleb would make a great godfather. I'm going to ask Lou to be the godmother."
"That'll be great," Ty agreed. "Lou will be around the baby all the time anyway."
The only thing left to do was find the baby something to wear for his big day. Amy didn't think they had a christening gown in their family like Peter had. She would have to ask Grandpa if he knew of one.
The next day Amy was down in the barn office checking on some paperwork when Jack walked in. He smiled. "Where's my new great-grandson?"
Amy pointed to the baby monitor sitting on her desk. "He's upstairs napping."
Jack smiled and nodded. "Should you be down here working just yet?"
Amy nodded. "It's okay, Grandpa. I'm feeling fine, and the doctor said it was okay for me to start slow and work back into a routine. Ty is okay with it, too, as long as I don't overdo it and get tired. I really am feeling fine, and it's nice to be able to think about work for a while—not that I don't enjoy the baby; it's just nice to think of something else for a change."
He nodded, understanding that it must have been difficult to be off work for as long as she had been. He knew how much she enjoyed her work with the horses.
"Grandpa, do you know if our family has a christening gown that the baby could wear for the naming ceremony?"
Jack smiled. "I don't know of one, but I have something in mind. Could Lisa and I come over after dinner tonight when Ty's home?"
Amy looked puzzled but said, "Sure, we would love to have you."
Later that evening after Ty had fed the baby and they were both sitting on the couch enjoying some time together, they heard Jack's voice asking if it was okay for him and Lisa to come up. Ty called, "Yes, come on up."
They walked into the loft and greeted Ty and Amy. "Where's the baby?" Lisa asked.
Ty smiled. "We just put him down after feeding him."
Lisa was disappointed as she was hoping to hold him for a while but understood his routine. Jack had a box in his hand, which he handed to Amy, and said, "I hope this will work for the baby to wear for the naming ceremony."
Amy smiled and said, "What is it?" and Jack told her to open it and see. She looked at Ty, and then lifted the lid of the box. She moved the tissue paper to reveal a beautiful gown made from pieces of her and her mom's wedding dresses. Her eyes filled with tears, and Ty hugged her tightly.
"Oh, Grandpa and Lisa, this is beautiful. Who made this?"
Jack smiled. "When you announced you were expecting, we contacted Mrs. Bell and asked if she could make the gown if we sent her the materials she needed. She was thrilled to be asked and had sent it several months ago."
When they pulled the gown out of the box, Ty noticed a small piece of blue material sewn into the lining of it. His face lit up as he recognized the material. It was from a stuffed bear he had slept with when he was little. Jack told him, "We contacted your mom and she sent it to us."
Both Amy and Ty were speechless at the thought that had gone into the making of their son's gown. They hugged Jack and Lisa and thanked them for the gift.
The next week went by quickly and before they knew it, the Saturday of the naming ceremony was here. It was a brisk October day, the sun shining brightly, and no snow had fallen yet. The ceremony was scheduled to start at 4:00 and then everyone would eat dinner afterwards. Amy was getting dressed as the baby slept, and Ty had gone into the clinic to pick up some supplies he needed for a remote call on Monday. Wade had called Ty to say they would not be able to attend, as Lily was not feeling well, and they didn't want to be around the baby with her illness. Ty hadn't planned on them being there anyway, so he wasn't too disappointed when Wade called. Amy and the baby were his family, and he thought of Jack as more of a father than his real dad or Wade.
He arrived back at Heartland around 3, so he hurried up to the loft to change and help Amy with feeding and dressing the baby before they walked over to the ranch house. Amy was hurrying around putting necessities in the diaper bag. The baby was just waking up and was fussing as he was hungry. Ty got a bottle out and started warming it up while Amy changed his diaper and put a clean onesie on him. Ty was ready except for a tie, so he sat down to feed the baby and Amy finished getting everything ready. The gown was lying on the bed ready to dress the baby in when he was done eating.
They were just starting to dress him when they both heard the familiar noise and smelled the unpleasant stench. Amy quickly grabbed the bottom of the gown and moved it out from under him so it would not get soiled, while Ty grabbed the wipes and a clean diaper. Needless to say the baby had made a mess, but luckily they had saved the gown from getting anything on it. They finished cleaning him up and put the gown on, holding their breath that he wouldn't make another mess before the ceremony.
It was 4:05 when they walked into the ranch. Everyone was dressed up and looking nice. Jack had on his blue suit as usual and took his place at the center of the fire place. Amy, Ty, and the baby were next to Jack and Lou and Caleb were next to them. Jack started his little speech about how the tradition came to be, and Tim as usual interrupted him and said, "We've all heard the story many times, so get on with it."
Then Jack asked the big question. "What name have you given to the baby?"
Amy smiled at Ty. As Lou placed the baby's hand on his stone, Ty said, "Tyler Jackson Fleming-Borden. We'll call him TJ for short."
Caleb got all choked up but managed to say a few words to Ty. "A father is someone who carries pictures where his money used to be." Everyone laughed.
Later everyone was commenting on his name, everyone but Tim. Amy watched her dad's face when Ty stated the baby's name and knew he was not pleased. She just hoped that he won't make a big scene about it. Ty had seen Tim's reaction as well, and as soon as the ceremony and pictures had been taken, he asked Tim to step outside for a moment.
Out on the porch, Ty said, "Look, I wanted to explain to you why we chose Jackson for the baby's middle name. I feel like Jack is more of a father to me than anyone. He and I have formed a bond over the years that's meant a lot to me. We did not intend to upset you, and I hoped you won't ruin the day with any smart remarks that would hurt your daughter's feelings.
Tim stood speechless for a few moments and then reached out to shake Ty's hand. "Amy did good when she picked you to be her husband. I know that you'll always be there for her, and you have proven again you'll protect her. I know she'll always be safe with you, Ty."
Tim walked back into the house and they all enjoyed a wonderful, peaceful dinner. It was getting late, and TJ was tired and hungry. Ty and Amy said their goodbyes and headed back over to the loft. They fed and changed TJ and he was asleep before they placed him in his bassinette.
Ty had taken his tie off and was standing next to the bassinette watching TJ sleep when Amy emerged from the bathroom. He was thinking about the day's events and didn't hear Amy until he felt her arms make their way around his waist. He turned in her arms and Amy leaned on his chest, just savoring the moment.
Ty lowered his lips to hers, as she moved her hands across his chest to unbutton his shirt. He smiled to himself and broke the kiss to look at his wife. "Amy, are you sure you want to start something you can't finish?" he asked.
Amy smiled up at him with a twinkle in her eye, "Ok, so maybe we can't do that tonight, but we can do this, right?" As she kissed him passionately.
Ty sigh, he loved this woman, his wife and the mother of his child more than life itself. She did things to him that she would never know, and he could never say no to. He picked her up and carried her to the bed, laying her down gently, saying.
"I love you, Amy."