Chapter Seventy-Eight

Always There For Each Other

A/N – Some lighter chapters but a lot of Borden stuff. I felt good about how that storyline developed. There is a lot going on with the business as the changes planned are underway. I hope to keep everyone updated as the excitement grows with all the changes. The new approach to the College Lecture series will be explored as well. And those Borden kids are engaged in a lot of school and other activities. I expect there will be a little chaos as well. We'll also check on the expectant mothers and see what's up with them. Should be a pretty relaxed chapter but may hop around a bit. But be forewarned as I develop several chapters ahead the Borden's will be called on to be there for each other, family and friends. Enjoy!

For the next few weeks, the Borden's got into the work and school routine. Amy and Ty were extremely busy with not just an increase in business but the changes going on with the ranch, especially the Day Care Center. Georgie had been limiting her work a bit since her pregnancy was progressing nicely. And they were relieved when they found out there was only one but they didn't want to know the gender. The team decided to move up the hiring process for a new vet since like Georgie, Cass was moving along as well but cutting back. Moving it up would get someone in before Cass had to go out for a few months. She was planning to work almost to her due date after the doctor approved it. They were still looking for a upcoming graduate that had gone through the clinical program with them and had narrowed it down to two candidates. Bethany was still under constant supervision. Between, Amy, Cass, Georgie, Jenn, Katie and the Borden girls she was rarely alone. She was still working but only as a sub and that was limited as well. When her son Billy was home he was her fully committed helper and protector. He understood what was going on and made sure he was there for his mom. Cass and Georgie were also helping Amy with the Day Care setup. Since they would be using it Amy really appreciated their help. Along with the women who would be managing the facility, they diagramed the facility and decided how the playground and inside play area would be set up. Construction was set to begin so once they finalized the look they wanted it had begun. They were excited, especially because it would be ready well before all three of them had their babies. The three of them were having lunch with Bethany one day and shared what they had come up with. She was excited as well to have a place for Billy and their new addition to be at close to home.

The Borden kids were enjoying the second half of the school year. The projects and schoolwork were keeping them very busy along with their work at home and Lyndy's time at Goddard. Every night at dinner they shared all of the exciting things going on in their lives and continued to sit and help each other with their homework. A tradition that continued that made their parents do proud and happy. Sometimes Amy and Ty even helped which made them even happier. Wyatt and Lyndy were still very close as their relationship continued to grow. The respected each other and knew deep down that their future would be together. Now that Wyatt was 15 and Lyndy would be in 4 months or so they were a couple and cared deeply for each other. Lyndy was really enjoying the Goddard School and was happy she decided to take their offer. She still didn't know yet what she wanted to do but the advanced dance classes she was taking were fun. The twins were having a great time in middle school. It was a lot different than elementary and they noticed kids were changing at different levels of maturity. They were happy that Desi and Jeremy seemed to be losing their boyishness and continued to enjoy hanging out with them and their other friends. Annie was really into her science project and the teacher at school encouraged her to stretch herself as she knew she had the capability to do it. Addie was not only excelling in shop but her math skills were advancing as well. Both subjects were exciting for her but most of all she liked that her dad, who was skilled at both could help her. Their relationship had grown as she got older and she loved him more and more every day. Maddie was having the time of her life. Amy and Ty were always amazed at the love for life she had with everything she did. She was a special young lady and the teachers always sent notes home at how she was a leader in her class. Her relationship with Gwen and Sylvia was strong and they were seen together often, which continued to be something the staff and many kids looked up to. At dinner one night they all handed slips to their parents. It was parent/teacher meeting time and even Wyatt shared his with them. Most kids might be nervous but they were looking forward to having them meet with their teachers.

Amy and Ty were in the office preparing for a meeting with the university to pitch their idea. Ty sent some preliminary information about their idea and had received some great feedback. The meeting was tomorrow so they spent a lot of time getting their ideas on paper and preparing some details on what they proposed for the video series. Basically, the plan was to take each component of what they did as it related to veterinary medicine and show how they could use some of the things they do to enhance their skills. They had a zoom call with Scott, Cass, Ellie and Steven as well as Georgie and Katie to talk through the program. Amy and Ty gathered their feedback and felt confident that they were prepared for tomorrow. Although they all enjoyed doing them with the surge in business and the projection that it would continue to grow they felt this new approach was much better, in fact they all were confident it would be more valuable in the long run. Real work scenarios would be a benefit to the students. The next day the meeting with the team at the University went better than expected. They were all in and would provide kids from the journalism school to report, film, edit and produce the videos. Amy and Ty provided them a list of areas that they would need to work with them on and in fact the university team had a few additional ones. Amy was surprised when Dr. Molder asked if Amy would do an entire series on the utilization of her mom's journals in the herbal care she provided. She smiled and was getting emotional so Ty spoke up. "As you know Amy's mom passed away years ago and has had a tremendous impact on her as well as everyone else in the family." As he placed his hand in hers he continued, "I am sure she would be happy to." Amy smiled meekly and said, "I would love to." They worked through the rest of the components and agreed on the final curriculum. Later that day they shared the final decisions with the rest of the team and everyone was pleased.

Max had contacted Lisa and Jack and all of the documents concerning the employee purchase and bonus program had been filed and approved by the appropriate government agencies and were ready to be implemented. Lou had already developed flyers and actually set up a site on the employee portal they could use on access the programs on the company website. The Board met on a Zoom call to look the final product over and discuss the process of announcing it to the staff and family. They all agreed that Lisa would send out a blast email to everyone and then each location would have separate meetings. The stipulation was that Lou and Lisa would have to attend all of them in case there were any questions they needed to answer. Since Amy and Ty had the largest group they scheduled theirs first. Lisa's email stirred up a lot of excitement and as their meeting began they were all on th edge of their seats. The most questions came from the employee ownership program and how it worked. One of the ranch hands asked, "Is 1% required or can a person buy less?" Lisa spoke up, "1% is the maximum because we want as many of you as possible to be able to become owners." She showed them the cost of 1% and the projected growth potential. "As you can see the investment will produce a profit for the foreseeable future. And we are confident that we will grow and these shares will increase in value." Everyone smiled and another person joked, "Is this like the Green Bay Packers, will we have to clean snow off the stands and field before every home game?" Everyone laughed as another person said, Leroy we do that already.. Lou then went over the Bonus structure and said that each person would receive a personalize breakdown of the level of bonus they qualified for. There weren't too many questions but Lou, Lisa, Amy and Ty reminded them that if they needed anything to let them know. The rest of the meeting went very well so both programs were set to begin the 1st of the month. The bonus program would be prorated for the number of months left in the year. The Board was happy with the process and looking forward to the future.

To celebrate the entire family and close friends had a BBQ at the Miracle Ranch. The celebrated the progress on some of the business projects as well as the roll out of the employee purchase and bonus programs. Amy and Ty gloated about the kids and how well they were doing in school and Lou was excited as wedding planning for Katie and Clay which had begun. Amy and Georgie leaned over to Katie and whispered, "Good luck with that." Lou overheard them and gave them all a dirty look. But most of the attention was on Cass, Georgie and Bethany. Each of them had checkups this week. Cass and Caleb talked about what the doctors said. Cass spoke up, "The little one is doing well and we are still on schedule for early summer. And we know the gender, we are having a girl!" Everyone jumped for joy congratulating them as Jack shook his head, "More women." Ty and Jack laughed at Caleb as Ty said, "Welcome to the girl's club." Georgie went next and Steven and her went through the details. Steven spoke first, "Well all is well but it looks like we may be a little early maybe mid-May. As you know we want to be surprised and at the last ultrasound the tech almost made the mistake of showing us." Georgie laughed, "It was a riot, my doctor lunged in front of the screen at the last second and blocked our view. We were all laughing and the poor tech felt bad." Everyone laughed and congratulated them both. Hesitantly Will and Bethany talked about her last doctor appointment. She was seeing her every two weeks due to the gestational diabetes. Since Bethany was a little emotional Will took over, "Well things are going well. Bethany has really been taking care of the self and her little helper Billy has been awesome." He ruffled his hair as he sat on his mom's lap touching her stomach. She was able to continue, "And I can't thank all of you enough for everything you have done for us. Cass, Georgie, Amy and you Borden girls, you have been." She began to tear up, "You have been amazing and we love you all very much. We just can't believe how loved we are." Amy, Georgie and Cass went over to hug her and Jack spoke to the group. "Will and Bethany, you are family and we do anything for our family." Now both Will and Bethany were in tears. Will looked at Ty and went to hug him. "Ty I can't thank you and Amy for allowing us to be a part of your family." Ty smiled as the four of them hugged. And cutely Billy and JT hugged as well, bringing Ben, Breydon and Jax in as well. The entire group awed at the kids. The party continued as the excitement about new babies, business changes and famliy made everyone happy.

As Amy and Ty made the rounds for bed, each of the kids needed a little more time. They first visited JT and told him how nice it was that he was there to help Billy. Amy whispered, "Honey that was so nice what you did tonight for Billy. I think you and the other boys made him feel better." She teared up as JT answered, "Don't be sad mommy, it's gonna be all right. Remember when I made my wish at my birthday for Bethany and the baby. Well I was talking to Grandma Marion last night and she told me everything would be Ok." Amy and Ty did everything they could to hold back their tears. He was such a special boy. Maddie had a million questions about everything so Amy and Ty tried to reign her in. She was so perceptive and they were amazed about her grasp of basically everything. As they walked out they felt like they just left a tornado. When they went to see the twins, they looked up startled. It seemed they had been talking privately and stopped once their parents walked in. Ty spoke up, hey guys what's going on, you seem serious about something." Annie spoke up, "We were just talking about Bethany. We just want everything to go well for them. Did you see Billy when they were talking. He looked scared until JT and the other guys went to him. Every night we pray for them." Amy smiled and hugged her two daughters, "Well girls, all we can do is be there for them and continue our prayers." They finally went to see Lyndy and as usual her an Wyatt were talking. Surprisingly Wyatt spoke up, "Mr. and Mrs. Borden I just have to say that JT was awesome tonight. The way he went to help Billy was amazing. Lyndy and I both saw how scared he was. We decided that we are going to take them both out a couple of times so he can get away for a bit." Lyndy smiled and held his hand, "We want to do this mom and dad, we want to help." Without words, Amy hugged her and Ty shook Wyatt's hand. They said good night and headed to bed. As they lay in bed, their thought were on their children and family. The happily fell asleep in each other's arms.

Now that everyone in the organization had been met with, Amy and Ty refocused on the work they had to do. The Equine Center was going to be the first video in the university series and Ty, Steven and Cass were getting ready. The first session would be on the Vet side of the Center, covering exams, surgeries and such. They had several new client horses on the way so the timing was perfect. They would follow all three of them as they worked with the horse from the time they arrived until they met with the trainer and owners. They also had several surgeries booked that would provide a good glimpse of what they did. The next week it would be Amy, Georgie and the training team. The first week would be them working with horses and the second would be the Herbal piece. Amy was excited because she was going to have Lyndy do it with her. She felt she was ready and excited to get her involved. The entire organization was abuzz about the two employee benefit programs starting up. Ty and Amy had received a ton of positive comments and sincere thanks. They were always confident that the staff really liked working there but this was moving it over the top. Amy also had a day scheduled to look over the progress with the Day Care. Amy and Cass brought the boys along with Breydon and Jax and they kid tested all the equipment. They gave their approval. The team was way ahead of schedule, so much so they decided to move the opening of it up by a month. The information was sent out and an orientation was planned right before the opening. Everyone was excited and Marjorie, the center's manager, was planning to have a staff orientation as well a few days prior. The place was buzzing with excitement in anticipation of the new Day Care Center. This was just another benefit that made the Heartland Equestrian Expereince a great place to work for and a place that you wanted to commit to.

The upcoming week was parent/teacher meetings with each school taking one night. Amy and Ty would have a busy week so the kids were going to have visitors for dinner all week. On Monday it was a trip to the elementary school. Their first trip was to the PreK room. The teaching team had nothing but great things to say about JT. Miss Flood spoke up, "Mr. and Mrs. Borden even though he is one of the younger kids he is a leader and very mature. I expect those 4 older sisters have something to do with that. And I have to ask you something. I have heard him talking to some of the other kids about his Grandma Marion. Are they close?" Amy dipped her head down and the teacher was concerned. Before it got uncomfortable, Ty took over and took some time to tell the story of his special relationship with her. The group sat there with their mouths opened in disbelief. Another teacher spoke when he finished, "I have never heard anything like that before. He is definitely a very special young boy." Amy and Ty thanked them and headed to talk with Maddie's teachers. As usually the team had great things to say about their youngest daughter. Especially her reputation that had been built with Gwen and Sylvia. One teacher spoke up, "I'm new to the team and have heard of her relationship with Gwen. I was involved early on with Gwen and I have to say she is a much different child now and I have seen that is due to their friendship along with your family." As the conversation continued, the team lead mentioned something that took them by surprise. "Amy and Ty, has Maddie ever talked to you about her cursive writing?" Amy shook her head, "She talks about a lot but I don't think that has ever came up, why?" "Well Maddie is an exceptional student and classmate. She is well above average in all of the standardized test but she has struggled a bit with transitioning to cursive. With phones and computers cursive writing is becoming outdated but we believe it is an important tool for creative development. She seems to be having some difficulties and I have noticed it is bothering her. With your permission we would like to do some testing." Amy and Ty sat quietly as she continued, "Guys this is not anyone's fault and is relatively common in kids with higher intelligence. We believe it is a mild case Dysgraphia, which is an inability to form letters and words with cursive writing. In this case we believe there are things we can do to help her grow out of it." Ty asked, "What can we do?" The teacher smiled, "Help her understand that she is not to blame. Maddie is an intelligent and amazing young woman and needs to understand that she is OK." Amy smiled, "I will talk with my oldest daughter, they are extremely close. We will be there for her and thank you for everything you do." The meeting ended and a concerned Amy and Ty headed home.

Before they left for the next set of meetings, Amy and Ty talked with Lyndy and Wyatt about Maddie. Lyndy listened intently and held her mom's hand. After some tears she looked into her eyes and said, "Mom, Maddie will be fine. I have a friend who had that diagnosis as well and she writes beautifully. We will both help her as long as she wants us to. Let's see what the test say and we can go from there." Amy hugged her daughter with all her might and Ty joined in and patted Wyatt's shoulder. The second night was at the middle school for Annie and Addie. With this level of school they actually followed their schedule. When they had a class together they both sat in and when they separated they followed. Overall all of the teachers were as usual pleased with both of them. Ty really enjoyed the discussion with Addie's shop teacher about his Norton. He had a 1970 Triumph that her restored as well. He mentioned that Addie was his prize student and showed up a lot of the boys who thought they knew more than a girl. Also Annie's math teacher, a class she had with her sister told Amy and Ty that Addie was at the top of the class. She said, "I plan to challenge her more and more. She has a unique grasp of mathematics which you rarely see today. I believe she will be able to use her skills as she progresses through life in whatever she decides to do. After finishing up they met with the counselor that they shared. Amy and Ty had decided it would be best to have the same one. The counselor began to speak, "Mr. and Mrs. Borden you should be proud of those two. Not only are the great sisters they are good people. When I speak with one of them alone they talk about the other. When they come together, they talk about their family. I have had twins before but have never seen such a close bond. I do have a question. How often do you find them talking to each other in the language they created?" Ty smiled, "Well when they were younger a lot but now not as much. But that is probably because like most teenagers, they become more private and talking to their parents become a little more stressful." She continued, "Well I can tell you they love you and their siblings and it shows. I am confident that is why they are so centered and mature. It is a blessing to have them on my case load.." Ty and Amy thanked her and headed home pleased with the evening.

Although the kids wanted to know about the meetings Amy and Ty said they would wait until dinner on Thursday. The kids weren't happy but understood. The next night was the high school trip. Amy laughed and kissed Ty's cheek as they entered the school, "Look at me back in high school, not the most favorite time of my life." He laughed, "I know, meeting me was, right." She tickled him, "Whatever." They were going to follow her schedule like the twins and in the classes she had with Wyatt inquire about his progress. They also shared the same counselor and were going to meet with him as well. As they were used to the teachers all though very highly of their oldest daughter. She had earned the reputation of being a great student and person. When they were in shared classes the teachers also spoke highly of Wyatt. He seemed to have really excelled in math and science. Ty laughed, "You know Amy he has spent some shadowing Steven. I don't believe we should push him but I think he would make a good vet. Wouldn't be great to have another vet in the family?" She looked at him with loving eyes, "You said family and I agree, he is." They headed to their meeting with his counselor. He smiled and asked them to take a seat. He immediately began speaking, "Well Mr. and Mrs. Borden I have done this for a while and typically freshman have struggles transitioning to high school. But I have never see two more mature and together kids, sorry young adults." He paused as Amy and Ty smiled. "Individually they are both confident and in control. Together they are a force. I usually meet with them one-on-one but several times they have asked that I see them together. They are open honest and it is obvious they care deeply for each other. Generally, I have not seen good outcomes with young people and relationships but these two have created a new norm. They are amazing on their own but even more together." Amy and Ty sat back holding each other's hands. Amy spoke first. "Thank you so much for those kind words. We know our daughter is special and Wyatt, we love him like a son. He has had a rough life and we are more than happy to be there for him." Ty continued, "Most parents would be concerned at their closeness but to be honest we trust them so much and are good with it. They are so mature for their age and sometimes Amy and I are overwhelmed with them and their relationship." They ended the meeting and thanked him. On the way home they sat in silence. It had been a good few days.

The next day Amy and Ty went to Goddard to have lunch with Lyndy and meet with some of the staff. It went well and it seemed that although it had been a short time, she was adjusting well and really excelling in her dance classes. The lead instructor said something that really made sense. She said that if Lyndy chooses dance as her life she will do very well. But to be honest, we believe that whatever she chooses to do in life she will be successful. If it is not dance, what she is learning here will bring value to whatever she decides to do." At dinner that night Amy and Ty talked about their meetings in general terms saving more detail for later. "Guys all of your teachers spoke highly of you and said you all were doing well." She started to choke up a bit. "But the best thing your dad and I heard was that you were all good people and classmates." She had to stop as her emotions took over. Ty continued putting his arm around her. "Mom and I are so happy with you schoolwork but just as important in life is that you are kind and caring of the people around you, even those that you may not be close to. That for us is a very rewarding thing as your parents." He got quiet and Maddie giggled a little. As they looked at her she spoke, "Look at dad getting all dad-like." She smiled, "And I love it, mom and dad we all love you very much." The family laughed and cried all at once. On cue Wyatt asked Annie, Addie and JT if they could help him with night chores. Lyndy and Amy had asked him earlier so they could be with Maddie and talk to her about what her teachers said. Maddie wanted to go but Amy insisted she stay and help clean up. She reluctantly agreed. Once they were done the asked her to come back to th table with them. Maddie knew something was up but quietly agreed and held her sister's hand as they went in to sit down.

Amy reluctantly started, "Honey we wanted to talk to you alone and if it Ok Lyndy wants to be here for you to. So how are things going for you. We heard what the teacher's said but we wanted to ask you." She smiled timidly, which was so not her. "Well I really like th 3rd grade and my friends, especially Gwen and Sylvia. My classes are fun and I really like some of the projects we do." She hesitated realizing where this was going.. Ty continued. "Is there anything you are having trouble with, a class or something else." Tears formed in her eyes as Lyndy clutched her tightly, "Mom, Dad, I can't write cursive well. All the other kids are doing well and it is embarrassing. I just can't get it down. Every night I spend time before I go to bed trying to get better but I just can't get it. It is so frustrating and I am such an idiot." Ty immediately grabbed her in a hug as Amy and Lyndy supported each other's tears. "Maddie you are an extremely smart and I never want to hear you say something like that. The teachers say you are a leader and outstanding student. You excel in everything you do. Honey, the challenges you are having are not your fault." Everyone took a breath and Maddie looked at him with tear filled eyes. "Really, then what is wrong with me?' Amy gathered her strength to continue. "Baby, you could have a something called Dysgraphia. It is something that they will be testing you for and something that you can get past. It is not that uncommon and we will all be here to support you. We hope you don't mind but we told Lyndy and Wyatt and they are committed as well. We will get past this together as a family, I am sure." Wyatt walked in the room and immediately the twins knew something was wrong. Lyndy and Wyatt took JT to get ready for bed. Maddie and Amy explained what was up. The twins listened intently and each held one of her hands. Addie smiled when she finished, "Sis Annie and I got this. We will help you also and we will all beat this. We are all here for you."

Everyone got ready for bed and Amy and Ty went to see everyone. When they got into Maddie's room, her three sisters were in there. Amy gasped when they saw them at her desk giving her some tips and celebrating when she had success. The broke up the session encouraging them to all get ready for bed. Amy and Ty sat with Maddie for a while letting her know the details of the testing. They were positive and confident with her. As they got up Amy looked at Ty and he understood she would stay a bit longer. Ty went to say good night to the twins, Lyndy and Wyatt. When he went back to Maddie's room he smiled as his beautiful wife had his precious little girl wrapped in her arms. Amy's love for her kids was unmatched except maybe for the love for him. She looked up at him and smiled, whispering, "See you soon." Ty was looking over some files as Amy came back a half hour later. He asked, "How is she?" she smiled, "She is OK, I offered to stay longer but she looked at me and told me it was Ok. That Daddy needs you tonight." Amy broke down and fell into his arms sobbing uncontrollability. "Our baby is so sad Ty, I feel so helpless." Ty waited, holding his wife tightly until he spoke. Once she settled a bit, "Ames, our girls in fact our kids are strong because their mother is amazing. She will work through this and we all will be there for her. It's gonna be Ok."