A Time to Grow

**NEW** I Can Fly

Addie - Age - 7 Months

"So do you really think she's ready for this?" Maks asked as Addie was contently sleeping in his arms. She was taking her late afternoon nap while Maks kept Peta company.

"I, well, I'm a little nervous to be honest myself but I do think we can handle it. So if we can handle it, she'll be okay. And she's usually a pretty quiet baby so it's not like we should have to worry about that aspect."

"It's a long flight pretty girl." Maks said nervously.

"Handsome." Peta said as she stopped what she was doing and turned to look at him.

"Yeah?" He said looking at her.

"You're normally the calm one baby, what's up?" She said abandoning the packing that she was working on.

"I....well....we wouldn't be going on this trip if it wasn't for me so I just...well, I don't know. I don't want it to all go south."

"Well, we are going south." Peta quipped as she smirked at her husband.

"Peta Jane." Maks said with a slight chuckle to his voice.

"Well we are going to Florida sir. So I mean, we are going south." She said holding her arms out for Addie. Maks gave her a look and gave up his baby girl to his wife. She snuggled her for a few moments before tucking her into the bassinet that was still in their room. They kept it for times when she was sick and clingy or when she was napping and they wanted to keep her near. She moved back over to her husband and settled into his lap.

"You took my security blanket." He said sheepishly as his arms wrapped around her.

"What happened to your other one?" She said looking at him indignantly.

"You will always be my best security blanket....however you are the one making me talk right now. So the sleeping angel was slightly safer this time."

"I'll give you that. But I am still going to make you talk sir. Not that I mind helping you settle, it's just out of the ordinary for you." Peta said as her fingers ran gently through his hair.

"I don't know, it's just like I said, I feel like it's a big thing for us. It's her first airplane ride, her first time sleeping out of our house, and our first trip all together. I don't want it all to go horribly and set this horrible memory for her first trip."

"Baby, she's not going to remember it. I mean I know that's not what you're getting at but it's a learning experience for us as well. Just because something may go wrong on this trip doesn't mean that it will scar her or us for life. Plus we're kind of good at this traveling thing."

"You are right about that, we do have a lot of practice. I will give you that."

"See....and even when this little miss is upset, we know her kinda well."

"We do. Or well, she just likes the both of us."

"She does. And this will give us time to make some memories. I know we have the dinner that we have to go to however we still get to go to the beach and let her experience the beach."

"You realize that we live a half hour from the beach and we are going miles and miles to let our daughter experience the ocean for the first time."

"Shhhh. We don't talk about that part."

"Okay. But yes, new experiences and new memories."

"And you're birthday, we are doing something fun for your birthday."

"We are. And I am kind of excited about the reasoning of the dinner. I will always love the Alfalit and just their mission for literacy and helping spread that and help everyone." Maks said softly. Every since the final Sway Miami that they had done with Alfalit, Maks had basically kept that as his charity. At that point he had been working hand in hand with them for 5 years and they were having a dinner to honor their biggest contributors including their family now. They were going to go down for the dinner & banquet and then stay a few extra days over Maks's birthday so they could go to the beach and just squeeze in some family time.