Mark in review

What a year! Matt always told himself he didn't want this blog to become just baby news. But, um, well, this kid is fascinating. He changes so much every day. (And, honestly: Matt is just giving the readers what they want.)

It's amazing that just one year ago the Naper Hanleys were only a duo, counting down the days until Baby To Be Named Later arrived.
And then, after a very long day, Mark Stewart Hanley got called up to the big leagues.
Everyone thought the squishy looking kid was adorable. (And now everyone thinks...he's much more adorable.)


At first, Mark did pretty much nothing at all. Lazy, some might say. He didn't talk. Wouldn't make eye contact. Did not walk. Couldn't drive a car. Refused to play catch. Didn't know -or care to find out - who was president. Of course, every nothing he did was fascinating.
Even with a brief return to the hospital, overall it was a wonderful year. Consider:
One year ago, Mark couldn't roll over. Then, he learned to hold his head up, then sit up, then crawl, then pull himself up. Now, he can stand. (But not quite walk...)
One year ago, Mark didn't have a name. Now, he has a favorite baseball team and a college destination.
One year ago, Mark lived alone in a tiny one-room apartment. Now, he's been to 10 states.
One year ago, the pictures of Mark were all in black and white. Now, he's been photographed 1,765,456,233 times.
One year ago, Mark had never seen another person. Now, he's surrounded by a mom, dad, grandmas, grandpas, great-grandmas, aunts, uncles, cousins, great aunts, great uncles, second cousins, third cousins, friends and a dog who hang on his every giggle.
One year ago, we thought we had a perfectly happy family. And we certainly did. And yet, we had no idea how much we were missing.
One year seems like a long time ago and it went so quickly.