Mark of Fridays: Ratzo Rizzo

This post was going to contain pictures from Mark's very excellent first birthday party, but...

....last night ...

...at 7:48 p.m. ...

...while standing in the kitchen...

...Mark took his first steps!

Well, Ok, his first wobbly, unsure, stutter-step. But still! Holy cow!

Mark is almost, pretty much, sort of, kinda walking!

(Oh, and Ratzo Rizzo? C'mon. Surely, you caught the reference.)

The One-Year Mark

Mark Hanley, at 12 months

The measurements: 22 lbs 13 oz, 28.5 inches long. That's average for kids my age, although my head's still a little larger-than-life. I'm now big enough to wear 12-month pants and 18-month shirts. Good thing baby hats don't come in sizes. Ahem.

Best Friends: Books, Jack, books, fishies (real or in books), and anyone who will hold me through my nap no matter how sweaty I get. Also: books.

Enemies: Diaper changes. I refuse to be held down!
Also: solid foods. Mom and Dad have tried and tried, but I refuse to eat real food. If they give me finger foods, I won't put them into my mouth. If they give me mushy bits of barely solid food (like bananas or watermelon), I fight to keep them out. If they sneak some in, I gag or throw up. I even chuck when they sneak bits of fruit into my baby food. Mom is checking whether they serve purees in the high school cafeteria.

Just found out about: Pretending to hit my head. I ram my head into lots of things, and do you know what I've discovered? Every time, Mom or Dad pick me up and give me a hug. So I decided to "hit my head" more often. Maybe Mom or Dad tells me not to climb up the stairs and I get mad? I'll just cry and pretend I hit my head, so they'll pick me up. Or, maybe, I get caught eating the dog's food? Grab the side of my head. Get in trouble for throwing toys on the floor in a restaurant? Cry and hold my head. Mom and Dad are fooled, every time.

I'm not so sure about: Walking. I can stand for a really long time. I've heard that the next thing I need to master is taking steps. It just seems useless and illogical when I can get around so well by crawling.

Favorite activities: Attacking people while they're sleeping. Mom taught me this trick so I could wake up Daddy on Saturday mornings. Here's how it works: I see a person I love lying still, then I crawl over to them as fast as I can and jump on them, yelling like a wild man all the while. Then they hug me while I yell and yell and yell. The problem is that I now associate hugging with yelling. Oops.

I have a crush on: Birthdays and birthday parties! Did you know that people throw you a party and buy you presents simply for getting older? What a great deal. I think I'll have a birthday every year.

Major accomplishments: So far, I can say: hi, Jack, mama, and dada. I can MOOO like a cow and smack my lips like a fishie. I can sign "all done" and let Mommy or Daddy know when I'm hurt. I can blow kisses, complete with a very dramatic MMMWWWAHHH noise. I can stand on my own. I can ride forward-facing in the car: HOORAY! And I can sort-of help put away my own toys. As long as I haven't just hit my head.

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.

Mark of Fridays: Where did I park that limo?

I always forget where I left that thing.

Also, I have no driver's license. I should check into that.

Mark of Fridays: Ahoy, I'm a stander!

I'm standing!
I'm standing!
Look at me, I'm standing! I stand! I'm a stander!

Mark of Fridays: Almost heaven in West Virginia

Hey, didn't the Hanleys all go to West Virginia not too long ago? And didn't they promise to post some pictures of the trip? What ever happened to that?
Oh yeah!
During the last week of July, the Hanleys took their first family summer vacation. They had the station wagon and the bad music and the goofy dad. The Hanleys were heading off to West Virginia, the homeland of the Stewarts and Seagos and impossibly terrifying roads.
There were many reasons for the trip. First, they had been invited to a wedding in Middlebourne, West Virginia, Grandpa Barry's hometown.
This gave them an opportunity to visit close family friends, spend time with some of Lynne's extended family, and allow Grandma and Grandpa Seago to show off the Little Man. Plus, Lynne got to show Matt around the Ohio Valley, a place that feels like home - despite the fact that she's lived most of her life in Chicago.
And along the way, the Hanleys made a stop in Indianapolis, home of Matt's college roommate (known to some as Nathaniel, but known mostly as Kramer). Nathaniel and his wife Karrie have a beautiful (and very tall) little girl, Elyse.
Mark was thrilled to see someone his own size and decided to stay up half the night because he was so excited. Matt and Nathaniel shot off some fireworks because there were no records available to toss around like frisbees.
Then, it was on to West Virginia. Matt has heard about WV since he met Lynne, but this would be his first visit. They were headed for the state border with Ohio, near Wheeling.
If you haven't been to West Virginia, you should know this: the state is almost incomprehensibly beautiful. Hundreds of wooded miles leading into the Ohio River Valley. In some spots, you can see for miles - just green trees and blue skies. It's hard to imagine the area loked much different 100 years ago.
Also, if you're going to West Virginia, you should know this: the roads are basically death traps. No shoulders, steep drops, then winding and twisting with steep drops. All roads are basically 75 degree inclines with hairpin turns. Oh, and herd of deer might run onto the road. You can still see the imprints of Matt's fingers on the passenger side door.
Besides the fantastic wedding, a big part of the trip was visiting family and trips to Memory Lane.
First up was Farmington, Ohio, where the Hanleys visited the farmhouse where Lynne's mom grew up and where Lynne was brought home from the hospital. Although no one is living in the farmhouse anymore, it was still there and looked in decent shape. Matt walked around a bit inside and Lynne told stories about feeding the horse across the street and her mom shooting a BB gun at a bell.
Then, Lynne, Matt and Mark took a walk over to the local cemetery, which was about 100 yards away (and next to the one-room school where Lynne's grandma went to primry schoo). The graveyard was tiny, but filled with history. Some of the gravestones marked the final resting place of people born before the United States was independent from England. Generations of Mitchells and Copes are buried there. Mark sat at the grave of his great-great-great grandpa, Isaac Cope (1840-1895), who fought in the Civil War. Matt took Mark's picture there - which is either pretty cool or pretty creepy.
Next family stop was in Middlebourne, West Virginia, hometown of the Seagos. Mark got to spend the day with bunches of cousins and uncles. Everyone was so friendly - it was like they'd known him forever. They all spent the day together and had a wonderful time, sharing stories and making new memories.
The Hanleys also participated in the Barry Seago History Tour. Highlights included: the ballfields where he used to play, the jail where he lived when his dad was the sheriff, the home of the guy who shot his dog after some of the boys "borrowed" a few of his crops, a really good pizza place where they pile shredded cheese on sauce and bread, a guy who was the smartest guy Barry ever knew and paints houses, and zillion places that a kid could spend all day acting like Tom Sawyer and generally having a great time.
The trip was great. And Mark got to ride in the car (fun), hang out with both parents for a whole week (really fun), pull a lot of grass out of his Great Uncle Steve's yard (super fun), go swimming at the hotel pool (extra super fun), and see some animals at the Ogelbay Good Zoo in Wheeling (near bliss).
Can't wait to go back!

Mark of Fridays: Special delivery!

A Mark story that has nothing to do with this picture:

The other day, Mark was standing against the wall near Jack's food and water bowls. Mark fell backwards and when his butt plopped down, it bumped Jack's food. About seven pellets of food got knocked out.

Mark turned around, picked up a pellet and...dropped it back in the bowl.

Never tried to put it in his mouth. Then he picked each of the other pellets, one by one, and dropped them in the bowl.

Is this kid great or what?