Markham's View

Hug Me Bear’s Adventurous Weekend with Mark

2010-09-27T07:53:00.001-04:00

Twice a year each Kindergarten student at Roanoke Catholic must take Hug Me Bear home for the weekend. This was Mark’s and Hug Me’s first weekend together.

Saturday – yard sale time! Mark and I sold lemonade and cookies.

Break-time!

I watch Mark play games on the iPod. I wish I could play, but I just have paws.

Don’t forget me Mark—I might get sold at the yard sale!

We spent the rest of Saturday afternoon playing around during the Medieval Faire and Highland Games at Green Hill Park. We hung out at the stockades, shot some arrows and threw a mighty axe! En garde!

On Sunday it was rainy so we did some early inside decorating for Fall and Halloween! We decorated Mark’s house with pumpkins, spiders, bats, skeletons, witches, lights and lots of other spooky stuff.

We spent a lot of Sunday resting and spending time with Mark’s grandparents (Papap and Granny) who live next door. We had brunch with them and then played card games. We also checked out Mark’s Dad’s new iPad. I wish I had fingers so I could play.

Mark Reading Dick and Jane

2010-05-22T19:56:00.002-04:00

We bought Mark a copy of Dick and Jane after he showed us how good he was at reading it. I caught a quick video on my phone.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-16T21:05:00.001-04:00

Ahhhh Spring has sprung, and Easter fun was aplenty! The Pfisteroski’s spent several days celebrating Easter.

Cousin Mia & Mark goofed around during their Easter Egg Hunt at the Pfister Pfarm in Giles County on Good Saturday.

Mark dyed Easter outside at Granny & Pappap Santoroski’s house (which is just next door) the Wednesday before Easter Weekend. We colored over 3 dozen eggs!

Our masterpieces!

Mark’s favorite egg! His own creation of tie-dye & marker colorings.

With Cousin Sam’s help, Mark looked for small critters in Nana Pfister’s pond on Good Saturday.

Aunt Jen & Mia look over Mark’s collection of critters: tadpoles, salamanders, beetles, and other creepy crawly things.

And alas our traditional Easter Cake – carrot cake of course! Happy Easter & Spring everyone!

The Great Egg Drop!

2010-04-16T11:14:00.001-04:00

On our first day of Spring Break – Good Friday – we threw a very special Easter party – The Great Egg Drop!

With raw eggs in hand, Mark and his friends constructed protective coverings for their eggs using bubble wrap, Styrofoam peanuts, newspapers, boxes, containers, plastic bags, string, tape & scissors.

Next the boys climbed up to the top of the tree house, and dropped their padded eggs onto a target below. Their goal --- to hit the bull’s eye or outer rings without breaking their eggs, racking up as many points as they can in the process. Here Mark parachutes off his egg in a Chinese take-out container! And the results…

Not broken!

Broken! Yet this lil guy, Bryant, launched several eggs with no protection at all, and did not break them. He also figured out that the egg carton all on its own was the most protective covering for the eggs.

The party also had lots of homemade goodies like Hot Cross Buns which took Mark and Mom 4 hours to make --- so very yummy!

And Granny Santoroski made us deliciously cute cupcakes!

The party also included a traditional Easter Egg Hunt – where we really hid the eggs all over the yard – including up in the trees. Here Mark is dressed as Darth Markey as he hunts for Easter eggs!

With close to 90 degree temps, the kids got wet while playing Star Wars in the sprinklers.

And last but never least, their favorite game of all – Daddy Monster! This time with water balloons! So much fun for all our little friends! Happy Spring Break!

Mark’s 1st TKD Tourney

2010-04-15T20:53:00.001-04:00

In late March, Mark participated in his first-ever Taekwondo Tournament down in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was an exclusive Santoroski Boys-Only weekend away for Mark, Dad & Pappap. As Daddy judged all day, Pappap readied Mark for his form and sparring events.

Here Mark receives his fourth place medal in the forms competition. His current rank is senior orange belt.

As for Dad, he placed second in both forms and sparring. His current rank is third degree senior black belt. Way to go Daddy & Mark!

Winter Wonderland – take 2 & 3!

2010-02-07T21:27:00.001-05:00

Here are some pics from our second and third snow storm this winter! We love the snow, and Mark enjoyed his whole week off from school. Though he did come down with an ear/throat infection which kept him inside for three days --- at least we are having a real winter this year.

First thing we shoveled? A walking path of course, to Granny & Papap’s house which is right next door.

Icicles dripped to long lengths during the second storm.

Mark along with his neighborhood friends, Ann, Alan and Caleb, took to the big hills out at Fishburn Park. Mark sledded three days in a row out at this park.

Check out a video of one of the crazy sledding games the kids played out at Fishburn Park. Mark is the kid who makes the jump onto his neighbor-friend Ann’s lap while she sleds down the hill.

The third snow storm was a beauty, which ensconced the entire landscape in winter white.

It was an absolutely gorgeous winter wonderland!

Dad gives “sickly” Mark a ride over to Granny & Papap’s place while also carrying over a 3-foot board for Papap. We spent our 3-day snowed-in weekend with Granny & Papap playing loads of cards, watching movies and stuffing ourselves with gobs of homemade goodies: rustic apple pie, cinnamon buns, oatmeal cookies, brownies and turtle cake!!

With Mark on the mend and feeling much better, we let him out into the wild winter wonderland for some snow fort building with Dad and Ann (neighbor/friend across the street). He spent four hours outside, and now has a cough once again! Is he allergic to winter!?!

Stay tuned for our next winter storm with stories and pictures to follow!

Thanks for the Dream Dr. King!

2010-01-21T18:01:00.001-05:00

This past Monday, Mom, Mark and our best friends, Mama Laura and Thomas, commemorated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by visiting our local King Memorial in Downtown Roanoke. It’s a wonderful area to visit with a refurbished foot bridge that carries you right over the train yard out in the open air (adjacent to the enclosed Roanoke Star Walkway). It also includes a beautiful statue of Dr. King and these delightful benches that have built-in speakers which deliver actual King speeches.

Mark and Thomas listen to one of Dr. King’s speeches which is piped through the sides of a bench at the memorial. Of course their fav part is pushing the buttons that start the speeches, and then perching at the highest point on the benches.

Thomas stands in front of the Dr. King statue.

The boys and their mamas leave their drawings, notes and flowers at the base of the statue.

After visiting the memorial, we took off to explore the rest of Downtown Roanoke. Here the boys rest in their perches on the Roanoke Star Walkway. Afterwards, we ate lunch at the fab Roanoke City Market Building, and then started a scavenger hunt with regards to the sites of Downtown Roanoke.

We ended the day with some rock climbing behind the Roanoke City Main Library. We were able to walk to all of our destinations yet we did take the Star City Trolley for the fun of it. And as usual, we traveled downtown by the city’s metro bus from Mama Laura and Thomas’ neighborhood.

It has become an annual King Day tradition for us over the past three years, and we hope to continue it for many years to come. We recommend everyone to visit this fabulous memorial to Dr. King – anytime of the year!

Welcoming in 2010!

2010-01-10T21:30:00.001-05:00

We welcomed in the new year by bouncing balls & Wii-ing it up with with our great friends the Latham’s – Wade, Laura and Thomas! Check out our New Year’s festivities:

Dad, Mark and Thomas peer down five floors below in Center in the Square. At 12 noon, we “bounced” in the New Year at the Big Bouncy Ball New Year’s Eve Party that our science museum hosted. Hundreds of kids and parents stuffed into this huge museum and at 12 noon threw a bunch of bouncy balls down to the first floor atrium. It was wild!

Watch a video of our countdown to the bouncy ball New Year!

After bouncing in the New Year, Mark, Thomas and the moms checked out the cool exhibits at the science museum. Here Mama Laura, Thomas and Mark are at the saltwater touch tank area of the Living River exhibit. Thomas touches a sea urchin while Mark cautiously watches from behind.

Afterwards, we headed back to our house for some New Year’s Confetti Cake…

and some Wii games. Daddy Mike takes on Thomas in the boxing ring. In the background, Mark relaxes in his chair while Daddy Wade takes in a cool one. Thomas was one incredible boxer while Mark was one heck of a bowler (he’s scoring in the 200s now)!

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

(No we weren’t at the beach for New Year’s – we wish! We did this little photo op at the beach during Thanksgiving! We came prepared!)

Merry Christmas to all!

2010-01-03T22:20:00.001-05:00

December 24th was a silent night, holy night for us! Thankfully Mark slept through the night and awoke at 7:07 am for Christmas morning (much better than Mark’s 5 am awakening last year). We had a white Christmas filled with lots of snow – it was beautiful on Christmas day!

Our snowman holds our “Santa Please STOP here!” sign. Actually Mom and two girls on our street made this beautiful “snow queen” whose snowy dress was dyed with purple and pink sprinkles. Though hard to tell in this pic.

Mark shows off our Christmas tree (or is it SpiderMark)!

Mark prepares for Santa and the reindeers’ arrival! Will three plates of cookies and one carrot stick do the trick?

Before Mark…

After Mark…

Mark and Daddy check out the super cool Star Wars Clone Trooper Tank that Santa brought! Mark loved it! This year, Mark took his time opening up his gifts – though tearing through the wrapping paper at lightening speeds was still on par for the course of the morning. With each gift, he examined, then played a little before going on to the next present. Yet with the Star Wars Monopoly game, he came to a halt and insisted on a 1.5 hour game before proceeding with the next gifts. He loves the game Monopoly!

Here’s a video of Mark opening up his gift from Santa – enjoy! Merry Christmas everybody!

Our Snowy December

2010-01-02T22:52:00.001-05:00

Before Winter even began, it snowed – and like crazy! Mark and Mom were in Giles County for the big storm which dumped between 1 to 2 feet of snow, while Dad in Roanoke received 18 inches. It was spectacular!

The Pfister Pfarm in a winter wonderland!

Nana and Mark in their epic snowball battle.

Pop-Pop snow plows a trail to our cars while Mark backtracks the progress by shoveling more snow onto the plowed path.

Our snowman!

Sledding thrills down the Giles County hills!

Check out our video of Mark sledding. Happy sledding to everyone!

Sand, Surf, Sun & a Sweet T-day

2009-11-27T22:09:00.001-05:00

For the past two weeks, Mark, Daddy & Mommy have been on vacation down at the beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama (better known as the Redneck Riviera!). Part of our annual Pfister Pfamily Thanksgiving Reunion, Mark has been hanging out with his grandparents, uncles, aunt and only Pfister cousin, Mia. It’s been a super sandy sensational time!

Mommy buries Mark in the sand!

Mark snaps a shot of Dad & Mom at Fort Morgan.

Mark, Pop-Pop, Mia & Nana play around in the ocean. Both kids made it out to the sandbar for some wave jumping and boogie boarding!

Queen Mia and King Mark atop a large sand pile which they used for “sand-surfing” and “sand-sledding.”

Mark takes a spare while “sandcastle-bowling!”

Dad & Mark take on Uncle Dave while racing go-karts.

The whole Pfister Pfamily on Thanksgiving Day (l to r): Mia, Aunt Jen, Uncle Brian, Nana, Pop-Pop, Uncle Dave, Mom, Dad & Mark.

Taking Flight at the Aviation Museum

2009-11-23T09:38:00.001-05:00

This weekend, while staying at the beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama, the family took flight to the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida. Home to the famous Blue Angels, it’s one of the largest aviation museums in the world. The museum had over 150 restored aircrafts – it was gigantic! Along with Dad and Mom, Mark was joined by his favorite and only Pfister cousin, Mia (Brian & Jen Pfister’s daughter)!

Mark checks out the restored aircraft on the Flight Line Bus Tour.

Cousin Mia checks out herself in Aunt Jen’s digital camera screen. The 20-minute bus tour wasn’t as interesting as Aunt Jen’s camera and tripod.

Mark & Dad check out the cockpit of a jet fighter.

Mia’s favorite spot in the museum was on the indoor kiddie aircraft carrier playground. She climbed all over it for more than an hour or so. Ahoy Mia!

This museum was humongous and had the kids running around it for hours!

Mia, Mark and Dad check out the cockpit of a real military helicopter.

The Blue Angels at the museum…

The Blue Angels on the beach… three jets perform just for us over the ocean right in front of our beach house… you can’t beat a front door performance!

It was out of this world!

2009-11-19T09:20:00.001-05:00

This past weekend, Mark, Dad and Mom traveled all the way down to Huntsville, Alabama to visit the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. The stop was along our way to vacay down at Gulf Shores, Alabama for a nice, long Thanksgiving getaway. It was amazing to learn of Huntsville’s role in many of NASA’s top space projects, especially the making of the moon rockets. The museum was filled with lots of real space artifacts, cool hands-on activities and neat space-travel simulations. We visited the Kennedy Space Center a little over 2 years ago, and must say that this was just as fun, educational and exciting as NASA’s launch headquarters in Florida.

Mark stands in front of a model of the Saturn V rocket.

Mark and Dad check out the real deal, Saturn V rocket inside the museum.

Dad and Mark work on science experiments to understand space-related concepts. Mark’s favorite test was the one involving M&Ms!

Mark dons his goggles while we set off mini-rockets outside at Rocket Park. Definitely an awesome experiment – Mark’s second favorite!

Mark takes a pic of Mom & Dad trying out the jet pack together.

Mark & Dad traverse the Mars Mission Climbing Wall. The whole family enjoyed this rock climbing wall and spent a lot of time scaling the various walls.

The center was filled with lots of space-simulated rides like the Space Shot which gives you the feel of a rocket launch. Mom & Dad enjoyed the 2.5 seconds of being shot up into 140 feet of air-space!

For the younger set, Mark got to ride the Kids Cosmos Space Shot in the Kids Energy Depletion Zone Park (love the name of this park). He only rode this ride 10 times until they shut it down. And yes, he did deplete a lot of energy running around in the play structure.

Mark snapped this picture of our weary family as we left for the day. We spent nearly 9 hours at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. We definitely had an “out of this world” experience that was thrilling and educational!

Lost in the Maize!

2009-11-09T09:51:00.001-05:00

This weekend, Mark, Mom & Dad enjoyed the very warm weather out at Layman Family Farm’s Corn Maize. Our journey to the “maize” was the third one in three consecutive years. What can we say – we love this place! For the 2009 season the maze featured a likeness of Abraham Lincoln as seen on the US penny in honor of Abe's 200th birthday this year.

Mark and Dad wander around in acres and acres of corn stalks. The maze is divided into two phases since it’s so gigantic. Supposedly the first phase is easier than the second phase yet we got lost plenty of more times in phase one than two.

Dad takes in the view atop the bridge and relaxes a little…

while Mark takes off at running speed on his own!

Mark and Dad land safely at the bottom of the “spine-tingling” mine shaft slide. It’s an underground slide that’s basically a large ridged plastic pipe. Mark loved it!

Besides the maze, the farm was filled with lots of other fun activities like the “Corn Cannon.” Mark also enjoyed the water pump duck races, corn snake mini-maze, and corn crib (like a sandbox but filled with corn kernels which is much messier than sand).

Mark takes over the camera and grabs pics of Dad…

Mom…

and finally himself!

Let’s Vote Then Hike

2009-11-03T23:22:00.001-05:00

On this Election Day today, we voted then hiked. Along with Mama Laura and Thomas, Mark and Mom took off to the mountains for some fall hiking. It was an absolutely beautiful day for a hike in the Virginia mountains. Plus the boys hiked the most they have ever done before: 5 miles! And with no carries – a little whining at the end though and lots of breaks. They also hiked up and down a mountain with 400 feet of elevation changes.

We hiked the Bottom Creek Gorge Preserve located in Montgomery County. The preserve owned by the Nature Conservancy boasts spectacular scenery with the second highest waterfall in Virginia.

We ate lunch at an old barn which was also the place where we found a letterbox. We love letterboxing!

Mark and Thomas hike or should I say run up the trail to try and catch a deer. We say many deer on our hike as well as a salamander, turkey buzzards and a box turtle.

The boys make it to the falls and climb all over the rocks. No sitting still for these wild animals. They climbed rocks, swung on vines and see-sawed on old tree limbs.

The waterfall!

Group photo time!

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-03T23:07:00.001-05:00

Within two short days of Mark’s birthday is Halloween! He loves this time of the year – it’s his favorite he tells us because he gets lots of presents and lots of candy!

Mark (big helmeted Clone Trooper Captain Rex) and his friends, Sam (Transformer) and Alex (Clone Trooper Commander Fox) pose for a picture. The boys walked around the playground for their preschool’s Halloween Parade.

Mark and pals (l-r: Thomas, David, Alex and Bryant) “bob” for doughnuts on a string. We had a small Halloween party at our house, where the boys enjoyed catapulting pumpkins, leaf pile jumping and playing “Ghosts in the Graveyard.”

On Halloween day, Mark, Mom and Dad carved our jack-o’-lanterns. Mom helps Mark carve out his gigantic pumpkin grown especially for him by Pop-Pop Pfister. It was a humongous task to carve with lots of pumpkin guts.

The final carving: “Shisk-ka-boo!”

Mark’s jack-o’-lantern lit at night. It was very scary looking!

Mom carved a scaredy-pumpkin who was frightened by invading creepy-crawly spiders.

Dad carved a web with creeping spider.

Clone Trooper Captain Mark ready for a candy-blasting good time! The talking Clone Trooper helmet was a birthday gift from Uncle Brian, Aunt Jen and Mia. He loves it!!

Counting up his candy loot!

And we shall end with the “no more pictures Dad!”

Happy 5th Birthday to Mark!

2009-11-03T22:43:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, October 24, Mark celebrated his 5th birthday with a big party! Along with his best buddy, Thomas, they shared a joint birthday party in our backyard. Both boys turned five this month and have celebrated their birthdays together for the past four years. Of course, their theme was Star Wars.

We decked out the pirate tree house for the party.

Aunt Agnes, Granny, Papap, Uncle Lew and Aunt Mary Agnes gathered for the festivities.

The boys battle Daddy Mike with their newspaper light sabers created with Mama Jen’s help.

The kids gather around for the Darth Vader piñata which was whacked down by a light saber.

The boys blow out their candles on the cakes. Mark had a dueling light saber cake while Thomas had a Mustafar volcano cake. The candles were taped to Star Wars figures that were battling on their cakes.

Mark’s birthday week continued with festivities throughout the coming days. Nana and Pop-Pop Pfister came up to visit and celebrate his special day on Tuesday. Then on Thursday, he celebrated turning five with his traditional pumpkin cake.

Since he was born very close to Halloween, he’s known fondly around our house as “our little pumpkin.” In honor of his nickname, we’ve made a pumpkin cake each year since he’s turned one year old.

Fall Family Camping Trip

2009-11-03T22:07:00.001-05:00

This year’s family camping trip with the Latham’s and Muse’s took place at Fairystone State Park in Patrick County, VA. A great time was had by all the families. The boys got along very well, and got lots of sleep as well. We hiked, swam, built sandcastles, searched for fairy stones, played light saber battles, built fires and ate great food! This was our most successful camping trip yet!

The boys eating dinner around the campfire on our very first night.

Our night walk or campground parade before going to sleep. Glow sticks and flashlights were a must for everyone.

The boys enjoy a snack break on our hike around the state park.

A surprise water area on our hike – the dam overflow.

Daddy Mike, Thomas and Mark play some cards.

The boys really enjoyed playing in the sand and water on the lake at the park.

All of our great friends – the Latham’s & Muse’s! We all had an incredible time hunting for fairy stones, which are rare mineral crosses.

End of Summertime Fun

2009-11-03T21:42:00.001-05:00

With fall here, we’ve fallen behind on our blogging. Here’s some of our exciting end of summertime adventures to share with you.

Virginia Safari Park
In early August, we traveled to Natural Bridge to take a safari with Mark’s best buddy, Thomas, and his mom, Laura. The Virginia Safari Park hosts a variety of wild animals roaming around in a beautiful and natural setting. Our wild lil’ ones stalked after a peacock who was walking freely around the park then got smart and leaped into an enclosure to escape the wild boys!

The boys pose with a very hot metal sculpture of a tortoise.

It was a hot scorcher day. The boys took a break from walking and grabbed a seat on the safari wagon.

Mama Laura & Thomas feed one of many camels that came up to the wagon.

Mama Laura, Mark and Thomas feed the animals. We received 10 buckets of food, and went through most of them. Losing two just to the ostriches.

Our silly lama boys!

Mark feeds the goats while Thomas takes a closer on the other side of the fence.

Group photo time! The mamas and their silly, tired boys!

Wet‘n Wild Emerald Pointe Water Park
Mark, Mom and the Muses (Sarah, Chris & Vedant) travelled down to Greensboro for a splashingly fun time at Emerald Pointe. Mark barely made the height requirements for the mid-size rides yet since he’s a great swimmer we got on easily.

Mark enjoyed the little kiddie water slides before hitting the big ones!

Mark and Vedant enjoyed the Runaway Raft Ride a lot, and rode it again and again. It was a three-seater raft so the boys went with a different parent each time so we all enjoyed the ride.

Daddy Chris, Vedant and Mark have a wet and wild time!

Mark loved the kids’ Happy Harbor pool area. Though he really showed his stuff at Shipwreck Cove where he jumped off a sunken ship’s plank into six feet of water and then swam back to the ship to repeat the fun over and over again! He’s a little fishy in the water.

Mom and Mark enjoy a little relaxation at the end of our long day of swimming and water-sliding fun.

Mark & Daddy & Taekwondo

2009-08-10T21:09:00.001-04:00

Mark testing for his yellow belt in Taekwondo this past week (he has moved up from the little dragons program). And tonight Mark and Daddy did their first class together in the Family Class. Tomorrow (Tuesday) Mark will be getting his yellow belt. Here are some pics of Mark testing and Mark & Daddy in class.

Mark at attention!

Mark’s super awesome Front Kick!

Mark’s super awesome Side Kick! Man that kid is good!!

Daddy at attention!

Mark in family class.

Mark lookin’ cool doing some sit-ups.

Mark holding the target for his partner.

Daddy’s Jump Side Kick

Our Vacay to the Windy City

2009-07-26T09:47:00.001-04:00

On July 20-24, Mike, Jen and Mark explored the great city of Chicago. While Mike attended a conference during the week, Jen and Mark had an adventure traveling all over the city!

Mark takes his second flight on a plane. He loves to fly!

Mark’s favorite thing about Chicago – the Lego Store! Though he’s not smiling, he loved this store. He was very serious about his shopping. He saved up money for this leg of the adventure, and bought two Star Wars Lego sets.

Mark’s second fav thing about Chicago – the Hershey Store! He worked the chocolate factory and got a bucket full of sweets.

We walked the Chicago River, and all over the city.

Mark poses for a pic in front of the city skyline while walking between the Alder Planetarium and Shedd Aquarium. Mark loved the kids submarine at the aquarium, and played on it for nearly 30 minutes.

The boys were brave enough to walk out on the Ledge at the Sears Tower. It was a glass box on the top floor of the second tallest building in the world! Mark said he was scared yet he bounced around in the glass box like it was no big deal (maybe he was scared of another photo op!). Jen just stuck one foot on the ledge – that was enough for her.

Mike’s photo of what’s below the glass ledge – so far down!

Mark gets wet yet again! This time at Chicago’s Millennium Park fountain which were computerized faces that “spit” water at you. It was really unique and funny.

Mark climbs the ship’s tunnel up while at the Chicago Children’s Museum. Mark loved this museum and could have spent the whole day here but only got in four hours of fun.

Our last day in Chicago. Our hotel had a rooftop pool from which we took this pic with the Sears Tower in the background.

Riding the Durbin Rocket Train

2009-07-23T10:18:00.000-04:00

In late July, Mama Laura and Mama Jen took off to wild and wonderful West Virginia for a ride on the Durbin Rocket.

Mark and Thomas get excited about the train coming!

The boys watch the train try to pull into the station. It never quite makes it so a diesel engine is brought in to pull the train cars.

Our diesel engine replacement. The train had one open car, one covered car and two cabooses.

Mama Jen and the boys goof off on the train!

Mark and Thomas search for a souvenir piece of coal. Whose hands are the dirtiest? That’s no contest – Thomas wins, hands up!

A surprise stop on our way back home was at the Green Bank Telescope. The world's largest fully steerable single aperture antenna! The boys show how big it is!

Boys Only Camping 2009 (First Annual?)

2009-06-09T20:30:00.001-04:00

We did a dads and sons camping trip from Sunday – Tuesday (June 7-9). It was Daddy Chris & Vedant, Daddy Wade & Thomas and Daddy Mike & Mark.

We had a blast! The kids all had a great time, playing from the crack of dawn until after dark.

We stayed at a commercial park about an hour north of Roanoke called Jellystone Park at Natural Bridge (home of Yogi Bear, don’t you know!).

The moms did a great job packing for the dads, and we had at least 3 of everything we needed, except balls and Frisbees (whoops!). And the fireworks (sparklers, smoke bombs and pop-its) where a huge hit (thanks Momma Jen!).

Word is the timing was great, cause the park clearing our right before we got there, so there were some kids for them to play with, but the noise wasn’t bad at all!

Here are some pictures and video:

Mark and Vedant at the Water Park

Jedi Boys in Training!

Yum! Marshmallows.

The mountains at dusk.

No one was roughing it on this camping trip!

Silly Boys!

Boys Only Camping 2009 from Michael Santoroski on Vimeo.

Half Birthday & More…

2009-05-17T14:32:00.001-04:00

Mark recently turned 4 and a half, and had a visit from his cousin from Pennsylvania. And his new love is Ben 10. Here are some pictures and a video.

Mark plays in his play room on his 4 and half birthday.

Mark at his Pre-School

Mark has found a duck!

Mark with his Cousin Mia

Mark taking his favorite form of transportation.

Mark, Mia and Aunt Jen take a ride on Pop-pop’s tracker.

Mark and Mia share a comfy seat.

Mark and Mia have a tea party and some crazy Mexican Cantina.

Mark, Mommy and Daddy all recently ran the Grandin Ct. 5k and 1/2 mile fun run.

The messed up the course and make it a mile instead of a 1/2 mile, Mark had to get a little help to finish.

At the start, they boys predict how well they will do.

Mark’s New Ben 10 Watch

Kite Festival

2009-04-19T13:49:00.001-04:00

This weekend we went to the 11th Annual Kite Festival in Greenhill Park in Roanoke County. Mama Sarah and Vedant joined us. It was a perfect Spring day with a light wind and 78 degree temperatures.

Mark shows off his kite flying acumen while Vedant looks up.

Mark’s kite way up in the sky!

The box kite up in the air finally (it flew about as well as the Wright Bros. first plane)

Mark flies the kite while a proud Daddy looks on.

Easter 2009 & Papap’s 70th Birthday Party

2009-04-19T09:06:00.001-04:00

On Palm Sunday we dyed Easter eggs.

“This is the one that will exploded, hehehe”

“Exploding egg? Me? I am a sweet little boy”

Then we had lots of visitors for Papap’s 70th Birthday.

Mark and his cousin’s gear up for battle. (Mark, Conner, Keegan & Adam)

The destruction!

Easter Sunday (and the Easter Bunny) Finally Came

Easter Sunday! Mark’s loot from the Easter bunny.

The boy’s celebrate with Mama’s famous Easter bunny cake.

Mark hunts for Easter eggs in Papap’s garden.

First Sprinkler of 2009

2009-03-07T21:11:00.001-05:00

Following last week’s first Snow of 2009, Roanoke got 80 degree weather today (March 7th!). So Jen set up the sprinkler in the back, and pretty soon most of the neighbor kids were playing in the back yard. I couldn’t get Mark to stay still long enough for a good picture. But here are some of his sides and back! Also a short video. Enjoy, we sure did.

The kids take turns running through the sprinkler.

Repeated cries of “it’s cold, it’s cold, it’s cold” didn’t really slow them down from going back in over and over.

Roanoke Finally Gets Snow

2009-03-04T07:59:00.001-05:00

Well, we had to wait until March! But Roanoke finally got some snow. Mark, Mommy and Daddy had a great time!!

Mark and Daddy woke up early on Sunday morning to check out the snow. Mark remarked it was “awesome!”

Markey takes a sleigh ride.

Mark with the neighbors, Anne and Alan.

Wipeout!!

We got a lot more snow Sunday night, and Mark was dressed like a cool snow dude.

Fat Tuesday

2009-03-02T20:45:00.001-05:00

Mark, Mom, Granny and Papap celebrated Fat Tuesday at Our Lady of Nazareth Church, in Roanoke, VA.

Mark overdoes his smile!

Mom gets into the Mardi Gras spirit

Here is a video of Mark and Momma dancing:

Mark and Thomas’ First Day of Taekwondo

2009-02-21T18:53:00.001-05:00

Since Daddy is a 3rd Degree Decided Black Belt and instructor at Lacy’s Taekwondo, Mark and his friend Thomas decided to give it a try. Both boys have been trying to kick and punch everything (especially their Dads).

Daddy had a really hard time not giving lessons from the other side of the rail! Who knew it was so hard on the parent side? Daddy always thought the parents had it easy.

Here are some pictures.

The boys are all ready for class to start!

The boys size up each other.

Checking out the other kids!

Needless to say that both boys had tons of fun and will be going again really soon!

Mama Jen Brings Snow to Roanoke

2009-02-08T21:10:00.001-05:00

It still hasn’t snowed in Roanoke. Even though it snowed in such unusual places as Seattle, London, DC, Texas and Louisiana! So, Mama Jen drove to Giles County and filled up five coolers of snow for the boys to play with. Check out the pictures below:

Mark lifts a giant snowball. Thomas hides.

Splat! - Mama Laura takes it from both the boys.

Many snowballs and mini-snowmen were made.

Also the Roanoke Times blogged about the event!

The Boys do MLK Day & Inauguration

2009-01-26T21:54:00.001-05:00

Mark and his friends got to celebrate back-to-back days of civil rights advances in America.

Mark, Thomas & Vedant at the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial in Downtown Roanoke.

Flowers for Dr. King. Your dream is getting closer every day!

Mark plays with the new “comma” sculpture in Downtown Roanoke.

The boys wave their American flags in celebration of the inauguration of our 44th president.

Everyone enjoys not being in the 17 degree weather at the National Mall.

Christmas 2008

2008-12-27T10:54:00.001-05:00

We made it through Christmas 2008, Mark got lots of cool games and plenty of Star Wars items:

Our 2008 Family Christmas Photo, before Mass.

“The Spread" for Santa

Mark Opens His Christmas Present from Santa – Star Wars Stuff!!

Vacation in Gulf Shores, AL, Part 2

2008-12-18T20:24:00.001-05:00

Mark Digs for Pirate Treasure – A sign and a name for his Pirate Tree House – Seawolf. Thanks Uncle Dave!!

Mini Golf with Cousin Sam

Mommy and Uncle Dave battle it out on go-karts.

Mark and Daddy take the turn. Good driving Mark!

Our Family on the Beach.

The Whole Pfister Clan.

Mark at the x-mas tree at the Arctic Express.

Mark and Mommy do a craft at the Arctic Express.

Mark and Thomas Visit Santa Claus

2008-12-12T14:15:00.001-05:00

Mark and Thomas recently visited Santa Claus at the Roanoke County Library. Here is a pic.

Vacation in Gulf Shores, AL, Part 1

2008-11-21T16:36:00.001-05:00

Mark and Jen have been on vacation in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Mike joined them on November 13th.

Mark and Pop-pop wade into the ocean.

Mark and Momma celebrate the election of our 44th president.

Mark enjoys the Foley, AL Heritage Days Festival.

The body-less Mark!!

Mark takes a nature walk with the family.

The Blue Angles Homecoming show in Pensacola, FL.

Mark and Daddy enjoy the air show (and freeze).

Mark and Baby Mia (Mark's one year old cousin).

Mark, Daddy and Mommy at Fort Gaines.

Mark and Daddy at Fort Gaines.

Fort Gaines had lots of cannons and secret passages.

Mommy and Daddy at the big cannon - Mark took this picture!

Mark and Thomas’s 4th Birthday Party

2008-10-13T20:22:00.001-04:00

This weekend, Mark & Thomas celebrated their 4th birthday with family and friends at Smith Park, near the Roanoke River.

Everyone had a fun time, check out some photos and a short video:

“We demand cupcakes & presents!”

Mark and Nana with Silly Hats

“Aha we got our first demand… but what about presents!”

“Yes, just what I was looking for, presents!”

“With this I can blast my enemies!”

The Dad’s Rejoice!

The signing and the candles!

Mark Counts to Infinity

2008-09-07T21:08:00.001-04:00

I think that it is pretty cool that a three-year-old knows about abstract mathematical concepts like infinity. Apparently he learned it from his six-year-old neighbor.

I asked Mark to let me video him counting to infinity, the results are quite amusing:

Mark + Water = Fun

2008-08-27T19:48:00.001-04:00

Mark has been enjoying the end of summer with many water activities. We recently went to Claytor Lake in Dublin, Virginia for an end-of-summer celebration with Roanoke College. Mark had a great time in the water and making sand castles.

And later in the week, Granny and Papa found the Slip-N-Slide that they bought for the family reunion. So Mark got to give it try.

The Splash King!

And He is Safe!

Mark & Thomas will "Pump it Up!"

2008-08-19T21:02:00.000-04:00

Here are pics and a video of Mark and Thomas's recent trip to Pump it Up.

Mark!

Thomas!

They go up together....

They go down together!!

Attack of the Clone

2008-08-18T20:54:00.001-04:00

Star Wars is quickly becoming Mark's favorite pass time. Check out his new Clone Trooper outfit.

Don't worry, under the mask is our loveable Mark!

Summer Update

2008-08-04T21:26:00.001-04:00

It's been a pretty hectic summer. And there hasn't been much time for updates. Here are a few pics and a video to keep you updated:

Mark and Daddy went to Reptile Day at the Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville. Unfortunately Mark got pretty sick on the way home.

Mark goes to his first day camp - Dinosaur Camp at the YMCA.

The Santoroski Cousins in Granny & Papap's backyard.

The Whole Santoroski Clan!

Mark at the Virginia Museum of Transportation.

Mark in DC

2008-08-04T21:23:00.001-04:00

Mark and Mommy spent some time on DC, while Daddy was at a Coldfusion conference. Check out some pictures, and a cute video of Mark eating a super long noodle!

This kid was happy to stay in the hotel room all day! He never wanted to leave....

This panda at this National Zoo is getting ready for the Summer Olympics in his home country of China!

Is that one of Mark's cousins?

Why get out to look at the Washington Monument, when I can have Mommy push me around all day?

Mark and Mommy self-portrait.

"The Noodle Video"

Pfister Pfamily Reunion

2008-07-09T18:49:00.001-04:00

We are in Pigeon Forge, TN for the Pfister Pfamily Reunion. More than 80 relatives have rented cabins in Brother's Cove. They came from Florida, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California and even Germany!

On Day One we went horseback riding. Mark LOVED it!

We led a big group on a hike to Grotto Falls.

That smile means Mark was having fun!

Oh, and we saw a mama bear and her two baby cubs (not pictured.)!

Great Smoky Mountains Adventure

2008-07-06T14:55:00.001-04:00

As part of our summer vacation, we camped for two days at the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

Mark didn't want his picture taken, as usual....

...but we caught a quick shot of him sneaking around the back of the sign.

Mark kicks back, relaxes and roasts a marshmallow.

Mark and Daddy take an underground adventure!

We saw a blacksmith demonstration...

It was really cool - and hot!

And then we took a hay ride...

And saw two bears!

We celebrated the Fourth of July with some fireworks.

But, alas, we got rained out, and had to head for our cabin in Sevierville.

Memorial Day Weekend

2008-05-26T19:32:00.001-04:00

For Memorial Day Weekend we went to the Booker T. Washington National Monument for a picnic with Granny and Pappy. Then we headed on over to the Scott Farm Strawberry Festival in Moneta, where they had a genuine tracker pull. Both Mark and Mommy were fascinated by the hot-rodding, souped-up tractors.

Mark even got to do a kiddy tracker pull!

See pictures and video below:

Mark and Daddy check out the sheep.

Mark rings the dinner bell at the Booker T. Washington Farm.

Boy's Day at the Festival

2008-05-25T10:07:00.001-04:00

Mark, Daddy and Pappy went to Festival in the Park this weekend and met up with Thomas and Daddy Wade. We got to see a pirate magician, dancing and singing shows, and even a big band jazz band. Mark played mini-golf, bounced in a bouncy house, climbed on rocks and much more.

Mark and Daddy stayed from 10am to 5pm. I don't know many three-year-olds that can stay out that many hours! Check out some pictures below.

Mark and Pappy play on the rocks.

The Pirate Magic Show

Self Portrait

Mark taking a short rest in the bouncy house.

Mark admirers his reflection it the skinny mirror.

Mark's First Race

2008-05-20T22:40:00.001-04:00

Mark and Daddy both got a chance to run in the Grandin Court Baptist Church trail run this past weekend. Daddy ran the 5k and Mark (and Daddy) ran the half mile.

Check out pictures and video below.

Some Anonymous kid seems to be rooting for Daddy!

The two racers after the recover with some water.

How could you not love a face like that!

Mark's Half Birthday

2008-05-15T21:31:00.001-04:00

On April 29, 2008 Mark officially turned 3½, and to celebrate we had a half birthday party. With half a cake, but very real gifts, that were only halfway wrapped. Mark got a half a plate, half a cup and half a napkin, but he wasn't too fond of those!

You might also notice a subtle Star Wars theme to his gifts, daddy has been turning him on to the "Force."

Check out the video below.

Editor's Note: Sorry this is sooooo late, but somehow getting everything to work right with this video turned out to be quite a bit of trouble!

Door Surfing

2008-04-21T20:22:00.001-04:00

Mark invented a new game of "door surfing" this morning. You can only believe it by seeing the video.

Bug Daze 2008

2008-04-19T21:22:00.001-04:00

Mark and Daddy went to Bug Daze (and Alien Earths) at the Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville, VA.

Highlights included:

A Bug Race!
Live Bugs to touch and feel
A Bug play
Alien Earth's science experiments
Arts and Crafts
Gummies hidden in our food by Mommy

Hmmm, is this bug still hungry?

Look daddy, a stretchy bug.

Daddy took a bunch of video clips and make a short compilation.

Mark and Pappy Plant a Bush

2008-04-10T19:29:00.001-04:00

Mark used his digger to plant Papap's birthday camellia bush.

Whoa, that is some great digging!

Wow this is hard work. When do we get a break?

Mark uses his wagon to transport supplies, including the bush.

Shower Boy

2008-04-09T22:27:00.001-04:00

Mark has been fascinated with showers, and recently decided that he wanted to try it out. He loved it. Check out the pic below:

Actual quote: "For waking up, Mommy!"

Letterboxing on Mill Mountain

2008-04-09T21:14:00.001-04:00

Mark and Thomas were learning about their hometown, Roanoke, Virginia, this week in school. And they went to visit the Mill Mountain Star and to do some Letterboxing on the Mill Mountain Star Trail.

At the trail head.

Mark Finds an Acorn

Mark and Thomas find the clue, and Mommy rewards them with a Lollie.

Kings of the Rock!

Marks Visits His Cousin -- Baby Mia

2008-04-06T18:33:00.001-04:00

We traveled to the Pfister Pfarm to celebrate Nana's birthday, and spent some time with Aunt Jen, Uncle Brian and Baby Mia, Mark's five-month-old cousin.

Here are some very cute pictures:

Mia listens to Mark whistle a tune.

Mark feels Mia's baby smooth skin.

Wee! Mia makes here big escape from Mark.

Mark's Master Theater

2008-04-03T20:52:00.001-04:00

Mark and Thomas had a puppet show the other day at home-pre-school. They did The Little Engine That Could and Mark did Thomas and Gordon.

Mark Performs, Thomas Runs Away

"The Show Must Go On"

Ok, so it's not Shakespeare, But those kids are just so darn cute!

Happy Easter

2008-03-24T19:36:00.001-04:00

Mark had a great Easter. He got a walking, talking Dino and a Thomas the Tank Engine "music toothbrush." He brushed his teeth six times and only ate candy five times! I don't think the dentists' children do that good! We had lunch with Thomas and family, and dinner with Granny and Papap.

Enjoy Mark's official 2008 Easter photograph. Send us a S.A.S.E. if you would like an autographed version!

Here is the "behind the scenes" video.

Video Collage

2008-03-15T20:13:00.001-04:00

We made this nice video collage of Mark at animoto.com.

Dyeing Easter Eggs

2008-03-09T11:38:00.001-04:00

Yesterday Mark got to dye his first batch of Easter eggs of the year over at Granny and Papap's house.

"Wow, look at all those fun colors!"

Check out this video where Mark makes eggs for all his friends and family.

Mark Visits the Easter Bunny

2008-03-04T22:20:00.001-05:00

After our race we got to stop by Valley View Mall and see the Easter Bunny and ride the train. Mark had a special card he made for the Easter Bunny.

Mark Dressed up in his Easter outfit.

Only a Mom could love those two goofy boys!

Mommy & Daddy Run a Race

2008-03-03T21:09:00.001-05:00

This weekend Jen and Mike (aka Mommy and Daddy) ran a 5k Trail Run at Explore Park. The aptly named "Explore Your Limits IV," 3.1 mile race included a grueling uphill final mile. Mommy came in 1st in her age group and Daddy came in 11th place overall and 2nd in his age group. Mark had his "Go Mommy" and "Go Daddy" double sided pennant to cheer us on. Check out some pics that Papap took.

This anonymous fan clearly preferred Mom.

At 26:52 Daddy crosses the finish line.

Mommy waves to her cheering fans. Pushing her to finish in 33:10.

The whole family celebrates the completion of the race, and contemplates the snacks that might be served at the award ceremony!

Mom and Dad plan to run more races; Dad the Shamrock Hill Run on March 15, and Mom the Star City Women's 5k on April 12th.

One Year Later

2008-02-23T21:16:00.001-05:00

I just found some old pics and video of Mark sledding at our old house from a year ago. And was amazed at a what a difference a year has made.

I mean, he wouldn't even fit on that little thing any more!

MMMMM, snow for dinner again? I love it!!

The New MLK Statue

2008-02-20T19:30:00.001-05:00

Mark & Thomas were on hand for the unveiling of the new Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. statue that was unveiled in Downtown Roanoke this week. Both the boys have been studying civil rights in pre-school, and this was a great capstone to what they had been learning.

Before the unveiling, there was a one-hour march followed by another hour of speeches! Needless to say the boys were cold, but nonetheless they were troopers throughout.

Mmmmm - everything is better with a lolli!

Hmmm... What is behind that big sheet!

And there it is! Looks great!!

Here is a quick video of the boys.

Snow Tubing

2008-02-19T08:06:00.001-05:00

After a college trip to Winterplace to go snow tubing, where the lines were so LONG we got to tube 5 times in as many hours. Mark and Jen went with Nana & Pop-Pop on a Thursday and practically had the place to themselves.

Notice the complete lack of a line. The first time we went there were hordes of people and a 30 minute wait to go up the "lift."

Mark was fearless on the course, despite the stated minimum height of 44".

The whole gang on their tubes!

Mark tubing down the slopes.

Mark shows off his jumping skills.

Thomas and Mark's Musical Review

2008-02-02T19:33:00.001-05:00

This week, Mark and Thomas put on a musical review at preschool, titled Rock On. Mark was so excited about it, it was all he could talk about for a week.

Mama Jen was the MC. Mama Laura, Daddy Wade, Granny & Papap Santoroski and Daddy Mike were all in attendance. And everyone enjoyed the show and the special show cake that was prepared for the event (German Black Forest Cake).

The line-up included:

Pots and Pans by the Bacon Brothers & Mickey Hart (Sandra Boynton CD)
Happy Birthday (sung to Mama Laura)
Drum Solos
Air Guitars to Renegades of Funk by Rage Against the Machine
Little Red Caboose (Wee Sing Fun 'n' Folk CD)

Check out this video recap:

Mark and Thomas in Rock On

SNOW!!!

2008-01-27T19:21:00.001-05:00

Roanoke got some snow last week (about 6 inches). And even though Daddy came down with a cold, Mom and Mark got to get out and play in it. Pics and videos below. Enjoy!!

"Look ma no hands" Mark said, right before falling off.

"Mush, Papap, Mush" Good thing Papap still works out at the gym 5 days a week.

"Frosty" the snowman looks on as Mark completes the fort.

Mark hunkers down in his snow fort waiting for the enemy to attack.

Mark puts his brake on.

Get up close with Mark on his sled with the "Mommy Cam"

Sous Chefs

2008-01-23T19:36:00.001-05:00

Mark and best-friend Thomas made some snowball cookies during home-pre-school last week. All three chefs (Mark, Thomas & Mom) agreed they were De-Lick-Ious.

Here Tom-Tom can be seen gettin' jiggy with the confectionary sugar, aka snow.

Dino Day - January 12, 2008

2008-01-12T20:14:00.001-05:00

Today we went to Dino Day at the Virginia Museum of Natural History. We drove down with Mama Laura and Thomas. Poor Mama Laura had to sit between the two tikes. Once there we met up with the Muse's, Ching's and Bowman's.

We got a little lost, but we did find the museum eventually. The new facility is really amazing. The exhibits were modern and top-notch. The best features were the Dino Dig (see pic below), the Animatronic Dino's (see video below), and the arts & crafts.

They where showing the BBC's Walking with the Dinosaurs, which was a little bit gruesome, but otherwise fantastic. And finally they had a Dino live-action play, which the boys really enjoyed. They even sat up front all by themselves.

Everyone started to break down from hunger and exhaustion by the time we got back to Roanoke, but a little Mexican food lifted everyone's spirits. It was a great day, and we hope to go back next year.

Enjoy some pictures from the event.

There is nothing else this nice in Martinsville.

The kids dig for Dinosaur Bones!

Mmmm. Lunch.

Self-portrait. Mommy has the phat digicam skillz.

These puny bi-ped mammals play at the feet of the mighty T-Rex. ROOOAAAAARRRRRRR.

Mark and Daddy get attacked by a T-Rex.

Speed Racer Goes to School

2008-01-09T19:42:00.001-05:00

All decked out in his lime green speed racer shirt, Markham had his first day of school. Well, it was actually pre-school. Well, it was actually home-school. We'll just call it home-pre-school.

Mark's not-so-secret plan was to "play all day" and not listen to his teacher -- Mama Laura.

His plan was a huge success, his school lessons less so.

Home-pre-school resumes on Friday, when Mark and Thomas will wreck the Pfisteroski homestead and drive teacher Mama Jen to tears.

Wow, that's a nice brick school house.

"I brought my airplane for show and tell"

I got my digger, now lets dig

2008-01-07T21:26:00.001-05:00

Mark put his new digger into action this week by helping Mom and Dad plant Christmas trees in the front and back yards. Hooray for warm weather!

"Can we dig it? Yes we can!"

"Sweet dad - I made a hole."

"Dad thinks it's Miller Time."

"Plant a tree? No prob Bob!"

Welcome

2008-01-07T20:42:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Blog for Markham Michael. The cutest little three year old in the world. Watch here for great stories, pictures and the occasional video.