Robotics Meet #2...

While Micah and Roen were off in Kissammee, Florida, Anne and I got to watch Remi in his second robotics meet. 

He was so excited that he got to drive again! The team rebuilt a new robot from last meet in hopes of sorting out some kinks and giving it more capabilities. They lost 3 rounds, tied one and won one. Remi wasn't happy at all with how the did, as he puts so much time and love into this endeavor. He feels partly responsible in how they compete and I know, his persistence will serve to make him get more creative and doe great things with that little engineer brain of his!

I truly love watching him at these meets and think this might be my most favorite thing I get to watch him do!

Flower Mound Robotics Meet

At the beginning of November, Remi had his very first robotics meet! He has seriously been looking forward to this since middle school! He has worked so hard coding and building this robot along side a handful of upperclassmen. This is by far his most favorite class and not only was it a huge deal to get asked to attend the meet as a freshman, but he also got to be one of the drivers! There was a whole crew at the meet but only 4 get to be at the ring. There are 2 drivers (one moves directionally and the other controls the claw), there is one who places the blocks and the other is the coach. 

We really had no idea what to expect, but it was so much fun! There are five 2-minute rounds and two teams are picked randomly to pair up against two other teams. After each round they have a little bit of time to go back into the work area and make quick repairs with tools and coding. In fact, Remi said he coded the robot for auto drive (which they get 30 extras seconds at the beginning of each round if their robot has that capability) 20 minutes before go-time. If there is one thing this kid can do, it's handle tools and technology!

We didn't do near as well as we wanted, but they went straight back to school and started from scratch! There is no guarantee that Remi will get to attend future meets and he may not get to be actively in the ring again, so this was an event we were soaking up!

I wish you could have seen him out there. He was so confident, taking charge, guarding the robot with his life, doing all of the handling, just 100% in his element. I don't get to see Remi in that type of setting often and it was incredible. I sat by his coach during the first round and he said he was blown away with Remi's abilities in class. He said never has he had a student with that much confidence and in every aspect of the robot building. Remi said most people are either good the coding or good at the building... he is pretty great at it all. This little guy has finally found his niche and goodness, there is no better feeling as a parent!

This isn't the group of boys you see out on the football field on Friday nights, it's not full of your prom kings and best dressed kiddos.... but you know what, Remi doesn't even see it. Remi has never felt the need to be surrounded by status, he has only ever needed to be surrounded by those who allow him to be fully himself. Remi is so very real. He is a boy who is as at ease with his super stud best friends as he is with the boys he builds robots with.  And so, to circle back around, this is a group Remi feels extremely honored to be a part of, and for that, my momma heart is proud!

In His Science Lab...

I remember when the fascination of scientific study and his mathematical way of observing the world started flourishing in Remi as a very young child. I often wondered if it was a phase. I wondered if it was just a passing obsession, much like a child who is just discovering dinosaurs for the first time. But, as the years have rolled by, his passions are picking up speed, gaining more and more depth like a snowball growing in size. His Discovery toy microscope has turned into the real deal microscope, where he handles the lens with expertise, preparing slides with a steady, confident hand. His creative little hands that used to build contraptions with recycled junk around the house has melded into printing usable products on his 3D printer, coming up with solutions to everyday problems that he could sell as business opportunities. He finds obscure theories and does research, coming up with his own ideas on these scientific studies. He takes complex ideas, turns them over and around in his mind and then produces a tangible representation. 

This journey with Remi is beyond anything my artsy, bookworm brain can really fathom. He is a child who is so different, we flop from being astounded, to being proud, to being mildly perplexed at times. This boy who dreams of being a world changer, who craves something just a bit beyond a teenage life, is taking us on the journey of a lifetime!

Remi, the way you do you, chasing your crazy ideas, not just thinking outside the box, but living outside that box,  is the most refreshing thing I think I've ever seen in a 13 year old child. These next 5 years, watching you as a student will prove to be some of the best years of this momma's life, I have no doubt. I hope you continue to keep your sights on these dreams that are so big they consume your mind and light your fire something fierce.... all the way up to that space station you dream about!

--------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------

*There are several different things I'm sharing... 

For Christmas, Remi asked for seeds to grow things he could eat. This was inspired by his science teacher who is letting her class grow lettuce for the cafeteria to use. Pops got him an indoor seed starter station. He has loved the growing process and has tended to his plants faithfully! He has already had to transplant a handful to bigger pots! The sweetest part, is he chose vegetables that Micah and I liked specifically!

The next pictures are of Remi in his science lab dissecting a worm. His science teacher has really been such an inspiration to Remi this year. After classroom dissections, she sent home a few leftover worms and frogs, along with a dissection kit for Remi have. That very night, he had a worm out, teaching me about its different organs and then putting different specimens onto slides to study.

The last picture is Remi's way of trying to create a visual of the 4th dimension. He says there is really no way of showing 4D accurately or explaining it, because our minds can't wrap around this concept, but that this little cube he built, was his closest visual version. I can't even pretend to know what he is talking about sometimes, but it is quite fascinating, nonetheless!

3D Printing...

Remi has been researching 3D printers for quite sometime, so when his birthday rolled around this past September, we got him a great little starter printer for him to play around with. These techy things are so out of my element, but the good thing about Rem, is that they are 100% in his wheelhouse! He got that thing out and running in no time!

He has really had the best time creating, researching and printing! He has printed everything from ballmarkers, to carabiners, coffee mugs, yo-yos, fidget puzzles and most recently, he has printed spirographs and illusion pieces! He even went out and tested his carabiners with his full weight hanging from a tree with a homemade harness! He loved testing out the different designs and seeing which ones were strongest and could hold the most weight!

I love that this is just another creative outlet for a boy who craves building!

In His Free Time...

The way this boy feeds his mind makes me giggle! 

He does things like find giant clocks in the neighbors trash pile on the curb, scoop it up, bring it home and gets the gear ticking again. He does things like spend his entire Saturday coding his Arduino. He is constantly teaching himself about the periodic table, looking up videos and information on YouTube. This guy has always marched to beat of his own drum and I find it quite fascinating at the things he is truly passionate about. If he had it his way, he would be a current member of the high school robotics team and would get special permission to take the chemistry, calculus, algebra and physics classes as a 6th grader. His little mind loves complex ideas, mathematical solutions and scientific ideas. 

He told me just the other morning that he "was so excited" for 8:00. I asked him why and he said, "because that means I get to go to Science class." He truly loves nothing more than immersing himself in learning! As hard as some aspects of school are, this boy thrives on learning! 

Last week, he found an old water pump and spent the entire afternoon outside taking it apart and trying to get it to work. That same week on the way to school, when I asked if he had any upcoming tests, he said that he thought he might have a math test that day. I gave him a "this is news to me and did you need to study" look and his little eyes gave me that ornery twinkle as he said, I hope we do! Micah and I always laugh with each other about his quirky, nerdy ways, because really, there aren't many 12 year old boys who spend hours learning about the periodic table for fun! 

Oh Remi, you are one of a kind and I love watching you embrace the gifts God has given you, full speed, with confidence and fire!

 

My Best Helper...

When it comes to the manual labor of putting things together, Micah is most definitely not my 'go-to'. It's not that he can't do it, it's just that he really doesn't like spending his time putting together all my purchases. In the past, this has led to me doing the job, but in recent years, I have realized I have my own personal little handy man living right under my roof. He may only be 12, but there is not job too big or too small!

After the completion of our dock, I ordered quite a bit of Polywood furniture to set down there, including adirondacks chairs, a dining table & chairs and a side table. When the furniture was finally delivered to our front driveway on a wooden pallet, it was obviously too heavy for me to move, so I waited for a convenient time for Micah to do it. 

It sat, and it sat and it sat.

After a week or so,  a light bulb came on and I offered to pay Remi if he would get his HUGE job done. I wasn't really sure how he was going to move these heavy boxes, but this is where his creativity and problem solving always shines. He agreed and I left him to it. 

Somehow, that boy got all the boxes to the back yard, unloaded and over the next few days when he had free time he got it put together and down to the dock. He truly is amazing!

This is what I saw when I looked out my window (zero help from anyone)...

Hands That Create...

Oh Remi, and his little hands that live to create!

The messes this kids makes, the frustration when his projects don't go just as he has planned, the 'I'm not finished yet, so just leave all this out, mom' conversations, well it is all worth that smile, when everything finally connects perfectly!

He got all these little lights in his stocking from Santa, and he has had the best time playing around with circuits getting them to light up! More times than not, I catch this little guy curled up in his bean bag watching video after video of things just like this! Finding ways to make science work in his hands is what this boy lives for!

School Projects...

When it comes to learning, Remi will always be my hands-on learner. This year, he has been blessed with an amazing Science teacher. She fills her classroom full of opportunities for hands-on projects, creative journaling and experiments. 

Remi is always doing his own experiments at home, learning by doing and so his prior knowledge of Science is pretty extensive, but his teacher has taken what he knows and built on it. He has learned so much this year and is loving every minute. He has loved being challenged in something where his interests are high. 

Right before break, the 5th graders created their own circuit boxes. Remi has been fiddling with circuits for as long as I can remember, so to say he was excited would be a vast understatement! He ended up turning his box into a cute little gingerbread house! They designed their boxes at home and then added circuits with Christmas lights at school.

As much as he loved this project though, there were definitely challenges! He is about as stubborn as they come. He is used to having his own supplies and his own timeline for the projects he dreams up at home. The fact that he not only had to do things the teacher's way, but had a deadline was a bit irritating to him. In fact, one evening he got downright angry that he wasn't able to use his own wiring system because it was 'the better' way to do it. 

In the end, he was able to get his box finished, and even though he didn't like having to do things 'the wrong way' I think it was very good for him!

Having an excuse to get out all his electrical supplies always leads to side projects and distraction! It's like his little brain goes into overdrive thinking of all the things he wants to create! As you can see in the last pictures, he ended up making a little snow globe as he was going through supplies he thought he might need!