Florida Trip

Yes, I've been super slack about the blogs this year - it seems life has kept me busy working and managing kids and family with less time for reflecting and writing.

I would at least like to post a link to the photo album from our Florida trip we took this December 26 - January 2. We covered nearly 2500 miles in the van, stopping at Kennedy Space Center and Cocoa Beach, Islamorada and Key West in the Keys, the Everglades, and Sanibel Island. We snorked, kayaked, toured, swam, ate, and slept. It was a wonderful getaway!

Here is a direct link to the album.

Florida Trip - Cocoa Beach, Islamorada, Key West, Sanibel Island

The Martin kids take DC

We headed to DC June 27 - July 1 for Technology Student Association Nationals, staying at the Gaylord Hotel in National Harbor. It's a giant 2000 room hotel and we enjoyed our few days there!

Here are some photos from the weekend:

 While Spencer was hard at it, Grant and I relaxed!

 Trying to find the lizard!

We need to hone that oyster-eating technique just a bit.

We ate well - here we shared a selection of appetizers and called it dinner. 

 ONE of us really enjoyed the boat trip.

 WWII Memorial

Guests of Honor at the Blacksburg Rackspace Grand Opening

Two days following VTHacks, we got a call from one of the Rackspace VTHacks judges, Zack Lytle, inviting the boys and us to the Rackspace Grand Opening later in the week. They had built a brand-new building (awesome workspace) in the Corporate Research Center. Here's a story about it.

The kids have a bit of history with Rackspace. About three years ago, the VP who heads up the Blacksburg Rackspace location, Doug Juanarena, invited the kids to tour their offices and learn more about what they do. I met Doug at the Weight Club and we'd chatted about the kids' interest in programming.

Kids in front of Rackspace poster they got at the tour three years ago!!!

The kids were enamored with the place and vowed to try to intern or work there as soon as they were old enough. Since then, they have worked really hard on programming skills and projects. So for them to return as invited guests to the Grand Opening was pretty awesome!!!

We learned from Zack that one of the reasons they won a Rackspace prize was their ability to work together as brothers, and the fact that Spencer described picking a project that he knew his brother could contribute to. Definitely a proud parent moment for us!

Doug acknowledged Spencer and Grant during his remarks, showing the tie between the company and the community. Rackspace contributes enormously to the community, not only through things like VTHacks, but the "Let's Code Blacksburg" program that offers programming workshops, making their facilities and resources available. Spencer and Grant are now in the pipeline to help TA and eventually perhaps teach courses of their own as part of that program.

We are enormously grateful to Rackspace and folks like Doug, Tweeks, Zack, and Sam for giving Spencer and Grant a place in the community, and validation that their skills matter. Middle school years can be a tough time for finding your place, but thanks to some key people (including their mentor Kevin) they have certainly found it!!

Doug, Spencer, Grant, Tweeks, and Zack

Crowd forming for the dedication

Awaiting the start

Tweeks showing an Arduino robot

Nice photo of Grant!

VTHacks

Last weekend, April 18-20, Spencer and Grant participated in VTHacks, Virginia Tech's first Hackathon. Around 600 college students from 90 universities turned out to work in groups for 36 hours to create a coding project from start to finish. Thanks to the kids' computer mentor, Kevin, Spencer and Grant were allowed in as the only non-college kids, at ages 12 and 14, grades 6 and 8.

I dropped them off at Cassell Coliseum at 5 pm on Friday, they came home Saturday morning from 7 to 11 for a quick nap, then returned and stayed until 2:30 pm on Sunday. All meals were provide and kids just slept wherever, whenever, as needed to get through the long weekend of work.

On Sunday all projects were presented at an "Expo" with awards announced following. To our tremendous surprise, Spencer and Grant were announced as winners of one of three prizes awarded by our local tech company, Rackspace! As if recognition were not enough, along with that comes a Rackspace Startup Package with Cloud servers and computing.

There were kids on the floor of the coliseum as well as around the mezzanine (or whatever you call that hallway that goes around the building). Check out all the toasters and bagels on the table.

Their "office" for the duration.

Speaking with the judges who critiqued, questioned, and offered advice.

Their mentor Kevin Malachowski (white shirt) who has taught them much. His team took first prize with their 3-D maze controlled by hand gestures.

Here's a great write-up about the Hackathon by Samuel Toriel, one of the Rackspace judges. Spencer and Grant are pictured with the other Rackspace awardees in their coveted Racksburg shirts!

This was an incredible experience for both Spencer and Grant and they left there even more motivated and fired up about programming. They learned a lot about the types of projects to tackle for a Hackathon and how to approach it.

Spencer at the Technology Student Association Regional Competition

Saturday morning we were up early for Spencer to meet his team at the Middle School to head to Abingdon, VA to the TSA Regional competition. Unlike a school morning, he was up and motivated, and ready to roll. For that he was treated to a beautiful Saturday morning sunrise!

Spencer's essay on the importance of the C programming language in communication took second place.

He and his teammates also won first prize in the System Control competition (LEGO NXT).
Way to go Spencer! And a nice lead-in to your birthday the next day!!!

Math Counts!

Grant and Spencer were among the 10 kids from Blacksburg Middle School who were chosen among a competitive process to attend the Regional Math Counts competition at Virginia Tech. They were there from 9 am until 3 pm participating in various rounds under the supervision of their coaches, math teachers Ms. McCall (front, center) and Mr. Cox (back, center).

Among the ten were a group of four (I forget which) who competed in and won the team competition, allowing them to move on to the State competition in March in Richmond. The top three teams advance, plus the next six highest individual competitors. Spencer earned an individual spot, as did three other BMS students, meaning a total of 8 are eligible for the next round! While Grant was a little bummed that he did not advance, he did extremely well to have made it there as just a 6th grader.

Great job, Spencer, Grant, and BMS!

Grant turns 12!

Grant's 12th birthday is underway! It started with a by-request breakfast of eggs and cheese, bacon, biscuits and coffee.

He opened a few gifts including the gadget that tracks the stock market wirelessly (i.e. not on the internet, from a network of towers sending stock signals). It's magnetic too, so he wants to take it to school and put it in his locker!!

 cold hard cash from William (frozen into block of ice!)

 Giant party sub

 His requested gift - an office chair.

cute gifts and cards from friends :-)

 What's more fun than putting your arms through your shorts?

 Giant cookie!

 One of the many sleeping options

Standard issue sleepover breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes!

 Morning-after video games