Thursday, September 30, 2010

Our Nana


Roberts

Carol Jean


Carol Roberts, 80, passed away Saturday, September 11 at Grant Medical Center in Columbus, OH. She was born on December 13, 1929 to Fred C. and Mildred Amanda (Pratt) Jackson in Birmingham, Alabama.


She is survived by her loving husband of 58 years, Jim; children, Jim Jr. (Cindy) Roberts, Mary Roberts, Fred (Elizabeth) Roberts, Tom (Lynette) Roberts, Chris Roberts, and Doug Roberts; grandchildren: Kerry (Andrew Hagner), Katharine, Meaghan, Callan, Pierce, James III “Jake,” Makena, Brewer, Jordan, Jackson, Larson, and Logan Roberts; great-granddaughter, Abigail Rose; brother, Fred (Carla) Jackson, sister-in-law, Sally Ahrendt, as well as numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. Carol was preceded in death by her parents.


Carol Jean Jackson earned her Master’s degree in Speech Pathology from the University of Iowa where she was a member of Delta Gamma sorority. Her friendship with Jim Roberts began in grade school in Akron, where both of their fathers worked for Firestone Rubber Co. Their romance would blossom after Jim gave Carol his 8th grade pin, and they would celebrate 58 years of marriage on September 6, 2010. Carol married Jim while he was at the Ohio State University School of Medicine, and after internship and residency, she and young Jim, Jr., accompanied him to post-WWII Paris, where he was a Captain in the US Army. There Carol became a fluent French speaker and graduate of the famed Cordon Bleu cooking school, much to the enjoyment of her family who will long remember her crepes, buche de Noel and mousse au chocolat, along with her classic Southern cooking. The family settled in Toledo in 1960 where Dr. Roberts began his pediatric practice with Dr. Ralph Zucker.


Carol was a loving mother to six children, and was active in all of their Ottawa Hills school and sports activities. She was a Girl Scout leader, active and sustaining member of the Junior League of Toledo, volunteer with of the Academy of Medicine Auxiliary, Camp Storer, Camp Courageous, Monroe Street United Methodist Church, Sauder Village and the Toledo Botanical Gardens, among many other activities.


In addition to being an outstanding cook and hostess, Carol was an accomplished spinner, weaver and knitter. She helped to initiate the Pioneer Life program at the Toledo Botanical Gardens and frequently took master classes in weaving at the Manning’s in Pennsylvania, and fabric arts centers in Vermont. She was an excellent bird hunter, fly fisherwoman and camper, spending many fall holidays hunting in upstate New York, fishing at Rockwell in Ohio and the Slagle Trout Club in Northern Michigan and summer camping at various parks. Carol was always up for an adventure, and traveled most of the world with her husband, children and grandchildren.


Carol’s greatest accomplishments were as a wonderful wife, outstanding mother, and amazing Nana to her grandchildren. She was a warm hostess, always welcoming one more to her table with open arms. She never judged others and lived by the words she frequently spoke: “It is my privilege to serve you.”


It was her family’s privilege to have her as our wife, mother and Nana, and we will miss her more than we can say.


Grampy, two strong men by your side and an entire family loving you.

James, James Jr, and James III

The little cousins:

Jake, Jordan, Jackson, Makena, Larson, Brewer, and Logan


Back at the house: Lots of play but you can always find some work to be done.

Celebrating Nana and enjoying being with our family.

Pierce and Logan

Our favorite Grampy.

A toast to Nana.
Pierce, Chris, Cal, Doug
Megan, Kerry, Kiki, and Becca

Grampy and Aunt Sally
Brother and Sister.

A family photo that included cousins June and Kim.

Elizabeth and Makena

Kiki, Megan and Megan's boyfriend Casey

The kids were able to have some fun kid time: a bonfire, roasting marshmellows, a corn maze, and swimming at the lake. Most of all they just loved being together. I'm sure Nana's heart was bursting with love knowing they were all together. They all meant the world to her.


Grampy and Logan

A quick trip to Toledo and on the way home.

We went to celebrate Nana's wonderful life and I'm pretty sure we accomplished that.

We now have a pretty special angel smiling down and surrounding us all.
Not a day has gone by that I have not thought about what Carol was trying to teach me:

Don't sweat the small stuff and don't worry about whether or not my floor is clean but to use the floor to get down and play with my kids.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Braces

Jordan's new look for the next 3 years.
Cant wait to see the end result.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Larson's Firsth Losth Toof

He lost one at the lake with friends and then shortly after the next one came out at Six Flags.
This is a very exciting moment for Larson.
He's a pretty darn cute kid as it is but now hearing him try to talk with his bottom teeth out is just adorable. Makes me smile.
Of course, in Larson fashion, he tries to hide his tooth from the tooth fairy. I carefully put it under his pillow where I can just reach up but oh no. The fairy has to go on a tooth hunt to find it.

Logans First Day of Preschool

Very excited and wanted to know if he could ride da dus to school.
There were kids crying everywhere and even a Mom on the way out.
Logan couldnt get in fast enough and I couldnt get out of there fast enough.
I guess that is what dropping off #4 is.

He is in Mrs. Womaks 2 and 3 year old class.

So glad that he can have this time to be with other kids and explore a different social setting.

Jersey Boys

Oh What A Night!
We were so lucky to have Michelle and Jordan take us to see Jersey Boys.
Jordan & Jordan

What kind of mother am I?

Incredible show, incredible friends.


Pop Warner Pep Rally

Vandegrift High School Pop Warner Night.
The boys all got to run through the helmet.
Pop Warner Pep Rally the night before the first games. 400 hundred kids in a packed to capacity gymnasium. Kind of overwhelming.

Cheerleaders have one less responsibility as now the signs are custom made. Wow! How times have changed.


These two little boys were hanging out watching the game while practicing their fishing skills.

Our first game did not go well at all. Jackson struggled and so did our team.
There is always next week!

Friday, September 3, 2010

First Tackle Scrimmage

pre game team pictures


Last pre game instructions.


defensive line
I think that this was Jaxs taken out of the game for 2 missed tackles in a row. That was offense. He was playing defense before that and did a great job. This was his first tackle football game ever. He is learning more with each practice.
Jackson's cheering section
This is the sleeping section
and this is the I would rather be with my friends section.
They played 2 scrimmages back to back so it made for a long day at the field.
We are looking forward to Game #1 tomorrow against Georgetown.

Boy Sees Sprinkler

The sprinklers were on at football practice.
Logan, No, No, don't get in the water!

Logan playing soccer in the sprinklers.

Logan having a great time at football practice.