Staff Sgt Jason Ross - Marine

Kind of a laid back day, where we didn't have to get up too early for anything in particular. I cooked a pancake breakfast, and everything was eaten - so I'm guessing they must have liked the pancakes... ;-) When we finally did get moving, to doing something outside of the house, we went shopping for a new bookcase, for the living room. Jason has all these books and DVDs and no where, other than in some cases, to keep them. It seemed like a natural choice to go for a bookcase. I guess Jason had a pretty good idea of what he wanted to get, because we walked into Jerome's and the sales guy came walking up to me (they always do that) and I redirected him to Jason. Jason told him what he was interested in, and the young man took us over to the bookcases. Jason spent all of five minutes looking at them and said I want that one, and I was very pleased with his choice. It was a nice case, of medium height, and the color was a very close match to the rest of the furniture in the ...

Today was a great day to get outside and enjoy the wonderful weather down here. It was a little on the warmer side, but the sky was clear and blue and the entire day was great. We got up a little early, though, in hind sight, it wasn't early enough. The girls got up and so we were now all running around down stairs doing different things. Jason and I were supposed to be getting ready to take off, to go to his dog training up in Oceanside. It normally takes about 40 minutes to get there, in normal traffic conditions, and being Saturday there was going to be a little heavier traffic to contend with. The girls were all happy and having fun, but in their playfulness they were slowing us down, especially Jason, since it was, "Daddy, look at this!" or "Daddy, can you draw me a picture?" We finally did get out of the house, and left Linda there to take care of the girls. We got to the training a little later than we wanted too, and then found out they got started lat...

Jason and the girls were up early this morning, and so were Linda and I... Actually Linda and I were the ones getting the girls up and ready to go, so that Jason could be at his formation this morning. It wasn't anywhere near as difficult as I thought it might be, to get them going. Yesterday was a pretty active day for them, so they went to bed really tired and I thought they would be tough to get up this morning. As it was, we were able to get up; get everybody in the van; and, made it over to the base with minutes to spare. Of course we did drop Jason off first and then we took the girls to day care, but that just made it a little easier for us, and Jason. Jason's formation was his first, while being dressed in his "new" uniform. The camouflage blouse that he can now wear looks really good on him, and at the end of the formation the First Sergeant took the time to talk to all the guys, and suggested that they should consider doing the same. They are not "req...

Today was a pretty exciting day for the Ross family, as Jason was able to go to his first staff meeting in his Cami uniform. He was able to go out and purchase the blouse and get all the required aspects of it together for today's meeting. He was excited/happy, to say the least. I think he was getting tired of always wearing the PT gear, for this past year + period. The Wounded Warriors are only asked to wear the PT gear as some of them find it difficult to wear anything else. Or at least that is their official stance. With Jason coming out with a regulation uniform, at least the blouse, it is going to put pressure on the others to do the same. I think the First Sergeant was pleased with what he saw with Jason, as was the C.O. See picture below. The rest of the day was relaxed and comfortable, with a few things getting done and taken care of. We, Linda and I, even were able to take care of the DMV handicap placard today. We picked up the girls this afternoon and then I went for a...

I apologize for having two days in a row with little to share, but basically the situation is that Jason is doing as well as he every has, and the wounds are looking better each day. He is getting a good work out in Physical Therapy, and things are all moving in the right direction with all the other treatment. Today, along with all the other things he had to do with his schedule, he was also invited, along with everyone else who is a part of the C5 clinic, to lunch. It was a very nice luncheon, provided by a volunteer organization that supports the Wounded Warriors, and especially to those of C5. Now tomorrow morning he is invited to a special breakfast, at 07:30, so now I'm wondering if there is a new plan to make sure these guys all get fed... ;-) Actually, we'll get over to the breakfast and then back to the house to pick up the girls and Linda and get them to Day Care (yeah, they are with us again). Jason didn't think there was a need to get the girls up that early, ...

Good day today, and I'm very tired, so I'll keep the post short. Jason had a couple of appointments today, and even Linda had a prescription to pick up at the pharmacy. We did get a chance to see some folks we haven't seen in a while, and that was nice. Jason had his appointments and then we went back to the house, where he took a shower before laying back down for the day. His wounds are looking much better, so I'm happy with that, though there is still much to be done. I didn't get in the bike ride I had hoped I would, so that will have to happen tomorrow sometime. The girls will be back with us again, tomorrow, for at least a couple of days, and we're going to have fun with them, while they're here. It will be nice once the final schedule is in place, so that we can plan a little better, so for now we take it one day at a time, probably for another few days. Tomorrow, also, Jason will have a few appointments, and then back to the house around 13:00 or...

Jason had an appointment with the VA today, and when we were originally told about the appointment we were told that we should expect around three hours to complete this particular appointment. They were to go over all his injuries; ask lots and lots of questions; and, do their best to get up-to-speed on just what Jason's condition is. That's not what happened though... We arrived at the VA, on time and within a relatively short amount of time we were in the doctor's office. She was very pleasant and said she needed to ask some questions, and started to go over a psychological type exam. I then asked if Jason minded that I was in the same room, and he had no problems with it, nor did the doctor. I then asked, about how long does she expect this to take, and she said it might take as much as 45 minutes. Jason and I just sort of looked at each other and I said, "That's not exactly what we expected." Jason then went on to explain what we were told, and she said t...

Today was what I would call a different kind of day. We got up in the morning and the fact that Linda is here is different, but that isn't what made this a different kind of day. After breakfast we walked the girls over to their mom's house, to drop them off, and that was different, but that isn't what made this a different kind of day. What made it a different kind of day was that fact that Linda and I took off to head up to Los Angeles, and effectively left Jason alone for the majority of the day. He did have a nice visit from George Bowen and a friend (sorry I don't recall his name), and Jason really enjoyed the visit. We were up at our grandson's 1st birthday party, and didn't get home until this evening. That's what made is a different kind of day. The birthday party was fun and we had a great time with our grandsons, and with everybody else that was there. Ethan loved being the center of attention, and Dylan didn't show any signs of being upset t...

We got up this morning to the greeting of Jackie, who has now been getting out of her crib for several days. I guess its time to consider getting her a new mattress and box spring - we already have the bed. It was still fun to see her and know that she is safe. The good thing is that when she does get out of bed, on her own, all she seems to want to do is look at her books, or some of her toys. We all got up shortly after the greeting and breakfast was put together for everyone. Jason and I were headed up to his dog training class, up in Oceanside, and the plan was for just the two of us to go. Grandma and the girls were going to remain at the house and have fun together. Jason and I left the house at about 09:15, and arrived at the training location, by the pier; or, at least that is what we thought. Apparently there had been a change and 26 of the students knew about it, and four (including Jason) did not. We were told after being there for about 30 minutes, and then we drove over ...

Jason had an appointment with his new CO, and then an appointment with PT, and that was all that was done at the Naval Base. The meeting with the CO was actually a short one, as he had already met him briefly, once before. The PT session was focused on his shoulders and lats. On top of all that excitement, we took the girls to day care and then went to go visit John Schweitzer, a friend that we went to go see perform, a couple of days back (actually about a week). He occasionally plays at one of the clubs, here in San Diego, and it was kind of nice just getting out. Anyway, that was another short visit and then we went home, Jason wanted to take a shower and get back into bed. The girls were picked up at about 15:45 (3:45pm) and they were instantly asking when Grandma was going to be getting here, and when are we going to the airport to pick her up. They haven't been this excited to see somebody in quite a while, so it was kind of fun. I managed to keep them and their excitement,...

Jason had no appointments today, at least that's how the day started out. I figured that I could get the girls over to their day care a little later than usual and still have plenty of time to go for a much needed bike ride. As it turned out, prior to leaving to take the girls I went in to see Jason, to say good-bye, and he tells me that he has to meet with his section leader this afternoon at 13:00. Apparently there was some paper work that needed to be done, and they had forgotten to tell Jason about it, until this morning. As it was, I still have a couple of hours to get a ride in, though I would have liked to have had three hours, without any concern about when I got back. At least I know that Linda will be here tomorrow, and that will relieve some of the time pressures that I have been working with.  My original plan was to take some  hills and do some work on building up my lungs and legs, because hills are what I find the most challenging. I did get in over 17 miles ...

A good day for everyone, and we didn't even do much of anything. Jason had a couple of appointments this morning, and we did get the girls over to the day care, for their classes, so that was pretty much the normal of the day. We got up around 07:30 this morning - I was up at closer to 06:00, but that allowed me to have a very relaxed and slow morning. We had cereal for breakfast, so there was no push to get the girls to day care any earlier than we needed to. Typically when there are early appointments we get the girls to day care and they'll have breakfast there, with the other kids. We did get to talk with Dr. Uebelhour, about the experimental effort to "grow" Jason some skin replacement, and found out that there was a mistake done somewhere along the way. Apparently the sample was contaminated and they weren't able to generate what they wanted. This means that it will have to be done again, and the only thing lost was the time from the first effort. It works...

This morning started out with me helping Jason with a shower and dressing change, and then taking a quick bike ride up towards Cabrillo National Park. I didn't go all the way there because I needed to get back to the house in time to get Jason to his appointment this morning.  I made sure Jason had all he needed before going, and I also knew that if I didn't get my ride in this morning there would not be time later in the day. Besides the appointment we had some errands to take care of, and then we planned on working on the garage - going through some of the boxes and see what we could put away or toss.  As it was, we removed six boxes from the garage, with three of them ending up in the living room of the house. It was a good effort though and it allowed Jason to go back through a bunch of his stuff and see exactly where things were - some of which he had been looking for. After putting a few hours on the garage I asked Jason if he could please go get off the chair now, and...

Early morning start with formation for Jason, and unfortunately neither of us knew that it was a formation day until about 06:30. Jason was in communication with his section leader and during their text chat he said to Jason that he would see him at formation this morning. As you might guess, Jason was surprised by this and immediately went into the "got'a get ready quick" mode. Fortunately I was already up and showered and all but dressed (still needed to put my shoes on). Because it was so short of a notice we decided to simply get the girls up, but not dress them. They could travel in the PJs, and I think they were happy to do so. I would simply bring them back here, after dropping Jason off, and then get them dressed and sort of a second start of the day. I did just that, and got them over to day care about 08:20 or so, and they were able to have the breakfast with the rest of the class. Jason had his first appointment with the VA (they have an office on the Naval B...

Happy Father's Day to one and all. It has been a very nice and happy "holiday" for us, and the girls got to go to the park. We got up a little on the early side, about 07:15, but considering when we typically get up on a weekday, that was still sleeping in a bit. The girls helped me with the breakfast and then we just did a few lazy things around the house. The girls were very excited about Father's Day, though I don't think either of them really knew what it was about, other than it wasn't Daddy's birthday, yet it was his special day. We had lasagna for lunch (yes, left overs from last night) and Stacy surprised me by eating about the same amount as I did. She definitely likes lasagna. After lunch they went down for a nap, and because they knew we were going to be headed over to Mr. Netto's and then the park, it was quite easy. Earlier in the day Sean, our youngest son, called to wish me a Happy Father's Day, and we got to chat for a few minut...

Today was an incredibly fun day, especially having the girls around. We got and going, at the house, around 07:30 this morning, and it was actually a little unusual. Stacy was awake before Jackie. We got up and we all had breakfast, then we were on our way to Gracie's training. The training was up in Oceanside, so we had to plan on a 30 + minute drive. As it turned out, something was going on, on the freeway, and the CHP had completely stopped all traffic going South (we were headed North, at the time). I'm glad I had made a mental note of that, as it affected our return. Anyway, we got to the area in Oceanside, where they were just gathering for the training to begin. Jason met a few new people, as well as connecting up with a couple that he already knew. He asked that the girls not be around for the session, as he didn't want to have the distraction for either him or Gracie, so I took the girls for a walk on their board walk, or wharf. It was actually quite a nice littl...

This morning was a moderately exciting morning for Jason, as he received his Navy/Marine Commendation Citation and Medal. It was the first time for me to see one presented, so it was exciting for me, too. The Battalion Commander invited me to take pictures and suggested that I just move about to get better shots, and then when the "pinning" of the medal took place he called me over to get a good close up. I thought it was really nice of him to do that for Jason, and me. It was the first time that I was a part of his formation, and I found it very interesting, and enlightening. All together it took a little under 30 minutes and we were back in the van before 08:00, headed over to his first appointment.  Jason had a pretty easy day today, for appointments. He had a 09:00 with Physical Therapy (PT) and then one other, where he had to go get a shot. The PT appointment was with Dawn, and she worked his shoulders, to try to get them loosened up a bit. That appointment lasted for ...

Today started with me going for an early bike ride (13.2 miles), and I was able to get back to the house is about an hour. I left the house at about 07:00 and rode over to Costco and then back again, though I did take a short break at Costco. It was actually quite nice, since most of the traffic was going in the other direction, on the way out and then on the way back traffic wasn't heavy anyway. One of the things that I don't like to get stuck behind is a train crossing, and when I was coming back I could see just that, a train was on the tracks and the crossing arms were down. It was about a half mile away, and by the time I got up to the crossing the arms lifted and I just kept going... it felt amazingly good. When I came back into the house, one of the first things that Jason said was about how short a ride I had taken. I told him that I couldn't be gone too long, especially if he had that 09:00 appointment. I still needed some time to cool down and shower and get dre...

Today started out with a high level of energy - I came down stairs at about 06:00 and there was Jackie standing at the bottom of the stairs. I was rather surprised at this as she has not gotten out of bed before, on her own. I immediately went into to see Jason and asked him if he had gotten her out, and he was as surprised as I was, and I simply said that it looks like we're going to be needing to get her into a different bed sooner than we thought. I would rather she have a youth bed than to have her climbing over the sides of the crib. If she were to fall from the top of the crib it would be potentially more hazardous than if she were to just roll out of the youth bed (much closer to the floor). Anyway, that was how the morning started and then it went to getting the girls up and ready to go for the day, and feeding them breakfast. Stacy enjoys sleeping, so we don't worry too much about her getting up and running around. Just surprised Jackie doesn't wake her up with a...

If these past two days is any indication as to how the summer is going to be for us, then I have just two things to say about that. 1) We're going to have a lot of fun with the girls; 2) I'm definitely going to be getting in better shape. Those two have always had a high level of energy, and it seems to be getting higher! They love to go out in to the backyard and ride their scooters and bike, and even chase each other around. Gracie is still doing her best to figure out the relationship of the girls to Jason and me, but that's okay, she seems to be taking it in stride. We got up early enough to get the girls a nice relaxed breakfast; their new favorite cereal is Rice Krispies, and Jackie is getting better at feeding herself. She see Stacy doing things and is now paying attention more and trying to copy her more. This is all a normal sign of growing up, and it makes Jason feel good about how the girls are going. After breakfast we finished getting dressed and headed over ...

Well, I just got the girls down for the evening about 1/2 an hour ago, and I am tired. Those two have so much energy, especially when they first come over, and tonight I kind of let them play right up to bed time, so  the blame really is all mine. We had loads of fun though, followed by a bed time story, so even though I am tired, I'm happy. Jason had formation early this morning, and it was over pretty quickly. That made it better since we had things we needed to get done. Jason had to visit a number of areas to make sure all his appointments were in place, so that he doesn't loose any momentum, going forward. For those that don't remember, Jason has been on leave for the past two weeks, and therefore there really weren't many appointments. Now that we're getting back into the swing of things, the appointments are back. On top of that he set up some follow up appointments with Derm and Plastics to see what the next steps are going to be. We finished up at the h...

Today was the kind of day I think Jason needed. He was able to lay back for most of the day and even had a visit from one of his Marine buddies, Josh. Of course when Josh showed up I took advantage of the visit and made them some snacks then took off for a bike ride. About the only other thing that happened, that was away from the house was when Jason and I went to the store to pick up some dog food for Gracie. I did get a chance to do some laundry, and dishes but otherwise I kicked back. Tomorrow Jason will no longer be on leave, and we have a few things that have to get taken care of, so we'll be back in the swing of things, with a routine. Also, the girls will be back with us for a couple of days, so everything is good. Thank you, for all your continued support and take care and stay positive.

Had a pretty good day today, with most of it being spent in bed, for Jason. He was feeling better today, though for some reason, he was tired. I made sure he had a good breakfast and that he was comfortable, then I went for my bike ride. Actually, I was gone for almost two hours and went just slightly over 20 miles. When I got back into the house and immediately checked on Jason, he was sleeping. This made me feel good, as I was a little concerned about being gone that long. I let Gracie (his dog) out for a bio-break, and then went upstairs to finish cooling down, so that I could take a shower. The rest of the morning was very relaxed and not a great deal was done, other than picking up the mail and then going grocery shopping. The rest of the day was spent doing little things around the house; helping Jason with his shower and a good dressing change; and, most importantly... taking a short nap. We had plans to go out tonight to the 710 Beach Club, where a friend of Jason's was p...

It is a little late, so I apologize for the lateness of this post - We had a pretty good day, with a start of taking the girls to day care. We said our good-byes and now we won't have them with us again until Monday. We then decided to go out for a quick breakfast, at the Broken Yoke, and just like they advertise, they brought more food than we could, either of us, eat. Jason suggested that we go see the new movie, Now You See It, so we went to a matinee, and got in for a bit less than the regular cost. The movie was much better than I thought it was going to be, and for those who enjoy puzzles and trying to figure things out, I highly recommend the movie. We then went home, so that Jason could shower and do a dressing change, and I could go for a short bike ride (first one in a few days). As usual, there was some good news and bad news, with the dressing change; where some of the wounds are closing up better, and a couple were not. We intend to get with the doctors next week to ...

The girls came over early this morning, and we were very happy to see them. Since Linda was going home today this would be the last chance for her to see them for weeks, and she always enjoys spending time with our granddaughters. Now, if she could just figure out a way to spend more time with our grandsons, then life would be wonderful. We did eventually get the girls over to day care, but not for a couple of hours after they had arrived at our place. We had a nice breakfast of oatmeal and raisins, and that is the kind of breakfast that will stay with you for most of the day. The down side was that Linda still wasn't feeling all that well, so that put a bit of a damper on the day, that plus knowing that she was going to be leaving later in the afternoon. I would have liked to have been able to go for a bike ride, but getting some time with Linda was much more important. We just relaxed together and got a chance to talk with Jason for a little bit. He is starting to put togethe...

One of the first things we did today was to call up our son David, Jason's brother, and wish him a happy birthday. It is getting to be hard to believe that we have three sons over 30 years old now. I can still see, in my mind, the boys running around in the backyard, playing with the dog, and that seems like it was just a short time ago. Despite some of the challenges we have faced, it has been a good life.  Jason was finally able to take care of something he has been wanting to do, today we headed on over to Miramar, Marine Air Station, to order Jason a new dress blue Jacket. The jacket is actually a gift from his Uncle Larry and Aunt Joyce, so in a way it is even more special. It was actually kind of comical in how the tailors had to work with him. First, the measurements that Jason went through all that trouble to get were discarded. They didn't match the form that needed to be filled out, to order the jacket. Then they had to get correct measurements, and it was very appa...

I got up early today and went for a nice bike ride. It was only 15 miles, with a mix of flat and hills, and in general, it was a very nice ride. I got back to the house and both Jason and Linda were waking up, so I fixed some breakfast for Jason and did my best to figure out something for Linda. She is not feeling too well, and we're really not sure why. We think it might be a combination of several things, culminating with a meal at a restaurant, and the food being a bit too rich. It probably upset her stomach and caused her to stay down most of today. Of course Jason didn't do too much either, and I'm kind of glad that was the case. Yesterday he was up too much, with too much activity. Tomorrow is going to be another day, like today, with most of it being spent at home. I might have to run out to the store, or some other errand, but nothing is planned right now. It is Linda's last full day with us, and we're going to miss having her around. The good news is that...

Today was a very good day for Jason, and I hope for his family all together. A decision on the custody for the girls has been established; it is a 50/50 split.  This is what Jason was asking for, and has been asking for from the beginning. There are some other aspects of the decision, though I will not put that here. The important thing is that we can now plan on a more regular life schedule, and better plan on activities. We also spent a little time over at the hospital pharmacy, as we needed to replace one of the skin meds that we had for one of the girls. The tube ruptured and stuff was oozing out the side. We needed to replace it so to the pharmacy we went. It was done in less time than they told us it would be, and that almost caused us to be late for the movie "After Earth."  The technician told Jason, and me since I was standing right there, that it would be two hours. We wanted to go see the movie so we decided to head over that way and catch an earlier showing. As ...

Today started with a nice pancake and eggs breakfast, and it always surprises me to see just how much those little girls can put away, when they really like the food on the table. Jason did a pretty good job, too, and honestly I guess Linda and I did, too. Actually, today started earlier than that, where I drove Anthony Netto to the airport at about 05:00 this morning. I got him to the airport; came back to the house; and, went back to sleep - then there was the "restart" of the day. Not much actually happened today, and the girls were happy with just playing around the house. I guess they burned off a great deal of energy because they went down for their nap easily, and then they slept a little longer than I would have thought. Actually, that worked out good because I went for a nice bike ride, for about 90 minutes, and when I got back they were just waking up. It is sooooo nice having Linda here to help, as it allows me the luxury of being able to take off for a ride. S...

It was an early start for the girls, as Stacy had her final soccer game of the season today. After the game there was a party so she stayed over, while Jackie was brought back to the house, and eventually took a nap. Stacy got back to the house after 13:30 (1:30pm),  and then took her own nap. I went up to Los Angeles, for a job fair that was being put on for veterans in the Los Angeles area. Because David and Miriam live up there they heard about it (actually it was Miriam who told me) and suggested that I might want to check it out. As it turned out, there were a couple of leads, so I'll follow up on those and see if I can get anything going. I spent about 90 minutes there, talking to different people, and then partaking of their generous luncheon. Afterward I went over to David's place and visited with the family and then David and I went for a short walk up to Griffith Park. It was nice, and I wished I had more time, but I needed to get headed back to San Diego. When I ...