Staff Sgt Jason Ross - Marine

A most interesting day, to be sure. I got up this morning and as I do now, I got ready to go to work, and with that, I fixed breakfast for Jason and I. Today was already getting busy, and I just barely had gotten out of bed. The rest of the household goods were coming from Durham Ridge, and we only knew they were to be here in the morning. To me, that meant they would be here before noon - and they were. They showed up at about 08:30, and Linda was ready for them. She had gone down to pick up some donuts, and because there is no Starbucks near by (I know that must be a bit of a shock to all you folks in California - there seems to be a Starbucks on every other corner) Linda was not able to provide coffee (at first). While I was working, Linda was coordinating the influx of materials and when it was all said and done, the garage was almost completely full, and there were several boxes in the house. The crew was an excellent crew, and they were very efficient. They finished at just a l...

Today was a busy day for us, and began with us in the state of being happy, that we're out of the Durham Ridge property now, and the day ended with us concerned that Jason has developed something that we don't like on his right wound. First Linda and I (Jason stayed home and simply stayed in bed) went to church this morning, back at the Pt. Loma Presbyterian Church. It was nice seeing the people there and many of them expressed sadness that we would be now going to a different church. There was a visiting Pakistani Presbyterian Pastor, visiting from Pakistan, and he gave a wonderful sermon. After church we headed right over to the old house, so we could finish up with everything there.       So now I'll go over the Durham Ridge completion - Linda and I spent most of the day at that address, taking care of the final clean up and making sure it is ready for inspection on Monday - There is a scheduled walk through for Monday. Because there were still a couple pieces of fur...

Last night the three of us slept at the new house up in Fallbrook, and it was quite nice. Only thing better would have been to have had the girls here with us. Linda finished up at the house down in Pt. Loma, and according to the folks who did the hauling of the items from Pt. Loma, they should be here on Monday, and we hope they are accurate. I was up, around 07:00, maybe a little later, so I kind of felt like we slept in, at least a little. Linda was actually up before me, but then only by a few minutes (maybe 10). When I was up and moving she asked me to make some oatmeal for breakfast, and since all three of us like oatmeal, it was a no-brainer. It was the first time for me cooking on the new stove, and it was kind of fun. The only thing is that when ever you cook on a new stove (or oven, for that matter), you don't know how the equipment is going to act. I was also not really paying attention, as I should have and ended up cooking more oatmeal than I needed to. Not to let th...

Linda spent the night down in Pt. Loma, again - only this was the last time she would have to do that. She worked with the movers and everything is effectively out of that house. I say effectively because there are still a couple of items that are going to be picked up today, that are NOT going to be coming to this house, up in Fallbrook. It feels pretty good to be able to say that we're out of that place, and now we're going to have to deal with figuring out where everything is going to go in this new house. I, for one, am looking forward to the challenge. Jason had an appointment with the VA today, and that kept him out for a couple of hours. I don't think they made much progress, towards finding a solution for his challenges, but at least there is a dialog going on. He got back to the house at close to 14:00 (2pm) and he was kind of tired. In fact a short while after he was back in his bed, he was asleep. Then, just a little while later, Linda and Joselyn arrived, from...

We've run into an interesting conundrum, in that our wi-fi doesn't seem to function as it is supposed to. Jason's laptop and my desk side computer don't seem to connect to the network for more than a few seconds, at a time. Whereas my work laptop (which I am using right now) connects just fine. All three systems are running the same version of Windows, and they all seem to be about the same age. I am very glad that my work system, works, as that would be bad if it didn't. I am just puzzled as to why the other two do not. We even had the tech guy back out to check it out, and he couldn't find anything wrong, and he worked on it for a couple of hours. He will be coming back out again, so I am hopeful that he'll figure it out. In the mean time, Jason has loaded 10 on to his laptop... I told him I am waiting and will be watching to see how well he does. Linda is back down in Pt. Loma, and the household items are just about all packed up and ready to be shipped...

An interesting day, to say the least, as it started out with me getting up early, so that I could join in on a conference call, with my new job. It lasted for almost 30 minutes and then my focus turned to documents and other information I need to become familiar with. Linda was up, almost as early as me, and she began getting the girls ready for school. Since today is Jackie's birthday, the girls will be headed over to their mother's place, as it is an odd year (Next year they spend their birthdays with Jason). Linda was able to get the girls up; make sure they were dressed and had their hair done; feed them a good breakfast; and, make their lunches. All this before taking them to school, and she managed to get that done with time to spare. The girls really enjoy their new school and were very excited about going this morning, as it is the start of their second week. Linda was back at the house and cleaning things up and putting things away, while I was "at work" an...

First, just a quick thank you, to all of you who read the posts on a regular basis. It really does make me happy to know that some folks enjoy reading the things that I write, and that it makes others happy knowing that Jason and his family are doing okay. We all got up this morning and decided to relax a little, before the next steps were taken towards getting us all settled in to the new house and home. I made a pancake breakfast for George, Jason, Stacy and Jackie, as well as for Linda and I, pretty much like I would normally make the breakfast. The difference today was that we had some extra guests, with Steve and Yolanda, and Rob and Karen, joining us. That just meant that I had to cook a bunch more pancakes and attempt to get all the eggs and bacon cooked as well. In truth, I think I could have cooked a few more pancakes and we would have been just fine, and probably still no left overs. Everything turned out better than I could have hoped for, and all of this while using brand...

Well, we've had a full day in the new house and we think it is wonderful. We have all the room we have always wanted, and we can move around with all the ease in the world. On top of that we have friends who have been visiting, and we can relax and just have some conversation, just like we were back in Livermore. However, despite all those positive aspects, today was challenging. We have to get things moved from the former residence, to the new one, and that means moving a bunch of stuff from storage to the new house, as well as moving stuff from the former residence to the new house. All this is well and good, and was coordinated with the Marines, and their TMO folks (the people who take care of military moves). If Jason is able to move some of the household items then he saves the government money, and they in-turn give him some of that money back. It can happen if he moves all his possessions and it can happen if he moves a portion. Jason wants to move a portion, and that mean...

We moved in to our new home today, and we're all very tired. It has been an absolutely wonderful day, and despite the wind kicking up a bit, everything went off very well. It is such a comfort knowing that the house we are now in, is going to be Jason's home for as long as he needs it to be, and the girls have the home that Jason has wanted to provide them. I'm getting ahead of myself, just a bit here. We got up early and packed up those things we knew we needed, or would need at the new house. I think we did a pretty good job of packing all the right stuff, and getting all of us here, safely. We took all three vehicles, with the van being packed up with most of the things we were bringing up with us. We met up at the Park and Ride, right there by I-15 and Cal Hwy 76. Jason was the first to leave, then Linda a few minutes later, and then me. Jason had the dogs with him; Linda had the girls with her; and, I had our son George with me.  We all made it to the Park and Ride a...

I haven't made a post in a couple of days, and almost didn't make one again tonight. I was sitting down stairs, relaxing a little, after a busy day, and fell asleep. I guess I was kind of tired. Then I hear Jason, in his bedroom, with that little snore he makes, and knew he was asleep as well. He had a long day, just like the rest of us. But, I'm getting ahead of myself, just a bit. The day started out with me being up in Fallbrook, with Linda, as we stayed at one of the local motels, so she could get the girls to school. The girls are also staying at the motel with us, and it is a major excitement for them. They get to stay somewhere new, and get to share a room with Grandma and Grandpa - what could be better than that??? Anyway, we got up early, with me getting up right after Linda, and both of us being up much earlier than we needed. Because I can work from just about anywhere and I had an early morning conference call. By the time the call was going the girls were get...

We all got up early this morning and Linda headed off to a Blue Star Mothers (BSM) meeting. Apparently it was an important meeting, as they were having some elections, as well as other business to be taken care of. Linda was elected a position of 1st Vice President, and I think it is a position she wanted. It has to do with membership and I know she has some ideas already, about what to do. I can tell she is excited about working with the BSM and it wouldn't surprise me if she were to come and tell me that she is taking an even higher position, a year or two down the road. Jason and I, on the other hand, stayed at home for a good portion of the morning, and then we had some errands to attend to, with the most important being picking up some dog food. We also had a few other things to do, and we had a pretty good time of spending this morning and early afternoon together. We got a chance to just talk and discuss politics as well as other world issues. That is one of the things I r...

Today started early for Linda and I, as I had a conference call at 06:00 (09:00 EST), and Linda needed to get off early for a number of issues she wanted to get done. I was on the phone for over three hours, with different calls being one right after the other, and when it was done I got another phone call from a security group. When working at the VA, one has to go through a security screen, and there is always lots of paperwork to be filled out. One of the forms I filled out was missing a check mark, on a minor issue, so they called to get clarification. The good news is that it showed that they were processing my paperwork; the not so good news is that my paperwork isn't done yet. It was a busy day for me, at work, and when I was done Jason and I had some running around to take care of. We went over to MCRD, where Jason purchased a couple of patches for the dogs, and then we came back to the house, to grab something to eat. Funny how we still need food, just like everyone else...

I had a busy day at work today, and it felt pretty good to get to feel like I was really doing something again. The best part though was after work, when we all took off, to head up to Fallbrook. It was still early enough to get some things done, and then head on over to the house to see what was happening there - but I'm getting ahead of myself, I'll come back to the house in a moment. Jason, Linda and I, along with Joselyn all went up to Fallbrook. Initially it was because Jason needed to make the final enrollment requirements to get the girls in the schools up there. As it turned out, it was a good thing we went, because we found out that Jackie was not being allowed to enroll in the school where we thought she was going to be going. The reason was that there was simply no space, and that the school was already over loaded. Now, it would have been nice if someone at the school, or within their district office had called Jason, rather than him finding out because he went up...

Another day closer to moving up to Fallbrook, and getting into our new home. We've been in communications with the Gary Sinise Foundation team that is doing the final set up, that is, getting all the furniture in place and making sure things are ready for the up coming dedication. There are a couple of things that we need to get clarification on, and I'm not going to enter any of it here, as I don't want to spoil the dedication, when it happens, so you're just going to have to wait to see. I'll take some pictures and post on the blog, AFTER the dedication, for all you folks who are not able to make it out here. Linda and Jason have done more packing which sometimes seems endless. Jason had a good meeting with the VA, today, and got to talk with the Plastics group. Linda went with him, as I was not able to due to working. I am so happy that Linda is able to pick up this part of the support for Jason, as it was one of the areas I was concerned about. She asked quest...

Apologies for the lack of a post yesterday, but I fell asleep at about the time I would normally be blogging, and when I woke I just simply got up and went to bed. Yesterday was a relatively calm day, as was today, and there really wasn't much to report. Today, however, there are a few updates, and I hope everyone enjoys them. I'm still working to figure out when I can get my bike rides in, and I'm beginning to think that it might have to wait until after the move to the new house. Trying to get out on the bike in the afternoon is much more "friendly" up in the Fallbrook area, than it is here in Pt. Loma. It seems like after 10:30 it is constant commute level traffic and I just don't feel comfortable around all that traffic. Where as in Fallbrook, the early afternoon is still pretty lite, and I should be able to get around some and do a little exploring. Yesterday Jason was out with the dogs and took them for a pretty good walk. The dogs were worn down pre...

Another outstanding day in the Ross household. It was wonderful waking up to having Linda back again. I would have liked to have gotten up to go make a pancake breakfast, but we're really low on pancake mix, so I decided against it. Besides, it was a little later than I would have liked it to have been, so we decided on just a simple breakfast of cold cereal, so that we could get to church on time... and we did. After church we came home for a short break and then a lunch - then we all headed up to Fallbrook. Anthony Netto, a friend of ours, was meeting us up at the house and he wanted to discuss a couple of ideas, and we wanted to get up that way anyway. We hadn't been up to the house is almost two weeks, so it was kind of fun going up there, anyway. When we arrived, the first thing I did was to set off the alarm - yes, the house is now alarmed - and it kind of surprised everyone, especially Jackie. I had it under control, and off within about 90 seconds, so nothing happened...

Another nice day with the girls, as we had a slow and relaxed start to the morning, and then we all went with Jason, to his dog training session. Actually, the girls know of the park, where the training takes place, and they like going there. It is park called, Buddy Todd, and it has all the play structures and swings the girls like, so while Jason and the dogs are training, I'm pushing the girls on the swings or they are climbing on the structures. We were there for about 2-hours, and right after the training there was a picnic lunch, so that made it pretty nice, at least for me. I was concerned about getting home a little later than I had planned and then trying to feed the girls lunch. This took care of that for me, and when we got home they were ready for their nap. While they napped Jason took his shower and did a dressing change, and on a very positive note, the wounds are looking good and getting smaller, with the left side coming close to closing. When the girls went do...

A very nice day for us, as it started out very comfortably with the girls coming over and Jason having a great time with them. He was actually the one to meet and greet them at the door, as I was up stairs, working. They played down stairs with Daddy, for a few hours and watched My Little Pony and read some books. A little while later I came down and told them I would be taking them to  the park, a little later in the afternoon, and so I did. We went over to Balboa Park, and I took the girls on the carousel and then on the little train, that runs around part of the park. Stacy brought along her "stomp rocket" (small Styrofoam "rockets" that go shooting up in the air when she stomps on the air bag launcher). Even Jackie got into it and the both of them were having a great time. Then it happened ... both of them had to use the bathroom! Fortunately we were close to the Natural History Museum, and they have a public restroom. It also gave us a few minutes to look aro...

Nice easy day, for Jason and I. I had to work and Jason had a couple of appointments. First things, first, we took the girls back to their mom's house, and then came back to ours. I dealt with the things I needed to deal with, and Jason got ready to head over to Balboa, and then later over to MCRD. At Balboa, he went for a short visit and took care of a couple of minor items, with one of them being a visit to PT. He wants to begin doing more PT visits and getting as much care for his shoulders as he can, and when he was done he simply came back to the house. He left about an hour later, to go over to MCRD, to take care of some paperwork, related to his, and the girls insurance (so you might have a feeling where this is going). He wanted to make sure all the right things were in place and all the correct information was as it should be, and then he found out that it wasn't. In fact, they had managed to loose most of his paperwork and he had to work with them to recreate as muc...

Another exciting day for the Ross household. Linda got me up at a little before 04:00, so that I could take her and some of her friends to the Air Port. Linda and those friends are all part of the Blue Star Mothers  organization, and they were headed for Cleveland, OH. They are going to be participating in a national convention, and this will be Linda's first one, with them. She was pretty excited about going, and I'm sure she will have fun, as well as learn a great deal - - none-the-less, I'm going to miss her. Today, with her gone, I definitely felt the affect of not having her around, since we had the girls with us, and that meant I needed to figure out how to balance my time (I'm working at 06:00 in the morning) with their needs, along with Jason's needs. Fortunately, Jason is able to help with this and they did spend a great deal of time with him... more than they normally would. I was also able to help Jason with his VA appointment, today, and the girls came...

Another nice day for the Ross household, here in Pt. Loma - San Diego, CA - We got up and I felt pretty good, considering I've not felt 100% for the past several days. Not sure what was bothering me so much, but it seems like whatever it was, is behind me now, and I can once again move forward. I have to hand it to Linda, she allowed me to rest and sleep and kept right on taking care of things. Anyway, we got up and Linda and I went to church and had a great time. Jason chose not to come as he as feeling like he needed to stay down for as much as he could today. I'm looking forward to these next couple of weeks, as I attempt to get some traction with a couple of different groups that should provide some real help in determining a seating solution for Jason. There is a team of engineers working on this, out of Cal Poly, and I have also been made aware of some potential help from another group, who I won't mention just yet, as I don't want to say something until I know ...

I didn't update the blog yesterday, mostly because we, Linda and I, went to a fund raising event for multiple 501(c) groups, GSF being one of them. As it was, Semper Fi was there too, and I had a great conversation with a GySgt named Jon Coffey and it was nice just getting a chance to see all the folks from the Gary Sinise Foundation. Two of them, Charlie and Cristin, we hadn't seen or heard from in a little while, so it was good to catch up. The only down side was that it was over an hour drive to get there and get back, and we didn't get back until after midnight. Otherwise yesterday and today were pretty much the same. Linda did a more packing and took care of some chores, and I just had a nice relaxing time. Jason's wounds are coming along nicely and I am hopeful that by dedication time only the right side will remain, and it will be much smaller than it is right now. My new job has not been too challenging yet, though I expect it to start getting a bit more ram...