@sherrym25 I'm glad to hear you have a plan for your spine surgery and your travel details worked out. I can give you one small suggestion that helped me with my spine surgery. Have slip on shoes. You can do that easily with gym shoes by adding elastic shoe laces. You won't be able to bend and this way, you won't need someone to tie your shoes. Good luck with your surgery. I liked hearing about your animals. I have one horse (boarded) and 4 cats. Your furry friends will lift your spirits and help you heal.