WOW!  I can't believe it has been 3 months since my update.  I could say "No news is good news" and while that is true, I can also blame the holidays and life in general for getting in the way!  

John is doing fantastic!  The first 30-45 days after surgery were pretty rough.  He was not mentally prepared for how difficult a major abdominal surgery is from a recovery standpoint - truth is, I'm not sure ANYONE is ever prepared for a surgery of this magnitude.  So much about the recovery was the polar opposite of the first surgery.  In May, he was cautioned to NOT use his arms to get up but to use his core.  This time, the core was strictly off limits and he HAD to use his arms.  Incisional pain was greater this time around too.  The surgery was a complete success from a medical standpoint.  For the first time in many months, John has had no pain in his legs when walking!  We were even able to get out hunting a few times and he hiked all over the place with not having to stop to let the pain in his legs subside.   

The biggest issue was trauma to his GI tract.  To get to his abdominal aorta to place the graft, the surgical team had to lift his intestinal tract up and push in out of the way.  This does not make the GI tract happy.  He dealt with considerable left sided abdominal pain for quite a while after surgery.  We finally saw a GI doc at the recommendation of his vascular surgeon and was soon scheduled for a colonoscopy to take a look.  The final verdict was that there had been some blood flow compromise to the lower part of his colon that resulted in his pain and digestive issues.  There was no tissue damage and time alone was the remedy.  For the past 4 weeks, things seem to be back to normal.  

Once John was past the 8 week  "no core work" restriction imposed by his surgical team, John was ready to hit the ground running!  He is back teaching tennis lessons and is hitting 3-4 times a week with his tennis buddies.  He is back to stretching out in the club hot tub and to quote John "I almost feel normal again!"  

We cannot begin to express how much all the support of our friends and our family meant to us.  Our daughters and their families have been amazing in support of both me and John.  Our extended family and friends are always there, cheering John on at every turn.  We are so very blessed.  I hope with all my heart that this is the last update for a very long while!  Thank you all and we love you so much.