Carbmaster vanilla skim milk to me tastes waaaay better than my old protein shakes. 11g of protein 60 cal per cup. They also make plain skim and chocolate. I made lots of super soft scrambled eggs with butter. Healthy choice gumbo put thru the blender was a big favorite too. Hummus, lentil soup, beef veg soup blended. Moo goo gai pan-no rice. Put thru blender. Basically any non fried, no rice, non sweet Asian dish purrees pretty well taste wise. Egg drop and hot n sour soup were good too.

Mangopickle: Would it be ok to start some of that now?

My surgeon didn't care as long as it was 70%protein,25%veg-no potato5%whole grain carb and pureed

You should follow your surgeon's directions and check with their office before making any changes. They all have different rules. I was on liquids for two full weeks - just protein shakes, broth or jello, then two more weeks of yogurt, pudding, etc. Chicken broth was a lifesaver for me. I bought chicken soup from Whole Food and strained out the noodles and chicken. Isopure was easier for me to get down than thicker shakes. It comes in lots of fruity flavors. You can buy it at GNC or on Amazon. Good luck.

I found after surgery that water based protein products, (Syntrax Nextar, Isopure) went down easier. Things will feel stuck for a bit until the swelling goes down. it does get better. Have a look at theworldaccordingtoeggface.com. She's a WLS patient, blogger and weight loss advocate with a million recipe ideas for every stage that don't suck!

These are just my thoughts but you need to change your relationship with food.

Food is now fuel for me....where before it was my life. I still enjoy what I eat but I focus on the nutrition of it before I worry about the taste of it.

Stick to the diet you are given to a tee. DO NOT CHEAT because in reality you are only cheating yourself. I had my first egg 6 weeks out and I was only able to eat about 1/4 of it. Don't rush this process...get your head in the game and where it needs to be. I still struggle with head hunger but I know it is just that...me wanting something not me NEEDING something.

Best of luck to you ALL and remember why you did this!

Yes smooth (pureed) foods seem great after just liquids, but wait a good long time for the eggs. Believe it or not, egg yolks are very dense and very hard for us to digest. If leaving food on the table is an issue, make really small portions, or make things you can take a 1/4 cup of and save the rest for a later meal.

And it will be much easier as you progress if you can come to terms with leaving food on the table, because I am 2.5 years out and unless I am eating at home where I can measure out the portion (and yes I still do that) I am leaving food on the table because even the smallest meal in a restaurant is too big for me.

As for "licking" things you should not be eating, let me tell you, if you had a problem controling yourself with something before surgery, you will still have a problem controlling yourself with that food after surgery. I tried a handful of flavored chips and wound up eating the whole bag. Yes it took me a full day to do it, but the point is I couldn't leave them alone. I haven't reintroduced ice cream to my diet because I never could control myself with that either and after failing at control with the chips, I didn't even want to try the ice cream. So I haven't had ice cream in almost 3 years BY CHOICE. And maybe that's why I don't feel deprived. These are my choices not to eat these things. I can if I want, but I don't want to because they are not going to help me with my goal of losing and keeping off the weight.

This is not an easy path, but it's also not impossible. This journey is a lifelong lifestyle change. Choose wisely and you will be successfull. That will mean leaving behind food that is not good for you, not in your best interest and adding other foods and activity that will help you get and keep the weight off. Good luck!

Are you hitting your protein and water and calorie goals set by your surgeon? If you are you shouldn't be physically hungry. Head hunger is a whole other matter. There is no cure for this. Hopefully you have removed all food items that are not part of your new lifestyle from your house. Seeing them will only induce cravings. I had major head hunger as soon as I woke from surgery. I could hardly choke down water but my desire for my Kryptonite foods was very strong. I just had to keep praying and reminding myself that I was stressed out and I no longer medicate with food so I need to accept the process and drink that effing soup and gag down the revolting protein shake. As the days passed and I would think I was hungry I would ask myself why. I would remind myself that I just had soup and I was bored or thirsty but I was not hungry. It will get better when you start soft foods cause you get to chew more. I felt incredibly weak the first 6 wks as my body was forced to dissolve my fat for energy. If you aren't hitting your protein goals then you really are hungry and you will need to work on that. Good luck