What I would have done differently

Meet Willie. I couldn't have made it without him.

The following is my original list that I posted prior to surgery. I have gone through and made comments in red about if I would buy again, etc.

- Mini Pillowpet to hold against stomach while riding in car or getting up. This was a lifesaver. It helped me immensely when getting out of bed or just walking around if my tummy was hurting.

- Sublingual B-12 (the multi I bought has less B12 than other Band multi's) Still using these. Tastes good and easy to take.

- Biotin (For possible hair loss) You can never be too over prepared, right? :)

- Liquid adult Tylenol Used it once after surgery when I did not want to continue pain meds. My pain levels actually diminished quickly and were pretty much gone by day three/four. Gas though was another problem...

- Probiotic Pearls Don't know if these help, but taking them just in case. Have been fairly regular even though my diet to this point has lacked a good amount of fiber.

- Milk of Magnesia Used once a couple days after surgery, lifesaver. Definitely recommend.

- Mashed Potatoes

- Creamy soups I bought some weird soups I hadn't ever heard of in the naturals aisle, and after opening one, I decided I will donate the rest to the food bank. Protein shakes, Sugar free pudding, and pureed soups where what I ate.

- Wolfgang Puck broths Bought a lot of organic Safeway broths, but never actually opened them. I had Lipton cup-a-soup Cream of Chicken that was so much better than broth.

- Low sodium v8 juice Have not used.

- Pineapple Juice Have not used.

- O-purity Band multivitamin (from Unjury) Have taken every day. Not sure if I will buy again. May try to cheaper Centrum chewables when I run out.

- Calcium + Vit D & K chews +

- Lipton cup-a-soup Cream of Chicken +

- Peppermint tea (Have heard that this can help with gas pains- worth a try :) Drank this the first couple days. Not sure if it helped, but it was soothing just the same. I would suggest buying only one box.

- Protein powder- Body Fortress Chocolate, Vanilla, and Cookies n' Cream Vanilla is probably my favorite. I am really burnt out on chocolate because I drank ready made a couple weeks prior to surgery. Was not impressed with the Cookies n' Cream flavor.

- 3 Protein mix shakers Great for on the go. Easier and more thorough than mixing with spoon.

- 2 bathrobes Did not arrive on schedule.

- Yogurt without seeds or chunks Bought way too much yogurt, thinking I would be able to eat it all.

- More broths No.

- SF syrups Nice way to switch up flavors and not make them so boring.

I also found that I stocked up on way too many drinks- case of Diet Snapple, case of G2 Gatorade, and two packs of diet teas. I really overestimated what my consumption after surgery would be. At least these things don't go bad.
Another thing I did not buy prior to surgery was an iron supplement I would actually be able to take (the one I was taking prior is too large, according to my surgeon's nurse practitioner). Since surgery, I have been feeling tired a lot more. I figured that this was due to my diagnosed low iron, so yesterday I went to a local supplement store and purchased an iron chewable. The flavor is not too bad and I am hoping it will help me. Another thing that helped me was one of those pillow "chairs" with a back and two armrests. I bought mine at Walmart for $15. 
I also thought an unflavored protein would be good to have on hand to mix into things. I have always been sensitive to smells or tastes of foods (I can't take some vitamins because they smell so bad that my gag reflux is instantly activated) and so this did not work for me because I could still smell/taste the protein.

If I were to do it again, this is what I would buy:

General Meds:

- Sublingual B-12

- Biotin

- O-purity Band multivitamin or Centrum Chewables

- Calcium + Vit D & K chews

- Chewable or dissolveable Iron supplement

- Liquid adult Tylenol

- Probiotic Pearls

- Milk of Magnesia

- Scarzone to put on incision sites after they have fully closed and the steri strips have come off.

Stage One:

- Peewee Pillowpet to hold against stomach.

- Lipton cup-a-soup Cream of Chicken

- Soups that can be pureed and put through a sieve.

- Peppermint tea

- Protein powder- Body Fortress Chocolate, Vanilla

- 3 Protein mix shakers

- Yogurt without seeds or chunks. Only two or three cases = 8 to 12 yogurts.

- SF syrups 

- Pillow "chair"

Stage Two:

- Mashed Potatoes

- Food processor. I bought a Ninja Kitchen Pulse so I can get rid of some of my other appliances.

- Applesauce

- Cottage Cheese

- Oatmeal

- Refried Beans

- Soups that can be pureed to consistency of cottage cheese.

STAGE TWO: Pretty much any food that I 

can process to a consistency of cottage cheese. 

I will probably be buying frozen spinach

to make smoothies with as well. Pretty much

I can eat anything now as long as I send

it through the Ninja- wahoo :) !!!!