Here is the first of what I HOPE will be a frequent feature at Depot Dad. A simple tip that I found to make single parenting go a little smoother. These tips will all be tested in the field of battle and are required to deliver real world results. Of course, my children are not your children, sure enough, so your milage may vary.

As the meal time provider in my family, both before and after the separation, I have struggled with how to best feed my children. Most readers here know the meal questions oh too well. How do you make it nutritious? How to you provide variety? How do you do it on a tight budget? How do you find meals that are easy to prepare, and whose leftovers may provide delicious lunches the following day? It’s not easy.

One of the things I’ve struggled with is, once I do get a meal on the table (and, thankfully, one that includes a main course, a vegetable, and a potato or serving of rice) how do I get my children to eat ALL of the items served up? Often enough, Oliver (6) and/or Amélie (5) will pick a favorite and fill themselves up on that one item to the exclusion of others. How many times have I cleared the dishes and noticed piles of green beans that were in the exact same position as when they were served up? Too many!

Enter an accidental solution that would never have occured to me if I hadn’t fallen right into it. About 5 weeks ago I came home from a local garage sale with a large booty of “setting up a new new home” swag. Among the items in my collection were 4 metal lunch room trays. They looked distinctly military or prison grade. Nothing friendly to look at, but hey, they were free. The garage sale guy just threw them into my box and said, “Here take these too.”

One evening soon after, I served up dinner on them hoping my kids would get a kick out of them. Boy did they! They LOVED having each food item served in its own little tray compartment. I have since found that when I serve multi-course meals on these trays, Oliver and Amélie dutifully attack each compartment and frequently ask for seconds. Amazing!

So here’s hoping you might find similarly fun serving platters, and I hope you meet with equal success!