7 genius tips to make mealtimes easier

1. "To spice things up at mealtime, we have big utensil night. I open up the utensil drawer and let them choose - tongs, ladle, spatula, giant spoon. The best was my five-year-old eating corn kernels with a turkey baster!" - Vanessa Pilgrim Mercer.

2. "Every meal begins with a first course - crudités. When the kids are hungry and the veggies are colourful and beautiful, they eat them up. The main meal might not have veg, but the first course always does." - Beth Belinky, Boston.

3. For healthy snacks on the go, I give my kids applesauce or yogurt cups with a straw. Puncture the top, stick in the straw, no mess!" - Krista Gardner, Calmar, Alta.

4. "I buy sugary cereal and only put 10 to 15 pieces on top of healthier breakfast cereal. We call it sprinkles." - Tammy Nicole.

5. "We have a super-picky eater who's two. One of the most frustrating things was that he would try foods when they were offered as free samples at the local supermarket or Costco and love them, but then not eat those same foods again at home. We started giving him a toothpick to eat his lunch with and he loved it. To this day he will eat monumentally more if he has toothpicks on his plate!" - Kerri Schira, Brantford, ON.

6. "Every suppertime, we go around the table and share our roses and thorns of the day. Everyone takes turns. Roses are things that bring happiness or pride and thorns are things they wish they could've changed about their day. It's amazing what they share and what we learn at the table. We're hoping that by making this an everyday routine, we'll be able to continue this open dialogue into their teen years." - Jennifer Miller, Saskatoon.

7. "A jar of pancake batter in the fridge saves any and all meal dilemmas in under five minutes. Works every time." - Lauren Ferranti-Ballem, Toronto.

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