i have found that if the kids help make a meal they will eat it.

Kids get attracted to variation: lots of colors, shapes and sizes. So all you have to do is be creative in presenting the meals. I can trick my nephew into eating vegetable for example by naming the slices of different vegetables in a stick, "Kiddie Kebabs".

happy new year and i hope we can come up with some good ideas. god bless you all.

You could also make a kiddie version of rice toppings. Just cook rice and put colorful, chopped foods on it. Make sure your kids like it of course. You can add chopped vegetables on it too and your kids won't notice it.

My son can also be a picky eater. He does do better when he helps make the meal, or if I let him have some ingredients to "create" his own. I always joke that he tastes everything with his fingers. The first thing he does with any new finger is stick his finger in it. If his finger likes it he will taste it, but sometimes all he will do is touch it and he is done. I thought he would outgrow this, he is 8, this has been his method since he was a baby.
You all are right on the money here with what kids like. He loves mac and cheese, spaghetti, and finger foods like chicken nuggets, or fish sticks.