From Daycare Kitchen to Dinner Table: Mary Konvalin brings kid-approved meals to families with new business, Table Time

Purple Crayon Daycare owner, Mary Konvalin is sharing her kid approved take and bake meals with her new business, Table Time. 

Mary Konvalin is best known for her gentle touch and caring heart through her work as owner of the Purple Crayon Daycare. Creating meals children adored, Konvalin is using the skills she learned through Purple Crayon to bring family dinners to each and every table in Tea.

Growing up in Watertown, Mary Konvalin grew up cooking, cleaning, and taking care of her younger siblings. 

“There were six kids in my family, there was no cable TV, cell phones or computers, it’s just what you did as a family,” she said.

Never tiring of the service work, Konvalin made a career out of caring for others. 

“When I moved to Tea with my husband, I began my career as a home daycare, which led me to owning a daycare center. My adult career has always been caring for children and as an owner and director, you spend quite a bit of time filling in,” Konvalin said.

Konvalin takes pride in the meals she prepares for the children each day. 

“There is a balancing act for providing meals that kids will eat while encouraging them to try new foods,” Konvalin said. 

Children enjoyed her meals so much, parents started taking notice. 

“I love receiving phone calls from parents asking for recipes because their kids were talking about what they had for lunch,” she smiled.

After enough phone calls, Konvalin started to consider making her meals available for purchase. 

“I am an entrepreneur at heart, and once I realized that I could get the kitchen in my daycare licensed, I went for it,” Konvalin said.

Konvalin started Table Time, a meal service providing home cooked meals that are baked at home. 

“Growing up, we had a large dining room table which we ate at most nights, and now whenever my siblings and I get together, we think back to our favorite childhood memories that all lead back to that table,” she said.

Taking inspiration from meals that were served around that table, Table Time offers meals families can enjoy together. 

“When I was growing up, eating out was not the norm and was only done on special occasions. Today, that’s not the case, grabbing take out is more common and spending time at home eating a hotdish has turned into a lost art, but is desired by so many. Our service gives parents a home cooked meal, it was just put together in a different kitchen, to give you the ability to spend more time with your children,” Konvalin said.

Getting to work, Mary was approached by a Purple Crayon employee, Abby. 

“When Abby learned that I was starting this business, she shared with me that this is what she also wants to do with her life and had been educating herself and had already begun a business plan. She is amazing and extremely knowledgeable, and I am so fortunate to be working with her,” she said.

With Mary’s recipes and Abby’s knowledge, the team worked to get the Purple Crayon’s kitchen licensed by the state.

“Any food items that are sold must be prepared in a licensed kitchen. I have two daycare facilities in Tea, and both have been licensed by the state of South Dakota,” Konvalin said.

After getting the kitchen set up, figuring out the menu was the next step for the team. 

“The majority of meals are evening dinner hotdishes, casseroles, and heat and serve options. Some of our most popular items on the menu are ziti, chicken bacon ranch casserole, chicken enchiladas, baked potato soup, gnocchi soup, mac & cheese, and cheesy hashbrowns and ham, plus so much more,” she said.

Communication means everything when getting a business off the ground, so Table Time has made a web based platform to keep users up to date on availability. 

“We are so fortunate that we have found a web based platform called Hotplate. We decide each week how many “drops” to offer each week and what menu items to offer,” Konvalin said.

All billing is completed on the platform so at each “drop” customers can chat with Mary and Abby or quickly grab and go. 

“At this time, we offer two “drops” per week where orders can be picked up or delivered. The main one we use is located next to Pizza Ranch, and our hours are mainly for order pickups. Our second location is at Makers Exchange in Tea with the same services,” she said.

Knowing how busy families can get, the team has even worked in a friendly reminder of when the meals are ready for pick up. 

“Our customers have the option of inputting their contact information to receive text message reminders for when our drops open for orders,” she continued.

Keeping in touch with her daycare roots, Konvalin thinks of the children when packaging the meals. 

“We have a kid friendly menu. After working with kids for the past 30 years, I know what kids will and won’t eat. We don’t have any meals with peppers, mushrooms, or large onion pieces. Even though the menu items change each week, one item remains the same, the veggie plate. We wash, peel, and cut all of the vegetables and it is accompanied by homemade ranch dressing, which is a favorite, and the kids look forward to dipping their veggies, and parents appreciate kids eating vegetables,” Konvalin said.

In honor of her own family and their traditions around the table, Konvalin has introduced conversation starters for each meal purchased. 

“These questions get everyone at the table talking. Some questions allow kids to think of crazy things they would do if put into certain situations, or some as “would you rather” questions. Whatever the question, the goal is to provide easy discussion topics and ideas to get families talking and of course, making memories,” she said.