I travel mostly solo for business as well but recently the whole family (3 of us) traveled on NW. I split the reservations to ensure we got at least one upgrade.

Then my wide and I split the FC seat on both legs. On one I got the meal and then halfway through we switched. On the second she got the meal and then we switched.

It worked fine for all even my 3.5 years old (although she's had a couple of FC flights herself) who got a little mommy and a little daddy time.

Note: if you switch mid-flight you must alert FA in advance. This measn askling in a courteous way...Would it be OK if I switched for the second half of the flight with my _____? She/he of course undrstands you can't feed them just want to give them the benefit of a more comfortable ride for part of the trip. Obviously only one of you gets food service.

I get upgrades all the time and although I don't love Y I can certainly tough it out when needed....