I would suggest planting something that will give you a continual harvest, rather than something that is going to mature one time (like carrots). Using vertical space also helps and then I found you have extra ground space around those crops, and you can grow something to cover the ground and give you food.
I also live in a suburban area and just have a few spots for in-ground garden, so I use a portion of my driveway that gets a decent amount of sun and just grow in containers. I’ve found peppers, herbs and ground cherries grow great in containers and that gives you more space for the in-ground garden.