Easy and Affordable Meal Plan for Busy Families ($88 at Walmart!) Week #9

This week is all about yummy kid-friendly meals that are quick and easy to make! So, whether you have lots of activities going on at night or you are just not sure what to make this week, we have got you covered.

Every week, we design a new meal plan with a $100 or less budget for Walmart. (We chose Walmart because most people have a Walmart near them compared to other stores.)

Our meal plans are for a full week for a family of four. They cover breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and a sweet treat. This week we priced our plan out at the Walmart in Denver, Colorado and the total came out to $88.03 plus tax.

Denver is considered a high cost of living area, so depending on where you live your prices may be even lower.

Budget Friendly Meal Plan:

Strategic Shopping List:

We break this down by section, because this will help you get in and out of the grocery store as quickly as possible. Recent studies have shown that the longer you are in any grocery store, the more likely you are to spend more money!

Before you head to the grocery store, make sure to check your pantry, fridge, and freezer for these items. This will not only help lower your total out of pocket cost, it will help you use up food items that you already have!

I always include items that are very common, so it is very realistic that you may already have basic items like rice, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and more at home. We include them in the grocery list, just in case you don’t already have them.

Just in case you are not familiar with all the items on the grocery list, here are some visuals of the items needed for this meal plan. If you have any questions at all about these items or need suggestions for substitutions, please reach out to me!

Daily Cooking Plan:

I include a breakdown of how I would make this meal plan for each day. This is just a suggested order and is not a firm guideline. Please cook these meals in whatever order makes sense for your schedule and your family.

Free Printable PDF:

I am a very visual person by nature, so I know that having a paper copy of meal plans is super helpful. I have removed the colors from the menu so printing will take up less ink in your printer.

I have had lots of people tell me, that they print the meal plans and add them to a binder so they have the recipes for later and so they can come back to this meal plan in a few months.

We primarily use Walmart for our meal plans, but you are not required to purchase your groceries there. You can use any store you would like!

We checked out prices at other Denver area stores, and Walmart did come out the cheapest. Here are the totals for the same menu at other stores:

Denver Area Store	Total for Meal Plan:
Safeway	$110.03
Sprouts	$167.32
King Soopers	$100.49
Target	$107.26

Click on the name of each store, to see the full breakdown of the prices and how they compare!

Questions?

Please feel free to ask any questions you may have! You can also join our Facebook page where we post new menus every week, check it out here: Low Dough Family Facebook Page.