Family Meal Budget (2025)

Mar 36 min read

Weekly Family Meal Budget - 2 Adults, 1 baby, 1 Husky.

Meal Ideas for the family? Thinking about nutritional needs and balanced diets for the whole family? This becomes hard if you have allergies, kids with a love for sugar, and pets! What is your family’s budget every month? How do you go about sticking to it?

Today, let’s talk about that. My budget for a large daddy bear, mommy bear, little bear, and a wolf is approximately $400 a month.

Ok, so we have $100/week.

Back in 2020 when I first started meal prepping!

I use my own budgeting sheet which is available for purchase / consultation on: www.diywithchelsea.com

Link here: Basic + Budgeting Sheet & 30 Minute Consultation | DIY With Chelsea

How do you keep track?

- I keep track by my checking account or credit card statements and entering into my spreadsheet.

- I could also recommend making yourself a images folder on your phone for receipts of pictures / there is also an app that does this for you called spark receipt. Try it out!

Well, this is 2025 we are talking about now. We have to limit what we buy from the stores and how we go about making up the difference nutritionally here and there. This doesn’t mean you cannot have fun!

Solid Tips to start thinking about:

#1 Tip:

Try for a high protein, low carb diet. This doesn’t mean NO carbs, but you can get most of your nutrition from meat, fish, Greek yogurt, milk, cheese, tofu, nuts, beans.

#2 Tip:

Limit the urge to buy fresh produce if you don’t have a solid plan for them within the week.

#3 Tip:

Have you noticed how expensive and creepily long bread lasts now a days? No? I will let you soak that in. Guess what, you can get yourself a loaf pan and make your own bread from scratch! You also have the opportunity to know exactly what is in your bread, and you can FREEZE IT!

**Bread Recipes at end of blog**

#4 Tip:

Never throw out leftovers. Why? Well, I have a doggo who eats a raw diet but also get’s anything meat related that is left over, or old. Not only that, you can add the leftovers to your lunch the next day or to another recipe! Get used to having zero waste.

#5 Tip

Cut out the snacks. Kids are always hungry, but you as an adult can save money by cutting these out. High protein, less sugar intake = less hunger for you.

#6 Tip

USE YOUR LOCAL FARM MARKETS IN THE SUMMER! Set savings aside from each month that you hopefully don’t use and contribute this to a bushel of tomatoes, make your own salsa, pasta sauce, fruit spreads.

#7 Tip

Rewards accounts with the grocery stores, vouchers/coupons.

#8 Tip

Rough week? Check your local church for canned goods that people leave out front in a box. When you have spare, you can always give back to the cause. They also have WIC/SNAP handouts here in Maryland and local thrift shops, ask around which day each month they do this.

#9 Tip

Grow your own garden! Get started here:

Garden Building 101

#10 Tip

Can your own food!

Sale prices to look for:

Based off what we eat in our household from stores such as: Food Lion/Save a lot Martin’s has good deals if you look each week. My salmon is usually bought from them. First- check your local ads every week to see when the best time will be for you to go shopping, don’t be picky.. one week only chicken might be on sale and the next maybe only beef, or some seafood. If you get larger quantities while on sale, you can freeze for a different week of the month. You can also do this with your fruits and vegetables!

*Prices February 2025*

Dairy:

Whole Milk 3 gallons 3.39/gallon

Cheese Blocks 2/$5 sale

Cottage Cheese: 4% or whole milk $3.29 24oz tub

Greek Yogurt – store brand is fine – $3.99 320z

Butter - 4 pack stick butter (I use one/mo) - 4.99

Bread:

Sourdough/Whole Wheat – or make your own (cheaper): $5

KETO: $7

Meat: (The sale prices to look for)

Shrimp 6.99/lb 16oz/1lb bag

Fish (salmon) 7.99/lb

Top Round Roast / 4.99/lb

London Broil 4.99/lb

Ground Beef: 3.99/lb

Chicken Breasts less than $2/lb

Chicken bone-in less than 1.38/lb

Chicken Drumsticks 99 cents/lb

Pork Bone-in chops – 1.50/lb

Center cut pork chops – 2.68/lb

Pork shoulder roast – 1.48/lb

Pork Tenderloins 2.99/lb

Fruits:(The sale prices to look for)

Blueberries/Strawberries/Bananas – find a 2/5$ deal or bananas less than 30 cents. Stock up!

Spinach – Wait for a sale, $1.00 off to 2/5 etc.

Broccoli – $1.49/lb

Cauliflower – $1.49/lb

Celery – $2.00

Squash – SEASONAL (they keep forever, get some in the late fall)

Carrots – Buy WHOLE bag of Carrots .89cents

Avocado – buy the BAG later in week when avocadoes are ripe and they are on sale. Nature’s promise. $2.99

Coffee – instant (decaf is about 7$) $5.50

Here are some of my favorite go-to meals:

Keep the carbs/sugar to a minimum and you will feel less hungry during the day

Breakfast at work:

#1 Coffee (wait is this a food?)

#2 Greek Yogurt

granola
fruit
chocolate

#3 Baked Egg cups

#4 Breakfast Burritos

#6 Avocado / Red's Hot sauce burritos

#7 Oatmeal

#8 Smoothies (find a cheap blender - thrift store)

#9 *Keto – Keto waffles with blueberry

Lunch at work:

#1 1 Avocado with 1 Chicken Breast (Red's hot sauce)

#2 Mom's meatloaf (leftovers)

#3 Pork/Beef burritos (you can make ahead and freeze!)

#4 3-compartment meal prep (HB egg, cheese, vegetable)\

Purchase what I have here: https://amzn.to/4i7bLAM

#5 Mason jar salads

#6*Keto -Stuffed Peppers

Dinners:

#1 Crock Pot Pork Roast (pulled pork sandwiches)

Pickles
Buns

#2 Whole Chicken (beer can / oven baked)

Can of water or beer
Vegetable of choice to complement (broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, green beans)

#3 Buttered pasta with pesto, tomato, parmesan cheese

#4 Hobo Steaks (chuck roast cut into mini steaks for grilling)

Steak seasoning
Veggie (asparagus, mushrooms, green beans, zucchini)

#5 Salmon or (other) with rice and broccoli

#6 Keto Casseroles (Cheeseburger is my favorite!)

Cheese
Protein of your choice
Heavy cream

These are ideas to keep your sugar and snack consumption to a minimum, while getting the benefits of high protein and food items that are good for your gut and immune system.

So how much do I typically spend a week for two adults and a 1 year old?

Mayo/Spices/Other condiments: $5 (store brand is always fine!)
Bread (or make your own loaf): $5 (cheap bread = no good for you)
Milk is around $15 (can’t save on this unless you find close to exp date)
Other dairy around $5 (2/5 cheese or sale yogurt)
Vegetables around $10 (sales only)
Fruit around $5 (2 for 5 deals)
Meat around $35 (6lbs of on sale meat)
Drinks $5-10 (sugar free soda, coffee, juice)

Don’t be too quick to think it is impossible! Put yourself on a strict budget. IF you use too much one week just subtract from the next. I found paying in cash always helps too, if you can manage to do this it keeps you from saying “eh, whatever” and not putting anything back.

Please feel free to see other post on meal prep here:

Meal Prep - Easy