As with everything lately, I’m a little behind on my Thanksgiving shopping and I was a little bummed to find out I’d missed out on the $5 turkey deal Walmart had awhile back. HOWEVER, I wasn’t aware until yesterday that there were still some amazing deals to be found. Mom Central asked me to review Walmart’s $20 turkey dinner. Here’s some information I found on the Walmart website to help all of you late Thanksgiving meal shoppers out there.

A turkey dinner for eight as low as $20
According to a survey by the American Farm Bureau Federation, last year’s average cost of a turkey was roughly $1.19 per pound. Select Grade A turkeys are available now for 40 cents per pound at Walmart.* These gobblers are part of Walmart’s $20 Thanksgiving menu guaranteeing family favorites will be on the dinner table this holiday season. Walmart’s $20 Thanksgiving feast includes:

One 12-pound Grade A turkey*
Three 11 to 15.5-ounce cans Green Giant vegetables
Two 14-ounce cans Ocean Spray cranberry sauce
Three 6-ounce boxes of Stove Top stuffing
One 5-pound bag of red potatoes
One 12-count package of Sara Lee dinner rolls
One 22-ounce pumpkin roll cake

As you can see from this list, that’s a lot of food for your money. I’m extremely impressed with the savings at Walmart this year. Their turkey prices are by far some of the best I’ve found. My Thanksgiving day meal differs a little bit from this list since my family is full of picky eaters so I spent a little more than $20 BUT I was still able to keep it under $30 and my turkey is MUCH larger than the suggestion in the list and I could easily feed at least 8 people. Here’s what I was able to get for about $29 at Walmart:

• A HUGE 21 lb. turkey for only $12.86
• 5 lb bag of potatoes $1.17
• 2 cans of gravy (what can I say? I’m lazy that way) $1.50
• Great Value bread rolls – on sale for .75 cents
• flour, shortening, carnation evaporated milk, Libby’s canned pumpkin, and ginger (to make a fresh homemade pumpkin pie & crust)
• cool whip $1
• canned corn (2 cans) $1.24
• Sparkling Cider $2.08

I’m sure my prices will be different than the prices at your local Walmart but in our area this is a lot of food for such a low price! I still can’t get over the gigantic turkey I got for under $13. I typically spend around $50-$60 on our Thanksgiving meal so I was prepared to spend about the same amount this year. With money being tight in our home, as I’m sure it is in yours, I wasn’t too sure how I was going to pay for such an expensive dinner but Walmart made this Thanksgiving A LOT easier to manage. I did forget to buy staples such as eggs and milk though so I had to run to Walmart this morning and noticed that their pumpkin pies were on sale for under $2.50. I don’t know if the same deal is at all Walmarts today but if so and you still need a dessert for your Thanksgiving dinner this is an easy money-saver and a great time-saver as well. It’s far cheaper than making your own.

To save a little time so I’m not cooking the entire day tomorrow I’ll be baking a few things tonight after the kids go to bed so I can spend time with my family tomorrow as I’m able to. I’ll also be making some mini muffins tonight to go with fruit and juice in the morning so I’m not on my feet in the kitchen all day long. As much as I love making a special Thanksgiving meal that my family can enjoy together, I enjoy my time with them even more and hate having sore feet from standing all day long. In spite of my late Thanksgiving shopping I’m feeling extremely organized this year thanks to Walmart and I’m ready to get started. We don’t have company coming over this year so things will be really laid back for us. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow. Don’t you just love this time of year? Thanksgiving is such a nice opportunity to eat, talk, and just enjoy your family.

If you’re still in the process of buying items for your Thanksgiving dinner you can find out more about Walmart’s $20 Thanksgiving Meal by visiting the Walmart Holiday Meals website. You’re sure to find ways to save money this holiday season or you’ll be able to find some great new recipes that are sure to impress your guests from the Food Network’s Melissa d’Arabians.

I have two (2) $30 Walmart gift cards to give away to my readers so you can hunt down some holiday meal bargains of your own.

TO WIN (mandatory first entry): What are your best money-saving tricks and tips when it comes to your Holiday meal shopping or do you have a favorite Thanksgiving meal memory? Is there a special dish that you make for your family every year on Thanksgiving? Answer one of these questions or answer them all.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES (optional):

• Subscribe to Keeper of the Cheerios via email or RSS
• Blog about this giveaway
• Vote for Keeper of the Cheerios in the Divine Caroline Love This Site Awards (parenting)
• Follow us on twitter @cheeriokeeper
• tweet about this giveaway on twitter with “@cheeriokeeper” somewhere in the message

Be sure to leave a separate comment for each method of entry.

Contest ends December 4th at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced here and contacted via email. Open only to residents of the United States with a United States mailing address ages 18 and over. One entry Per Person per method of entry.

* I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Walmart. In addition, I received a Walmart gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate and two to offer as a giveaway.

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