BOXTOPS {An Addiction}

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With the start of each new school year comes the smell of fresh school supplies, backpacks, and a fully stocked pantry.

If you are a newbie to the elementary school scene, I am here to tell you… BOXTOPS are the new Abercrombie & Fitch.  Look alive, ladies.

Depending on your age, you probably remember being sent to school with a baggy filled with these clipped squares of cardboard.  You’d quietly slip them to your teacher in hopes that other kids wouldn’t see.  The next day, you’d secretly glance at the poster on the classroom wall titled “BOXTOPS FOR PIZZA” and grin, knowing your little baggy got you 15 spaces closer to a pizza party.

Those were the days when when BOXTOPS were just something you’d clip because you unknowingly bought a product with one on the packaging.  A little surprise, if you will.

But fast forward to today. The concept is COMPLETELY OPPOSITE.

Not only do you become “that mom” if you don’t send a tissue box full of these things, but your child is labeled the kid that “doesn’t care” by school mates.  And if that isn’t bad enough, the PTA actually organizes mom parties where all the moms meet to organize and count these tiny pieces of cardboard.  The moms hangout, giggle, and won’t admit it, but probably drink a little while they’re at it. 

If you’re lucky, your kid has contributed enough BOXTOPS to get some dull prize or a “free dress pass” for those of you in uniform dress codes.

BOXTOPS sound terrible. You’re thinking it sounds like a bad thing to be sucked in. But guys… it’s not.

I’ve gotten sucked in.  I.  AM.  OBSESSED.  I spend so much of my free time looking for and clipping BOXTOPS! Even my children squeal with excitement when they find one that I’ve missed.

Want to know if you’re just as bad as me?  Keep reading.

 5 Ways to Tell You’re Addicted to BOXTOPS

  1. The sight of THIS in the trashcan is enough to throw you into a full rage. You become “Mom the Detective” to find out who did it. BOXTOPS {An Addiction}- Trash- Corpus Christi Moms Blog
  2. You troll HEB and participating stores waiting for promos. Like, “buy a few BOXTOP items, get a coupon for like 100 bonus BOXTOPS!”  Then you end up with 50 boxes of Totinos just so you can get all the bonus points as cheap as possible.  One day you’ll be BOXTOP Queen.  You just know it.
  3. You constantly look at your stash and beat yourself up inside. This is the most disappointing thing you’ve ever seen.  That pile is pathetic… You had all summer to clip and this is the best you could do? Get out. BOXTOPS {An Addiction}- FOR SHAME- Corpus Christi Moms Blog
  4. You continue to troll the grocery store aisles, except… This time it’s for the BOXTOPS that they stupidly stick on the front of boxes of product.  They come right off, folks.  And, yes, it’s probably stealing but it’s for a good cause, right?
  5. Your children are enablers. They remind you daily, for a minimum of a month leading up to the day these precious, tiny pieces of cardboard gold are due. And if you make the mistake of forgetting they will NEVER let it go. EVER.

Have you experienced one (or more) of these scenarios? Congratulations. You are a certified BOXTOP junky.

And who wouldn’t want to be addicted to that?! Money for the schools… Plus, it’s not like we have anything better to do, right?

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Rachel
Rachel is so excited to be here! Originally from Colorado, she moved to Texas as a youngin and never left. She moved to Corpus Christi with her little family 4 years ago and they love it. In addition to being a stay-at-home mom, Rachel is a full-time graduate student at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, where she is working on her Masters in Counseling Psychology. She hopes to becomes an LPC in the clinical and mental health field. Rachel and her husband of almost 10 years have 3 beautifully and equally boisterous boys {ages 7, 5, and 1 1/2}. When Rachel isn't studying or trying to figure out what to make for dinner, she spends much of her time wondering where that puddle on her floor came from and who hit who first. In any down time she has, she enjoys running, crocheting, reading, and googling new dinner ideas. Her life keeps her on her tippy-toes but she wouldn't have it any other way!