I was cleaning up some older posts and came across this post about the time I spent a 29 days without my phone. 

Since I had tons of other stuff on my list to-do, naturally I decided that post needed a cute cartoon instead. 

​I'm still feeling this post because the replacement phone they sent me did the same thing. And now I am using my mother's older phone until I can get a replacement. 

Until then, I can at least draw cartoons of smartphones. Here is the one I did tonight to go with the post (and somewhat soothe my phone angst): 

"Twins? Wow...you sure knew how to save time, huh?" 

There is just something about twins that mystifies people. They are a pretty cool phenomenon, and I admit I've always gotten excited when I've seen sets of twins too.

The funny thing about having multiples (I'm sure moms of triplets and more draw a lot of attention too!) is that they tend to attract strange questions and weird comments.

You get tons of these from strangers when you are pregnant with twins, and you think it is probably over once the babies are born.

​Nope, people will just keep in with the commenting and questions, just like the person last week who told me that having twins saved me a lot of time building my family. :) 

Now that my twin girls are 3, and look very different from each other, I don't get quite as many comments and questions while out and about.

But I've recorded some of my favorites (?) weird remarks from strangers, from twin pregnancy to the present day to share with you. 

(If you already have twins, feel free to laugh, groan or nod your head. I'm sure you've heard at least one of these!) 

(And you can get some free printable diaper bag tags farther down. You'll see why...) 

Years ago, someone warned me that it was stupid to be an artist, because art is a luxury, not a necessity. Decorating things was "a waste of time."

That same person would probably roll their eyes out of their sockets over these doodled DIY seed packets. That actually makes me feel pretty good about this project...because we all love a little luxury in our lives, right? 

While seed packets may not be high on the necessary stuff list, they are a great way to organize any seeds you harvest from your own garden. They also make cute gift packages if you like to share your seeds with other gardeners. 

So, since my marigolds have just started dropping seed pods, I figured it was a good time to share this tutorial with you...so you too can waste a little time making something pretty and helpful for your home.  *wink* 

​Here is what you will need: 

Happy 4th! Since you are probably busy having fun, here is a short post with two new cartoons and a free journal page printable for you. (Perfect for recording all the fun you had on Independence Day!) 

If you have a Sharpie marker or two in your home, then you can turn about anything into an artistic canvas. Even "trash". 

Lots of us love the challenge of upcycling something that would normally be thrown away (since it is pretty much free and all). You've probably seen all the Pinterest projects for upcycling or making over items like old jars, cereal boxes and wood scraps. 

Well, this little upcycled tea box is a much smaller project than anything involving wood scraps. It is made from one of the divider boxes used in a box of Lipton tea bags. 

Here is how I transformed this one into a cute desktop holder for my paper clip collection: 

If you are looking for a unique gift for Father's day, (or any special occasion!) why not consider a tree?

​Trees make wonderful gifts. And they last longer than ties. 

Here are a few cool reasons to give a tree as a Father's Day gift: 

1. It will be an awesome memory for years to come. 
2. Someday it will provide a nice shady spot for Dad to relax. 
3. Trees help the environment. 
4. Trees can increase your property value. 
5. Trees don't shrink in the laundry. 

Okay. Just threw that last one in to see if you were really reading. But seriously, you don't have to wash or dust or get the oil changed in a tree, yet it will provide value for years (and future generations). 

If this is totally the way you want to go this year, then here are some tips and thoughts about gifting something so wonderful: 

​One of my favorite summer traditions is buying a new tote bag. Nothing fancy or designer...just a sturdy, cheerful bag to hold all that summer stuff. 

Growing up, the Summer Bag was just as important as getting a new swimsuit for the season. You picked one that went with the theme you were expressing that year (like the year I was into lime green vinyl).

The Bag was flexible. It carried your bathing suit and sunscreen to the lake, it toted art supplies to the park, it was a fun casual alternative to a purse, and it held that oh-so important summer accessory...

A book! 

So, since I was browsing through Zazzle looking for a summery tote bag for myself,  I thought I would round up a few gorgeous designs and share them with you. 

I remember the day it hit me like a ton of bricks. I didn't just dislike being in debt. I loathed it. I had reached my ultimate tolerance level, and wanted to rip the bills to shreds in a screaming rage. 

That would have been very satisfying, but not especially effective. Instead, I decided right then that no matter what, we were going to have our debt freedom sooner rather than "eventually". 

If you feel like that too, then let me help get you started. I'll be honest right here...we aren't debt free yet. But we wiped out over a dozen debts worth thousands of dollars in less than 2 years. And we did it by following these steps: 

Do you work from a home office? Do you love new office supplies as much as I do?

I'm one of those people who believes that having special pens and the perfect notebook makes me more productive. Having matchy-matchy things on my desk keeps it feeling uncluttered. 
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That is why I am working on filling up my So Not Niche shop on Zazzle with a variety of office sets...to help you find your new favorite accessories and kill it as a work-at-home creative! 

Today I have a new office supply collection to share with you! 

​This year, one of my goals has to been to get to know my google analytics account better. You know, taking it out to dinner, discussing our hopes and fears together...that level of understanding. 

One place that never fails to fascinate me when digging through all the pages (most of which still puzzle me) is the list of search queries that somehow bring people to my site. 

I know that some people like to see these as "keywords", and if you blog within a specific niche chances are you will see tons of terms related to your main topic. 

Since So Not Niche is (obviously) a bit more sporadic, so are the queries. Therefore, rather than think of them as keywords, I like to pretend they are questions awaiting answers. Some of them are phrased as questions, but others are more of a challenge... 
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