My true heart desires... and a helicopter

Yesterday we went shopping after my 20 week ultrasound (more about that later) and after dropping Sienna off at school, and I bought Ash this new toy 'Harold the Helicopter'. Over the past couple of weeks he has been far more interested in trains - the suburban trains that we see when we are down the main street, as well as his toy trains. He has some toys from the Thomas Wooden Railway series and a portable track/case (there are 3 different kinds of Thomas toys - Jude and Alannah have some of the metal die-cast series and there is also Take-Along Thomas).

The wooden series also goes well on the IKEA train tracks, which are nice and affordable :) So we mix the two sets. Anyhow, he's been having a great time, and goes to bed each night with his 'train track story'. Though it's sometimes hard to tell if he means 'train track' or 'train truck', as he says both, LOL. So far I had bought him the Thomas engine, and then have been getting family names, there is Toby (Ben's brother's name) the Tram Engine and Mike (Ben's dad), the red engine in the photo below. I am yet to pick up the Bill and Ben set to have a Ben engine as well, we are almost fitted out with Quarmby engines though, LOL. Just a random little snippet about Ash :)
I bought this necklace from etsy the other day, with the proceeds of the sale going to the Bushfire appeal. There are a bunch of sellers participating, check it out and see if anything takes your fancy :) You might also try changing the search to wildlife victoria to also find those sellers who have chosen that appeal to help the wildlife affected by the fires.

For my part, I re-listed this painting (which I love, but seems appropriate in theme for the bushfire appeal and is small enough to post), and it sold for US$90, which turned out to be AU$138 toward the appeal. I am really pleased that I was able to contribute more money than I can afford by selling art for the purpose. I still plan on having prints made of this piece, though, as well as some others. Another thing on my general to-do list :)



Back to the bushfire stuff, there are also collections for other items that will be distributed later in the year during re-building, such as books (yay - I have loads to spare in excellent condition, and love a good de-clutter, so will donate a few boxes of books), handmade items and household items.

As for the subject matter, I got an email from Spencer and Rutherford featuring their new Autumn/Winter collection, which is also their 10th anniversary collection. I adore this one - a style I loved for the past two collections, but in this fabric it's irresistible (in a totally resistable kind of way, I am not about to spend over $400 on a bag). Inspiring, though. I want to sew some stuff.
Actually I should go to Spotlight today, I need some cotton backing so I can make the cushions and window seat cover with my lovely new fabrics. I also need some supplies for this workshop I am doing - quite excited about some of the items on the class list :) I feel like making some things, still scrapbooking, but also getting a bit crafty.

Speaking of scrapbooking and craft, the sneak peek for Q Tea's March kit is up - Monkey See Monkey Do.

OK back to the ultrasound, Sienna was cheering for a girl as we went in, and told Tammy (the technician who did the ultrasound) that she wanted it to be a girl. She said it so many times, that I felt quite sorry for her by the very end of the ultrasound when we found out we are having another boy. She was NOT HAPPY. Got in quite a little mood, I had to physically carry her out of the radiology clinic, as she was folding her arms and settling in for a protest of some kind. When I spoke to her and explained that even though it might be disappointing because she had wanted a girl, it is ok to feel upset, but it's not something we could help and a boy baby will still be fun for her. She told me "I'm not upset, I'm angry!" which I have to admit I found very funny! She's quite a passionate little thing, and very stubborn.

Later on she tells me she has decided that she doesn't like 3 anymore, that she likes 4 (as in, number of kids) and that the next one can be a girl. I was like 'uh, no' and told her again that you can't pick what babies are going to be! Later, after school, she was in a bit better spirits and seemed to be getting used to the boy idea. So I told her we are trying to pick a name and told her our two top choices, asked what she liked. She picked one, which is unfortunately not the same as Ben's favourite, and now seems to think that she should get to decide. So the new challenge is explaining the difference between asking for an opinion and a decision :)