Local sticker store:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/sticker-planet-store-los-angeles

Check out the pictures! 
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/sticker-planet-store-los-angeles?select=FUNw1lEssbFd6NiVxo_k6g#FUNw1lEssbFd6NiVxo_k6g

It's just like the sticker store I used to go to in the 80s!  I can't wait to get my partner:)  That sticker store is going to be my first stop!

Judging from the popularity of Monster High and how every major toy manufacturer seems to be trying to get in on the action of making various non-human creatures(monsters, aliens, etc) into dolls, I would not be surprised if Hasbro is going in this direction.

Either way doesn't matter to me.  If the ponies continue as ponies, it's all good.  If they don't, at least my wallet will be happy, and I can concentrate on collecting the older generations.  I've gone through the "they changed everything I like about this!" moment for another thing I collect, and just because Hasbro decides to screw around with something I love in the future doesn't erase all the good stuff that was made in the past.  More money for G1s! 

This isn't a pony issue, but I was wondering if somebody here knows about Etsy policies for problem transactions.

I purchased two small hand made items on January 2nd.  Since it was so close to the holidays, and the seller had several positive feedbacks, many within weeks of my purchase, I wasn't particularly worried that I didn't hear from the seller or see it marked as shipped for a while.  About a week after purchase I got a message through Etsy telling me that the seller shipped my two items, plus two extras on around the 7th.  The despite what the seller said, the item was still listed as "unshipped" on my Etsy transaction page, but I figured the seller just forgot to update Etsy.  This was a domestic purchase. 

I waited a couple of weeks for it to arrive, just in case the post office was being crazy, and it did not.  I then contacted the seller.  I waited a week for a response, and got none.  Contacted her again.  No response.  Contacted her AGAIN.  No response. 

I sent another message through Etsy yesterday.  If I don't hear from her by Monday, I am wondering what I can do to get my money back.  Is there a refund policy? Is there a time limit on refunds like on ebay?  The item is still listed as "unshipped".

Yes they were scented. The puffy ones were a sort of baby powder scent.  It's a unique scent, and if you get your hands on some stickers that still smell, you'll know it. If you look closely at most puffy stickers you'll often see a sort of light grid pattern in the plastic, or at least a strange matte coating on the sticker. That's how they were scented. 

The flat stickers were grape scented. Those tend to keep their scents better.

I'm not sure if the UK/Euro puffy stickers were scented. I don't think they were.  They usually don't have that grid pattern/coating on them.

Ah the sick child story.  There must be an awful lot of sick children who want rare and expensive stuff off of ebay.  99% sure the story is a complete lie.  These mysterious sick children tend to pop up for rare ponies, but pretty much anything expensive is apparently of interest to them. 

Personally, I would cancel and block.  She might be planning to do a chargeback if she's no longer concerned about the cost.  Ebay and Paypal almost always side with the buyer in disputes, even when the seller has proof that they sent out the item.  *If* you still want to accept her bid, insist that she pay for top of the line shipping with tracking/delivery confirmation/insurance/signed-for delivery/whatever else the post office has.  Even with all that, you still could be out the money if Paypal refuses to accept your proof.  If this is an international transaction, I wouldn't risk it.  As far as I know, there is no form of proof that Paypal will accept for international transactions.  You just send it and cross your fingers.

Also, do yourself  a favor and check her feedback.  While buyers can't get negatives, you can see what she's left for other people.  It's a good way to spot a nut.

I have had multiple packages come from overseas, sometimes several on the same day from the same seller, and I have never had customs try to add up the total.  That being said, it is possible for a US buyer to be charged a fee by customs if the declared value is over a certain amount.  I'm not sure exactly where the threshold is, but even if you hit that, you won't always get caught.  I have heard they're cracking down on that though.

So, yes buyers in the USA can get charged a customs fee just like anywhere else, but they don't keep track of how many packages you get.  They just go by the value of each individual package, and whether or not it's marked as a gift. 

G2s are a very interesting line to collect.  It's filled with interesting accessories and crazy color combinations that you just don't see anywhere else.  I'm *almost* done with the whole thing(minus the variants), but it's not been easy.

Some G2s are really easy to get, and go for pretty cheap to boot!  Anything that was released in the USA is pretty easy to find.  The stuff that was only released in Europe is where the prices go up and the chance of finding them goes down.  The latest ones(2003) are usually some of the hardest to find.  Actually, you can basically work your way backwards through the entire line, and the ponies tend to get cheaper and easier to find as they get older.  Well, in general.  There are some exceptions.  This is because as the line got older, more and more countries started to drop it until it was only available in a few places, so only a handful of the last ponies ever got produced.   And there are some G2s that just always go for more than they should because they're just really pretty and really popular.

The two earliest sets of twin babies are not only cute, but not that hard to find.  Though they are popular so they don't go for pennies, but they're still pretty affordable.  The later sets of twins(slide, tricycle, see-saw, boat) are a lot harder and more expensive.  Study/Play and Nosey/Click are really hard to find as they were only available as a bonus for a magazine that was only available in France for a very short time, so they're some of the most expensive G2s out there. 

The Mother/Baby sets are usually not that hard to find, the babies are cute, and they come with some really neat accessories.   Since they're not particularly rare, you can usually get them complete for a decent price.

If you're not into accessories or MOC ponies, you can sometimes get good deals on lots of G2s since there aren't as many collectors as there are for other generations.   Particularly if you're going for stuff that was released in the USA.  I once managed to snag a *really* nice box of G2s including several complete ponies and two playsets(mostly complete) for $7 + shipping.  It was all USA G2s, but it was a really lucky purchase.  The deals are out there if you keep your eyes open.

I also recommend the G2 collector's inventory:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Little-Pony-Collectors-Inventory/dp/0978606329/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344771034&sr=8-1&keywords=my+little+pony+G2+guide

I found it to be a really useful guide!  I even contributed a few pictures to that book:p

I got a few MO items over the years. 

G1:
I know I had all 3 Baby Embers.  Someone sent away for those for me.  My mom must've signed me up for the first USA Fan Club.  I remember getting Hoofbeats:p  I also sent away for three of the Pearly Babies(Cotton Candy, Blossom, Firefly) because I didn't get the regular babies when they first came out.  Somewhere I actually have a fully filled out order form that never got sent.  I think that one was for the Birthflower ponies.  The only other G1 I sent away for was Goldilocks.  I remember she was free with purchase for a while, and I figured why not? 

I sent away for G2 Seabreeze back when she first came out.

I got all three of the G3 mail order ponies, and a lot of the merchandise.  Sadly I was out of town right when the Frilly Frocks offer came out, and by the time I got back home they stopped accepting orders for her.  That really stunk too since I had TONS of points that I never got to use.