She's Turning Five at Disney World, a September 2014 PTR

[VbChristy]

Wow those bands look awesome. Too bad I don't live in California I would talk you into making some for us! I wish I was creative!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Wow those bands look awesome. Too bad I don't live in California I would talk you into making some for us! I wish I was creative!

Thanks, but they really weren't that hard, and the ones that look the best were some of the easiest thanks to using the temporary tattoos. It is probably more just being willing to experiment than being particularly creative. Depending on the temporary tattoo you can apply it right to the band without painting the background. We have also seen some neat customizations with fancy duct tape. It is amazing what you can find online.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

As planned we stayed up last night so that Melissa could finish up the Elsa dress. It had been getting close to done, but still needed the top and sleeves finished up, and to have the lining added inside to keep it from being scratchy, which is of utmost importance to Allie. Allie tried it on to help figure out the sleeve length, which became an important issue for this dress. Melissa had wanted to make it a short sleeve version since it will be hot in Florida, but Allie has an opinion now and decided that it just wouldn't be Elsa's dress without long sleeves. She showed Melissa right where she wanted them.




The smallest size of the pattern I bought was still about 3 sizes too big for my tiny girl so I had to make a lot of adjustments which honestly I'm not good at and I don't like doing.

Melissa got the sleeves on and finished the top so Allie tried it on one more time before bed so that Melissa could get the length of the dress. I guess this is a reason to do this right before we leave, so it will be the exact right size. Allie enjoyed wearing it.




In the process of putting the dress together I cut a couple corners which made sewing the lining in a pain but I got it done. It was funny having Paul hovering taking pictures. It felt like I had paparazzi.


Once Allie went to bed Melissa finished up the hem and adding the lining while I watched helplessly, but still fascinated. Finding a way to get the lining attached to cover the back of the sparkly fabric looked like a lot of work, especially since she had to keep the rest of the fabric from getting sewn together. Eventually she got it all done, but since our model was sleeping we had to take the pictures of it on the hanger.





I think Allie will be happy with it. She hasn't seen it all done yet, hopefully we'll have time tonight for her to try it on before we head out to the lake for the weekend. As usual after these things I'm swearing I'll never sew a costume again. I'm sure in a couple months that will pass though and I'll make an Anna dress or Tiana or maybe Rapunzel.

I also placed and confirmed our Garden Grocer order today, so we will have a bunch of bottled water for the trip. We also did Memory Maker, so we're all signed up and ready for that as well.

7 Days to go!

 

[njkastle]

That is one beautiful Elsa dress!!! What a gift you have... and I don't just mean our long awaited Allie. Her Mickey Big House Birthday is going to be so special thanks to your hard work. I am having trouble sleeping already. I decided to take as many Princess pics as I can to make a video when we get home.

 

[fancifull]

Finally the big reveal! It's really beautiful! Possibly my favorite of the outfits I've seen for Allie. What makes me love it so much is probably the fabric choice for the cape, its gorgeous. And Allie is adorable as always.

Gotta say that I love the idea of you making a Rapunzel dress for Allie (if you DO ever decide you're up for another costume, that is ) Does she have a favorite princess or does she kind of just like everything equally these days?

 

[kastoney]

Wow that dress looks AWESOME. So in awe of your skills. It totally beats the el cheapo target version my daughter is rocking right now. Oh to be stuck with the mother who failed home ec ; )

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Finally the big reveal! It's really beautiful! Possibly my favorite of the outfits I've seen for Allie. What makes me love it so much is probably the fabric choice for the cape, its gorgeous. And Allie is adorable as always. Gotta say that I love the idea of you making a Rapunzel dress for Allie (if you DO ever decide you're up for another costume, that is ) Does she have a favorite princess or does she kind of just like everything equally these days?

Thanks. Allie likes it too, which is harder to do now that she has more of an opinion. The cape really did come together well, and this fabric is better than the stuff we didn't have enough of.

Belle was always Allie's favorite, and her stuffed Belle is still THE plush toy, but Elsa has taken over as the top princess. She also likes Rapunzel, so that would be a possibility some time.

Thanks again, now we've gotta pack!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Wow that dress looks AWESOME. So in awe of your skills. It totally beats the el cheapo target version my daughter is rocking right now. Oh to be stuck with the mother who failed home ec ; )

Aww, at least your daughter has gotten to play in hers. We really weren't sure this one would come together, and that's why we bought a backup plan. We can't say we weren't tempted by the dresses we saw at Disneyland either.

Thanks, and have a great trip.

 

[Wood Nymph]

The Else dress is beautiful. The fabric for the cape is perfect. Allie will look very cute in it.

The Pebble is really cool. Can you change the clock face?

 

[GrandCalifornian]

The Else dress is beautiful. The fabric for the cape is perfect. Allie will look very cute in it. The Pebble is really cool. Can you change the clock face?

Thank you! It really came out nice. Yes you can change the watch faces on the Pebble. It comes with some faces pre-loaded but Paul has gotten into making custom ones. You can scroll through the faces on the watch too so you don't always have to have the same face. It is pretty neat and I'm enjoying mine. ~Melissa

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Hi everyone! We are headed out to the lake but I wanted to share pictures of Allie with the Elsa dress on.

 

[Wood Nymph]

She looks so very pretty! And it looks like she is posing like Elsa, too!

Have a great weekend at the lake.

 

[WDWKOOK]

Love the new Pebble, the final sewing update and the big reveal. Allie has turned into one serious model . You've done a fantastic job on all the new outfits and I can't wait to see them all in the environment they were made for.

Though it's hard, I think that not booking the BB is smart given that you know you won't be going next year. Besides, if you did have a change of plans for some reason, there are usually very nice general public discounts and FD, too.

Have a great time at the lake and when you get back, you'll be so close to leaving for POR!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

She looks so very pretty! And it looks like she is posing like Elsa, too!

Have a great weekend at the lake.

Thanks. It was very cute, she ran around the yard singing "Let It Go" and did her best Elsa poses.

Love the new Pebble, the final sewing update and the big reveal. Allie has turned into one serious model . You've done a fantastic job on all the new outfits and I can't wait to see them all in the environment they were made for.

Though it's hard, I think that not booking the BB is smart given that you know you won't be going next year. Besides, if you did have a change of plans for some reason, there are usually very nice general public discounts and FD, too.

Have a great time at the lake and when you get back, you'll be so close to leaving for POR!

Thanks, the trip preparation is almost done, and that's good because we are almost out of time. Now we just. Have to get the house cleaned up for Melissa's brother to stay there.

Yeah, Allie will be starting school next year and we don't expect to be able to swing four years in a row. That's ok, we will start planning another trip, perhaps for winter of the following year.

We are having fun at the lake with our parents, but we spend a lot of time talking about how close Disney is. 5 DAYS TO GO!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

We are getting super close to the trip now, and are focusing on last minute details (like laundry and packing...). Unlike last year, we have already attached the DME tags to the suitcases, so we'll be good there.


Allie has been busy working too, helping to decorate envelopes for Mousekeeping tips.


It is a great way to keep her busy while I am trying to pull all the last minute things together.


It is amazing how much she has grown. Last year she needed help just coloring on the envelopes, now she is writing the letters on them herself.

Speaking of getting older we're having a small surprise party for her this afternoon and I'm just counting the hours until I get to go pick her up from school.

It will be neat to get to celebrate with the family members from home who aren't going to be with her on her birthday at WDW. It will also be a big surprise for Allison who has no idea that it isn't just a regular Tuesday.

We're down to 3 days now!!!

 

[kastoney]

You all are so infinitely more prepared than us. Haven't even started packing. Of course I should be doing that now, but you see how that is going ; ). Hope the party is a blast.

 

[Cheshirecat616]

This thread makes me feel so not ready We leave Thursday and also have not one but two birthday girls in tow turning 5 and 4. If you see a mom with blue hair and two little blondies in a stroller feel free to come say hi

 

[Wood Nymph]

So close! So exciting! I hope you get great travel weather and great trip weather, too. I've been reading about the low crowds right now. I hope it stays that way.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

You all are so infinitely more prepared than us. Haven't even started packing. Of course I should be doing that now, but you see how that is going ; ). Hope the party is a blast.

I don't know about infinitely more prepared. We still have a lot of packing to do as two of our three checked bags are still empty. Tonight we'll do our last trip to Target for some last minute stuff and we'll do some more packing. Then there's house cleaning to do too. Oh well, once we are at Disney it won't matter.

The party last night was cute. Allie was totally overwhelmed at first since she is t too sure about surprises, but she got into it once we broke out the pizza and she saw she'd be getting presents.

This thread makes me feel so not ready We leave Thursday and also have not one but two birthday girls in tow turning 5 and 4. If you see a mom with blue hair and two little blondies in a stroller feel free to come say hi

Really? Well I guess we only write about the stuff that's done because we sure feel like there is a lot left to do. We'll be busy the next couple of nights. Good luck with your packing and trip prep and we will be looking for you. If you see us, say hello.

So close! So exciting! I hope you get great travel weather and great trip weather, too. I've been reading about the low crowds right now. I hope it stays that way.

The last two years this is the week we have been there, and the crowds were super low. This year we waited a week, so hopefully they don't increase too much, but at least we'll get to catch Food and Wine. So far we are excited about the weather. It is neat to see more and more of our trip on the 10 day forecast!

 

[WDWKOOK]

Allie did a fantastic job on those Mousekeeping envelopes. What a cute and personalized touch!

Was Allie pleasantly surprised with the pre-birthday birthday party? Sometimes the unexpected can be a bit overwhelming for kids, so I hope she was happy and understood that she'll be having her "real" birthday party SOON! Only one day until you'll all be going underneath the "Where dreams come true sign"!

Will you be posting live or waiting till you get home to do your TR?