Build-a-Bear

My best friend, Jen, told me she had a special surprise for Handley's Christmas present and that it would involve us going somewhere. She came over this morning and we loaded up the car to head to BUILD-A-BEAR!!!!!! I was so excited for Handley because I knew she'd just love getting to create her own stuffed animal. For those of you not familiar with the Build-a-Bear stores, they are great. The kids get to pick their animal, help stuff it, put a heart in it, name it, and pick clothes for it to wear. Handley has recently become really attached to her Hippo and Curious George, so Jen (and Justen) couldn't have thought of a better gift to give her.


When we first got to the store, Handley was a little unsure of what was going on. There were a ton of kids and lots of excitement, but when we kept asking her which animal she wanted, she didn't know how to make the choice. Then we started walking down the line, letting her touch each of them, and she finally decided on a pink and gray cat.

Handley and Jen after choosing her cat.

Next we went over to the stuffing station. The woman asked Handley to step on the pedal that makes the stuffing fill the animals and the noise of it really scared her, so I ended up stepping on the pedal for her. She did give the little heart a kiss before putting it into her Kitty though. She was happy to get it back and feel how soft and squishy it was.



Next we went on to name her cat. Jen and I tried to think of a creative name, but ended up with "Miss Kitty" because I knew that Handley would end up calling her "Kitty" anyway.

Finally we went to the dressing station. We all had fun checking out all of the outfits...they had everything from Disney Princess dresses, super hero's, cheerleader outfits, wedding gowns, camo and even shoes to match each outfit. Handley chose a sequined tank-top and a pair of hot pink jeans for Kitty. She loved dressing her up!

Checking out the clothing selections.

She loved the sequined top she found!

And loved it even more on Kitty.

Matching pants...

And her outfit was complete!

We went to lunch after leaving Build-a-Bear and I could have imagined that Handley insisted that Kitty come along with us. I just know that she's going to be one of her new best friends!

Thank you Jen and Justen for such a fun outing

and a great gift!