On Tuesday, June 26, Elyse, my friend Matthew, and I went to Build-A-Bear at Fair Oaks Mall in Fairfax, Virginia, where Elyse got herself a stuffed bear. This was part of a larger adventure which took us to Manassas and a few other places in that general area. In the case of Build-A-Bear, Elyse had entered into the sweepstakes for the “pay your age” promotion and got selected, receiving a ticket with a date window to visit a store and redeem it for a bear.
First, we had to find a suitable character. Elyse briefly considered this flamingo.
She ultimately settled on a blue bear with a Thomas the Tank Engine theme.
Recording the sound module. Elyse had me record a message for the box so that, in the finished product, when you press the bear’s hand, my voice plays.
Elyse gives the sound module a test.
Next, the employee helping us filled the body with stuffing until it looked like a bear.
Elyse inserts the heart inside the bear before it’s closed up.
Naming the bear. With my voice in it, Elyse named it after me.
Now it’s time to pick out some clothes.
Elyse briefly considered a traditional locomotive engineer’s outfit, but ultimately decided not to go that route.
Testing out a pair of jeans.
I think that we have a winner with the jeans.
Elyse then took the bear to the “spa”, which is an air shower where you can brush out your bear’s fur.
Elyse finds a winner as far as shirts go.
All set! That is quite the well-dressed bear.
All in all, we all had a fun time helping Elyse build her bear. The total cost came to around $40 with the voice module and the clothes, but we still saved around $6 with the “pay your age” deal, which I consider a win overall.