argh, I even checked back to look but somehow missed that bit! Cause I'm like, I definitely agree that you want to avoid sending the message that girls == bad but also it is a real concern that if she's tripping all the time!

I dunno if it's a good idea to trim the dress vs buy one that's already cut appropriately though (depending on their sewing skills). I think, as a child, I would find that deceptive and destructive because I was actually pretty particular about things. Maybe say from the start "we're going to trim it to here" and show her, when you get it? I might not have cared about unfinished hems but I would care about my parents cutting up clothes I was excited to get.