Everything about the sewing has been covered, I believe, but I'd like to suggest that you could possibly incorporate something from your little one's outgrown clothes in this project, or perhaps make it big enough to wear a favorite newborn outfit. One suggestion might be to add a tummy patch by cutting out a little embroidered motif from something your daughter wore, or if there are lots of little things, you could start by making a pieced fabric from parts of her little clothes and using that to make the animal. Use iron-on interfacing if anything seems too stretchy. There are several youtube videos demonstrating how to make stuffed toys. Your little girl will treasure it!