Sewing/Dressmaking Course

So, I've enrolled myself in a dressmaking/basic sewing course at the local community college. It starts Monday 18th Oct and runs for 8x Monday nights.

I need to front up with my sewing machine, basic supplies, and a pattern + fabric for what I want to sew. Have decided I'll make some dresses for my girls for Christmas Day. I considered using Christmas fabric but don't want to make something they'll only wear for 1 day, then I thought maybe Christmas "inspired" fabric, but finally just settled on something that I liked the look of. It's currently winging its way from the US so I'll post a sneak peak when it arrives.

The pattern I selected is from The Handmade Dress and is called Miss Lily. Very sweet. Someone told me the pleats on it are a tad tricky so maybe not try it without some practice at pleats but I figured that a sewing course is probably the best time to try to learn something new - I mean, there'll be someone there to help me, right? Hopefully.