Ok that makes sense.

I was confused by the redundancy of the over apron pleat and the 3" front facing part of the first pleat.

I am still not sure I did everything 100% correct but I am sure that it is close enough to work with.

My next step is going to be to sew down the top of the pleats along where they waist band is going to be. My thinking is If i get the pleated section done I can work with the leftover parts of the over and under apron to get the fit (length) just right. Then I can go back over the entire length of the top (waist band edge) to secure the frayed edge. Then sew on the waist band.