Tess's Tidbits: Four Incredible Years

Hello to all of our wonderful readers out there!  It feels like such a terribly long time since I've shared anything with you.  In fact, it's been two months to the day since my last "Tess's Tidbits" post.  Forgive me for staying away for so long.

This year has not been quite the year we'd planned as far as our little blog is concerned.  Still, today is a day of celebration, because on this day four years ago, Maggie and I wrote our very first post for Jane Austen and Unicorns.  It still amazes me to look back and see how far we've come and how much we've changed since then.

Thank you to all of you, our faithful readers and followers, who have shared this blog with us, leaving your kind comments and showing such an interest in us.  You've been amazing, even when we've fallen behind on our posting and kept you in suspense for long periods without posts.

Maggie and I had a long discussion last night, on the eve of our Blogoversary, concerning the future of Jane Austen and Unicorns and what sort of strategy we might implement to improve the frequency of our posting.  We know we've rather let you down with our lack of posts this past year, and for that we deeply apologize.  As Maggie and I talked, we realized that our priorities have shifted a bit in these past few years.  Keeping up with our blog has become overwhelming for us, and while our numerous fellow dolls are interested in posting every once in a while, no one is really interested in being in charge.

One of the plans we'd discussed earlier in the year was to make our Blogoversary post our last post.  However, we still have some things we'd really love to share on this blog, which we can't possibly cram into one post.  We also feel that quitting JA&U so abruptly without any warning would not be fair to all of you.

Our tentative plan, then, is to continue on until the end of the year.  This should give us plenty of time to get caught up the way we'd like to, and also gives us the chance to share one last Christmas season with you.  Talking things over with Belle helped us in our decision as well.  Ending her blog at the end of a year seemed to work quite well for her.

From now to the end of the year, our goal is to post at least once per week on this blog.  We may not always achieve that goal, but it is what we're aiming for.  Our weekly posts might sometimes be merely a quick "hello" from one of us, or perhaps a picture or two with a few thoughts to share.  No matter what, I hope to finish strong, leaving all of you with many pleasant posts to look over after we have said our goodbyes.

Once Jane Austen and Unicorns is finished, we will keep it online so you can always come back and relive our old adventures.  Also, we talked it over with Mama, and she has agreed to let us guest post on her blog, Never Grow Up, every once in a while.  It's a lot easier to think about posting when one is not in charge and only has to do it once in a great while.

Oh dear.  I did hope to make this a happy, celebratory post, and I'm afraid it might end up being rather gloomy instead.  Know that we love and appreciate each and every one of you who have been a part of our lives these past four years.  We hope you enjoy these last few months with us exclusively, and that you'll stop by and read our posts on Mama's blog after that.

Happy Blogoversary to my fellow bloggers:  Maggie, Emma, Hayden, and all of you who have guest posted from time to time.  It's been a wonderful four years.  I shall cherish the memories we made during this time for the rest of my days.

Tess