Ten Entire Years.

Where do I start? Oh, that's right. American Girl Doll News turns 10 YEARS OLD today.

No words can describe how proud I am of this site and what it's become. I was only 8 when I started it for fun, posting random stuff about my American Girl dolls. Some of you know the story, though. Posted something about the "Girl of the Year 2015" - predicted her name would be Grace Thomas - and then, it ended up getting more views than 9 Year Old Sydney could have ever imagined. So I kept going, covering the release of more new American Girl dolls and products.

One year in, I got diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Two years in, my parents separated and I graduated elementary school. Three years in, I moved to a new house and visited the American Girl headquarters. Four years in, I was gifted Luciana Vega and started my own doll company - which didn't work out too well, but at least I had fun! Five years in, I graduated middle school. Six years in, I made the longest American Girl doll stopmotion of all time - and came out to the world as a lesbian. Seven years in, I was on Good Morning America to ring in the release of Girl of the Year 2021, Kira Bailey. Eight years in, I was supposed to go to the premiere of the Corinne Tan movie - that didn't happen for obvious reasons, but the thought is what counts! Nine years in, I graduated high school, started college, and was gifted Lila Monetti when it looked like I wasn't going to make it to her release. (But I did go to her release ;).

All this is to say, my life has changed a lot since I started this blog. However, despite everything else in my life changing since the day I started this blog in 2014, one thing has stayed constant - this blog, and my love for American Girl dolls. And even as I grow up, even as I start my grown-up career and go to college, I want to keep this blog alive for as long as I can. Because it makes me so happy, and I honestly can't imagine my life without it. And I have you all to thank. Whether you've been here since the beginning, grew out of American Girl sometime throughout this journey and stopped checking, or have only been checking for the last year or two (or even shorter) - thank you.

Thank you for letting me talk about the dolls that I love so much. Thank you for letting me update you on everything going on in the world of American Girl. Thank you for letting me give you first looks at Grace Thomas, Maryellen Larkin, Lea Clark, the WellieWishers, Melody Ellison, Gabriela McBride, Tenney Grant, Logan Everett, Z Yang, Nanea Mitchell, Luciana Vega, Blaire Wilson, Joss Kendrick, Courtney Moore, Kira Bailey, Makena Williams, Evette Peeters, Maritza Ochoa, Corinne Tan, Gwynn Tan, Claudie Wells, Kavi Sharma, Isabel Hoffman, Nicki Hoffman, and Lila Monetti. Thank you for letting me take you through a Truly Me rebrand, and then the revamping of the entire line. Thank you for letting me take you through the rise and fall of BeForever, the cubing and retiring of several dolls, the release of numerous American Girl books and seven movies, two American Girl Live tours, the opening and closing of numerous stores, countless releases, two go-arounds of featuring every American Girl doll as Doll of the Week, and then letting each doll have their own month so we don't go through them every 3 years, the shift of the Girls of the Year from January 1 to October 4, countless collaborations, and so, so much more.

I love American Girl. I love this blog. And I hope I can share the love with all of you for as long as I can.

Thank you, for everything.

-Sydney