Hi, all! Just a quick heads up. Our monthly challenges have been super fun for us here at Cookie Connection, and I hope for you all as well!
After six months of running them now under our belts, Rebecca and I have decided to turn them from monthly into bi-monthly challenges. The reasons were two-fold: (1) to allow you busy cookie folks more time to gather your thoughts and create entries around your other work and (2) to allow Rebecca and me more time to manage the contests. (And perhaps give us a little downtime between the close of one and the start of another! 
)
That said, here's what to expect for the next couple of months:
Challenge #6 closes in just a few minutes. As usual, its Spotlight will appear next weekend (November 8).
Challenge #7 will open on November 10, more or less according to usual schedule, but it won't close until December 21 (give or take), allowing you closer to six (rather than four) weeks to participate. Associated Spotlights will usually follow the challenge close by about one week (unless there's an intervening holiday) and will appear on Saturday. However, the announcement of the next challenge will now occur after (rather than before) the Spotlight.
So to summarize, you can expect the following pattern going forward, again, give or take a day or two here or there:
Challenge #6: November 2 (Close); November 8 (Spotlight)
Challenge #7: November 10 (Open); December 21 (Close); January 3 or 4 (Spotlight)
Challenge #8: January 8 (Open); February 22 (Close); February 28 (Spotlight) . . . and so on.
I hope this works for everyone - again, the goal is to ensure broader and less pressured participation, and a little more downtime for those administering the challenges.
Thanks!
