I haven't played in a while,  and when i first started the updates seemed more frequent.  
Thing is this update looks like it's going to be massive, with a  new terrain,  new water, more than likely a few new birds and who knows what else as far as game play updates incorporated from TOD. 
I've been itching  for the release for a while now, and  i'm confident that when it does,  it'll have been worth the wait.