Introduction

Greetings from the internet void!

My name is S- and this blog will be about my personal experiences on the journey to starting a new family. The purpose of this blog is to chronicle the planning, preparation, and execution of a wedding that will be a compromise between what I want, what my boyfriend wants, and what our wallets can handle.

First, though, I think I'll start with an introduction of my boyfriend and myself. I was born and raised in the great state of Texas. At this particular moment in time I am 26 years old and hold a bachelor's degree. My boyfriend's name is J- and he grew up in Indiana. He is 28 years old and also holds a bachelor's degree. In the summer of 2010 I moved to a rural town in Japan to teach English in the local public schools. J- and I were first in the same room at the same time in the summer of 2011 when he moved to the neighboring city to do the same. We would see each other at various social events but we didn't start dating until about a year ago. I moved back to Texas this past summer, but J- still has about 8 months left on his contract. So we're having to spend our one-year anniversary halfway around the world from each other.

Thank goodness for Skype.

As for the name of this blog, "hanayome" (花嫁) is a Japanese word for "bride."