Hello, Engaged & Inspired Community! I’m Brianne, and I am so happy to be here as a new Blogging Bride to share my wedding inspiration and all the fun along the way. I thought I would take a few minutes to introduce us (me, and my fiancé, Erik) to you guys so you’d know a little bit about who we are and what we like. That way you can see the people behind all the inspiration we’ve collected and decisions we’ll be making.

Source: Carina Skrobecki Photography

Our biggest "thing": we’re in a long distance relationship. We’re both from the greater Seattle area, and we met at a New Year’s Eve party 5 years ago. Just before we met, Erik had enlisted in the US Navy and he was scheduled to leave to start his training in the spring just after we’d started dating. His training was only supposed to be about 18 months and then he was scheduled to be stationed back in WA. Well, so much for planning (if any of you are Military Spouses you know what I’m talking about!). In the end, he was stationed on the USS Roosevelt Aircraft Carrier in Norfolk, VA for the remainder of his contract (4 years!).

Fast forward 3 years, and after a lot of cross country flights (and a lot of frequent flyer miles!), Erik asked me to marry him. Long distance relationships are certainly a challenging road, but we've found a way to make it work. It certainly has made wedding planning interesting!

Source: Carina Skrobecki Photography

So: more about who we are! I have a career as an architect, with a design and lifestyle blog on the side. I’m crafty, love working with my hands, and also love bright colors and have a creative spirit. I’m a Leo, with curly blond locks to match. Erik keeps me sane. He’s a nuclear engineer for the Navy, and he’s got a much more analytical side. He’s more technical (and rational) but also with a creative bent. When we do spend our time together we like to get out for hikes, do crossword puzzles, and discover great restaurants that serve amazing food. We’re also totally nerdy and play video games and watch a lot of netflix as a way to stay connected across the miles. I think you’ll see a little bit of our geeky side come through later on.

Source: Carina Skrobecki Photography

Because the military can make any plans unpredictable, we’ve decided to wait until Erik is out of the Navy to get married. We’ve been engaged for 9 months already and have about a year to go. We’ve chosen a venue and set our date for 4/5/14 so we have plenty of decision making yet to go. I’m hoping to share with you both the challenges and benefits of a long engagement, because there certainly are both and I think long engagements can get a bad rap.

Source: Carina Skrobecki Photography

Thanks for having us, we can’t wait to share what we’re up to and hear your suggestions!

Photos are excerpts of our engagement session with our fab photographer Carina Skrobecki, taken at the Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle, WA.