Entries Tagged as 'scotty'

Danny & Caroline’s Wedding

June 21st, 2010 · No Comments

On Saturday Danny & Caroline got married at Cheney Mansion in Oak Park. We left our house with plenty of time to make the 18 minute drive to Oak Park, but didn’t realize the Puerto Rican parade was on Saturday. The parade itself is downtown, but in all of the communities with large Puerto Rican populations… ours and the neighborhoods surrounding ours… it’s mayhem! People just run around, bike around, drive around waving flags and celebrating. I’m sure it’s a good time, but we had to be somewhere. There were tons of road blocks and redirects and it took us more like 45 minutes to an hour to get out to Oak Park. I felt like we were in that Seinfeld episode.

Finally we arrived. The ceremony was just beginning. Attendants were walking down “the aisle.” Caroline was about to take her stroll down so we got to see her “backstage.” After she made her entrance we were allowed to make our way across the lawn and watch the ceremony. Cheney Mansion has such beautiful grounds. And the weather was so nice too. The day before we had tornado-like storms. Saturday’s weather called for it to be sunny and in the 90s. A bit too hot, but actually by 5:30 p.m. it was perfect.


Danny & Caroline’s Wedding Ceremony


The Bride and Groom Kissing


All done!

I couldn’t hear everything that was said during the ceremony because we were so far in the back, having arrived late. It seemed pretty traditional. I saw parents stand up at different points. It was quick, though. 15 minutes? 20 minutes? Afterwards Danny and Caroline greeted everyone in a receiving line.


Danny & Caroline greeting everyone

We had cocktails outside for an hour or so. Very nice. Like I said, the weather was perfect and the gardens at the mansion were gorgeous. The wedding was odd in that Dallas’s family was there, but then I’d turn and a lot of our friends were there too. I wasn’t used to seeing these people all in the same place.


Ed, Jen, Chad, Kristin


Jen & Chad


Cory (bridesmaid) & Miko


Aunty Glenna & Uncle BB


Dallas’s parents Kathy & George


George, Kathy, Rachelle, Dallas


Dallas, Uncle Neil, Scotty (Danny’s brother and Best Man)


Caroline & Danny


Rachelle & Dallas


Loden & Trent

After a while, Caroline’s dad announced that it was time to come inside the mansion for dinner.


Caroline’s dad announcing dinner


Wedding Program

It was expected, but I always like it when my name is spelled right.


Wedding Placecards

And I loved these poppies.


Centerpieces


Aunty Peggy, George, Kathy, Aunty Karolyn, Uncle Sonny, Aunty Gail, Aunty Laura, Aunty Glenna, Uncle BB, Uncle Neil

Look at this. Chris is almost as tall as Dallas and Brad. He’s 14!


Brad, Dallas, Chris

After dinner we all kind of mingled and visited while waiting for the band to start up.


Aly, Danny, Amanda

If you didn’t notice earlier, Danny’s boutonniere is rosemary. Fitting, since he works in a kitchen. Here’s Dallas trying to get a whiff.


Brad, Danny, Dallas


Brad, Danny, Dallas

The dance floor is on the 3rd floor of Cheney Mansion. The wedding band was JT and the Clouds, a popular Chicago band. One of Danny and Caroline’s first dates was to go see them play. Also, the lead singer, Jeremy, aka JT, works with Danny.


JT and the Clouds

Kenji arrived on floor 3 ready to dance!


Kenji

Tommy and Derek? Not so interested.


Tommy & Derek

Caroline and Danny had their first dance.


Danny & Caroline


Danny & Caroline

Some were a little shy to get dancing at first, but it wasn’t long before the dance floor was packed.


Dance!


Loden, Trent, Caroline


Loden, Danny


Danny & Rachelle


Loden & Ed


Loden & Danny

Fun wedding. It went by SO FAST! Congratulations, Danny and Caroline! I wish we were done already! :)

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2009 Camp Fukuda

July 8th, 2009 · No Comments

After golfing we headed over to Aunty Peggy and Uncle Neil’s house. For the last two July Fourth holidays Dallas’s family has gotten Camp Fukuda tshirts made and then taken family photographs in them.

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Trying to assemble 25+ people can be maddening. People walk off.

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Other people pose together.

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Kids run around.

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Finally. Only Heather and I are missing. Heather was setting up her camera on a tripod so I took that time to make my own photo. There’s a photo floating around somewhere that has all of us.

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Back: Caroline, Aunty Glenna, Uncle BB, Jeff, Cory, Chris, Caroline, Danny, Aunty Gail, Naoko, Kenji, Doug, Tommy, Derek, Krystyn, Hideto, Scotty, Peggy, Neil. Front: Adam, Chris, Dallas, Kathy, Laura, Mitch, Kyle, Kate, Winnie, Ben.

Aunty Laura’s Family -

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Cory, Chris, Danny, Caroline, Aunty Laura, Krystyn, Hideto, Scotty

Kathy’s Family -

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Kathy, Caroline, Dallas, Rachelle

Shaka!

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Caroline, Dallas

Aunty Peggy & Uncle Neil’s Family –

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Aunty Peggy, Derek, Uncle Neil, Kyle, Kate, Ben, Winnie

Dallas & his sister, still goofing-

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Caroline, Dallas

Aunty Gail’s Family -

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Jeff, Heather, Chris, Mitch, Auny Gail, Tommy, Doug, Kenji, Naoko

Aunty Glenna & Uncle BB’s (sort of) family-

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Uncle BB & Aunty Glenna’s kids didn’t arrive til later in the night so they got Adam, a family friend, in their photo.

These are the people that won the 2009 Fukuda Cup earlier in the day. Notice that they changed into their winning shirts.

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Kyle, Jeff, Adam, Chris, Aunty Gail, Danny

I poured my beer into the award cup and each winning team member had to drink from the cup. Notice that Chris’s shirt is all wet. Doug, a sore loser, sprayed the hose all over the winners while they were posing for photos.

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Chris, Aunty Gail

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Adam, Jeff

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Kyle

These are the people who lost the 2009 Fukuda Cup. Dallas was giving “the finger” in some of the photos. He told his mom to do it and she gave thumbs up… wrong finger.. and everyone started laughing.

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Dallas, Doug, Kathy, Uncle BB, Uncle Neil, Scotty

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Dallas

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Glenna

After photos we spent the afternoon and evening eating delicious gumbo that Danny made, drinking, and visiting in the yard. Or inside. The mosquitoes were kind of brutal in Michigan.

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2009 Fukuda Cup

July 6th, 2009 · 2 Comments

For the Fourth of July holiday Dallas and I went to Michigan with his family. In many years past only people who golfed went. Last year many more people who didn’t golf went on the trip, but I was vacationing in Cape Cod so I missed it. This year I decided to go to Michigan and see what it was all about. I’d never been to Michigan before, except a brief visit to the Upper Peninsula. It reminded me a lot of Wisconsin.

Dallas’s Uncle Neil and Aunty Peggy live in Brighton, MI, which is just north of Ann Arbor and just south of Flint. Most people who were visiting stayed in a dirt-cheap hotel nearby their house. Room rates were only $35-$65/night. The first day we were there Dallas went golfing in a family tournament. Cory, Caroline and I went to Uncle Neil and Aunty Peggy’s house to visit and for breakfast, but then we were off to the Tanger Outlet mall.

Later in the afternoon we met up with the people who were golfing as they came into the 18th hole at Timber Trace Golf Club. This was a made up tournament they were holding called the Fukuda Cup. (Fukuda is a family name.) Danny made a trophy and shirts were ordered. Bragging rights were on the line.

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Aunty Gail, Kyle, Uncle Neil, Scotty :: Timber Trace Golf Club, Pickney, MI

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Danny, Dallas, Jeff :: Timber Trace Golf Club, Pickney, MI

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Danny, Dallas, Jeff, & Uncle BB posing by the 18th hole.

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Danny, Dallas, Uncle BB, Jeff :: Timber Trace Golf Club, Pickney, MI

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Dallas, Aunty Gail, Kyle & Scotty resting after a long day of golfing.

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I think Dallas, Aunty Gail & Kyle were wearing the brightest shirts they own.

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Dallas’s Mom, Kathy :: Timber Trace Golf Club, Pickney, MI

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Doug, Kathy, & Adam finished up.

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Uncle Neil ready to go in the golf cart.

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2009 Fukuda Cup Golf Shirts :: Timber Trace Golf Club, Pickney, MI

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2009 Fukuda Cup Winning Team: Kyle, Adam, Jeff, Aunty Gail, Chris, Danny

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Dallas was a sore loser, but drunk & smiling.

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Cory & Chris’s Wedding Reception

July 2nd, 2009 · 1 Comment

Cory and Chris’s wedding reception was held at Maxim’s de Paris in the Gold Coast. It’s a unique venue, decorated in the stylin’ art deco style. Cory wrote a bit about Maxim’s here if you’re interested.

After busting open the sake and cutting the cake we all had dinner and drank and ate and drank and drank and danced and danced and drank and danced and danced. It was a super fun time. You can tell from everyone’s huge smiles in the photos below.

(Click on photos below to see them bigger.)

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Naoko & Doug’s Wedding Dinner & Reception

October 25th, 2005 · 5 Comments


Joey on the trolley from The Drake to Gibson’s


Wedding Cake


Sake Keg


Seating


Dinner Menu


Pretty flowers on the table.


Doug & Naoko breaking open the sake keg.


Sake Ceremony


Sake Ceremony


Doug, Naoko, Heather


Naoko


Masu – Sake cup


Jeff’s Speech


Dallas


Naoko & Doug


Brad, Josh, Aly, Dallas


Brad & Mandy


Josh & Aly


Rachelle


Josh, Aly, Dallas, Rachelle


Dallas & Rachelle


Josh, Brad, Dallas


Josh, Brad, Dallas


Danny, Josh, Darren, Miko, Scotty, Dallas, Brad


Glenna & Brad


Lori


Lori


Sake!


Doug


Dallas & Rachelle


Uncle, Aly, Josh, Brad, Peggie


Glenna, BB, Dallas, Uncle


Chris, underaged sake server


Chris & Dallas


Dallas + Cute Baby


Dallas + Cute Baby


Dallas + Cute Baby


Dallas + Cute Baby


Filet Mignon and potatoes


Naoko


Doug & Naoko


Doug & Naoko

Naoko & Doug’s wedding continued on as all guests were trollied (our trolley was named Elvis) from The Drake Hotel to Gibson’s Steakhouse. Joey was on our trolley and got on the mic to give us a drunken “Doug is my best friend and I never thought I’d see him get married, I’m so happy” speech combined with a White Sox World Series score update. It was pretty funny. At Gibson’s, after getting drinks and being seated, there was a sake ritual with a KEG of sake and traditional wooden sake cups called masu. Have you ever seen a KEG of sake? It’s A LOT.

The dinner and party were tons of fun, but here’s a tip: eating a grilled cheese at noon.. then later on having a ton of drinks and not eating dinner til like 10pm isn’t a very good idea. Especially when you’re sitting at a table with some underagers who wind up out-drinking you. And also when there’s a lot of banzai and kampai toasts going on. Not so great. Some people might have even drank so much, so fast that they got scolded for helping themselves to liquor behind the bar and couldn’t even remember the steak they ate from the best steakhouse in the city.. the one they’d been looking forward to for weeks… and then that person might have had to be the first to leave the party! But that wasn’t me. My steak was yum yum and so were the cheesy scalloped potatoes with the.. eh.. crunchy stuff. Really good. And the sake was probably the best I’ve ever had.

So this was the last wedding in the Rachelle & Dallas wedding circuit this year. Each one was very different from the others and was really a lot of fun… but honestly, I’m glad this was the last one.. and so glad it was local! To show the diversity of the weddings this year – here are links to them -

2005 Weddings

» Tweeny & Josh’s wedding in an art museum in Washington DC

» Jen & Matt’s causual wedding at a large country house in Illinois

» Tandy & Chris’s tropical outdoor wedding on Kaua’i

» Megan & Scott’s more traditional, slightly Jewish wedding in Peoria

» Naoko & Doug’s classic Chicago wedding that mixed American, Buddhist & Japanese traditions

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