Gotta figure out why some pictures will get big and some won't.   Frustrating.  I really wanted the picture of Danielle's wedding to be BIG.  It's such a great picture.

Utah Trip

We just got back from visiting Utah.  We went to see Danielle get married and it was very nice.  

Danielle with her folks, Scott and Kim

This also gave us the chance to see other family members.  I didn't get a lot of pictures as I was busy much of the time or had handed off my camera (it was in Danny's pocket) while I helped out at the wedding.  So I missed getting a shot of my youngest brother, Robert, and his family.  I'm hoping Danny got one with his iPhone and will forward it to me.

Me, Mom, Diana and  Mike

We got to go through the Draper Temple - it's open for tours before it is dedicated. The glass work is amazing.   I'm glad we took the time to see it.   Maybe next time we visit we will get to attend a session there.

Draper Temple

And, of course, we saw snow.  Lots of snow.   Utah lake is frozen over but it was too cold to walk out on the ice.  Or maybe I'm just a chicken.  We drove over,  stopped the car for a bit, opened the door and took pictures, and then jumped right back into the warm car.

OK, yea, I'm a chicken.  I love looking at snow from some place warm.

Frozen lake - there's a boat at the end of the dock, frozen to the lake.

Watching My Babies Grow

Spending time with my grandkids is the very BEST!! I got to talk to Dillon last week - he's doing great in music - got to say "hi" to Charlee - hugged Tyson for a bit yesterday and got to spend time with Dani and KK last night while their parents and Tyson had a date. It was so much fun. And what talented kids they are. They played the piano for a bit and then took up different instruments. I miss the kids in Cleveland and was thinking last night what a great musical group we would have if they were all here. Molly can sing, Tyson on guitar, Dillon would be drummer of course, Dani on piano, Charlee on triangle and KK on recorder. That would be a group only a grandma could listen to for very long!

KK steals the Cake

We were all sitting around visiting and John said "Hey, Charlie - stand up and look over there." And there was KK eating John's cake with his thumb. He laughed and looked a little sheepish, but didn't even slow down his eating - even when I grabbed the camera. Strange - usually he wants to take the camera away and take pictures with it. Since Charlie didn't seem to mind toooo much I didn't stop him - I did, however, give him a fork. He didn't really eat that much.

Happy Birthday John!!!

Tyson and Josilin watched People's Choice since the table was full.

Danny had tooth surgery today so he didn't eat, but that didn't keep him from enjoying the family - and even got a little Christmassy!

What would a birthday for John Bills be without John Williams?

Everyone got in the spirit of the occasion.

John turned 31 years old on January 7th. He requested steaks and potatoes and so that's what he got. And, of course, cake and Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream. Can't have a birthday without Cake the Blue Bell! We missed Amanda, Beezer and Angi. Beezer is working and Angi is sick and the commute for Amanda would be ridiculous - but they were there in our hearts.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN!!

Post Cotton Bowl visit

We took the opportunity to visit with Danny's Uncle Vern after leaving the Dallas area. Vern is in an assisted living facility in Oklahoma. It was like a fancy motel there. Great decor, nurses, and it even smelled good. Vern is in his 90's now and still has a very sharp mind. His eyes are bad, muscular degeneration, and his hearing is not great but his attitude and spirits were great. We're hoping to visit again when Danny's cousin Larry comes in the Spring.

Cotton Bowl Trip

This RV - definitely Texas Tech oriented - was a big draw until we saw the one inside the auto pavilion. Oh my. The owners are just fans and they were offering tours through the RV. Very nice. Just the outside paint job Danny wants.

And who wouldn't like a "guns up" barbecue pit?

The score board was set at 0 to 0 for the pre-game and played films of past Cotton Bowl moments. I won't be including a picture of the score board at the end of the game.....

This is from our seats. What a great way to watch a ball game.

Danny was soooo excited to get tickets to the Cotton Bowl, where Texas Tech challenged Ol Miss. The tickets were between the 45 and 50 yard line and really close to the field - and we got them at face value with a parking pass and program thrown in for free. What a deal. We loaded up the RV and headed North to Dallas. Danny fretted on the way up that his RV did not properly show his Texas Tech loyalty - especially when he saw cars passing all decked out in black and red.
The tickets were as amazing as promised. We walked up the ramp and there they were - we didn't have to climb steps at all. Plus, the people next to us didn't show so we had lots of room to spread out. The weather was wonderful. I dressed for the cold and brought a coat - turned out hot and I wished I had worn shorts and a short sleeve shirt. But I did get a nice tan on my face.
We got there the night before the game and parked with the other RV's. It was great. We got up the next morning and went to the bbq, and the the game. Returned to the RV and spent that night in the lot as well. It was fun seeing the tailgaters with their grills, tv's, dogs, hats, banners, etc.

The only sad note was the final score - or actually the score most of the way through the game. But Tyson said he saw Danny on TV when he was watching from Austin, and we did have a good time, so it was well worth the trip and expense.