Grandma's 90th B-day bash

My dad's mom is turning 90 this year and even though her birthday is in the winter we celebrated it this last weekend.  When you have 9 kids, 68 grandkids and 97 (with 7 on the way) great grand kids it's hard to plan these things next to Christmas so they did it now.  Can you believe that?  So much family coming from one little women.  We had a little program for her and I saw some of my cousins I haven't seen for a really long time.  Not everyone could come but a good amount of them did. You would think when you have 66 cousins on one side (I have 85 total) you wouldn't know them very well but I do- and I know every one of their names.  My cousins are some of my best friends.  One thing I have learned from my Grandma is that family is really important and to spend as much time with them as possible.  My friends come and go but my cousins are always there. I just love them to pieces!  

I have no idea what is up with Ty's face in this picture but you can see how tan I am still from bear lake!  Sweet! I actually lived in her basement apartment for two years while in college- and because of that I met my sweet husband.  Good memories! 

Last summer my Uncle Dan passed away.  He was my Grandma's oldest son and it was really sudden that he died.  Next to my Aunt Janet my Grandma has had a really hard time dealing with his passing.  You never think your kids are going to die before you she tells me all the time.  Well one of my cousins was at a art show and saw this painting and she couldn't believe how much it looked like my Uncle.  He was the concert master for a orchestra here locally and the artists wife was a photographer for the orchestra.  She took a picture of my uncle and he liked it so much he decided to paint it.  So they (my aunts and Uncles) helped buy this beautiful painting of Dan for my Grandma.  The artist had no idea who Dan was, that he had died or that he had family around here.  The whole thing is amazing.  Above is a picture of all my Aunts and Uncles (except my one Aunt on a mission in Europe) and the wife of my uncle who died.  

Here is the painting- the artist really caught how Dan looked while he played.  I wish he could have taught my  kids violin.  I would have loved that!