Emme Nees, 11, had one plan Thursday night. She was going to stay up past her bedtime to watch her favorite team, the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs, play the Stanford Cardinal in the Alamo Bowl.
"They're great," said Emme, who cheers for Spirit Extreme, a squad for children with special needs.
She has Down syndrome, but her biggest battle is with cancer.
"It's horrible to have a child with leukemia," said Emme's grandmother, Salley Nees. "It can be pretty intense. We're very lucky to have her home this Christmas."
Emme was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in 2013. She relapsed last August.
"When you see how loving people are and what a family it becomes, it's really terrific," Salley Nees said. "The cheerleaders are part of that at TCU."
TCU cheerleaders heard about Emme and took the pep rally to her a couple of weeks ago. In it, Emme is seen cheering, "Let's go Horned Frogs" alongside TCU cheerleaders.
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Emme's mother, Vicki Nielson Nees, posted a clip on Facebook, just in time for the Alamo Bowl.
"She loves to wave to the crowd," said big sister, Kenzie, as she pointed out how Emme can turn on her smile and ham it up for the camera.
Emme is undergoing two-and-a-half years of cancer treatments.
