I took a picture of my pickup (AKA "RAM A UTE"

and in paint, cut out the license plate. Then, still in paint, I opened a new window and made the plate as big as the window, making it a very large in size - low resolution pic. Then I saved that and when being shrunk back to avatar size, it looks fine. I'm sure there are more tech savvy ways to do that, I ain't that tech savvy.
BTW congrats on 13 years. I'm also in a "mixed mariage" (she's a Fresno Stater) of 13 years!