November 20, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Celebrations.

This evening we officially began the holoday celebrations. Molly turns 14 on Wednesday but we celebrated her birthday tonight when we went out to a family dinner at Elys, a wonderful steak house. Kate was off work and both Molly and Mary Frances are out of school so the timing was perfect. A birthday is always worth celebrating but a 14th birthday is especially noteworthy. And we celebrated in style. Molly selected the restaurant. She had only been to that place once when we all went there with wonderful Wendy and friend Ken. Molly remembered the food and the ambiance. The place was special as was the event. So all except Molly drank a gin and tonic. Next, Molly opened her gift from me, which was a surprise to her: a set of soundproof ear phones and case. Mary Frances bought herself one last year and Molly has wanted one ever since. She thought that she would buy it with her gift card from Amazon, the one she receives for me for Christmas. So she was surprised. All through dinner we told funny stories about Molly when she was young. When we ran out of Molly stories we told stories of all the girls. Both Kate and Mary Frances were full of tales about each other and of course Molly. Only with immediate family can these tales be told and the dinner tonight was perfect for such renderings. And of course, the food was supurb. When you add it all together we started the holidays in style. The whole evening was festive. But most importantly, Molly was pleased. And so was I. Molly's birthday dinner was delightful and delicious just as we had hoped. Sometimes things do not seem festive or special but tonight it did. We all had fun.