The second day of school

I really don't care for Valentine's Day; or rather, I should say I don't care for the surrounding commercial hype that either makes you feel bad for being single or puts pressure on you to spend money if you are in a relationship. I don't have intimacy issues and I fully support people's rights to express their romantic feelings for each other in various ways, including the exchange of heart-shaped balloons and stuffed animals manufactured in questionable Chinese factories, I just don't like to be pressured or manipulated into anything. However, our quirky habit to express our romantic love in memory of the murder of some obscure  Christian martyr served me well yesterday, when Izzy's  First Day of School coincided with the Valentine's Day Dance to which all parents were invited. Therefore, after emphatically asking Phil not to get me anything for Valentine's Day (since he gets me flowers and chocolate regularly on non-Valentine's days), I turned around and attended the Valentine's Day Dance with great enthusiasm. Of course commemorating the murder of some obscure Christian martyr with balloons, heart-shaped decoration an a merry festivity is a perfectly reasonable affair when it involves a group of adorable little kids with all kinds of disabilities and special needs and gives me the excuse to spend an extra hour with my daughter on her first day of school. Since we are easing Izzy into her new school career and she only spends three hours in class the first couple weeks, I was allowed to spend the remaining time in the school's lobby. I vowed that I wouldn't cause any disturbance and then happily sat in the hall while Izzy had circle time with the speech therapist and worked on some Valentine's Day craft project. She was all smiles when she came out of the classroom with glitter on her face. My assessment of Izzy's teacher was correct: she is indeed a fairy godmother, and I'm wondering to whom I can talk about possibly cloning her. While Izzy was in her reserved observation mode yesterday, her shyness greatly decreased today according to the official sources, which was also confirmed by my informants. When I picked the Bean up during lunch break, she had a ginormous smile on her glowing face, she was sitting up straight in her wheelchair beaming contentment, vocalizing and making happy sounds. I had about an hour and a half at home before I had to return to the school to bring Izzy home, and I spent the first couple minutes aimlessly wandering around, wondering what I should do with all this time that I suddenly had for myself. It was just enough time to call our insurance company to sort out some issues. I really know how to have fun.