serenity has been surrendered.

the children are back. they descended on the house in two parts. my mom picked the boys up, and i got sister2 from the bus. first they came, crashing through the screen doors, shouting out a greeting in their hoarse voices. then came the trunks, suitcases, and duffel bags, banging up the stairs, ruining the fresh coat of paint that was applied, only last week. trailing behind them, came the clothing that didn't fit into the suitcases, the extra oreos, the socks that didn't seem to belong to anyone in the house, and some other objects that were covered in too much dirt and mold to be identified. and lastly, came the lingering odor of camp. the smell of rotting wood, the damp scent of the outdoors, and the general aura of summer.

when my mom opened brother2's suitcase, a different kind of smell came out-the odor of boys clothing. clothing that's been worn and not washed. needless to say i skedaddled before i could get roped in to handling any of that stuff.

another way to tell that things are slowly getting back to a schedule-we are having suppers again. now this is NOT a slight against my mother. sister1 and i kind of requested the no-supper thing, so we would also feel like we were on vacation. tonight, the chore of making dinner fell on me. and that was when i made the discover that i do not like cooking. i don't mind baking-maybe I'd even say i enjoy it. but the cooking thing is not for me. i nearly had a nervous breakdown over the meatballs (for full details, see my aunt), although in the end, they did come out pretty good.

so as the laundry pile is slowly diminishing (although i can still hear the washing machine banging) and all the mattresses get returned to the proper room, and a collection of half-empty soap and shampoo bottles gathers in the corner of the shower, i must concede, that although it is yet another sign that the summer is ending, I'm glad that they're home.