Just when I was getting use to an empty nest — the youngest of our three children started college last fall — the nest isn't empty anymore.

After months of adjusting to a scaled-back lifestyle, a quieter home, simpler meals and fewer loads of laundry, the house is full again, and I'm adjusting all over again.

My daughter is back for the summer, having finished her freshman year. She's working three jobs and is in and out of the house in a flurry of her own activity.

My son, Luke, who graduated from college this spring, has moved back home and plans to stay, as he puts it, "for only one year." He wants to pay down some of his college loans before moving into an apartment, and, if the truth be told, has found that living under Dad and Mom's roof isn't so bad after all.

His return brings with it his high school buddies, who keep later hours than I do, and a girlfriend who, unofficially, has her own place at the dinner table.

And adding to the stepped-up activity, my niece-in-law, who graduated from law school in Illinois this spring, is staying with us this summer. She and her husband will be moving to Pennsylvania next year, and she's taking a preparatory class for the Pennsylvania bar exam, so she's been bunking down on a mattress in the family room. She spends most of her time with her nose pressed to thick legal books, and the main challenge with her presence is reminding others that "Liz is trying to study."

Mornings are particularly difficult as the five of us scramble to get out the door, all within the same hour. There can be a lineup for the shower, and then a dash to the refrigerator to find food for our lunches. Styrofoam containers from a restaurant are the first to go, then leftovers from the previous night's meal. There's always lunch meat for sandwiches, but making them takes more time than anyone has.

All this means that I now buy groceries in bulk, like little yogurt cups by the case and peanut butter in 2-pound tubs. When I found watermelons on sale earlier this week, I told my husband, "Buy two." And keeping the fruit bowl on our kitchen counter filled would require a second mortgage.

While having enough food in the refrigerator is my biggest concern, my husband, Steve, is more troubled by the six cars parked in the driveway — seven, if you count the girlfriend's. Hemmed in by the house and a steep hill, our driveway is long and narrow, and the cars have to be parked one behind the other. Getting a car in an out of the garage is almost impossible, a problem Steve refers to as "driveway constipation."

When Steve and I pulled into the driveway recently after a quiet dinner at a restaurant, there were two cars blocking his side of the garage. In a matter of seconds, Luke emerged from the house and began backing the cars out of the way. As I rolled down my window to thank him, I saw a big grin on his face as he spotted the Styrofoam box on the backseat of the car.

No matter what the temperature, I think it's going to be a long, hot summer.

Linda K. Schmitmeyer is a freelance writer living in Middlesex Township. Her e-mail address is lks260@zoominternet.net.