* * * * * the cops were gone , laura and the girls were gone and the boys were back to kp duties , albeit doing it with far less enthusiasm and this was because their minds were filled with their mother 's antics but also because wiping down tables and cleaning dishes had lost its luster ( as it had a tendency to do , no matter what age you were ) and i was in the back , icing sugar cookies when my phone on the stainless steel table rang .