Internet explorer process not showing

I am running Windows XP Pro SP1 and IE 6.0 SP1. Of late even i have multiple Internet Explorer browser windows up and running I do not see the iexplore.exe process in the task manager. The process that is growing in terms of memory / CPU is the explorer.exe process. Also, the various IE browser windows come in the explorer group (in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen). Has my configuration been changed somehow? Any ideas. Thanks