Shamus noticed Carmela standing alone and casually walked over to join her. Touching her shoulder gently, he asked, “Are you okay?”

She managed a smile. “I’m fine.”

“God, you’re feisty.” There was nothing but admiration in his voice.

Her smile wavered. “I am? Really?”

Shamus snorted. “ ’Course you are.” He paused, gazed down at his shoes. Normally talkative and glib, Shamus seemed at a loss for words.

Carmela put a hand on Shamus’s jacket, then walked her fingers up his lapel. “You don’t really look like a mime, you know.”

A smile twitched on his face. “Thanks. You had me worried.” Shamus looked suddenly sheepish. “Carmela… I didn’t mean those things I said before. You’re still very much a part of the family.”

Carmela’s voice was soft, barely above a whisper. “I know.”

They stood for a few moments, shoulders touching. Carmela noticed that Ava was snuggled in the protective arms of Chef Ricardo. She grinned to herself. Some matchmaker she was. She’d had her eye on Lieutenant Babcock for Ava, but Ava had ended up with the hot-tempered chef. That was the thing about chemistry between men and women. Kapow-you never knew what would happen.

“I’ve been thinking,” said Carmela.

“About what?” asked Shamus.

“A joint photography show.”

A look of surprise spread across Shamus’s handsome face. “Aren’t you the creative thinker.”

“Of course, I’ll have to go meet with Clark Berthume. Show him your stuff, try to get him to agree to it…,” said Carmela.

“He will,” said Shamus determinedly. “You’re a world-champion finagler, Carmela. Always have been. You can talk anybody into anything.”

“You really think so?” said Carmela.

Shamus nodded vehemently. “Oh yeah.”

They stood together in silence, shoulders and hips touching now.

Hmm, wondered Carmela. Could I talk Shamus into giving it another shot? Into giving us another shot? She gave him a sideways glance. It’s sure worth a try, she decided. Well worth a try.

You can use your favorite rubber stamps to decorate beverage glasses, glass votive candles, or even mirrors and windows. When it’s time to clean up, colorful stamp pad ink can be removed in a flash using ordinary glass cleaner.

Using a piece of fabric as background for your photographs adds texture, dimension, and color. Also consider snippets of embroidery, antique lace, scraps of baby clothing, or a piece from a wedding veil.

Glassine envelopes, incorporated into your scrapbook pages, are perfect for holding photos, old letters, valentines, beads, trinkets, sand dollars, a bird feather, dried rose petals, a single earring, etc. Envelopes also give your scrapbooks a fun, interactive quality.

Scrapbook pages are more interesting when you tell the complete story surrounding an event. Get pictures of the before, the during, and the after. For example, a page detailing a child’s birthday could be told with the before (getting dressed or decorating), the during (the party), and the after (the family dog lapping a plate of cake crumbs).

The same scrapbooking techniques you’ve perfected for your albums can also be used to create beautiful collages that can be framed. Family photos, old letters, and precious documents can be mounted together in a picture frame, then displayed on a wall or desk.

Use your paper punches to create other interesting shapes. For example, if you have a heart punch and a circle punch, you can create a flower. Punch out a single circle to use as the center, then a dozen or so heart shapes to use as petals.

Since so many family events center around food, be sure to include recipes in your scrapbook. Use colorful recipe cards or print your recipe on a die-cut (a nice big apple, for example!).

POPOVERS

4 eggs

2 cups milk

3 tbsp. butter, melted

2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. salt ½ cup pecans, finely chopped

HONEY BUTTER

2 tbsp. honey ½ cup butter, softened

Stir honey into the ½ cup softened butter, then cover and chill. Whisk eggs, milk, and melted butter together in a large bowl. Add flour and salt, stirring until smooth. Stir in pecans. Spoon batter into 12 (6 oz.) greased custard cups, filling each cup halfway and placing them on a baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 40 minutes or until firm. Serve immediately with honey butter.

12 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped

1 ½ cups sugar ½ cup fresh lemon juice

Combine ingredients in a heavy pan and cook over low heat, stirring often, for about 10 minutes. When apples begin to break down, increase heat to medium and cook, still stirring, for another 25 minutes or until thickened. Spoon apple mixture into hot sterilized jars and seal. Yields about 6 cups.

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1 ½ cups whipping cream

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, then add sugar and lemon juice. Stir constantly for 6 or 7 minutes or until mixture turns a rich caramel color. Add whipping cream, a little at a time, and continue stirring. Cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat, pour into sterilized jars, and seal. Yields about 3 cups.

4 tbsp. butter

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced green pepper, chopped

1 tsp. salt

Dash of pepper

Pinch of Cajun seasonings

1 can tomatoes (14 oz.)

1 lb. shrimp

2 cups cooked rice

Melt butter in large pan. Add onion, garlic, green pepper, salt, pepper, Cajun seasonings, and tomatoes (including juice). Simmer for 12 minutes. Add shrimp and continue simmering until shrimp are cooked through. Pour over rice. Serves 4.

1 tbsp. butter

7 oz. duck liver, cut into bite-size bits

2 tsp. whole-grain mustard

1 tsp. fresh chopped parsley

2 tbsp. Marsala wine

2 tsp. white wine vinegar

Salad greens

Heat butter in frying pan, add liver, and sizzle until sealed. Blend together all the other ingredients except salad greens and add to pan, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Spoon the duck liver over a bowl of salad greens and serve immediately.