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A fun-loving mama bear and her cub delighted onlookers with their antics at Isaac Dickson Elementary School in Asheville, North Carolina, this week. Fifth-grade teacher Betsie Stockslager Emry recorded the pair having fun on the school’s playground—even sliding down the slides!—from behind a window after her students had gone home for the day. “This made my day,” Emry wrote alongside the adorable clip on Facebook. “I love how the mama goes down the big slide and quickly runs to the smaller slide — only to bear hug the little one as they make it to the bottom....

This news is for anyone who has ever considered starting their day off with a sweet, delicious Frosty. So, now that everyone’s here, let us introduce you to your new favorite breakfast treat: Kellogg’s Wendy’s Frosty Chocolatey Cereal. Yes, really. Born out of a collaboration between Wendy’s and Kellogg’s, the new, limited-edition cereal packs the delicious taste of a Wendy’s Frosty into crispy cereal bites. It’s the biggest thing in breakfast since Kellogg’s Little Debbie collab!...

First of all, I don’t quite understand not using a top sheet. If you aren’t using one, are you washing your comforter, quilt, coverlet, or duvet weekly? Didn’t think so. Listen to your mama and slap that top sheet back on for cleanliness’ sake, but when you do, go ahead and heed one more little nugget of advice straight from Mama herself and put that sheet on upside down. It never dawned on me until just a few years ago that some people do not, in fact, put their top sheets on upside down—or, in my view, right side up....

With a nickname like the Jewel of the Blue Ridge Mountains, it’s easy to see why Smith Mountain Lake is such a beloved place for Virginians. The 20,000-acre lake stretches out over 40 miles with 500 miles of shoreline, and it’s all nestled into the loving embrace of the mighty Blue Ridge Mountains. The visually arresting combination of sparkling deep blue water and rolling green hills is truly a sight to behold....

Every December, Richmond’s many distinctive neighborhoods have an almost otherworldly allure—like the magical pages of a children’s pop-up book. Tiny white lights illuminate the trees that line historic streets, colorful front doors are adorned with waxy magnolia wreaths, century-old wrought iron gates wear garlands like necklaces, and store windows display scenes borrowed from vintage Christmas postcards. In Virginia’s capital—called “RVA” by locals—the holidays present the best opportunities to take full advantage of its pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods....

We stand by the expression that no matter the season, there’s always something to celebrate. However, this saying rings especially true during the holidays—a time of year when our calendars are packed with work events, family festivities, and seasonal fun. During the holiday party circuit, which officially runs from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve, festivities can begin to blur together as the nights are dark, drinks are poured, and invites start to stack up....

They say that everything comes back in style eventually, and conversation pits are the latest trend to have a resurgence. That’s right, conversation pits—those sunken living rooms outfitted with comfy sofas—are back. Again. While conversation pits had their heyday in the 1970s, they are trending again. I-D magazine thinks the resurgence in conversation pits may be related to the pandemic with stay-at-home orders leaving us all “hankering after connection, socialization, [and] space to breathe....

On March 30th, Paul and Gladys Szápáry unceremoniously vacated their family’s third-floor apartment of the Breakers, the iconic Gilded Age mansion constructed by their great-grandfather, Cornelius Vanderbilt II, in 1893. (His younger brother, George Washington Vanderbilt II, built his own private paradise, The Biltmore, around the same time in North Carolina.) Like generations of Vanderbilts before them, the Szápárys spent summers in the Newport, Rhode Island “cottage” since birth. After the Preservation Society of Newport County purchased the home for $366,475 in 1972, however, the heirs were relegated to the mansion’s upper floor—which boasts eight bedrooms and views of the ocean....

Can we talk? Early fall in the South ain’t a great time for flowers. Months of heat and periodic drought turn many plants into botanical versions of grilled cheese. However, one perennial looks its best in the weeks ahead—angel’s trumpet. Angel’s Trumpet Colors and Size Native to Central and South America, angel’s trumpet (Brugmansia sp.) represents a group of semi-hardy, woody shrubs or small trees that bear enormous, fragrant blossoms shaped like trumpets or the gowns of angels....

Affordable and easy-to-cook eggs are a staple in most Southern kitchens. In fact, Americans eat roughly 280 eggs each year, according to USDA estimates. And you rarely need to repeat a recipe unless you want to. Eggs are remarkably versatile, too. Fried, poached, scrambled, quiched, or deviled, or incorporated into cakes, brownies, cookies, and beyond; chances are you add a dozen eggs to your cart nearly every trip to the supermarket....

Northwestern Alabama is an underrated part of the state that’s home to The Shoals, a community built around the Tennessee River that includes the towns of Florence, Muscle Shoals, Tuscumbia, and Sheffield. The largest of the four, with a population of about 40,000, is Florence. Named for the city in Italy, Florence, Alabama, was established in 1818 and is the county seat of Lauderdale County. Historically, Florence’s location on the river and later development of its railroads got the city on the map in the shipping industry....

Blue Bell’s Milk & Cookies flavor is back, y’all! Milk & Cookies, which boasts a delicious vanilla ice cream combined with chocolate chip cookies, is beloved by cookie monsters of all ages. Now, the Texas creamery has finally returned the crave-worthy dessert to store shelves. “It’s a simple idea of mixing two snack time favorites,” Carl Breed, general sales manager for Blue Bell, said in a news release. “However, the flavor is anything but simple....

Chick fil-A is ringing in spring with the addition of two seasonal menu items! After last year’s test run in Augusta, the Georgia-based chain is rolling out the Cloudberry Sunjoy beverage nationwide beginning Monday, April 25. The Cloudberry Sunjoy is a blend of Chick-fil-A’s classic lemonade and freshly brewed sweetened iced tea with the delicate flavors of cloudberry and cherry blossom. Cloudberries, which are native to the Arctic, can best be described as a cross between a raspberry and a red currant....

Think about it. What’s the one thing in your kitchen you use practically every day but rarely — if ever — clean? If you answered “my dish rack,” you’re singing a chorus with millions of others, darling. But does the idea of using a scrub brush and soap to spruce up the uniquely-shaped structure make you want to book it to your couch? We hear you. But sorry, folks, you should be cleaning this workhorse of a tool....

From barbecues and picnics to baseball games and concerts, I’ll find any reason to stay outdoors on a warm summer day. But with so many outdoor activities comes the inevitable sweat of runny makeup. I’m not much of a makeup gal. I like to stick to my five basics – concealer, mascara, brow gel, bronzer, and blush – but when I hear of a product that can prevent my face from looking like an oil slick in this heat, I have to give it a try....

It probably never occurred to you to take note of your microwave wattage. And if you’re anything like us, the odds of finding your microwave manual is somewhere between coffee-splattered takeout menus and zero. But then you run across a recipe or package instructions that tell you to microwave using a specific wattage, you’ll sure wish you knew what it was. So how do you find out? As Epicurious reported, you can simply open your microwave: “It’s usually on a label right on the door or inside it,” writes Genevieve Ko....

Next time you’re shopping for a houseplant, stop by the produce section at the grocery store and pick up a pineapple. Yes, you read that correctly. Once you have a pineapple, you can grow another one from the top. After chopping up the edible flesh, don’t toss the remnants away. Recycle the pineapple’s top by replanting it to regrow into a houseplant that will produce fruit. This easy indoor gardening method is a fun project for the whole family to take part in....

When Ivy Odom, our Test Kitchen pro and star of Hey Y’all, was growing up in Moultrie, Georgia, her parents would grow real rye grass to fill in her Easter morning basket. The Easter Bunny would hop on over and leave a basket filled with sweet treats and surprises in a basket filled with fresh blades of grass. That is one of her most memorable traditions from the holiday (along with the Pineapple Casserole her family always made and enjoyed)....

Sunflowers, herbs, and many other plants are easy to propagate. You can multiply them by sowing seeds, dividing bulbs and tubers, or starting cuttings from the stems or leaves of most herbaceous plants (plants without woody stems). Propagating roses takes a bit more effort because of their woody stems, but it’s a great way to add to your garden without breaking your budget. What to Know Before You Start Wild roses, known botanically as “species roses,” most shrub roses, and native roses are the best choices for this kind of propagation....

“It’s a repeat of what you see out the windows,” says designer Ashley Gilbreath of the framed botanicals hanging along the stairway of her Montgomery, Alabama, cottage. Situated in the foyer, the staircase (designed by architect Chris Tippett) is the focal point of the entryway, with the living and dining rooms set on either side. To fill the stairway’s big blank wall, Gilbreath took a cue from nature and hung a monochromatic arrangement of pressed botanicals....