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It wouldn’t be summertime without delicious stuffed veggies. We love a long, leisurely summertime dinner spent on the patio. The only thing that makes it even more irresistible is if stuffed veggies are on the menu. Ensure they’re on the table all summer long with our simple tips for hollowing out veggies and stuffing them. It’s an easy and timesaving way to make the most of your fresh seasonal produce, and it is downright delicious....

My mom is the kind of person who buys flowers whenever she can. Growing up, we’d always have flowers on the coffee table, in the kitchen, in the bedroom — wherever she could find a space, she’d fill it with flowers. It’s practically kismet: Her name, Florentina, literally means “to bloom” in Italian. To this day, she still puts them everywhere. So when most locations that sold flowers in New York City closed due to the spread of coronavirus, she was alarmingly upset....

Why set your sights on the world when you can set them on the universe? Recently, we were excited to learn about French company Vaonis’ groundbreaking Vespera smart telescope device, which received CES’ prestigious Best of Innovation award in the digital imaging or photography category. We first caught wind of this innovative product from the editors over at Apartment Therapy, who sung the praises of this unique tool that transforms your smartphone into a telescope, complete with a tripod, USB wall charger, USB magnetic cable, and accompanying app for all your stargazing adventures, and now we can’t stop oohing and ahhing over it....

As we all adjust to these unsettling times with the coronavirus pandemic, the simple lift of some beautiful imagery can be the difference between a meltdown and powering through the day. At the very least, it can be a quick boost or a welcome distraction as you navigate your day. Once you’re done touring dreamy Southern gardens, taking that online quilt class, and streaming feel-good shows and movies galore, may we suggest a spin around Vatican City?...

People have strong opinions when it comes to pizza toppings. There are the toppings that most Americans generally deem acceptable, barring dietary restrictions: pepperoni, mushrooms, extra cheese. And then there are those that a not-so-silent majority tend to relegate to the no-fly list, like pineapple. But regardless of your stance on pineapple’s place on pizza, there’s no denying that pizza provides an exciting opportunity to experiment with what’s in season, and in the summer months, that means corn....

Last week, officers from the Atlanta Public Schools Police Department piled a different kind of weapon into their patrol cars: books. Atlanta Public Schools teamed up with Real Dads Read, an Atlanta-based arm of the non-profit Fathers Incorporated, to launch a fleet of “mobile units” to provide reading and study materials to young students during the summer months. According to a report by Northwest Evaluation Association, COVID-19 school closures have resulted in students losing 30% of reading gains and 50% of math skills....

When it comes to weather, you can be sure that Southerners have a few things to say. Geographically, the South experiences almost every type of weather one can imagine. In the summers, Southern states are sticky with heat and we get our fair share of tropical storms and hurricanes on the coast. In the fall, we watch the leaves turn on a dime across many of our great states. In the winters, we get our fair share of snowy dustings that stop traffic, even if it’s just one inch....

In July, we reported that a group of 4000 beagles was rescued by the Humane Society of the United States from the now-shuttered Envigo medical breeding research facility in Cumberland, Virginia. When a court ordered the facility to shut down, people across the South and the rest of the country stepped up to give those dogs happier lives and forever homes. Eighty-six of those beagles wound up at Richmond Animal Care and Control (RACC) and the folks there found homes for all of them....

The story of a big, fluffy dog named Lilo who recently found herself in a Chattanooga animal shelter has ended better than anyone could have hoped. After being abandoned by her owner, Lilo arrived at McKamey Animal Center (MAC) earlier this week with a handwritten note tied to her collar. “My name is Lilo. Please love me,” it began. The note went on to explain that her owner—a single mom of two—was experiencing homelessness and could no longer afford to keep her....

Beauty-industry veterans Celeste Lee (above left) and Lorrie King (above right) wanted products that actually worked for them. “About five or six years ago, we noticed that our friends were calling nearly every week and saying, ‘I’ve been using this great eye cream my whole life, and it’s not doing anything anymore,’ " recalls Lee, who says the culprit was perimenopause, the four- to ten-year time period before menopause occurs. “Most women don’t really know what goes along with it, except for hot flashes, but the truth of the matter is that one of the first signs is changing skin....

This has happened to all of us, even when we had the best of intentions. You put a package of ground beef in the refrigerator to thaw with plans of cooking it in the next day or so. But your plans change and you wonder what to do with the now-thawed meat. Is the meat still pink or turning a little gray? Is it still fresh, can you refreeze it, or should you go ahead and cook it up?...

Congratulations, you’re having a dinner party! Whether it’s your first time playing hostess or your fiftieth, there are plenty of stresses that accompany dinner party prep, but twirling up the table with pretty place settings and festive decorations shouldn’t be one of them. Candles are an easy way to add dimension and ambiance to your tablescape without breaking the bank. Plus, candlelight covers a multitude of sins, including that corner chest that you didn’t get around to dusting pre-party....

A beloved wild horse that roamed North Carolina’s Outer Banks for more than 20 years died Friday. Corolla Wild Horse Fund shared the sad news in a Facebook post Sunday. Amadeo, a 40-year-old blind mustang, is being remembered as “king of the beach” and the “heart and soul” of Corolla Wild Horse Fund. The post explained that Amadeo, who worked as an outreach ambassador for the Fund, became increasingly stiff in his rear legs and hips a few weeks ago and began to “slow down significantly....

Nearly all of your novels are set in coastal North Carolina. What does the Southern landscape add to your storytelling?This is a geographically beautiful area of the country, with beaches, wide, slow-moving rivers, and trees draped in Spanish moss. It’s blessed with true seasons, including a very long spring and a very long fall. And there are no big cities, only small towns with a slow pace. There’s a romance that makes it a great back-drop for a love story....

If you look at the back of a jar of honey, chances are you’ll see an expiration date. You might be tempted to toss the jar in the garbage and buy yourself a replacement if the date came and went months ago…but not so fast. You can still enjoy the health benefits of honey long after the expiration date. If you’ve ever wondered if honey expires, here’s what you need to know....

We’re still reeling from this morning’s Where the Crawdads Sing trailer premiere, and now our favorite actress, producer, and book club host Reese Witherspoon is giving us another reason to celebrate. Her media company Hello Sunshine will produce the film adaptation of Dolly Parton and James Patterson’s recently released novel Run, Rose, Run. Think you couldn’t be more excited? Think again. According to Entertainment Weekly, Dolly Parton is set to star in the movie!...

When feeding a crowd, it is always best to have too much turkey than not enough, don’t you think? Otherwise, how would you ever make those delicious leftover turkey sandwiches? But how do you know how much turkey per person to prepare? Here is a quick rule-of-thumb to remember when planning your holiday menu. How Much Turkey Do You Need Per Person? In order to have plenty of Thanksgiving turkey for dinner, with enough for leftovers and to-go plates, remember this simple rule: one pound of turkey per person....

Whether you call it a layer cake, tiered cake, stack cake, or Mama’s secret recipe; making a layer cake is easier than it looks if you’re armed with the right strategy. We dare say the hardest party might be figuring out what kind of cake you want to make in the first place. Once your layers have cooled, follow these steps to learn how to stack a cake (or build a cake) like a pro....

Created in 1943 to soothe the nerves of cold and weary airline passengers near Limerick, Ireland, Irish coffee has continued to provide warmth and comfort to those, both Irish and those not-so-lucky, ever since. Not reserved just for St. Patrick’s Day, Irish coffee is served on all grand occasions, sad occasions, and whenever you just need a little pick-me-up. All you need for a delicious mug is coffee, whiskey, sugar, and cream....

Welcome to the new year, ahem, decade, where you’re likely starting to already dream about your next vacation. Well, travel booking giant KAYAK has launched their annual Travel Hacker Guide, and the top wallet-friendly trips have us particularly excited. Securing the coveted #1 spot? None other than Orlando, Florida. According to their data, three nights in a hotel in Orlando, Florida, plus airfare, is said to cost 47% less than the average getaway in North America....