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Using a slow cooker to make family meals is an absolute staple for so many down South. It delivers the most tender pork ribs, fall-off-the-bone chicken, and belly-warming soups and stews to absolute perfection. And with minimal effort. If you don’t have a slow cooker in your kitchen, you’re missing out. But right now, you can change all that because the popular Crockpot 7-Quart Manual Slow Cooker is officially on sale ahead of Labor Day, and shoppers say it’s “everything you need in a Crockpot....

You can now take a trip to an art museum without leaving the comfort of home thanks to the new Virtual Online Museum of Art. The museum—known as VOMA for short—is free to visit, making the works included in the museum accessible to a wide audience. It opened in September and has become a fascinating at-home experience for art lovers around the world. The museum’s creator, Stuart Semple, worked with Emily Mann, the architect, Lee Cavaliere, former curator of the London Art Fair and current director of VOMA, and a team of programmers and designers to bring VOMA to (virtual) life....

As far as floral gifts go around the holidays, we are big fans of paperwhite bulbs. So easy to grow, and resulting in a happy white bloom with a lovely scent, this plant has broad appeal. Easy to Grow Floral Décor At Southern Living, we think about Christmas all year round. Once the current year’s December issue is shipped off to press, it’s time to start planning for the next. Last holiday season, I made it my mission to put some of what I’d been researching and writing about to practice and decorate my apartment....

For Caroline Harper Knapp, finally settling into her family’s Houston dream home in late summer felt like the ultimate early Christmas gift, and the holiday season couldn’t come soon enough. She had welcomed her third baby while juggling the demands of a new house with a long list of delayed renovations. “It was a long process, but we were able to turn it into exactly what we wanted,” she says. Here, Knapp shares how she dressed up her space with sophisticated style and plays with an unexpected blue Christmas palette....

Recognizing the toll that months of social distancing is taking on its residents, Victorian Senior Care facilities in North Carolina put out a call for pen pals to help ease their loneliness and isolation amid the coronavirus pandemic. Administrators at one of the assisted living facilities in Cary were looking for ways to lift the resident’s spirits a few weeks ago, when they came up with the idea to connect residents with pen pals....

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” As the world confronts the frightening new reality caused by the novel coronavirus, we’re holding this Fred Rogers quote particularly close. Each night this week, the city of Atlanta has been coming together to thank their helpers: the healthcare professionals on the front lines of the COVID-19 crisis....

With its signature fizzy, sweet, cherry-cola zing, Dr Pepper has long been a Southern-favorite soda. First created over 130 years ago in Waco, Texas, by a pharmacist to serve at his drugstore counter, it’s officially the nation’s oldest major soft drink. (Yes, even including Coca-Cola.) And while we still get to enjoy each of the 23 mystery flavors in the modern-day can, the original recipe made with pure cane sugar is where Southerners’ hearts really lie—served in an iced-down glass bottle, of course....

Strawberry season is the sweet reward for the long slog that is winter. After months of crisp, frigid days, the earth spoils us with a fresh start—and a new growing season. Strawberries are typically the first fruit to ripen in the spring—rhubarb may out pace the berries in some places—but strawberries are typically the first warmer weather crop to show up in farmers’ markets and grocery stores. Of course, thanks to advances in growing techniques and transportation, fresh strawberries are available virtually year-round, no matter your corner of the country....

Down on the corner of Coliseum St. and Washington Ave. in New Orleans, Louisiana, across from the Lafayette Cemetery sits another local icon: Commander’s Palace. You can’t miss it; the Victorian mansion (more accurately, it’s been called “Victorian Cuckoo”) is painted a vibrant, deep teal, complemented by an equally cheery white-striped awning. You’ll know you’re there by the crowd of tourists and locals alike that have flocked to the Garden District landmark....

There’s nothing quite like the nostalgia of an old cookbook. Though sadly, decades of use, spills, and neglect mean that few stand the test of time. Sure, getting your hands on a well-preserved copy of beloved classics like Charleston Receipts and Tea-Time at the Masters will cost you, but they aren’t the only vintage cookbooks out there waiting to transport you to culinary days gone by. OpenCulture recently highlighted a free and easy way for hungry history enthusiasts to access tens of prized vintage cookbooks—no bookstore visits required!...

Eight-year-old Nathan Garner gets a cheeseburger at McDonald’s more often than his parents care to admit. “It’s among the few foods he’ll eat,” mom Lindsey explained on Facebook. But it’s hard to fault the Texas third-grader’s picky eating habits when they’ve led to one of the cutest friendships we’ve seen in a while. According to Lindsey, Nathan has been ordering his own cheeseburgers from the McDonald’s at SW Loop 820 and South Hullen Street in Fort Worth for the past two years....

As a child learning to cook, you have many questions: Sugar or no sugar in the cornbread? How to release the cake from the pan without tearing it? How to keep the fried chicken from getting soggy? But you probably never asked how to safely thaw ground beef because, quite frankly, there didn’t seem to be a question. Your mom always tossed the frozen package of meat on the countertop in the morning, and by evening it thawed out enough to cook....

Former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts hasn’t been with the Philadelphia Eagles long, but the Texas-born athlete is already making and impact on the community. Hurts reportedly reached out to Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) to see if he could get involved with the organization. The pediatric cancer charity introduced the rookie NFL quarterback to the family of 7-year-old Erick, an Eagles fan battling a form of cancer called Rhabdomyosarcoma....

Spending an extended period of time without seeing your loved ones has been one of the toughest ensuing realities the coronavirus crisis has created. Celebrities aren’t immune to this difficulty, and on the TODAY show, co-host Jenna Bush Hager opened up about how sweet the reunion was with her parents, George W. Bush and Laura Bush, after such a long time apart. “I got to have a little bit of time with my family last week....

Sure, Bridgerton is fictional, historical, and based in London, but don’t let that keep you from living out your Shonda Rhimes fantasy right here at home. Fans of the show need not look further than small-town Texas for a stateside slice of Regency Era Britain. Lords and ladies make haste to tiny Burnet, Texas! Here, just outside the fair city of Austin, you will find an escape worthy of Lady Whistledown herself....

Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale goes by many names. Last week, for one couple displaced by Hurricane Ida, the legendary Texas businessman became “Santa Claus.” Michele Thomisee told KHOU 11 that she and her husband lost nearly everything when the category 4 storm destroyed their home in Houma, Louisiana, back in August. “You just expect the storm to pass, and things go back to normal in the in the next few weeks....

From the way we work to the way we celebrate; the coronavirus pandemic has changed nearly every aspect of our lives. Unsurprisingly, fears of the deadly virus have also impacted the way we shop. According to an Adobe Analytics study released last week, social distancing has Americans buying a lot more groceries and far fewer pants online. That’s right y’all, Americans are dropping their drawers. As work-from-home guidelines extend into their second month, consumer buying habits have shifted towards more comfortable clothes....

Use pots en masse for a burst of color. Vary the shapes of your containers, and fill them with pansies and parsley for an abundant display. This arrangement will last until summer arrives. Containers bursting with annuals and perennials put the focus where you want it. Whether they dress up the front entry, serve as the centerpiece of an outdoor dining table, or lead you toward the end of a path, pots play an important part in the landscape....

Have you made your Thanksgiving sides ahead of time? If not, Ree Drummond has a suggestion of how to spice up your stuffing. Of course, she calls it “dressing” and we know that this dressing vs. stuffing is a timeless debate. But whatever you call it where you’re from, we can all agree that it is an essential side for your Thanksgiving table. If you aren’t using a beloved family recipe, may we suggest taking a cue from the Queen of Pawhuska and kicking up the heat level?...

Hard-boiled eggs are a staple in our kitchens. High in protein and nutrients, hard-boiled eggs are a great snack to keep on hand in your household—not to mention all the delicious dishes you can make with them. From egg salad to deviled eggs, the appetizer possibilities are endless. Let us bust a common myth right here: You don’t need any fancy gadgets to make a perfect batch of hard-boiled eggs. Sure, there are plenty of specialty tools on the market that promise to cook your eggs to perfection or peel them without any hassle, but in our experience, all you really need to make a great batch of hard-boiled eggs is a big pot of water, a pair of hands, and a little bit of wisdom....