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Have you ever heard of pickleball? Contrary to its name, it doesn’t have anything to do with the jar of crunchy sandwich fillers in your refrigerator. Pickleball is a sport that’s gaining in popularity throughout the country, and these days, it’s really catching on in the South. It’s a fun game that combines elements of several sports, including tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. What is Pickleball? Pickleball is usually played on a tennis or badminton-size court—either indoors or outdoors—and requires a net across the court, much like tennis....

Folks might go on and on about all the famous watering holes in Texas, to which we say “cheers,” but we’re here to talk about something else entirely. Namely, the most famous chili hole. In the shadow of the Texas State Capitol building—the one Texans will never let us forget is actually taller than the United States Capitol in D.C.—there sits a hole-in-the-wall restaurant and bar that’s been around since 1976, just a year before chili was declared the official state food of Texas....

Imagine the smell of baking spices, crisp pine tree needles, and holly berries. You were just transported to Christmas morning, right? While you typically need freshly made desserts and a real tree to infuse your home with these festive scents, there’s a fun and creative way to make your home smell like the holidays—and it simply requires a little DIY know-how. We’re talking about homemade wax melts, and you can make a few dozen of your own with this holly berry balsam wax melt kit from Wholesale Supplies Plus....

Louisiana is chock-full of distinct holiday traditions, from festive boat parades to lively Christmas Eve bonfires. But for one Louisiana town—the oldest town in the Louisiana Purchase, to be exact—it’s about draping its cobblestone streets with over 300,000 twinkling lights and lush boughs of garland, sipping on creamy eggnog daiquiris, munching on piping hot meat pies, and watching fireworks light up the night sky while perched on the riverbanks. As laidback and languid as this small town is, Natchitoches doesn’t take it easy when it comes to Christmas....

The federal government finally followed suit and declared December 25 a public holiday in 1870. The New York Times left many people scratching their heads on November 30, 2016, with this challenging clue to its crossword puzzle: “First state to declare Christmas a legal holiday.” Can you guess the seven-letter answer? It’s Alabama! That’s right—the 22nd state declared Christmas a legal holiday in 1836, according to Al.com. The federal government finally followed suit and announced December 25 a public holiday in 1870....

There’s just something about a small-town Christmas. Maybe it’s the nostalgia of a Main Street draped in lights and Santa riding into town during the annual parade that makes us feel all Mayberry inside. We love that feeling this time of year. For several years now, Savannah, Tennessee, has been celebrating Christmas on Main, bringing lights and train rides and Christmas movies and general holiday to-doing downtown on Friday and Saturday nights....

Today, the word “salad” means something fresh—a tangle of kale with cubes of avocado and toasted bread, or a platter of sliced tomatoes strewn with torn herbs, or a bowl of juicy summer berries and sliced peaches. In general, if you’re eating a salad, you’re at least attempting to be healthy. (Never mind the bacon and ranch dressing and cubes of Cheddar in there, too…) Just a few decades ago, this was not always the case....

Chris Shepherd, executive chef and owner of Houston’s Underbelly Hospitality, knows his stuff in the kitchen. And Shake Shack knows how to serve up a heck of a sandwich. Recently, the two came together and created quite the dish to kick off a series for the fast food company of chef sandwiches to benefit charities nationwide. The Southern Smoke Chicken Sandwich, was sold last Thursday, March 4, at Montrose and Rice Village Shake Shack locations in Houston....

Drinking milk punch on Christmas morning is a treasured and respected tradition in my family. It is the first sign that Santa came and the first of many “Cheers!” of the day. We start drinking it right after coffee, and it holds us over until Dad’s pork tenderloin biscuits come off the grill. This cocktail of whole milk, Brandy, confectioners sugar, and nutmeg goes a long way in spreading joy on Christmas morning in my family....

Dolly Parton may be the busiest woman on the planet. Just in the last month she’s announced an expanded version of her 2020 Christmas album, A Holly Dolly Christmas Ultimate Deluxe will arrive in October, she launched a brand new pet apparel line, Doggy Parton, and now the country music queen has bestowed upon us yet one more gift. Parton announced Wednesday that she will release Diamonds & Rhinestones: The Greatest Hits Collection on November 18....

On childhood trips to my grandmother Mimi’s house, choosing a snack from the refrigerator was a game of roulette. With leftovers stored in various reusable containers—most of which were the rinsed-out tubs of Country Crock butter spread—scavenging for a bite to eat often involved pulling back the lid of nearly every vessel in there, in hopes that one of them would hold the butter beans. My grandmother was hardly unique in her steadfast reuse of Country Crock tubs....

Think your tastebuds are in tip-top shape? The folks are Turkey Hill are looking to put your talent to the test with a mystery flavor ice cream challenge. Discerning dessert detectives from across the nation can get in on the fun by purchasing the new limited-edition ice cream and making their best guess as to its flavor. Those who get it right will be entered into a drawing to receive free Turkey Hill ice cream for life!...

Grammy and Emmy-award-winning musician and actor Harry Connick Jr. joins host Sid Evans on Biscuits & Jam to talk about growing up in New Orleans, his new spiritual album, and how he and his daughter have shown their gratitude to essential workers across the country over the last year. Get to Know Harry Connick Jr. A star of music, television, film, and Broadway, Harry Connick Jr. trained under legendary pianist ​Ellis Marsalis ​and became a household name in the ’90s with crossover hit songs like “It Had to Be You....

…and then there were heart-shaped succulents! Though we’ve recently added pink succulents to our collection (see our video below) and planted a mix of succulents in containers to spruce up our abodes, it’s clear we’ll now have to add these darling heart-shaped varieties to our fold. We first became aware of these plants in a story that came onto our radars from House Beautiful, and we only wish we had learned about these beautiful succulents earlier....

Come you-know-what or high water, women like to have their hair done—which makes it pretty wild to think that at any given moment, most of us are only a couple weeks away from showing our true hair color. It’s not a bad thing, per se. Just the truth, Ruth. Preventing Damage with At-Home Techniques We can at least make a fresh haircut last much longer than that, with the grace of anti-breakage hair masks and heat damage-reversing serums, as well as with the help of an at-home trim during times when we just can’t make it to the hair salon....

This was a doozy, for more reasons than one. Beyond Southern women being a rather stubborn bunch when it comes to their beauty routines—if it works, it works—curling hair can also be very specific to each person, depending on what look you’re going for and which tools you choose to use. However, after years of at-home testing, there are certain tips that I’ve come to know as steadfast guidelines whenever I’m trying to get the perfect curl that looks good and lasts all day....

For many florists, Valentine’s Day is a crucial money making time of year for their business. But a floral shop in Vergie, Kentucky, chooses to mark the holiday by giving back to an often-overlooked segment of the population. For the second year in a row, Reed Family Floral’s “Adopt a Resident” program allows community members to purchase a single-rose arrangement to be delivered to a nursing home resident on Valentine’s Day....

Staff at one South Carolina animal rescue are doing everything they can to make sure a senior dog with terminal cancer is getting the most out of his final days on Earth. Teddy has been at the Humane Society of North Myrtle Beach since he was abandoned there in July. “We came in one morning, heard some barking and he was out there,” Meaghan Pitman, the shelter’s marketing manager, told WSAV....

Doctors, nurses, grocery store employees, pharmacists, delivery workers, janitorial staff, and countless other first responders top the list of people who deserve our gratitude right now. Another group that’s earned a big thank-you? Our nation’s educators. “While we are all homeschooling/remotely/digitally educating our kids, if you need assistance with understanding something that has been assigned for your child, or if you need more resources, just give me a shout!” You may have seen this viral post copy and pasted to a friend’s status as you scrolled through your Facebook newsfeed last week....

Most people go their whole lives without ever witnessing the end of a rainbow. But not photographers Michael and Tracy Eager—the lucky couple from Delaware who found a proverbial pot of gold during a recent trip to the Outer Banks. It had been raining for three days straight when the Eagers set out for Pea Island on October 13 with hopes of catching a beautiful sunrise. “Anxious to get out, we went even though the sky was ominous....