If you’re ready to refresh your furniture, don’t fall into the trap of relying on familiar colors for your new sofa, dining set or dresser.

For 2025, interior designers expect some over-played colors to leave as warm and comforting hues, such as terracotta and sage, continue to grow in popularity. These colors are soothing, restorative and neutral enough to pair well with a range of different palettes.

The same cannot be said for some of the bold and cool colors that interior design chooses to top the list of outdated furniture colors in 2025. Find out why these popular colors of the past are overplayed and what colors to look for in the future.

White

Designer Lesley Ray says it’s time to say goodbye to the squeaky clean look of white furniture and bring in more strategic color options for an organized and comfortable home.

“Stark white is outdated because it doesn’t reflect the occupants’ personalities,” says Leslie Ray, licensee. “White has traditionally been associated with minimalism and contemporary design, but now homeowners are looking to warmer tones and textures to create more personalized and welcoming spaces.”

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Grey

Gray has displaced typical neutrals like beige and black, but this furniture color trend is poised to retreat.

“Goodbye gray! Gray was like that 5 years ago and it’s held up well, but it’s time to move on to warmer tones,” says interior designer Tracy Metro.

Make your couch warmer and cozier by choosing gray upholstery, or choose a classic, natural finish for your dining table, or paint your dresser a soft, neutral shade like sage green or white.

Red

Bold hues have had a great moment with new trends like maximalism, but these colors are on the wane in favor of more neutral pieces of furniture.

Red, in particular, is on the list of outdated furniture colors in 2025.

“The red has to be replaced because it’s too aggressive for houses,” says Ray. “Red evokes energy and passion, but in modern interiors it is too stimulating for a calming environment.”

navy

Navy is also on designer lists of outdated furniture colors in 2025. While it’s considered a classic choice that’s enjoying waves of popularity, the tide is turning for navy, and designer Zak Gilby explains why:

“With more and more people moving towards the growing trend of neutral, earthy colors, there is less and less interest in cool colors like grey, navy and white.”

Warmer colors—like taupe, sage, beige, and terracotta—create a relaxing and grounded atmosphere in the home, says Gilby. Navy, on the other hand, evokes a sense of formality that is less sought after in design today.

Listeriosis is a foodborne illness that can be very dangerous during pregnancy. Although rare, a Listeria infection in pregnancy can cause a range of problems, including miscarriage, premature birth and serious health problems for the baby.

“While listeria rarely causes severe illness in healthy adults, due to serious complications that can affect pregnancy, women should avoid foods at high risk of contamination and be alert to reports of outbreaks and food recalls,” says Shannon Smith, Ph.D. an ob/gyn at Brigham Faulkner Ob/gyn Associates and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board.

To avoid listeria and other germs that cause food poisoning during pregnancy, skip deli meats and cheeses (unless steamed) and unpasteurized dairy products and juices. Thoroughly cook meat, poultry, fish and eggs. Store food at low temperatures and do not keep it too long before eating it. When preparing food at home, be sure to wash your hands, cooking surfaces and utensils thoroughly in hot, soapy water.

What is listeriosis?

Listeriosis is a serious infection you can get from eating food contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes.

Pregnant women and their developing babies – as well as newborns, people with weakened immune systems and the elderly – are particularly vulnerable Listeria infection. In fact, pregnant women are 10 times more likely to contract listeriosis. Latin American pregnant women face an even greater risk and are 24 times more likely to contract listeriosis.

The primary threat to a pregnant woman is the devastating effect listeriosis can have on her pregnancy and baby.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 1,600 people contract listeriosis in the United States each year. Approximately one-sixth of the reported cases occur in pregnant women.

Listeriosis symptoms

Listeriosis symptoms may appear a week to a month after consuming contaminated food, or they may not appear for several months. Many pregnant women have no listeria symptoms or only mild flu-like symptoms if they become infected. Even without symptoms, you can pass the bacteria to your baby.

Symptoms of listeriosis may include:

Call your doctor right away if you have any symptoms of listeriosis.

How can listeriosis affect me and my baby?

Unless you have an underlying illness that affects your immune system, listeriosis is unlikely to seriously affect your health during pregnancy. (Some pregnant women who have listeriosis suffer from dehydration from vomiting and diarrhea – but this is uncommon.)

However, the infection can have serious consequences for your developing baby, especially if you don’t get treatment in time.

Listeria can infect the placenta, amniotic fluid and baby; can cause miscarriage or stillbirth. Infected babies who survive are likely to be born prematurely. Many will be born seriously ill or become ill soon after birth, with problems that can include blood infection, difficulty breathing, fever, skin sores, multiple organ lesions and central nervous system infections such as meningitis. Some infected babies will die or suffer long-term effects, such as intellectual disability; paralysis; attacks; blindness; or brain, kidney, or heart problems.

Pregnant women are 10 times more likely to contract listeriosis.

– American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Some infants of infected mothers appear healthy at birth but show signs of infection, usually meningitis, a week or even several weeks after birth. This so-called “late listeriosis” can be the result of infection of the baby during delivery. (An infected woman may have the bacteria in her cervix, vagina, or gastrointestinal tract.)

Not all babies born to mothers infected with listeriosis while pregnant will have problems. If the mother is treated with antibiotics during pregnancy, the baby can avoid infection.

How is listeriosis treated?

Your doctor will give you a blood test to confirm that you have listeriosis. If it’s positive, you’ll be given IV antibiotics, which will treat your infection and can help protect your baby.

An ultrasound can check for problems and allow your care team to see how your baby is growing.

After birth, your baby will have a blood test to see if he is infected Listeria. If they are, they will also receive antibiotics.

How to avoid food poisoning during pregnancy

To avoid infection with Listeria and other foodborne bacteria and viruses, follow these guidelines when selecting, storing, and preparing food:

Avoid unsafe food

You can’t tell if food is hidden Listeria by sight or smell. Therefore, it is important for pregnant women to be aware of the foods that are most likely to be contaminated and to avoid them. Stay away from:

• Shares meat and cheese, unless you reheat them. Do not eat cold cuts or deli meats, deli cheeses, chilled pâtés or meat spreads, or chilled smoked or pickled fish unless they are cooked until they are steaming hot (say, on a pizza or in a hot sandwich). And even though the hot dogs are ready, be sure to cook them until they are steaming hot. Canned or shelf-stable products that do not need to be refrigerated should be good to eat.

• Cold smoked fish that is not shelf stable. It’s okay to eat canned and shelf-stable tuna, salmon, and other fish. But cold-smoked fish that is not shelf-stable (labeled “Refrigerate”) is not safe unless it is cooked (for example, in a pan). These items are often found at deli or seafood counters and may be labeled “new style,” “lox,” “kippered,” or “smoked.”

• Prepared salads and wraps. Stay away from prepared salads in delis and supermarkets, especially those containing eggs, chicken or seafood. (Even vegetable salads can contain listeria, still.) Also, skip the potato salad that isn’t on ice at the picnic and the meat that isn’t hot at the buffet. Unless you’re sure the food is safely prepared and has been sitting for less than two hours – one hour on a very hot day – it’s not worth the risk.

• Unpasteurized (raw) milk. This includes raw milk and raw milk cheeses. Do not eat soft cheese such as feta, brie or camembert; cheese with blue veins; or Mexican-style cheese such as queso blanco, queso fresco, or panela (queso panela), unless the label clearly states that it is made from pasteurized milk. Fresh cheese, ricotta, cream cheese, processed cheese (such as American), and hard cheese (such as cheddar and parmesan) are considered safe, as are cultured dairy products such as yogurt and buttermilk.

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• Unpasteurized juice. Almost all juice sold in the US is pasteurized, but check the labels to be sure. Freshly squeezed juice at smoothie bars and farmers’ markets must not be pasteurized (or labeled). If you are not sure whether a particular juice is pasteurized, skip it.

• Raw sprouts. The warm, moist conditions needed for sprouts to grow are also ideal for growth Listeria and other bacteria. If you eat sprouts, cook them well. Rinsing off the germs will not remove the bacteria.

• Cantaloupe that is old or not refrigerated. Leave the melon in the refrigerator and eat it within a week. Discard sliced ​​melon if it sits at room temperature for more than four hours.

Keep food safe

• Check the temperature in the fridge and freezer. To protect your food from contamination by various disease-causing organisms, make sure your refrigerator is set between 35 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit (F) and your freezer at or below freezing. Use a refrigerator thermometer to confirm the temperature.

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• Don’t keep food too long. Eat perishable and ready-to-eat foods as soon as possible after you buy them, especially after you open them – even if they haven’t passed their use-by date yet. This date applies to unopened products. Hot dogs should be stored in the refrigerator and eaten within a week if the package is opened and two weeks if unopened. Unopened packages of deli meats should be refrigerated and eaten within two weeks. Once the package is opened, eat it within three to five days.

Prepare food carefully

• Avoid contaminating ready-to-eat foods. Keep any potentially contaminated food (such as unwashed produce; uncooked meat, poultry, or seafood; hot dogs; and deli meats) separate from clean produce and from cooked and prepared foods. Use separate cutting boards, plates and utensils for produce and for raw meat, poultry, seafood and eggs.

• Wash all products. Wash or peel all fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating them. Do not rinse meat, poultry or eggs.

• Cook all meat, poultry, fish and eggs thoroughly. Use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of the meat. Most meat should reach a temperature of 165 degrees F (or 180 degrees F in the leg for whole poultry). If you are not checking the temperature of the meat, cook it until it is no longer pink in the center. The fish should be cooked until the flesh in the middle becomes opaque. Boil the eggs until the yolk is set. And don’t try the food before it’s ready.

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• Reheat leftovers thoroughly. Listeria contamination can occur after the food has already been cooked or processed. Bacteria can survive – and, unlike many bacteria, continue to grow – in the refrigerator. So reheat any precooked leftovers to 165 degrees F or until steaming hot. If using a microwave oven, cover the food to retain moisture and ensure safe, even heating. Allow food to sit for a few minutes after microwaving to finish cooking. You can use a clean food thermometer to make sure the reheated food has reached 165 degrees F.

Keep things clean

• Wash your hands. After touching raw food, changing a diaper, touching an animal, or using the bathroom, wash your hands with hot soapy water for at least 20 seconds.

• Wash surfaces and utensils. Use warm, soapy water to wash counters, cutting boards, dishes, utensils and sinks after contact with potentially contaminated food.

• Clean dishcloths and dishcloths regularly. Used dish cloths and kitchen towels can contain bacteria. Wash them regularly in hot water. Kitchen sponges are also potential sources of bacteria and are difficult to clean thoroughly. Putting them in the dishwasher or microwave only kills some of the bacteria, so if you use sponges, change them often.

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• Wash the fridge. A cold fridge is helpful but not safe: Listeria is a hardy organism that can survive and even continue to grow at low temperatures (albeit more slowly). Clean the refrigerator regularly – including the interior walls and shelves – with warm, soapy water. Use a mild liquid dishwashing detergent, rinse, then dry with a clean cloth.

Listeriosis is not the only concern when it comes to food safety during pregnancy. This guide to foods and drinks you should avoid during pregnancy will help you avoid food poisoning and other dangers.

As the summer months approach, many parents may be wondering how they can keep their children entertained and engaged in educational activities while school is out. One fantastic way to achieve both of these goals is through summer reading at home. By creating a fun and engaging reading challenge, kids and teens can immerse themselves in a summer of reading excitement that not only sparks their imaginations but also fuels their love of reading.

Reading during the summer is not only a fun pastime, but also has numerous benefits for children and teenagers. Research has shown that students who read during the summer months experience less learning loss and are better prepared for the next school year. Reading also helps to improve vocabulary, comprehension skills and critical thinking skills. In addition, reading can transport children to new worlds, expose them to different cultures and perspectives, and ultimately expand their understanding of the world around them.

Make reading fun!

One way to make summer reading more fun and interesting is to create reading challenges. Parents can encourage their children to set a specific reading goal for the summer, whether it’s a specific number of books, a specific genre, or a mix of fiction and nonfiction. They can also create fun incentives for reaching their reading goals, such as a special field trip or a small prize. By turning reading into a game or challenge, kids and teens are more likely to stay motivated and enthusiastic about reading all summer long.

For those kids and teens who already love to read, consider creating a bookworm club where they can discuss their favorite books, recommend titles to each other, and even participate in virtual book club meetings. This can help foster a sense of community and camaraderie among young readers and give them the opportunity to socialize with others who share their love of reading.

After all, summer reading at home is a fantastic way to engage children and teenagers in learning while having fun and exploring new worlds through books. By creating a reading challenge, setting goals, and providing incentives, parents can help their children develop a lifelong love of reading and set them up for success in the coming school year. So this summer, encourage your child to dive into a book and embark on a reading adventure that will not only entertain them, but also help them grow and learn.

That Christmas VIOLENCE/WORSE 2

– A young girl wanders in a blizzard; the neighborhood searches for her and when her sister finds footsteps near the ocean, she worries that the water has swept her away (the child is found unharmed). The van drives dangerously during a snowstorm, nearly crashing and narrowly avoiding several turkeys; the van lands on the side of the bridge and lands upside down leaving the passengers buckled into their seats and hanging upside down (no one is hurt) until they break free and groan in pain as they fall. A van with people in it slides onto a frozen lake; people stand on the van, the ice starts to crack and everyone screams and panics (it doesn’t fail). In several scenes, several people are trapped in a van in the middle of nowhere during a blizzard. The woman reporting the weather is blown off screen by the wind and we hear her scream.
► The boy in the play is pulled across the audience on the platform; he grabs the rope and stops, shouting, “Ouch!” and his mother gasps in the audience; later he loses his balance, slides down the track, knocks the watermelon (a prop depicting baby Jesus) out of the girl’s hands, and it hits the ground and splashes (we hear the sound of splashing and see audience members covered in watermelon goo). In several scenes, the boy runs to the door and yells, “Ouch!” and rubs his face. A pile of snow fell on the woman and she screams: “Help, I’m killed!”
► Two men are trying to climb a snowy hill; the one in front slips and hits another man, its rear end hits the other man’s face and both fall but are unhurt. The girl frees the turkeys from their cages and they rush out of the barn, knocking people over; people chase them and fall into the snow. People are seen outside during a blizzard and thunderstorm (we see heavy snow falling and hear thunder) in several scenes. Santa Claus and reindeer fly during a blizzard, crashing into some roofs and narrowly avoiding others. Santa slips on the roof and falls, screaming in pain and putting his hands over his groin; falls from the roof, but his leg is caught in a string of Christmas lights and he is hanging from the roof upside down. The reindeer shouts: “We’re going to die!” and then tells Santa, “If you take a tumble, I’ll put you in a home.”
► The wife asks if they should walk when they’re stuck in a blizzard, and her husband says no, unless he wants to lose “toes, fingers, and other soft parts to the cold,” and they talk about the danger of freezing. A few children huddle together and shout things like “I’ll get you” and “this means war”; one boy gets hit in the face by a snowball and is knocked over, and a watching parent says, “Right in the hole!” and the kids start throwing snowballs at the glass door and yelling, “parent attack”. A girl loads a blaster pistol with a kale button and shoots her friends with them; they hit the snowman. In several scenes, a woman pulls hard on her dog’s leash when it resists going inside and it squeals. The woman calls her dogs and shouts at it.
► Several scenes deal with death and refer to deceased loved ones; a woman looks at a photo album with pictures of her late husband and cries, a nurse talks about a dying patient and how “it wouldn’t be nice to die with someone you don’t love holding your hand”, and a man with flowers sits by the monument and we understand that he an elderly mother passed away.
► The girl says that if she doesn’t get the present she wants for Christmas, she’ll trap Santa in a sack and shave his beard; her sister tells her that she can’t blackmail Santa Claus. The woman says she worries about leaving several young children alone with the older girl and thinks she will get distracted and “let the kids light a fire indoors.” The boy hears that the school is closed due to snow and shouts, “Death to Trapper’s dreaded test,” referring to the test scheduled at school that day. The little girl says she and her sister will have “snow tires-ageddon.” The teacher mentions Henry VIII’s wife “who was executed.” The little girl tells her mother not to buy a turkey from a man because he is a “turkey torturer.” The poor reindeer says that Christmas night was “endless, tear off your antlers and eat them”. A woman says “beware the wrath of my rolled-up umbrella” when she suspects carolers at her door. We see a sign at a turkey farm that says, “Kill your own.”
► A little girl making gingerbread makes a monster with a big red frosting that looks like blood. A woman sits on a piano bench and we hear flatulence; she pulls the pillow out from under her and her daughter laughs. A young girl gulps down a soda bottle and then burps loudly.

Videos and photos

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  Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo
  The official trailer
  

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What is the story?

MISSION CONTROL: THE UNSUNG HEROES OF APOLLO explores the history of the men (and, yes, they were all men…) who led NASA’s Mission Control during the agency’s early space missions in the 60s and early 70s. The documentary focuses on 10 different people – all from different backgrounds – who ended up working in mission control during NASA’s early triumphs and its failures. They tell the story of bringing men to the moon in the Apollo missions and, of course, the Herculean effort required to save the crew of Apollo 13. Several of the men featured here were actually featured in Apollo 13 — most notably Chief Flight Officer Gene Kranz, played by Ed Harris.

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This film offers a compelling lesson in the history of NASA, manned space missions, and the “tough and competent” motto of the people in mission control responsible for keeping astronauts safe. Anyone who saw Apollo 13 he will remember the courage and dedication of the people who answered the call for help, “Houston, we have a problem” with a sense of duty that would not allow failure. Mission control the story of those men, who chain-smoked their way through crisis after crisis, staying overnight and ignoring all responsibilities other than those to the people in space. Despite the early tragedies and tension involved in each Apollo mission, the men also shared moments of levity and joy, such as the celebratory cigars they lit after each successful mission.

As is historically true, the historical portions of the film feature no women and only one man of color (Asian American Bill Moon), but the current flight directors interviewed by the filmmakers include two women. The lack of diversity in the past has not been ignored; one eight-year mission control veteran says the pronunciation of “manned space mission” is quite accurate, because the early days of NASA’s mission control involved only men. (For an alternative view of how women have contributed to NASA, see the excellent Hidden Figures). The interviews with the men are compelling, and it’s clear that they’re all justifiably proud of what they’ve accomplished together to get astronauts into space, to the moon — and back — safely.

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Talk to your kids about…

• Families can discuss the history lessons they learned about America’s space missions by watching Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo. How is this film different from drama = films based on the same events?

• How does the mission control team demonstrate teamwork, persistence, and courage? Why are these character strengths important?

• Does watching this movie make you want to watch (or watch again) Apollo 13? If you’ve seen that movie, do you think it portrayed the mission control team well/accurately?

• All members of the historical mission control team were white. Discuss the historical context and reasons why this is the case.

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Did we miss something about diversity?

Research shows a connection between children’s healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in the media. That’s why we’ve added a new “Different Representations” section to our reviews, which will be published continuously. You can help us help children
proposing a diversity update.