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When it comes to provincial support for Manitoba children with special needs, there was a moment this summer when Susana Lam thought things were finally improving. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * When it comes to provincial support for Manitoba children with special needs, there was a moment this summer when Susana Lam thought things were finally improving. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? When it comes to provincial support for Manitoba children with special needs, there was a moment this summer when Susana Lam thought things were finally improving. Lam, the director at Seven Oaks Child Day Care Centre in Winnipeg — one of the most inclusive child-care centres in Manitoba — spoke to the earlier this year as part of its investigation into the state of child care in the province. She’d been facing hurdles for years with the province’s Inclusion Support Program (ISP). “It’s just been a lot of fighting, and I mean fighting as in literally arguing... on the phone. Arguing and arguing; there are loud voices, tears, everything, because I don’t think it’s fair that these families and children have to fight so hard to get a spot,” Lam told the at the time. RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS FILES Shortly after the was published in June — and included a story documenting the ISP’s failures — Lam said things started to look up. In fact, it wasn’t long after she went public that she received funding almost immediately after applying on behalf of a child who didn’t even have an official medical diagnosis — something that hadn’t happened in years. What’s more, Lam was hearing other directors were also securing ISP funding, meaning more kids and families were being supported. It’s exactly what she’d hoped for. “I thought after the series came out that they were turning a page here,” Lam said in a recent followup interview with the . “Then comes this fall — I’m enrolling a child with some pretty high medical needs — and it’s back to square one again. “It’s back to me having to say, ‘I’m not doing this,’ and that means I’m not enrolling a child, and for the province to be prepared for the consequences, because I don’t know what families are going to do now. “They went from approving funding right away shortly after the series to — poof! — right back to the beginning.” The province’s Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) website says the Inclusion Support Program is meant to “reduce or eliminate barriers to allow a child with additional support needs to fully participate in an early learning and child-care program.” It adds: “all children should have equal opportunity to access licensed child care in their community.” The ISP is fully funded by the province and administered through ELCC, which determines how many hours will be funded for the required extra child-care staff, depending on a child’s specific needs. Many child-care directors told the it’s a program worth celebrating, so long as it’s properly executed and available to all children. But that’s not the case. JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES The Inclusion Support Program is fully funded by the province and administered through Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) programming. ELCC determines how many hours will be funded for required extra staff, depending on a child’s specific needs. ELCC’s 2023-24 annual report found that only 51 per cent of licensed child-care centres and six per cent of licensed home-care facilities are taking part in the ISP. The number has hovered around 50 per cent in recent years — a notable drop from 2016-17, when 64 per cent of child-care centres were taking part in the program. The province mandates all licensed child-care centres have an inclusion policy, including home-based ones, but there’s no enforcement to ensure they’re accepting children who need additional supports. The number of ISP-supported children has dropped by more than 300 since 2016-17, despite thousands more spaces being created. The ISP supported 1,604 children in 2016-17, but only 1,262 in 2023-24. Meanwhile, the number of child-care spaces in the province has jumped significantly — to 39,050 in 2023-24 versus 31,210 in 2016-17. Today, only three per cent of those spots are dedicated to children in the ISP, down from five per cent in 2016-17, though there were 20 more ISP spaces this year than last. “The provincial annual reports are a clear indicator of progress or regression in government funding, programs and policies. That’s trending the wrong way if we’re trying to grow the system,” said Jodie Kehl, executive director of the Manitoba Child Care Association (MCCA). “The question to ask is, why are not 100 per cent of all regulated facilities participating in the program? What are the barriers? “This needs to be investigated by the province, so that all children, in all parts of Manitoba, have access to high-quality early learning and child care.” The MCCA has nearly 4,000 members and offers support to about half of the child-care centres in the province. It surveyed its members in October to get a better idea of the current state of the ISP. They asked a variety of questions about personal experiences with the program, what is working and what needs improvement. Nearly 200 child-care centres responded, with 28 per cent of those saying they’ve denied families care due to a lack of ISP funding. Among the respondents who’ve had to turn away families, a third said there was at least one child in the last two years, with 14 per cent — eight respondents — saying they’ve denied more than five children over the same time frame. JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES Nearly a third of 200 child-care centres responding to a Manitoba Child Care Association survey in October said they had denied families care due to a lack of ISP funding. Meanwhile, 63 per cent said they require inclusion support but don’t have access to the program. On the plus side, a majority of respondents agreed the ISP is a vital service — even a human right — despite it being plagued by serious problems. They also applauded the creation of ISP co-ordinators, which has improved communication between child-care facilities and the government. The province has 13 diversity and inclusion co-ordinators, two supervisors and one manager. Most child-care directors, though, expressed deep frustrations about trying to obtain and sustain funding, as well as find qualified staff. Lam said her centre used to have about 12 kids supported by ISP, but that number has been halved in recent years due to the hurdles now in place. When asked whether her centre would consider ceasing its participation in the ISP, Lam said, “We’re not there yet, but it is on the table. I talk about it with my board all the time ... It’s so difficult to make it all work.” According to the ISP, children hoping to receive additional care fall into two categories: a child with a diagnosed life-long or permanent disability and/or who is eligible for Children’s DisABILITY Services; or a child who exhibits behavioural or emotional difficulties characterized by impaired adaptive functioning, which disrupts the child’s ability to adequately participate in activities, with these behaviours continuing over a period of time. In simpler terms, one path is for children who have already been diagnosed, the other is for a child with behavioural concerns who has not yet been diagnosed. Tracy Cosser is the executive director of Can You Imagine Inc. — which has five locations in the city — with more than 30 years’ experience in child care. She said it’s almost a forgone conclusion that children who don’t have a medical diagnosis will be denied care, sometimes forcing directors to get creative with the application process. Because funding is tied to a child and not a space, that can sometimes mean leveraging a child who has a medical diagnosis but might not need additional support to help secure funding for another child who is displaying issues but hasn’t yet been diagnosed. Cosser knows the number of kids requiring help is increasing because she sees it every day and hears it from colleagues across the city. JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES Several child-care directors told the Free Press that the number of children exhibiting extreme behavioural issues has climbed steadily over the years, made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. Several child-care directors told the that the number of children exhibiting extreme behavioural issues has climbed steadily over the years, made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. The same can be said for children with undiagnosed medical issues, who can face long wait times to get an official diagnosis, such as autism. But directors are mostly hesitant to try and work the system, even to benefit vulnerable children and desperate families, for fear it could ruin their chances for future funding. Cosser wants to work with the government, but says it should be just as motivated to support these children as her centres are to bring them into their programs. “That’s the frustrating part of it all is someone like me, who has been here for 23 years, have I not proven myself to you?” Cosser asks rhetorically, while wiping away tears. “It just frustrates me to no end when we work our asses off every day for these kids and these families, and the government puts roadblock after roadblock in our way. “How much more are we supposed to do?” To get the best chance of securing ISP funding, a child with behavioural issues must be in the program for weeks, if not months, without any additional staffing help. That puts more stress on existing child-care staff, many of whom already feel underpaid and underappreciated. Even when funding is approved, it’s often for hours less than requested, forcing centres to submit more paperwork to prove that more support is needed. “The government is the one that mandated that we have inclusion policies. They made us write these policies. They made us put them in place. They said to us, you have to include children with additional support needs, and then we do it and they try to stop us from doing it properly,” Cosser said. “That’s the problem. Sure, I can let all of them through my door, but like, I just finished writing (documentation) for this one little girl; she gets care from us when she’s having a meltdown, but she’s a child who doesn’t even know how to engage and play with other children, but we don’t have time to support her to learn that, because at that moment, we might be dealing with this child over here who’s chucking a chair across the room, or this child over here that’s doing whatever, and that’s not serving this child well. We’re not doing her justice.” Even when a child has a medical diagnosis, a significant amount of supporting documentation is required on an ongoing basis — everything from clinical and health-care reports to safety issues to estimating the anticipated length of a child’s naptime. Naptime, directors said, is often used by the government to justify reducing support by one or two hours. The situation is so dire that some centres are demanding that parents provide a letter saying there is nothing wrong with their child, or they will only start a child on a three-week trial basis, several directors told the . “Half of the families with kids I have enrolled in the ISP, once they get in, they just thank you so much,” Lam said. “They tell you about how they’ve been turned down by three or four centres already because no one was even willing to try. I just feel for these parents. “How can anyone not feel for these families? And there’s many, many more out there.” Even after funding is secured, there’s a financial burden. ELCC only provides funding to cover the lowest rung of the wage grid — $17.64 an hour — which is what’s paid to a child-care assistant (CCA), the profession’s introductory position. CCAs are only required to take a 40-hour course, and don’t have to have previous experience working with children with special needs. In order to attract qualified staff, the actual wage is routinely higher, meaning centres that prioritize inclusive programming must find additional money on their own. Even centres that pay their ISP educators a modest $20 an hour have to grapple with deficits in their annual budgets. According to the MCCA survey, centres spend between a few thousand dollars and upwards of $100,000 a year in added costs. Some fundraise to make up the difference, while others make cuts elsewhere. “I’m assuming the issue is because there’s just not enough money being put aside for ISP funding, and more and more children every year are being diagnosed, and I feel like that funding amount has remained the same every single year,” Lam said. “That’s my impression from the grapevine as I’m talking to people. It is great that they’re using a lot of the funds to open new sites, even though there’s a lack of educators out there, but I feel like a lot of that money needs to go to fix things (that are) happening in our system right now.” Lam added: “I guess my question out there is, why don’t they think of that?” JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES The province has created a specialized ISP team — which includes professionals with backgrounds in disability, child development, child care and clinical social work — plus a new delivery and funding model to streamline the application process, a spokesperson said. When contacted by the in June, a provincial spokesperson said the ISP budget had increased by 52 per cent to $20.6 million since the 2021 signing of the Canada-Manitoba, Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, which included federal government funding of $1.2 billion. No detailed breakdown of the increased budget was provided. Additionally, the province created a specialized ISP team — which included professionals with backgrounds in disability, child development, child care and clinical social work — plus a new delivery and funding model to streamline the application process, the spokesperson said. In a July interview, Education and Early Childhood Learning Minister Nello Altomare acknowledged his department was falling short in terms of the ISP’s funding model. “I’ve said that to my cabinet colleagues — we have to get better at this because we have to provide the support that families need when it comes to inclusion support services for kids,” Altomare said. “We’re not oblivious to this. I’m not satisfied with where we’re at. We need to get better at providing the services that are needed. It’s something, really, I’m quite passionate about and want to see get done.” Altomare said he prefers block funding over the current case-by-case application process. “So that you’re not retraumatizing parents,” he said. “So that you’re not continually justifying why your kids need support.” But little has changed in the months since that interview, according to child-care directors and the MCCA. The asked several questions, including what changes, if any, have been made to the ISP that aren’t reflected in the 2023-24 annual report, and how much of the ISP is supported by provincial versus federal dollars. The department was also asked about a return to blocked funding; whether the 20 additional spaces this year were part of a targeted goal; and if greater capacity will be reflected in the next annual report. The provincial response mirrored the one provided to the earlier in the year. “Manitoba has created a dedicated Diversity and Inclusion team and has launched a new case management model in fall 2023 to better meet the needs of families, children and child-care facilities across the province,” an unnamed provincial spokesperson wrote. “This team includes 13 diversity and inclusion co-ordinators, two supervisors and one director. ISP co-ordinators have strengthened application efficiency, while offering support and guidance to ensure children and childcare centres have the supports that they need.” jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. . Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the ‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about , and . Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.None234win 777 register online 。

NoneRenewed Hope Initiative for Nigeria’s Sports Economy: An ultimate game changerExagen Inc. ( NASDAQ:XGN – Get Free Report ) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 78,100 shares, an increase of 36.5% from the November 30th total of 57,200 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 82,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.0 days. Exagen Price Performance Shares of Exagen stock opened at $4.71 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $3.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.98. The company has a market cap of $83.07 million, a PE ratio of -5.01 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 4.05 and a quick ratio of 4.05. Exagen has a fifty-two week low of $1.30 and a fifty-two week high of $6.22. Exagen ( NASDAQ:XGN – Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.30) by $0.02. Exagen had a negative return on equity of 92.58% and a negative net margin of 30.36%. The firm had revenue of $12.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.31) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Exagen will post -0.87 EPS for the current year. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Exagen Insider Buying and Selling In other news, major shareholder Nmsic Co-Investment Fund, L.P. sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.30, for a total transaction of $660,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,108,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,959,561.40. This trade represents a 8.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink . Also, CEO John Aballi purchased 24,305 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $2.81 per share, with a total value of $68,297.05. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 689,799 shares in the company, valued at $1,938,335.19. This represents a 3.65 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here . 26.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in Exagen by 93.3% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 94,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 45,476 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning acquired a new position in Exagen in the third quarter worth $110,000. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Exagen by 14.5% during the third quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 76,364 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 9,695 shares during the last quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Exagen in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Stonepine Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Exagen by 49.0% in the third quarter. Stonepine Capital Management LLC now owns 534,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after buying an additional 175,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.25% of the company’s stock. About Exagen ( Get Free Report ) Exagen Inc develops and commercializes various testing products under the AVISE brand in the United States. The company enables healthcare providers to care for patients through the diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring of autoimmune and autoimmune-related diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Exagen Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Exagen and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

Bruce Willis' family shares special holiday moments, hoping for a Christmas miracleNASHVILLE, Tenn. — It was during the pandemic when the Rev. Kira Austin-Young and her puppet-maker husband, Michael Schupbach, were going a little stir-crazy that they came up with the idea. Instead of a star or some stylized humanoid angel to top their Christmas tree, why not create a biblically accurate angel? The result was a pink, blue and gold-feathered creature with six wings and dozens of eyes that went a little bit viral. "I think in, particularly, the times of the world that we're in, where things seem kind of scary and weird, having a scary and weird angel sort of speaks to people," she said. There are a number of different kinds of angels that show up in the Bible, said Austin-Young, associate rector of the Episcopal Church of St. Mary the Virgin in San Francisco. For the most part, we don't get a lot of description of them, but both Revelations at the end of the Bible and some of the books of the prophets in the Old Testament describe strange creatures around the throne of God. "Some of them have six wings with eyes covering the wings," she said. Others have multiple animal heads. "I think one of the delightful things about the Bible and the Scripture is just kind of how bizarre it can be and just how kind of out there it can be." About 7 in 10 U.S. adults say they believe in angels, according to a poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research conducted last year. Still, there's no agreement about what they look like or even exactly what they are. Social media is full of various interpretations of "biblically accurate angels" imagined not just in tree toppers but also drawings, tattoos, even makeup tutorials. The many-eyed creatures reject traditional portrayals of angels in Western art, where they often look like humans with wings, usually white and often blonde or very fair. Esther Hamori, a professor of Hebrew Bible at Union Theological Seminary, makes a distinction between angels and other "supernatural species" in the Bible like seraphim and cherubim, but she said she loves the biblically accurate angel trend, even if it conflates them. "It shows that people are thinking about ways in which the Bible contains far stranger things than what's often taught," the author of "God's Monsters: Vengeful Spirits, Deadly Angels, Hybrid Creatures, and Divine Hitmen of the Bible" wrote in an email. "The biblical heavens are filled with weird, frightening figures. In the Bible, God has an entourage of monsters." One of Austin-Young's favorite portrayals of the annunciation — a favorite theme of Christian art depicting the archangel Gabriel's appearance to Mary to announce that she is going to bear the son of God — is by Henry Ossawa Tanner. It conceives of Gabriel as a vaguely humanoid shaft of light. "It kind of makes you rethink, 'What would that be like to be approached by an angel?'" she said. "If it's somebody you don't know, or if it's a strange creature, or if it's just this kind of manifestation of God's message to you. ... That could be anything." ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

‘Father time always wins’: Warren Buffett updates plan to give away his $227b fortune - Sydney Morning Herald

The holidays are upon us and part of spending time with family means playing games, whether it's the classic relationship ruiner of Monopoly or a well-loved deck of cards. Tradition is great, but there's myriad games that are already classic and modern ones that will reshape your idea of what a board game can be. Now's the time to stock up on the latest and greatest in table top gaming. I've been playing in a weekly board game group for over 10 years, and in the time we've played hundreds of games. With that in mind, I've found several games on sale for Black Friday at Amazon that I've personally played and think you'll enjoy from silly family games to heavy strategy titles. Choosing any of these games will set you up for an evening or afternoon of enjoyment. Whichever you pick, grab it fast as these deals might not last through Black Friday. And remember to check in with us for more of the best Black Friday deals . (For more ways to save, check out our guide to this week's best Amazon promo codes ). Quick Links Board Game dealsQuake aftermath: Nearly 200 aftershocks in 24 hoursI worked retail at a large brick-and-mortar Lego store ages ago. Of the myriad customers walking through the doors, many of them were looking for Lego gifts to give their friends and family. No matter who came into the store, we could find a Lego set that was a good fit for them and their gift-giving needs. That’s because Lego has so many options to choose from: freeform brick sets, Disney Princess playboxes, iconic architecture replicas, and the list goes on. While my time at the Lego store was years ago, I’ve since written many gift guides for NBC Select, and leveraged both experiences to find Lego gifts for all kinds of people across all ages. SKIP AHEAD: The best Lego gifts in 2024 | Lego accessory gifts | Why trust NBC Select? Want more from NBC Select? Sign up for our newsletter, The Selection, and shop smarter. I organized each Lego set by its suggested age according to the brand. Lego Duplo Classic Brick Box Building Set Lego Duplo blocks are simpler and much larger than regular Lego, making them best for small children one and a half year olds and up. This box includes 65 colorful pieces, two figurines and no instructions — it’s a free-form building set they can use to make whatever they imagine. It comes in a plastic box that doubles as a storage bin when playtime is over. Best for ages: 1.5+ | Pieces: 65 Lego Duplo Number Train The centerpiece of this set is a colorful, movable train with three removable train cars. You can stack pieces like the numbered blocks on each car, encouraging children to play with numbers, colors and motion. Best for ages: 1.5+ | Pieces: 23 Lego Classic Medium Creative Brick Box This is one of the best Lego gifts if they are looking to start or bolster their Lego collection. It includes a colorful variety of small and large pieces like blocks, windows, eyes, tires and base plates they can use to build whatever they like. They will also be able to add on to existing Lego sets they already use. It comes in a plastic bin that doubles as a storage box. Best for ages: 1+ | Pieces : 484 Lego City Blue Monster Truck A Lego monster truck easily fits into any Lego collection — huge rubber tires and blue flame decals help this one stand out. It comes with a Lego Minifigure driver with a helmet, but they can easily place their favorite character in the driver’s seat for some four-wheel action. Best for ages : 1+ | Pieces : 148 Lego Kitty Fairy’s Garden Party From the Gabby’s Dollhouse TV show, this set includes Gabby, Pandy Paws and Kitty Fairy, along with a fantastical tree house that includes a slide, swing, merry-go-around and gardening accessories. Best for ages : 1+ | Pieces : 130 Lego Ninjago Jay’s Lightning Jet Lego Ninjago is all about action — this set includes a Jay minifigure and pieces to build his ninja plane. They can also add stud shooters and golden blades to the plane. This is an older set — they may already have this one if they have been playing with Lego for a few years. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 130 Lego Creator 3-in-1 Space Shuttle This three-in-one set can be built into a space shuttle, spaceship or astronaut figure. The space shuttle has a hatch that opens, where they can place an extendable satellite, while the astronaut has movable arms and legs. If they get bored of one build, they can take it apart and build a different model. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 144 Lego Star Wars Luke Skywalker X-Wing Mech Ready for action and adventure playtime, this set includes a Luke Skywalker Minifigure and a buildable X-Wing robot mech for him to pilot. The mech has adjustable jetpack pieces on the back and can hold a large Lightsaber and stud-shooting blaster in each hand. It stands about 5.1 inches tall. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 195 Lego Despicable Me 4 Minions and Banana Car This set includes four Minions from Despicable Me: Mel, AVL Tim, Mega Minion Dave and Pit Crew Ron. It also includes a small banana car and other accessories to imagine fun scenarios to play out with the Minions. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 136 Lego Animal Crossing Isabelle’s House Visit This Lego set is inspired by one of our favorite Nintendo Switch games : Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It includes two characters from the game: Isabelle and Fauna, as well as pieces to build Fauna’s house. The set includes a baseplate and accessories, making it easy to adjust or rearrange the scenery to your liking. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 389 Lego Adventures with Interactive Lego Mario Mario is not just a video game character: he is in movies, theme parks and Lego sets. This one includes buildable Mario, Bowser Jr., Yoshi and Goomba toy figures, alongside iconic Mario pieces like a pipe and a question-mark block. Best for ages: 6+ | Pieces: 218 Lego Hogwarts Express Train Set The centerpiece of this magical set is the Hogwarts Express train: it has movable engine, coal and passenger cars, and it has room to fit and pose various Minifigures and accessories. Plus, it includes the Hogsmeade train station and eight Minifigures, including Harry, Ron, Hermione and Hagrid. Best for ages: 8+ | Pieces: 1074 Lego Inside Out 2 Mood Cubes Play with changing moods using this Lego set featuring Joy and Anxiety from the movie Inside Out 2. The set has two buildable cubes and nine mood plates that can easily be arranged and rearranged on the cubes however they like. It also has a buildable display stand with a small control board, just like in the movie. Best for ages: 9+ | Pieces: 394 Lego Creator 3-in-1 Main Street Set Create a bustling main street to play out scenarios with all their Minifigures and vehicles. Each building is open in the back for more opportunities to pose and play with figures. With the pieces of this three-in-one set, you can build either a main street with four buildings, an archway market street or a four floor skyscraper. Best for ages: 9+ | Pieces: 1459 Lego Minifigure Puzzle This 25-inch by 20-inch puzzle depicts 78 different Minifigures, and is a great way for puzzle-lovers and Lego-lovers to get together in play. It is a jigsaw-style puzzle full of fun and goofy characters. Best for ages: 9+ | Pieces: 1000 Lego Up-Scale Lego Minifigure This mega-sized Minifigure is 10.6-inches tall — it makes regular minifigures look like ants by comparison. It has a movable head, arms, legs and hands, but it also has an opening hat. Inside, there is a regular-sized minifigure that appears to be piloting the mega-sized one. Best for ages: 10+ | Pieces: 654 Lego Tiny Plants Set These little Lego succulents never need water and will never wilt on you, no matter your green thumb. The set includes nine tiny plants inside of terracotta-colored Lego plant pots. They make for good desk decor or accent pieces to a large Lego set. Best for ages: 18+ | Pieces: 758 Lego Ideas Tuxedo Cat The Lego Ideas series has some of the more interesting Lego sets for adults, in my experience. This large Lego cat has tuxedo coloring with two sets of eyes: yellow and blue. The head, ears, paws and tail can be rotated and posed into different playful positions. The Lego cat stands about 12.5-inches tall. Best for ages: 18+ | Pieces: 1710 Lego Disney Castle Set This massive Lego set is a great fit for Disney super-fans who love Lego, elaborate architecture and lavish details. It has tons of small details and callbacks to classic Disney movies, including Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White. The set is over 4,800 pieces and measures about 31.5-inches tall when complete. Best for ages: 18+ | Pieces: 4837 Lego 4-Stud Blue Desk Drawer Organize your Lego, or anything else, using this plastic drawer in the shape of a four-stud Lego block. It stacks with other four-stud Lego storage bricks, so you can build out drawers to your liking. Best for ages: 5+ Lego Brick Pouch This small soft pouch is best for carrying non-Lego items — think school supplies, chargers, makeup, anything you might put in a small zip bag. It has one large zippered compartment and two smaller, stud-shaped ones on the top. Best for ages: 3+ Lego Storage Organizer Cubes (3-Pack) These organizer cubes can store Lego bricks or anything else they need sorted and sealed. Each cube has a zipper closure and a see-through top so you can easily grab what is inside with a quick glance. The smaller red and blue cubes fit inside the larger yellow one, if all three are empty. Best for ages: 6+ I’m a reporter who frequently covers technology and fitness, where I’ve written about the best fitness trackers , wireless earbuds , TV brands and more. For this article, I curated gifts using my experience with the Lego brand as well as top-rated items from the brand catalog. Catch up on Select’s in-depth coverage of personal finance , tech and tools , wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and TikTok to stay up to date.

Ai Everything GLOBAL, the world’s most revolutionary AI event takes place for the first time across two international capitals of AI investment and emerging technologies development — Abu Dhabi and Dubai. With the UAE (https://www.biometricupdate.com/tag/uae) standing proud as an influential and impactful global innovation hub, this exclusive event welcomes founders, thought leaders, investors and corporate innovators to explore the opportunities awaiting businesses, industries, and nations in the rapidly accelerating AI revolution. From big tech, governments, SMEs, and startups to investors, academia, research hubs, and tech executives, Ai Everything GLOBAL provides an empowering and inclusive platform to power bold collaboration in the new AI economy. The event promises the perfect setting to shape the future, hosting the most thought-provoking discussions around elite AI case studies, applied research use cases, policy debate, partnership creation and acceleration of commercial application. As AI reshapes the global economy with copious amounts of transformative promise and potential, it also sparks urgency, raising critical questions that only a united global AI ecosystem can address. While simultaneously exploring new possibilities, Ai Everything GLOBAL is the number one platform to meet emerging challenges head-on, fostering responsible cross-sector AI development across government, enterprise, and startups. With the AI market projected to reach an astounding $184 billion in 2024, driving $19.9 trillion in economic impact by 2030, the ‘AI Everywhere’ era is now. Under this year’s theme, “Powering Global Collaborations in the New AI Economy”, Ai Everything GLOBAL signifies the cross-continental commitment needed to leverage AI for the betterment of communities, industries, societies, and the world. | |

Home Services Market size is set to grow by USD 6.54 trillion from 2024-2028, increasing influence of digital media boost the market- Technavio