SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – Jessica and Laurence welcomed Isla, their first, and the first baby born this year at Cottage Hospital early Thursday morning.

On Jan. 1, 2026, at 4:41 a.m., the healthy nine pound, 20.5 inch infant joined her parents who are both doing well and helped the entire community celebrate the new year.

Cottage Hospital boasts it welcomes 2400 new babies every year at its award-winning Children's Medical Center and little Isla is merely the first.

For more information about Cottage's Birth Center, visit here.

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By Andy Rose, CNN

(CNN) — It may now be the most famous – or infamous – sign in the country. Posted above a door on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis, the Quality Learning Center was missing an “n.”

For a conservative content creator attempting to call out fraud – and the supporters who made his video on day care centers in Minneapolis’ Somali community viral – it seemed too absurd not to mention.

“This is Quality ‘Learing’ Center,” Nick Shirley said, pointing to the sign. “They spelled ‘learning’ wrong.”

Shirley’s 42-minute video posted the day after Christmas quickly spread, prompting stepped up immigration enforcement, frozen federal funds and more biting rhetoric against the Somali community from President Donald Trump.

Although Shirley’s encounters with other businesses were often more dramatic, the misspelled sign and its locked door made Quality Learning Center a focus of criticism aimed at the state government and Gov. Tim Walz for a system opponents say has allowed fraud to run rampant in Minnesota.

“These are not real businesses,” Shirley told CNN’s Whitney Wild this week, pointing to the Quality Learning Center. A man identifying himself as a manager for the center told a local TV station there was “no fraud going on whatsoever.”

CNN is looking into Shirley’s claims that this and other Minneapolis-area day care centers are committing fraud.

Federal law enforcement has been investigating fraud in Minnesota for several years, and “98 individuals have been charged in our ongoing fraud against the government cases,” Assistant US Attorney Melinda Williams told CNN Tuesday. No fraud charges have been filed against Quality Learning Center.

Records show the business has faced repeated questions of whether the service it is providing is meeting state standards, but none of the violations suggested fraud.

Here’s what we know about the Quality Learning Center.

According to figures provided to CNN by the state House Republican Caucus, Quality Learning Center was set to receive $1.9 million from the Child Care Assistance Program – known as CCAP – for 2025. It has received nearly $10 million from CCAP since 2019, the document shows.

The caucus told CNN the funding figures were obtained from the state Department of Human Services, which did not respond to CNN’s request for confirmation Wednesday.

State GOP leadership said they raised concerns about day care centers, including Quality Learning Center, months ago.

“The (House) fraud committee … featured a number of these apparently vacant sites in a hearing that took place all the way back in February, which also included the infamous Quality Learning Center featured in the viral video,” state House Speaker Lisa Demuth said Monday.

CCAP does not take applications directly from day care centers. Instead, qualified working parents and other eligible caregivers who make less

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Por John Liu, CNN

El presidente Donald Trump retrasó los nuevos aumentos de aranceles sobre muebles tapizados, gabinetes de cocina y tocadores por un año, aplazando su implementación hasta 2027, según un comunicado de la Casa Blanca.

Trump firmó una proclamación horas antes de finalizar el 2025, posponiendo los aumentos de aranceles sobre estos artículos, que originalmente debían entrar en vigor el jueves.

En septiembre, Trump ordenó nuevos aranceles del 25 % sobre gabinetes de cocina y muebles tapizados. Estos entraron en vigor en octubre, con tasas previstas para aumentar al 50 % y 30 %, respectivamente, para 2026.

La orden del miércoles retrasa el aumento significativo, dejando los aranceles sobre estos productos en 25 % por el momento.

“Estados Unidos continúa participando en negociaciones productivas con sus socios comerciales para abordar la reciprocidad comercial y preocupaciones de seguridad nacional respecto a las importaciones de productos de madera”, dice el comunicado.

El Gobierno de Trump ha recibido crecientes críticas por no lograr estabilizar los precios, en parte debido a los aranceles impuestos a diversos productos desde que el presidente asumió el cargo a principios de 2025. Incluso antes de los aranceles del 25 % sobre muebles, los precios ya habían aumentado debido a los gravámenes sobre la mayoría de los productos provenientes de China y Vietnam, las dos principales fuentes de muebles importados.

A pesar de la creciente preocupación por la asequibilidad entre los hogares estadounidenses, Trump ha culpado al Gobierno de Biden por la inflación, mientras argumenta en discursos recientes que los aranceles podrían, en última instancia, reducir los costos para los estadounidenses.

El comunicado del miércoles no abordó directamente la razón del retraso en el aumento de los aranceles.

En septiembre, Trump justificó sus aranceles sobre estos productos de madera, así como sobre madera en bruto y aserrada, por motivos de seguridad nacional y la necesidad de proteger la industria maderera nacional.

Anunció los aranceles tras la conclusión de una investigación que ordenó al Departamento de Comercio realizar sobre la madera importada bajo la sección 232 de la Ley de Expansión Comercial.

En los meses previos a la decisión de septiembre, criticó repetidamente a Canadá por sus grandes exportaciones de madera a Estados Unidos, argumentando que representaban posibles amenazas a la seguridad nacional, dado que la mayor parte de la madera importada proviene del vecino del norte de Estados Unidos.

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Santa Barbara’s Polar Dip is set to go on as planned, despite rain in the forecast. According to organizer, Hugh Margerum, said more than 250 people have already signed waivers to officially participate in the New Year’s Day event.

The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for the South Coast from 10 p.m. December 31 through 10 p.m. January 1, and Santa Barbara County has released a general rain advisory for beaches countywide. In a December 31 press release, the county’s public health department warned that swimming or surfing in storm water can increase the risk of illness and injury, recommending people avoid ocean activities for at least three days following rainfall.

After a year-long hiatus, the Polar Dip returns on January 1 at 11:30 a.m., when participants will take a plunge into the Pacific Ocean to ring in the New Year.

Last year, about six weeks before the scheduled dip, the City of Santa Barbara notified organizers of permit requirements, including lifeguards, portable restrooms, trash and recycling services, and liability insurance.

The estimated total cost was at roughly $3,000, and due to limited time to fundraise, the official event was canceled, though dozens still showed up for an unofficial plunge.

This year’s dip will take place at Leadbetter Beach and is free to attend, thanks to an anonymous donor who covered the roughly $4,000 needed to meet city requirements and safety measures.

Participants must sign a waiver that is available on the event’s website—to be considered an “official” dipper. Those who register will receive a souvenir wristband. Check-in begins at 11 a.m., and attendees are encouraged to bring towels, warm clothing, hydration, snacks, and festive attire.

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