Blake Shelton has speaken about his experience of being a stepfather. The country music singer appeared on the Today show to promote his new restaurant opening soon in Las Vegas. The interview also featured The Voice alum’s take on parenting since being a stepdad to his wife Gwen Stefani’s three sons. “I’ve had stepparents,” Shelton said. “I think it’s, in some ways, harder more difficult. I try to be careful about when to step back ... and just talk, but no matter what, always be there if I’m needed.” Stefani shares her three children, 17-year-old Kingston, 15-year-old Zuma, and nine-year-old Apollo, with her ex-husband Gavin Rossdale. Soon after divorcing Rossdale, the “Just a Girl” singer met Shelton while being coaches on The Voice together. The two tied the knot in 2021. “I didn’t see any of this coming with Blake. This was just a big old ‘What?’ It was an amazing gift to experience love like that for the first time,” Stefani confessed in an interview with People. “He’s changed my life ... when I [started dating] Blake, that’s when I felt home, like: ‘Oh, this is where I’m supposed to be, with this guy.’” Their home base is now in the “Sooner State” amid open land. For Stefani, who grew up in Southern California, she has been surprised to find she is now a “garden flower nerd”. “When I was young, I’d walk home from school and see my mom in her shorts doing her gardening, and my dad would be cutting the trees and make me pick up the branches,” Stefani said. “I’d be like: ‘I’m never having a tree at my house.’” “When we get to Oklahoma, we’re constantly working — and it’s a different kind of work,” she continued. “It’s probably what my mom was doing back in the day, and now I get it!” In conversation with People, she opened up about prioritising her children, and spoke about a special time in her life when she brought her eldest on tour with her. “I took Kingston on a world tour [when he was nine months old]. I would have to nurse him, then get onstage, come off, and he would twirl my ponytail,” Stefani remarked. “That’s when things got really hard for me emotionally. That time is so precious, and you don’t want to miss anything.” Though she’s continuing her journey as a mentor on The Voice, Stefani’s trying her best to manage a balance between work and home. “When my kids were teenagers, I really wanted to make sure that I was home for them,” she noted. “And here we are.” While Shelton has since become a stepfather to Stefani’s three sons, her ex-husband recently revealed on the Not So Hollywood podcast that he doesn’t “really co-parent” with Stefani and her new husband. The rocker cited their “opposing views” stemming from the fact that both parties are “really different people.” “I think you can go one of two ways,” Rossdale explained on the podcast in June. “You can either do everything together... or you can just parent. And I think we just parent.” Read More To shave or not to shave: How women can participate in No-Shave November Game of Thrones actor announces ‘unbearable loss’ of baby after stillbirth Nicki Minaj opens up about navigating parental anxiety after birth of her son To shave or not to shave: How women can participate in No-Shave November Game of Thrones actor announces ‘unbearable loss’ of baby after stillbirth Nicki Minaj opens up about navigating parental anxiety after birth of her son

The start of Saturday's sprint race at the Belgian Grand Prix was further delayed by heavy rain with no official...

If you've wanted an electric vehicle that doubles as a status symbol, you don't have

Mutinous soldiers in Niger this week overthrew the democratically elected government of President Mohamed Bazoum, adding to a growing list of military regimes in West Africa’s Sahel region and raising fears of regional destabilization. The Sahel, the vast arid expanse south of the Sahara Desert, faces growing violence from Islamic extremists, which in turn has caused people to turn against elected governments. The military takeovers have followed a similar pattern: The coup leaders accuse the government of failing to meet the people’s expectations for delivering dividends of democracy. They say they will usher in a new democratic government to address those shortcomings, but the process gets delayed. Karim Manuel, west and central Africa analyst for the Economist Intelligence Unit, says the military governments threaten to unwind democratic gains made not just in the Sahel region but in the broader West Africa region. “This increases political instability going forward and makes the situation on the ground much more volatile and unpredictable. Regional stability is undermined as a result of these coups,” Manuel said. The Sahel region comprises Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria. Here are countries in the Sahel with military regimes: MALI: The Sahel’s latest wave of coups kicked off in Mali in August 2020 when the democratically elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta was overthrown by soldiers led by Col. Assimi Goita. The military was supposed to hand power back to civilian rule within 18 months. However, seven months into the transition process, the military removed the interim president and prime minister they had appointed and swore in Goita as president of the transitional government. Last month, Malian voters cast ballots on a new draft constitution in a referendum that the regime says will pave the way for new elections in 2024. BURKINA FASO: Burkina Faso experienced its second coup in 2022 with soldiers ousting Lt. Col. Paul Henri Sandaogo Damiba about eight months after he helped overthrow the democratically elected President Roch Marc Kaboré early in the year. Capt. Ibrahim Traore was named as the transitional president while a national assembly that included army officers, civil society organizations, and traditional and religious leaders approved a new charter for the West African country. The junta has set a goal to conduct elections to return the country to democratic rule by July 2024. SUDAN: Sudan slipped under military rule in October 2021 when soldiers dissolved the transitional government of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok as well as the Sovereign Council, a power-sharing body of military officers and civilians. That took place weeks before the military was to hand the leadership of the council to civilians and nearly two years after soldiers overthrew the longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir amid deadly protests. Eighteen months after the coup and amid the hopes for a transition to democracy, fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict has resulted in the deaths of hundreds with no end in sight. CHAD Chad has been under military rule since April 2021 when President Idriss Deby, who ruled Chad for more than 30 years, was killed while battling against rebels in the hard-hit northern region. His son, Gen. Mahamat Idriss Deby, took power contrary to constitutional provisions and was named the interim head of state with an 18-month transitional process set in place for the country’s return to democracy. By the end of the 18 months period, the government extended Deby’s by two more years, triggering protests that the military suppressed. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide No clarity about who's in charge in Niger, 2 days after mutinous soldiers ousted the president How the attempted coup in Niger could expand the reach of extremism, and Wagner, in West Africa Mutinous soldiers say they've taken Niger. The government says a coup won't be tolerated

The city of St. George must issue a permit for a Utah-based group that organizes drag performances to host an all-ages drag show in a public park

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At least four were killed after a mass shootout on Monday evening in Philadelphia, according to reports. There were “multiple gunshot victims”, the Philadelphia Police Department said but didn’t reveal the identities or any further details about the victims. Reports said that at least eight people were shot. Six victims were taken to the Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and two were taken to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, according to local reports. There was no information available regarding the condition of the injured. The shooting took place on the 5700 block of Warrington Avenue in Philadelphia’s Kingsessing neighbourhood at around 8.30pm local time, police said. The Philadephia Inquirer reported that the bodies of four victims were found at several locations. Police spokesperson Miguel Torres said in a statement to CNN that officers have taken a suspect into custody and recovered a rifle, a handgun, and additional magazines of ammunition from him in the alleyway behind the 1600 block of South Frazier Street. At least two juveniles were among those shot, according to local reports. According to Gun Violence Archive, at least 339 mass shootings – with four or more killed or injured – have occurred in the US so far this year. “Horrified by the reports of a shooting in Southwest Philadelphia,” Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney tweeted. “My heart is with the loved ones and families of everyone involved, and I send my prayers to the victims. This devastating violence must stop,” he added. Meanwhile, police said that officers did not discharge their firearms during the arrest.

Will Jordan would be content not scoring a try in the Rugby World Cup final as long as New Zealand wins it

ITASCA, Ill. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 15, 2023--

Harry Styles loves audience interaction during his concerts, but one fan was lucky enough to have her baby's gender revealed in front of a sold-out Wembley Arena. The fan had been holding a sign up alongside a gender reveal balloon, when the singer agreed to pop it on her behalf - showering pink confetti across the stage to signal the baby being a girl. He quipped: "Question, what if I hadn't seen the sign? You would have taken it to Coldplay or something? Yeah I know your game!" Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter

Power use in Texas hit a preliminary all-time high on Tuesday as homes and businesses cranked up air