2nd Birthdays

A look at Prince George and his dad Prince William just before their 2nd birthdays. Awww. Very cute!

George's 2nd Birthday Portrait

Wednesday 22nd July, 2015





Today is Prince George of Cambridge's 2nd birthday. Here are portraits that have been released by his parents throughout his life so far. 

Kensington Palace has released a new portrait of Prince George to celebrate his 2nd birthday. 

The Mario Testino photo was taken at Sandringham House after sister Charlotte's Christening on the 5th July.

The Cambridge family is planning a quiet birthday party for George at their country home Anmer House at Sandringham. The Middleton family along with the Queen are expected to attend.

Amner Hall's New Housekeeper

Saturday 18th July, 2015

Amner Hall is perfectly located on the Queen's Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. Anmer was a gift to Prince William for his 30th birthday in 2012 and has since undergone extensive renovations to make it a large and comfortable family home for the Cambridges.

Anmer Hall was ready for William, Catherine and George to move into towards the end of last year and the family celebrated Christmas there just a few months later. 

Being on the Queen's private estate ( the home belongs to the Monarch, not the public) the home provides privacy and makes providing security for the family much easier to integrate with existing arrangements at nearby Sandringham House. 

Indeed the family retreated to Anmer from Kensington Palace when Princess Charlotte was only a few days old and the tiny royal was Christened in the local church just two weeks ago. 

Prince William has also recently started his new role as helicopter co-pilot at East Anglia Air Ambulance and is based at Cambridge Airport. His duties will cover Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk.

Earlier this year, the husband and wife housekeepers at Anmer Hall decided to resign their position. An advertisement was placed in The Lady for a replacement housekeeper who would manage the house and assist with child care. 

The person chosen for the role is Sadie Rice who is extremely well qualified. 33 year old Sadie grew up in West Sussex and has previously worked as a maid at Buckingham Palace and also helped care for the children of Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette Marit of Norway. Their daughter Princess Ingrid Alexandra will one day be Queen of Norway just as one day Prince George will rule Britain. 

As Catherine and William plan to spend a large amount of time at Amner Hall, no doubt Sadie will become a integral part of the couple's household.

Royal Mint Coins For Charlotte And George

Thursday 16th July, 2015

George's 2nd Birthday

The Royal Mint has announced a commemorative coin for Prince George's 2nd birthday which is on 22nd July. 

This comes after the Mint honoured Princess Charlotte on the occasion of her Christening this month and also a Royal Birth 2015 coin in May.

Details on how to buy these coins and descriptions of the design can be found at: 

http://www.royalmint.com/aboutus/news/prince-george-two-years-on
http://www.royalmint.com/aboutus/news/princess-charlotte-christening
http://www.royalmint.com/our-coins/events/the-royal-birth

Charlotte's Christening

Royal Birth 2015

The Perth Mint in Australia has issued a coin to mark Charlotte's birth. I have also found photos of one of their coins minted for George's arrival:

www.perthmint.com.au

George and Charlotte Fashion

Monday 13th July, 2015

As discussed previously on this site, Rachel Riley is one of the Duchess of Cambridge's favourite childrens wear labels. 

The white shirt with red smocking and red shorts that George wore to his sister Princess Charlotte's Christening, is from
 Rachel Riley and can be seen at right:

 Also on the website is the white long sleeve shirt with blue trim and blue shorts that George wore to meet Charlotte at the Lindo Wing and again for the portraits taken by his mum Catherine. 

I have spotted a cute white romper suit with pink smocking that would look gorgeous on the tiny princess. There is also a cheeky princess romper!
 



 see: www.rachelriley.com

Christening Portraits

Saturday 11th July, 2015

Here are the Mario Testino portraits taken after Princess Charlotte's Christening last Sunday.

The photograph of Catherine holding Charlotte was taken in Sandringham House's drawing room.

source:KensingtonRoyal/Testino

Flashback

Monday 6th July, 2015

A few reminders of royal history were evident at the Christening of Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.

The Milson pram that was used to carry the little princess to the church was the very same pram that the Queen used for her two youngest sons Princes Andrew and Edward.

Another flashback, Prince George's outfit by Rachel Riley was almost identical to that which his father William wore to meet Prince Harry in 1984.

source:kensingtonroyal

source:kensingtonroyal

source:kensingtonroyal

Prince William 1984

A Nod to History As Charlotte Christened

Monday 6th, July 2015

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children George and Charlotte presented the modern face of the royal family yesterday.

William and Catherine combined touches of history with allowing friendly access to the public at the Christening of Princess Charlotte.

The Duke and Duchess along with Prince George walked  the path from Sandringham House to St Mary Magdalene church. Charlotte was in a Milson pram that belonged to The Queen when Princes Andrew and Edward were babies.

Prince George wore a white shirt with red smocking and red shorts by favourite childrens wear boutique Rachel Riley. It was an almost identical outfit to that worn by William when he went to the Lindo Wing to meet baby brother Prince Harry in 1984.


The concession to moving with the times was the fact that the Cambridge family invited the public to come and watch the family in a grassed area adjacent to the pathway.

Apart from a few tears from George that required dad to step in and offer a quite word family, guests and the public seemed to have a wonderful afternoon. The Queen would no doubt be proud of how the occasion was carried out. 

Godparents

Sunday 5th July, 2015

Princess Charlotte's godparents have been named. 

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have chosen five godparents for their daughter Charlotte Elizabeth Diana who will be Christened today.

Adam Middleton, cousin of Catherine.
Hon. Laura Fellowes, cousin of William and fellow Norfolk resident. William and Laura grew up together as both lived in Kensington Palace- William in the Wales' residence and Laura in a grace and favour home as her father Sir Robert was equerry to The Queen. 
James Meade, friend of William
Thomas von Straubenzee, friend of Willam and Harry
Sophie Carter, friend of Catherine

It is a trusted role to provide guidance and support to a young person throughout their life. No doubt Charlotte is in good hands.

James Meade

Sophie Carter

Laura Fellowes & William 1986

Tom von Staubenzee

Press Release Of Christening Details

Sunday 5th July, 2015

From princeofwales.gov.uk:

The Christening of Princess Charlotte: Guests and Godparents

The following guests will attend Princess Charlotte’s christening today at the Church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham:

The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall 
Mr. and Mrs. Michael Middleton, Miss Pippa Middleton and Mr. James Middleton
Princess Charlotte’s godparents and their spouses.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have asked the following people to be godparents to Princess Charlotte, all of whom are friends or family of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge: 

Miss Sophie Carter
Mr. James Meade
Mr. Adam Middleton
The Hon. Laura Fellowes
Mr. Thomas van Straubenzee

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will walk from Sandringham House to church with their children. 
Princess Charlotte will wear the hand made replica of the Royal Christening Robe, made by Angela Kelly, Dressmaker to The Queen. 
The Lily Font and water from the River Jordan will be used during the baptism.
Following the service, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will give a tea at Sandringham House. Guests will be served slices of christening cake, which is a tier taken from The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding cake.

Christening Day

Sunday 5th July, 2015

Charlotte aged two weeks

Today is Princess Charlotte of Cambridge's special day. Charlotte, who is two months old will be surrounded by family and godparents for her welcome into the Church of England.

What we know is:

The young royal will be christened Charlotte Elizabeth Diana. 

The Christening will take place in St Mary Magdalene church on the Sandringham Estate. The Cambridge's country home is also on the estate. 

The Queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall along with the Middleton family will attend. Prince Harry is visiting charities in Africa for three months and will be absent.

The ceremony is due to commence at 4.30pm and the Cambridge family will make the walk from Sandringham House to the church. The public have been invited to congregate in the paddock adjacent to the path to witness the family as a foursome for the first time. 

Mario Testino will take the official photos and some will be released in the coming days. 

St Mary Magdalene is also the church where William's late mother Diana Spencer was christened in August 1961. Diana also lived on the Sandringham Estate at Park House.

After the ceremony, The Queen will host a high tea at Sandringham House for family, the godparents and their spouses.

The godparents names are due to be released this morning. As soon as this happens, I will update the blog. 

Mario Testino To Take Official Portraits

Wednesday 1st July, 2015

Accomplished photographer Mario Testino will take the photographs to mark Princess Charlotte's christening this weekend. 

Testino has been asked to photograph many members of the royal family previously, including Catherine and William's engagement portraits.

Just months before she died Diana, Princess of Wales was captured by Testino for Vanity Fair magazine. These photos were commonly used after her death on souvenir covers etc.

Mario's photos of the royal family are typically relaxed. I look forward to seeing the finished results on Monday or Tuesday next week. 

Today also marks what would have been Diana's 54th birthday.