Christmas with the Norwegian Royal Family

[norwegianne]

The article is wrong. The Royal family, the whole Royal family will be spending Christmas at Skaugum this year. Kongsseteren [where they tend to spend Christmas] is under rehabilitation, and all of them will be joining Haakon and Mette-Marit at Skaugum.

 

[KikkiB]

Christmas 2004

Ingrid Alexandra is baking Christmas cookies



The Crownprince-family is bussy with tehe Christmas preparations at Skaugum in Asker. The little princess is baking gingerbread-cookies for the first time.

Published 17.12.2004 by Hilde Bruvik

Marius, CP Mette-Marit, little princess Ingrid Alexdra and CP Haakon had cleared the afternoon to bake for Christmas. The princess made a good effort when she baked her first gingerbread-cookies at Skaugum today.



Showed her tricks
While soon 8 years old brother Marius seemed to have total control of the baking, 11 month old Ingrid Alexandra was more interested in showing her tricks by clapping her hands and lift her arms over her head.

But the little princess showed that she was as good as the others in her family to handle different kitchen tools, and to knead the gingerbread dough.

The family get together
When Christmas is rung in at Skaugum the whole royal family will be gathered with King Harald and Queen Sonja in the lead. Besides the hosts, the Crownprince-family, princess Märtha Louise and Ari Behn and theri daughter Maud Angelica will be joining them.
The King and Queen will be at Skaugum for a few days of the Christmas. One of the reasons are that Kongsseteren is closed because of repairs.

http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/innenriks/kongehuset/4361065.html

I've translated an article from NRK.no, which is the Norwegian Broadcasting Company's webpages. NRK is known for being serious about their newsreports. And I've sometimes seen that Hello Magazine online tend to get some facts wrong in their reports about royalty. I think this article will clarify some things about their Christmas plans

 

[KikkiB]

Princess Ingrid Alexandra's first Christmas - pictures

http://blade.vg.no/bilder/bildarkiv/1103814711.75744.jpg

http://blade.vg.no/bilder/bildarkiv/1103814801.73168.jpg

http://blade.vg.no/bilder/bildarkiv/1103814948.16196.jpg

These pictures I found at www.vg.no. There were also a "slideshow" from the same photoshoot at www.dagbladet.no if you want to see more

 

[KikkiB]

And some more from the same web-site...

http://blade.vg.no/bilder/bildarkiv/1103814855.22989.jpg

http://blade.vg.no/bilder/bildarkiv/1103814745.56547.jpg

 

[Alexandria]

What wonderful pictures KikkiB!

Thanks so much for sharing them! Nice to see the King in much better form this year than last Christmas.

How adorable with the little cousins Ingrid Alexandra and Maud Angelica together! The picture with Haakon and Martha Louise each holding their daughters is very sweet.

Nice to see Marius included in the pictures, too.

 

[KikkiB]

The article that followed the photos

The hereditary princess’ first Christmas

Photoshoot at Skaugum 23.12.04

The spirit was high when the royal family were gathered for a Christmas photoshoot at Skaugum Thursday morning. While the photographers were rigging their equipment, King Harald was sitting on the stairs playing with his grandchildren.

Little Maud Angelica which are at home on Christmas-holliday with her parents, would rather run round about than be taken photos of. But big cousin Marius, which soon will be 8 years old, chased after her and brought her back.

But as some of the photos show, the 1 ½ year old girl wasn’t very interested in being taken photos of with the rest of the royal family.

Ingrid Alexandra was watching eagerly on in mother and father’s arms. She is still a bit to little to run round about.

Christmas at Skaugum
King Harald and Queen Sonja will spend their Christmas at Skaugum with children and grandchildren this year.

The Christmastree is placed in the conservatory, as it was when the Crownprince-family for the first time celebrated last Christmas in their new home. While Queen Sonja decorates Kongsseteren in Christmasy red and green when it is Christmas, CP Mette-Marit have chosen a brighter and more modern variant with Christmas decorations in white and silver, amongst others, white roses in litte glass containers on the Christmastree which the family get in their own forest.

According to the photographers taking the family photos, it smelled lovely of Christmas in the house, and on every table there were candles.


Tricks
It is not easy to catch the little one’s attention during a photoshoot where 9 persons are looking into the camera at the same time. But Marius tried his best to help by doing tricks to get the two youngest to make a smile. He also helped to hold Maud Angelica to make her stand still.

Next year will probably not be any easier, when he is keeping order with three little ones, where the oldest ones for sure are running round about. In April, as know, the King and Queen will be grandparents again, when Princess Märtha Louise is especting number won.
Neste år blir det sikkert ikke enklere, da skal han holde orden på tre småtroll, hvorav de største helt sikkert kommer til å løpe rundt. I april blir som kjent kongeparet besteforeldre igjen, når prinsesse Märtha Louise venter barn nummer to.

Service in Asker
The King and Queen will stay at Skaugum for some of the Christmas week. On of the reasons is that Kongsseteren is closed due to repairs.

The family are for the first time since King Olav died attend the Christmas service in Asker Church Christmas Day.

CP Mette-Marits family celebrated Christmas at Skaugum last year, but will not be doing so this year. It has also been custom to invite som foreign relatives for a visit at Christmas, but this year it is only the widow of Prince Carl Bernadotte, Norwegian born Princess Kristine, who is spending Christmas with the royal family.



www.vg.no

 

[Mandy]

Eight ANB Pictures from www.siste.no
Two Scanpix Pictures.

 

[Dennism]

Adorable photos of the two youngest in the family. Such beautiful eyes. Thanks for posting them. I like the one where Marius is holding MA and Märtha Louise looks a little concerned.

 

[Anita]

Norwegian Royal Christmas 2004

Enjoy ...


http://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/2004/12/23/418434.html

 

[mktv2000]

I love that same picture...but also because Queen Sonja and Ari have their arms around each other. Very sweet. I like this family because they always show so much love.

 

[Amira]

Very Beautiful pictures ...Thanks

 

[pdas1201]

The Norwegian Royal Family poses for Christmas Portraits

Pictures from www.gettyimages.com

 

[Guess Who]

well, ill be honest.the pictures arent that great.Why was mette-marit in black??& the christmas tree is boring, it should of had more decorations on it..What i loved about the pictures is the 3rd one with the girls looking at each other

 

[pdas1201]

some more from nrk.no

 

[pdas1201]

some from anb.no

 

[hrhcp]

Thanks for the pic's.

There is something of Martha Luise in her daughter's face.

 

[norwegianne]

Thanks for the pic's.

There is something of Martha Luise in her daughter's face.

If you check out pictures from when Märtha Louise was the same age... the similarity is uncanny. I think it is the hair and the eyes mostly.

You don't see the same with Ingrid Alexandra quite yet. (It wasn't as easy to see before Maud Angelica's hair grew out either.) But to be honest, I've seen a photograph of Queen Sonja when she was about six months old. She looks very much like Ingrid Alexandra did...

Ingrid Alexandra seems to be interested in her surroundings, and very aware of what is going on around her.

 

[KikkiB]

An article from Hello Magazine online

Babies centre stage in Norway's Royal portrait

Crown Prince Haakon is hosting his family's Christmas festivities this year, and the heir to the throne has got a whole new reason to celebrate, as his baby daughter joins the royal revels for the first time.

Little Princess Ingrid, who was born on January 21, is the prince's first biological child, although he has adopted his wife Mette-Marit's young son Marius. And it's the babes-in-arms -Ingrid and her cousin Maud - who take centre stage in the family's Christmas photos.

The whole family has gathered at Haakon's estate for the holiday period, and already the festive shots are out, showing their delight at being all together. Haakon, Mette-Marit and Marius were pictured in their kitchen introducing Ingrid to the joys of traditional gingerbread-style pepperkaker a few days ago. And the family has just been rounded out by the arrival of Haakon's sister, Princess Martha Louise, with her husband Ari Behn and their 18-month-old daughter Maud.

The royal family will be spending Christmas in traditional Norwegian style, with their main celebration taking place on the 24th, Christmas Eve.



The bold-faced and underlined phrase is NOT true. CP Mette-Marit and Morten Borg (Marius' biological father) have joint custody over Marius! I don't think it would be accepted i Norway if CP Haakon adopted Marius, and I don't think his biological father would give up his custody either. But they all seem to get along perfect with todays arrangement anyway. Just clearing up things, because Hello Magazine online seem to miss their facts very often, and that is kind of sad, since so many read this magazine.

 

[Britters]

Babies centre stage in Norway's Royal portrait

Crown Prince Haakon is hosting his family's Christmas festivities this year, and the heir to the throne has got a whole new reason to celebrate, as his baby daughter joins the royal revels for the first time.

Little Princess Ingrid, who was born on January 21, is the prince's first biological child, although he has adopted his wife Mette-Marit's young son Marius. And it's the babes-in-arms -Ingrid and her cousin Maud - who take centre stage in the family's Christmas photos.

The whole family has gathered at Haakon's estate for the holiday period, and already the festive shots are out, showing their delight at being all together. Haakon, Mette-Marit and Marius were pictured in their kitchen introducing Ingrid to the joys of traditional gingerbread-style pepperkaker a few days ago. And the family has just been rounded out by the arrival of Haakon's sister, Princess Martha Louise, with her husband Ari Behn and their 18-month-old daughter Maud.

The royal family will be spending Christmas in traditional Norwegian style, with their main celebration taking place on the 24th, Christmas Eve.



The bold-faced and underlined phrase is NOT true. CP Mette-Marit and Morten Borg (Marius' biological father) have joint custody over Marius! I don't think it would be accepted i Norway if CP Haakon adopted Marius, and I don't think his biological father would give up his custody either. But they all seem to get along perfect with todays arrangement anyway. Just clearing up things, because Hello Magazine online seem to miss their facts very often, and that is kind of sad, since so many read this magazine.

While I don't know if the bit of information is actually true, I just wanted to say that it is totally possible for someone to adopt a child even if both biological parents still have custody...it's just a way for the "step" parent to be allowed legal rights as well (I don't mean like legal rights to claim him, but legal rights to get help and make decisions...). At least that's the way it is in the States, things could be different in Norway. And as I said I don't know that Haakon has actually adopted Marius, it's just a thought...

 

[hrhcp]

although he has adopted his wife Mette-Marit's young son Marius.

I don't think it would be accepted i Norway if CP Haakon adopted Marius, and I don't think his biological father would give up his custody either. But they all seem to get along perfect with todays arrangement anyway. Just clearing up things, because Hello Magazine online seem to miss their facts very often, and that is kind of sad, since so many read this magazine.

Have you never heard of "Royal Dispensation"?
That is, they are "allowed to do" things not available to the common man. Some of this is supported by the law. Most laws I've come across in my reading of modern constitutional monarchies in Europe, allow certain "wrinkles" for them being Heads of State. Some of it is tradition, which is jealously held to, and not described by law, and certainly not american law.

I would think that CP Haakon has "adopted" Marius ..... however confusing it might be to you (and me). So, the Hello magazine is not wrong ... its just that memories fade fast.
Do remember that he threatened to step down if he wasn't allowed to marry MM, so this "wrinkle" was just one (major) item (of many quirks that had to be considered in this unique incidence) that was, so to say 'solved' to keep Haakon in the line of succession.

If still not understood, how about we leave it at, that Marius receives the "patronage" of Haakon. Bear in mind that the word for this in Danish (and given that Norwegian is a form of Danish) still follows the older form of "protector" !

 

[Alexandria]

I would think that CP Haakon has "adopted" Marius ..... however confusing it might be to you (and me). So, the Hello magazine is not wrong ... its just that memories fade fast.

Do you have evidence that there was a legal process in which Haakon may now be Marius' adopted father?

To my knowledge, both Haakon and Mette-Marit as well as the Norwegian royal court and their representatives have been very vocal and public on the fact that Marius has a living father who is very much part of his life, and as such, Haakon's role in Marius' life is "merely" as a step-father.

Haakon may (emotionally) be a much more devoted step-father than other step-fathers, but legally Haakon is only Marius' step-father -- at least as long as his father is alive and Marius is still young.

So, really, memories don't fade fast -- especially if they didn't take place at all.

Do remember that he threatened to step down if he wasn't allowed to marry MM, so this "wrinkle" was just one (major) item (of many quirks that had to be considered in this unique incidence) that was, so to say 'solved' to keep Haakon in the line of succession.

Haakon threatening to step down if he weren't allowed to marry Mette-Marit is an issue separate from his adopting Marius.

If Haakon had indeed stepped down then adotping Marius or not adopting Marius is a non-issue as far as the monarchy is concerned.

But if Haakon, as the Crown Prince, were to adopt Marius, there would be a plethora of constitutional issues to deal with, including a title (if any) for Marius and what role he would play in the future royal household, among other issues big and small.

If still not understood, how about we leave it at, that Marius receives the "patronage" of Haakon. Bear in mind that the word for this in Danish (and given that Norwegian is a form of Danish) still follows the older form of "protector" !

Haakon could very well be Marius' legal guardian should something happen to Mette-Marit or his mother, and likely Haakon is supporting or helping out with Marius' upbringing emotionally as well as financially, but that doesn't equate with Haakon having adopted his step-son.

 

[pdas1201]

I really like this pic very much.

Marius is holding Maud Angelica and Martha Louise and Sonja are looking at each other.

Truly a very close and affectionate family.

 

[norwegianne]

http://www.vg.no/pub/vgart.hbs?artid=260091

The Norwegian family arriving at church early today.

 

[Lyonnaise]

(from GREMB)

The Royals attended Mass:

 

[bigheadshirmp]

pics from colourpress

http://www.colourpress.com/index.cfm?Goto=frontend/fotos/ShowSerie.cfm&nPictureSerieNo=3769

 

[Nichola]

I really like this pic very much.

Marius is holding Maud Angelica and Martha Louise and Sonja are looking at each other.

Truly a very close and affectionate family.

I agree!

It's so nice to see such a warm, loving family at Christmas. Little Maud-Angelica and Ingrid-Alexandra are growing so fast, they are both beautiful babies, both resembling their fathers in my opinion. I always think Marius is cute! I love to see him included, especially in this picture.

 

[pdas1201]

some more pics...

 

[Anna_R]

From Hello Magazine: http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2004/12/29/norwayroyals/

NORWEGIAN PRINCESSES REFLECT MATERNAL STYLE
29 DECEMBER 2004

It was a family affair for the Norwegian royals as they attended church together on Christmas Day.

And the weather contrived to make the occasion even more traditional by adding a festive dusting of snow to the happy scene as the younger members left the church with their little ones.

Toted from the church in the arms of their respective parents, the newest members of the family made a fashion statement of their own. Princess Ingrid Alexandra, the daughter of Crown Prince Haakon and his wife Mette-Marit, echoed her mother’s classically elegant style in a cosy white coat and matching hood. Meanwhile her cousin, Maud Angelica, on hand with mum Princess Martha Louise and dad Ari Behn, was resplendent in a scarlet coat and rainbow striped hat, which obviously reflected her mother’s love of bright hues.

1. Ingrid Alexandra was a diminutive ice princess in a snow white outfit which reflected her mother's classically elegant style

2. Her cousin Maud Angelica, on the other hand, was dressed in the more exuberant hues often favoured by her mum, Princess Martha Louise

 

[norwegianne]

You know, that article has a good point. Up until now, you've always seen Maud Angelica in some snappy outfit, or something with bright colours. The pictures of Ingrid Alexandra has tended to have her in very classical clothing for babies, mostly white and pink. At least when they knew she was going to be photographed...

 

[moosey60]

I really like this picture of Maud Angelica. You can see her reaction to the snow. Oh, and she has a black doll