Willem-Alexander's 40th Birthday Party

The Prince of Orange - Willem-Alexander - hosted a belated birthday party celebrating his 40th year on Saturday September 1st. The party was held at Het Loo Palace, and went well into the night.The birthday boy arrived in a horse-drawn carriage with his wife, Princess Máxima, and their three daughters - Princess Catharina-Amalia (3 and a half years), Princess Alexia (27 months) and Princess Ariane (4 and a half months). The Prince's eldest daughter had a slight accident when the carriage pulled to a stop (see video), but otherwise all three girls were as cute as buttons in pink gowns. The other guests arrived via the Royal Bus.

The Prince's mother, Queen Beatrix, and brother's Constantijn and Friso - with wives Laurentien and Mabel - were also in attendance. Other family members invited were Willem-Alexander's aunt, Princess Margriet, and uncle Pieter van Vollenhoven; their children Maurits and wife Marilène, Bernhard Jr and wife Annette, Pieter-Christiaan and wife Anita, and Floris with his pregnant wife Aimée. Máxima's parents, Jorge Zorreguieta and Carmen Cerrutti, and brother Martin were also in attendance; as well as plenty of royal guests including Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Crown Prince Philippe and Crown Princess Mathile of Belgium, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, and Prince Felipe, Princess Letizia, Infanta Cristina and Inaki Urdangarin of Spain.

Added: Article from HELLO! Magazine - "Crown Prince Willem's daughters lead guests at royal birthday ball"

Copyright: ANP, Scanpix, PPE

New Pictures of Nikolai & Felix

Kongehuset.dk released a series of new pictures of Princes Nikolai and Felix to celebrate Nikolai's 8th birthday on August 28th.The full gallery can be seen at Kongehuset.dk, or at PPE (with watermarks)

Copyright: Kongehuset.dk

Happy 8th Birthday Nikolai!

Prince Nikolai William Alexander Frederik, the eldest son of Prince Joachim and Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg; celebrated his 8th birthday on August 28th!Born on August 28th, 1999, at the Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen, Nikolai was third in line for the Danish throne at the time of his birth - but has now dropped down to fifth in line after the birth of his cousins Christian and Isabella. The above picture was taken last year.Nikolai was christened on November 6th at the Fredensborg Palace Church. His godparents were Crown Prince Frederik, the Earl of Wessex, Peter Steentrup, Nicola Baird and Camilla Flint.
Copyright: Kongehuset.dk

Happy 34th Birthday Mette-Marit!

Crown Princess Mette-Marit, the wife of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, celebrated her 34th birthday on August 19th!Happy Birthday Mette-Marit!
Copyright: Scanpix/Kongehuset.no

Happy 5th Birthday Felix!

Prince Felix Henrik Valdemar Christian, the youngest son of Prince Joachim and Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg; yeseterday celebrated his 5th birthday!Born on July 22nd, 2002, at the Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen, Felix was the fourth in line for the Danish throne at the time of his birth - but has now dropped down to sixth in line after the birth of his cousins Christian and Isabella. This picture was taken on August 14th, roughly three weeks after his birth.Felix was christened on October 4th at the Møgeltønder Church. His godparents were Count Christian Ahlefeldt-Laurvig, Oscar Davidsen Siesby, Damian Sibley, Martina Bent and Annick Boel.Copyright: Kongehuset.dk/Scanpix

Happy 34th Birthday Haakon!

Crown Prince Haakon, the only son of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway, celebrated his 34th birthday on July 20th!So, happy birthday Haakon!
Copyright: Kongehuset.no

Day 3 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Arendal

Day 3's morning events were cancelled due to extreme rain in Norway, so the first event was a walkabout in Tyholmen, Arendal. Copyright: PPE/NieboerPicture Gallery from PPE

Day 2 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Ny Hellesund

The final public event for day 2 of Queen Sonja's birthday celebrations was a visit to Ny Hellesund.

Picture Gallery from PPE

A dinner concluded the day's festivites aboard one of the yatchs used to house guests during the celebrations, but no pictures were released.

Copyright: PPE/Nieboer

Day 2 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Spangereid Canal & Lindesnes Lighthouse

The first event for day 2 of Queen Sonja's birthday celebrations was a visit to the Spangereid Canal, which Sonja officially opened before the royal party headed to the Lindesnes lighthouse - Norway's southernmost mainland point. Copyright: Aftenposten, ANP, PPE









Picture Gallery from PPE

Day 1 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Private Dinner

Day 1's events conclued with a private dinner at the Flor og Fjære restaurant, attended by all the guests.

Picture Gallery from PPE

Copyright: ANP

Day 1 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Lunch

The second event for the royals was a lunch at Hall Toll, the old customs house in Stavanger, hosted by the Stavanger municipality. This event was also attended by all the foreign guests who had already arrived in the country.

Picture Gallery from PPE

Copyright: PPE/Nieboer

Day 1 of Sonja's Birthday Celebrations - Stavanger Cathedral & Walkabout

The first event on the agenda for Queen Sonja's 70th birthday celebrations was disembarking the Royal Yatch Norge in Stavanger and walking through the city to the Cathedral.

Picture Gallery from PPE

Copyright: PPE/Nieboer

Guests for Sonja's 70th Birthday Arrive in Norway

Guests have begun arriving in Norway for the birthday celebrations of Queen Sonja, which begin on July 4th.

The Queen's daughter and son-in-law, Princess Märtha-Louise and Ari Behn, have arrived in Norway today.

Added:

Crown Prince Haakon, Queen Sonja's son, and his wife Mette-Marit also arrived in Stavagner today.

And Billed Bladet reports Crown Prince Frederik has also arrived in Norway.

Copyright: Tomas Alf Larsen, Aftonbladet, Billed Bladet

Schedule for Sonja's 70th Birthday

Kongehuset.no has released the schedule for Queen Sonja's 70th birthday celebrations:

"The celebration of Her Majesty The Queen’s 70th birthday will commence in Stavanger on Wednesday 4 July, and will continue with a cruise along the coast of Southern Norway, terminating at the King and Queen’s holiday retreat at Mågerø. Most of the Royal guests will arrive in Stavanger on Wednesday.

In the morning, The Royal Family will disembark the Royal Yacht Norge at Skagenkaien in Stavanger and walk to the city’s millennium site, where they will be received by the Mayor. Next on the programme is a service at Stavanger cathedral, followed by a walk through the city with artistic performances along the way. At Sølvberget cultural centre, the Royal Family will be greeted by Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg who will present the Government’s gift, an exhibition of children’s drawings, to Her Majesty.
After this, Stavanger municipality will host a luncheon in the old customs house Hall Toll. The luncheon will be attended by all the foreign guests who have already arrived in Stavanger.
The day’s celebration will be concluded with a private dinner at the Flor og Fjære restaurant, before the guests board the Royal Yachts Norge and Dannebrog, and the Navy vessel KNM Horten.
In the morning of Thursday 5 July, The King and Queen and their guests will sail up the Spangereid Canal in the municipality of Lindesnes. Her Majesty will officially open the canal before the Royal party proceeds on to Lindesnes lighthouse – the southernmost point of the Norwegian mainland.
After the visit at Lindesnes, the party will sail eastward, arriving at Ny Hellesund late in the afternoon. The day’s programme will conclude with a private dinner.
In the morning of Friday 6 July, the vessels will arrive at Gamle Hellesund. After a short visit, the guests will board the Stjernen and barges to sail through Blindleia. A private beach visit will be made along the way.
In the afternoon, the vessels will continue to Arendal, where the Royal couple and their guests are invited for a city walk through Tyholmen.
The evening will conclude with a private dinner aboard the Royal Yacht Norge, while sailing out of Tromøysund towards Lyngør. Late in the evening the Royal Yacht will pass through Lyngør, designated as the best preserved village in Europe.
The cruise will conclude on Saturday 7 July with a private programme at The King and Queen’s holiday retreat at Mågerø."

Guest List for Sonja's 70th Revealed!

Kongehuset.no has revealed the guest list for Queen Sonja's 70th birthday celebrations beginning July 4th. The guests are as following:

Guests on July 4th:
Norway
-TRH the Crown Prince and Princess
-Princess Märtha Louise and Mr Ari Behn
-Princess Ragnhild, Mrs Lorentzen, and Mr Erling S. Lorentzen
-Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner, and Mr Johan Martin Ferner
Denmark
-HM the Queen and HRH the Prince Consort
-HRH the Crown Prince
-HE Countess Ruth of Rosenborg
Sweden
-TM the King and Queen
-HRH the Crown Princess
-HH Princess Desireé, Baroness Silfverschiöld, and Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld
-HH Princess Kristine Bernadotte
The Netherlands
-HM the Queen
-HRH Princess Máxima
Luxembourg
-HSH the Grand Duchess
-HSH the Hereditary Grand Duke
-HSH Prince Felix
Belgium
-TRH the Duke and Duchess of Brabant
Other Royal Guests
-HM Queen Anne-Marie of Greece
-Archduke Christian
-Princess Alexandra and Count Jefferson-Friedrich von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
-Lady Elizabeth Shakerley

Guests on the Royal Cruise:
Norway
-TRH the Crown Prince and Princess
-Princess Märtha Louise and Mr Ari Behn
-Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner, and Mr Johan Martin Ferner
Denmark
-HM the Queen and HRH the Prince Consort
Sweden
-TM the King and Queen
-HRH the Crown Princess
The Netherlands
-HM the Queen
-HRH Princess Máxima
Spain
-HM the Queen
-HRH Infanta Elena and HE the Duke of Lugo
Luxembourg
-HSH the Grand Duchess
-HSH the Hereditary Grand Duke
-HSH Prince Felix
Belgium
-TRH the Duke and Duchess of Brabant
Other Royal Guests
-HM Queen Anne-Marie of Greece
-Archduke Christian
-Princess Alexandra and Count Jefferson-Friedrich von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth

The guest list is mainly female guests, so Sonja's 70th is going to be a girl's party!

Happy 2nd Birthday Alexia!

Princess Alexia Juliana Marcela Laurentien, the second daugher of Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Máxima of the Netherlands, celebrates today her 2nd birthday!

Born on June 26th, 2005, at the Boronovo Hospital in The Hague, Alexia became the third in line for the Dutch throne. This picture was taken by her father hours after her birth.Alexia partook in her first family photo session the month after her birth, in the grounds of Villa Eikenhorst - her home - with her parents and sister Catharina-Amalia. Alexia was christened on November 19th, 2005, in Wassenaar by J.A.D. van der Boon. Her godparents were: Prince Friso of the Orange-Nassau, Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Juan Zorreguieta, Jonkvrouwe Alexandra Jankovich de Jeszenice and Jonkheer Frans Ferdinand de Beaufort.So, on the occassion of her second birthday, The Three M's blog would like to wish Her Royal Highness a very happy birthday!

Copyright: RVD/The Prince of Orange & ANP

Dutch Photo Session in the Royal Mews

Prince Willem-Alexander, Princess Máxima and their three daughters - Amalia, Alexia (the birthday girl!) and Ariane - have completed a photo session celebrating the 2nd birthday of Princess Alexia in the Royal Mews in The Hague.

PPE Picture Gallery here

Added: Royal Press Picture Gallery here

Copyright: RVD & Yord/AP