Happy Royal Christmas

Merry Christmas to you all!  After her appearance at the BBC Sport Awards, Kate attended the office party for Clarence House staff, as well as the traditional Christmas lunch the Queen hosts at the Palace every year for members of the extended royal family before leaving for Sandringham.  No photos were taken of the office party, which was a sedate affair at a restaurant in a nice part of London, but there were the usual car shots taken of the royals as they arrived at Buckingham Palace.

William and Kate arrived separately, but left together. (This was last week.)  William and Kate now are in Berkshire, celebrating Christmas with the Middleton family, which is a huge break in tradition, as the royals always spend Christmas with the Queen at her Sandringham estate.  Last year, William and Kate were there and photographed walking to church and greeting well wishers.

Although, a break with tradition, it should not come as a surprise that these two are spending Christmas with the Middletons.  When they were dating it was clear that Kate's family does not intend to be pushed to the side in the way that other in-laws may have been in the past.  William and Kate are a very modern couple and I think Wills wants to respect his wife's family and their claims on her time and attention. The excuse this year is obviously that Kate is not feeling well enough to make the journey, which is reasonable, but I think we will see more Middleton holidays in the future.  Alternatively, the royals could compromise and invite the Middletons to their Christmas celebration...

Old house in Berkshire

Middleton House When William Proposed to Kate 

When Kate and William announced their engagement, her family was living in a lovely home in Berkshire, but over the summer, they moved down the lane to a larger home with more privacy and greater security.  They are better equipped than ever to host their royal children and grandchildren.

Middletons' new home. Larger with more privacy.

Their old home was plenty large, but you can see that they have moved a size or two up and that they have increased distance from the road, etc.  It was a smart move in my mind, although much maligned by the British media. While the Queen and other members of the Royal Family attended church in Sandringham, the Middleton family attended a Christmas service at their local church with William and Kate. I didn't see Michael, but I might have missed him.  Pippa, Carole, and James were all there.

Kate wore her rusty burgundy colored Hobbs coat that we saw on Valentine's Day of this year. Refresh your memory here.  Kate stills looks sickly to me, perhaps because she isn't smiling since this was not a public function.  Her bangs, or fringe, also look a little unkempt in a few shots and that makes her look a little tired. In this shot from the side you can see that she has a very lovely updo. This is a less formal occasion, and Kate is not wearing a hat, as we would have seen had she been with the Queen.

Some people on Twitter tracked down this one shot of Kate smiling, which makes her look a little more Christmas-like. :)

I am sure that the Middletons watched the Queen's Christmas Day address, which speaks about her Diamond Jubilee events and the Christmas season.  Watch the whole video below:

I imagine we will be spotting new jewelry on Kate on the months to come, perhaps something she received today.  I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas! I am off to savor a Chocolate Martini.