Prince William Greets Visitors

Tonight, Prince William had dinner with his father, brother and stepmother at Clarence House, while Kate Middleton spent her wedding eve with her family at the Goring Hotel.

Will you be rising early to watch the festivities?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-32917_162-20058414-10391716.html

Tiara for a 21st Century Princess

Which tiara will Kate wear when she walks the aisle of Westminster Abbey tomorrow?

Will she don the Cambridge tiara? Or, perhaps she’ll wear the diadem known as the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland? Or, maybe even -- as a tribute to her mother-in-law, the late Diana, Princess of Wales -- the Spencer family tiara?

Most likely, she’ll wear The Fringe Tiara.

Also known as the Russian Fringe Tiara, the King George Fringe Tiara and the Princess Elizabeth wedding tiara, the dramatic headpiece is a powerful style statement. And, for all its modern, clean lines, it’s nearly two centuries old.

This impressive circlet of diamonds – a gradually increasing line of vertical rows of diamonds -- was made in 1830 of brilliant cut stones belonging to King George III. It first gained fame the evening it was worn by George III’s niece, Queen Victoria, on a visit to the Royal Opera in 1839.

The tiara was inherited by Queen Victoria’s daughter-in-law, Queen Alexandra, who, in turn, gave it to Queen Mary when she became Queen Consort in 1910. Queen Mary gifted it to her daughter in law, Queen Elizabeth, (you know her as the Queen Mother and mother of the present queen) in 1937.

The Queen Mother loaned it to her daughter Princess Elizabeth as “something borrowed” for her wedding in 1947. The Queen Mother also loaned it to her granddaughter, Princess Anne, in 1973 for her marriage to Captain Mark Phillips.

It is now part of Queen Elizabeth II's collection.

There are a bevy of tiaras from which Kate could have chosen. But smart money is on the Fringe Tiara. I think the grapevine is right on this one – and here is why:

Catherine is a very modern lady with very conservative tastes. The sleek lines of the Fringe Tiara complement both her forward-thinking ways and her Jane Austen sensibilities. And, as such, it will complete what is rumored to be a Renaissance-inspired wedding dress, which the bride herself designed.

We’ll know for sure in a few hours.

Lady Betty

Before there was Kate, before there was Lady Diana, there was Lady Betty.

You all know her better as the Queen Mother.

Lady Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes Lyon was the youngest daughter of one of the oldest of Scottish nobility, the fourteenth Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne. As a dark-eyed, self-assured debutante, she caught the eye of Prince Albert -Bertie --the second son of King George V.

There's much evidence Elizabeth's heart may have been engaged elsewhere, to a young man named James Stuart. Stuart later claimed that he and Elizabeth were in love, but that Queen Mary --Bertie's mother-- had intervened and friends of the Royals offered Stuart a lucrative position in the oil business --in Texas!

The rest of the Royal family and their courtiers, realizing the depth of Bertie's devotion to Lady Elizabeth -- swung into action. Princess Mary, Bertie's sister, asked Elizabeth to be one of her bridesmaids. Queen Mary enlisted her ladies-in-waiting to sing Bertie's praises to the young Scottish aristocrat.

After several rejections, Bertie finally won Elizabeth's consent to be his bride. He sent a coded telegram to his parents, sharing the news of Elizabeth's "yes."

Prince Bertie was never meant to be King – he was the spare to the heir. But, the heir -- Edward, Prince of Wales, showed no signs of settling down. Therefore public attention upon Lady Elizabeth was relentless. From January 16, 1923, when the engagement was announced, until the wedding in late April, the newspapers were full of every kind of information and misinformation about "Lady Betty."

The bride-to-be herself -- who initially received no guidance from Buckingham Palace -- was so well-mannered and obligingly kind that she gave two interviews to reporters, before realizing this was not in her best interest. (They were the last interviews she was to give for 80 years.)

Elizabeth was never known as “Betty” to any of her family or intimates– but that didn’t stop the broadsheets from portraying her that way. They couldn’t resist shortening her name to the popular diminutive. And, the British public began a lifelong love affair with the woman who eventually became known as "the Smiling Duchess," "Our Brave Queen," and, finally, "The Queen Mum."

However, her first sobriquet was "Lady Betty."

Windsors at Easter

The Royal Family always goes to Windsor for Easter. Yesterday, they were in a slightly hysterical mood (for them) as temperatures reached record highs in London and the surrounding environs. Prince Andrew was in a madcap mood (see photos) and even the Queen couldn't stop smiling. She's just celebrated her 85th birthday and her eldest son's eldest son seems to have chosen well in his quest for a future queen.
But, the real reason for the Queen's happiness: William and Catherine are not the only happy couple in the newest generation of royals. The Queen's eldest grandson, Peter Phillips, seems quite content with his Canadian bride, Autumn, and they welcomed the Queen's first great-grandchild, Savannah, over the Christmas holidays.
Add to that, the Queen's oldest granddaughter, the irrepressible Zara Phillips, is slated to marry her longtime beau, rugby rugged Mike Tyndall, this summer.
The Windsor knot -- matrimonial knot, that is --is sweeter than it's been in decades.





http://royalweddings.hellomagazine.com/prince-william-and-kate-middleton/20110425626/royals-easter-service-church-queen-princess-eugenie-beatrice/1/

Happy Birthday

Today is Christopher's 12th birthday. That's as hard to say -- and write-- as it is to believe.

We're watching a really good episode of Sponge Bob (okay, that's probably redundant) and eating homemade pancakes -- not the kind you get from the drive-through place.
Chris has enjoyed opening some wonderful birthday cards, which are now artfully arranged --by Mom -- on the breakfast counter.

While we're dealing with some challenging issues regarding his Asperger's, we're also grateful that Chris is such a compassionate and loving person. And that he's thrilled that his birthday gift today is a trip to Barnes and Noble.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

As part of our spring break STAYcation, we've gone to movies this week.
Yesterday we watched demi-gods battle villains on behalf of Olympus.
"Percy Jackson and the Olympians: the Lightning Thief" would not have been my first choice for a matinee, but my 11-year old son really wanted to see it. And, he's suffered through enough Jane Austen adaptions for PBS to warrant my indulgence. He's read the entire Percy Jackson series books by Rick Riordan.
I went, frankly not expecting a whole lot. And, as is usually the case when you're not expecting a lot, I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I spent most of this movie trying to figure out how it could have been made an even BETTER movie. It teetered on really good at several junctures. If they'd only worked a little harder on the dialogue -- and pandered a little less to the pre-teen set (or the director's perception of what the pre-teen set finds interesting.)
Even Roger Ebert gave the movie three stars.
I agree with Roger that Pierce Brosnan's graceful and convincing portrayal of a centaur is certainly worth a look-see. I liked that as well as Uma Thurman's amusing turn as Medusa (who takes a licking but keeps on ticking.) And, the location shooting was interesting, even delightful.
There's also a scene shot at Nashville's Parthenon in my native Tennessee.
But, the best part was listening to my son after the movie's conclusion.
"They left out Chronos. They didn't mention the chimera. That part in Nashville was really in the second book..."
Everybody's a critic.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6b/Lightning_thief.jpg

Now back to blogging

Can't believe it's been so long since my last post. It's Spring Break and I have a little extra time (not really) and it's time to get back to blogging.