Trivia gathered from countless articles in Billed Bladet #21, 2012.
Written by Henrik Salling, Trine Larsen & Ken Richter.
There were 215 guests in the church. Among the invited were representatives from both kindergartens bette Henrik attends. (In Møgeltønder and Copenhagen). The maternity team from Rigshospitalet had also been invited.
It was as always the likable royal confessionarius Erik Norman Svendsen who led the show.
Everybody who has had children know that the late afternoon can be bad! Little Athena did voice her discontent from time to time. Apparently the DRF don’t believe in pacifiers, so our Marie used all sorts of tricks to calm her daughter. Helped by big brother Henrik, who took care of the ventilation from time to time by flapping a booklet over his little sister. That is, when he wasn’t busy chatting to mother, climbing up and down a chair for adults, not that simple a feat when you are three years old! The booklets, he and his parents had been handed also needed to be shuffled. He was busy!
La belle Marie was radiant and displayed a brooch on her dress, a gift from Queen Margrethe. And earrings made from pearls and diamonds, a present from Joachim.
The name Athena came as a big surprise but Marie revealed to our reporters when they left the church: “It’s a name we have always loved and we haven’t been in doubt whatsoever. We were in complete agreement”.
Bette Henrik and Athena weren’t the only children around. The older half brothers, Nikolai and Felix arrived hand in hand with the Regent Couple, who came directly from England (via Gråsten Manor). As the article points out a big, almost thirteen year old boy like Nikolai may have been less than eager to be seen in public holding grandpapa Henrik’s hand…. Oh, well…. (*)
Isabella and Christian were there as well. Isabella obviously intent on entertaining the entire church, congregation and the parish in general. She danced her way to the church. Once inside and when the baby had been watered at the font, it really became quite boring. She chatted with mother, hid her face in a booklet, yawned and waved to people she knew among the congregation. At one point Christian, being the mature older brother, felt he had to intervene. He looked disapprovingly at his sister, put a finger in front of his lips and hushed her. – Bella ignored him… (**)
However when they left the church Christian proved that he is his father’s son. He had his hands parked deeply in his pockets.
The photo session after the christening went well. Athena didn’t complain, she just needed her thumb from time to time.
As you may have noticed Carina Axelsson used a crutch. Some weeks back, while going for a walk with her dogs, her legs got entangled in the leashes and she fell and broke her ankle. Hence the reason why she was dressed more practical than usual and wore trainers.
Marie’s father, Alain Cavallier, who is retired brought along his sweetheart (***), 62-year-old Marielle Dubern, who is also a divorcee. She has two adult sons. They have been a couple for more than a year and as such Marie and Joachim have met her before, but other relatives of Marie hadn’t.
The Cavallier family, both sides, were observed enjoying the good weather strolling around in the admittedly very picturesque Møgeltønder village.
The flower arrangement in the church had been made by Ulla Lykke Alnor from the town of Aabenraa. There were some speculations as to whether Marie or her mother had been in charged. Marie has apparently admitted that flower arrangements is not among her most outstanding talents, while her mother is good at it.
After the christening all the guests strolled through Møgeltønder to Schackenborg Manor. Here it was observed that Nikolai within a few nanoseconds had discarded his suit and put on something more comfortable. (Actually it looks more like Felix to my eyes).
The guests were treated to a mouth-watering buffet, but as many had to return to Copenhagen that evening, the first guests, among them the Regent Couple, started to leave around 20.00.
M&F and their children left around 21.00. And things went quiet at the manor around midnight.
(*) One of the delightful things of having teenagers is that we as parents, pardon me, got them by the balls. We can at any time unleash our most dreaded weapon: treat them as children in public.
Our oldest was standing chatting with a group of local teens during a visit to some relatives, among them girls (oh yes, his big feet revealed the direction of his interest!). We were going home so I stopped the car and called out: “Come on, you are going home to puttesove = go sleepy-eye”. He didn’t think that was funny. Teens have no sense of humour.
His mother has often threatened to call him “mors lille nuser = mother’s little cutie-pie” in front of his classmates.
Payback for all the time he kept us awake at nights.
(**) There is a charming picture of Christian doing that in the magazine.
(***) May that word never vanish from the English language. Apart from that it doesn’t ring in my ears to call a 62-year-old women a girlfriend.
(Billed Bladet this week is litterally packed with stories, so it'll take me a couple of days to write the summaries).
