Today the Duchess of Cambridge carried out the engagement originally scheduled for September 4, which was delayed due to the announcement that she and the Duke were expecting their third child together. It marks the third solo engagement Kate has undertaken on behalf of her patronages during her pregnancy, not counting the gala she attended last week for the Anna Freud Centre.
The Children’s Centre is one of the UK’s largest national providers of early intervention services for children, providing resources and financial support to more than 45,000 families. Today Kate had the opportunity to see the programs in action, meet with children benefiting from the Centre’s resources and speak with parents who are benefiting from the organization.
The Daily Mirror’s Victoria Murphy was on site reporting on the engagement and tweeted out a series of excellent videos of Kate interacting with children:
And one more of Kate speaking with the Centre’s staff on the broader issues at play:
And then there’s this little nugget:
The Duchess is wearing a cream-colored coat by Goat, worn over a Topshop dress with a peter pan collar. This is the second Goat item she’s worn this pregnancy – just last week she debuted a new burgundy dress for a speech she delivered at Place2Be.
This coat, however, is a recycle. Kate first wore back in 2013 when pregnant with Prince George and, now that I think about it, a good number of her pieces from his label make up her pregnancy wardrobe. Not all, but enough that it would be fair to say this brand is a reliable pillar for her when she needs to dress professionally in her second and third trimesters and wants to put off traditional maternity wear.
The coat is worn over a black dress that hasn’t been ID’d and paired with a favorite pair of her Aquatalia Russell & Bromley boots (of which I am personally jealous) and black tights. I really like today’s look, the peter pan collar notwithstanding. That particularly twee detail is balanced out by the boots and the simplicity of the coat’s lines – altogether, I think it works. I’ll call it a win.
As of right now there aren’t anymore engagements for Kate on the books, but I would imagine that will change soon. Early next week the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will celebrate 70 years of marriage. Usually this means a service at Westminster Abbey, but this year it’s been announced the family will mark the occasion privately. Even so, I’m holding out hope that we see a photo or two of family members arriving at the Palace, akin to what we get at the Christmas luncheons or when the royals drive to church at Balmoral.
One more note: It struck me today that it would have been right about now that Kate and William would have been embarking on their Scandinavian tour. While William is still going to spend two days in Finland at the end of the month, their visits to Sweden and Norway were punted to early next year. Understanding the decision was made a month ago when Kate was still battling HG, I have to say I’m finding it a bit odd that it was considered preferable for her to undertake the tour at six or seven months pregnant instead of four.
It does make me think January is likelier than February, but we’ll see!