By Cassie Carpenter

Last updated at 6:30 PM on 13th February 2012

She's an acclaimed actress, but Jennifer Connelly was focused on another important role in New York yesterday - motherhood. 

The Oscar-winner held 9-month-old daughter Agnes Lark close to her heart on a brisk walk with her two sons, Stellan and Kai, and dog Merlin yesterday in New York.

Stellan, 8, appeared amused in his striped hat and peacoat while fixing his eyes on the photographers. Baby Agnes cuddled up to her mother in a pointed hat and grey pants and booties while Jennifer carried the tot in a carrier strapped to her front.

Jennifer's 14-year-old son with photographer David Dugan, Kai, is blessed with his mother's coloring while Agnes and and Stellan are the spitting image of their father English actor Paul Bettany.

Kai looked dapper in grey and kahki with a scarf and newsboy cap as he carried a guitar in one hand and the dog in the other. The handsome family did their best to keep warm in the chilly 38-degree weather.

The 41-year-old actress appears to have got back into shape following her pregnancy, showing off her slim figure in a peacoat, boots, and rolled-up jeans, paired with some black leather combat boots.

Jennifer was just named the first global face of the Shiseido Company, a cosmetics brand she also modeled for in the eighties. Her flawless complexion, shiny black hair, and bright green eyes have landed the Labyrinth star on most beautiful lists of Time, Vanity Fair, and Esquire.

Jennifer and her husband met on the set of A Beautiful Mind in 2001, and have been married for 8 years. Their second child together, Agnes, was born May 31 via scheduled home water birth at their NYC apartment.

Her husband recently told The Canadian News that he passed on the role of King George VI in The King's Speech in order to spend more time with his family.

 

'Number one, of course, it is a regret not to be working with such great, and really great people, Geoffrey Rush and (director) Tom Hooper. I think it is a little inelegant for me to discuss it. I had been working for five months steadily and my son missed me and I missed my son. Both of my sons and my wife,' explained Paul, referring to his work on The Tourist. 'I regret not working with such amazing, amazing actors and directors and writers. But no, I have to do the right thing by my family every time.'

It will soon be Jennifer's turn to leave home for a film. The Requiem for a Dream star will be flying to Wilmington, NC in March to shoot Writers with Greg Kinnear.

The script is billed as a funny tale of a famous novelist trying to rediscover his fractured family over the course of a year. Jennifer plays his ex-wife, with whom he's obsessed. Jennifer has previously said her favorite role in life is being a wife and mother.

'I'm very blessed. I have gorgeous, healthy, funny kids and a good husband,' she said. 'The biggest thing for me is wanting my kids to grow up safely and have happy lives. To me, that's enough.'