Royal fans could not contain their excitement in seeing Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five, pictured in a loved-up snap with their mother, the Princess of Wales, on Mother’s Day.
The picture was uploaded amid speculation of Princess Kate’s absence as she recovers from abdominal surgery that she underwent earlier this year.
Fans of the royal children were shocked at how much they had grown. Social media user, @nancytsidley commented: “The children are getting so big!” accompanied by a teary-eyed emoji.
Another said, “I thought the same, Louis is so tall” with a different fan noting Louis had “lost a tooth”.
Another chimed in: “Absolutely wonderful to see the Princess looking so well and the children looking so big. A beautiful photo taken by the Prince.”
Multiple fans expressed their relief at seeing the Princess looking so well, with @EN20191 stating: “Catherine there are tens of thousands of people that are so happy to see this photo released by KP [Kensington Palace]”
With the release of the photo, Princess Kate thanked the public for their “kind wishes and continued support” over the past two months.
In an unusual move for the Princess, the busy mum had decided to not wear her iconic engagement ring once worn by Princess Diana, and had opted for a very casual look for the photo, taken by her husband Prince William.
Other royal fans had noted Prince Louis was crossing his fingers in the snap.
One wrote: “Gorgeous photo! What happened to Prince Louis’ finger? It looks like it’s missing.”
One fan even mentioned how strong the family resemblance is in the youngest Wales child. They said: “Louis looks so much like Grandpa Middleton.”
In January, Kate spent 13 nights at The London Clinic, following her surgery, and was visited by Prince William. It was the same clinic where King Charles underwent his prostate surgery earlier this year.
She has spent most of her time recovering at her home at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.
In a rare update, Kensington Palace calmed the widespread speculation on the Princess of Wales who had not been seen in public since Christmas, and said she is “doing well” in a statement.
They reminded the public that the Princess of Wales is expected to return to royal duties after Easter.
