Getting into the holiday spirit! Duchess Kate’s mother, Carole Middleton, revealed which of her go-to traditions she’s bringing back for her grandchildren this season.
“Once again this year we plan to have two Christmas trees,” the Party Pieces owner, 66, wrote via the company’s Instagram page earlier this month. “One for the children to decorate and one which I do myself.”
The England native is grandmother to Kate, 39, and Prince William’s three children: Prince George, 8, Princess Charlotte, 6, and Prince Louis, 3. Carole and husband, Michael Middleton, are also the grandparents of daughter Pippa Middleton’s two little ones, Arthur, 3, and Grace, 9 months, whom she shares with husband James Matthews.
“My beloved treetop angel is looking a little worse for wear after years of service so it’s time to invest in something new,” Carole explained in her December post, before highlighting Party Pieces’ light up gold star tree topper as an alternative. “[This] will bring an extra twinkle to proceedings.”
The entrepreneur, who also shares son James Middleton with her husband, 72, previously gave fans a glimpse at her grandchildren’s taste in holiday decorations by sharing a photo of funny Santa gnomes available for purchase.
“I’m going to need a few of these cheeky chaps this December, to hide around the house and make my grandchildren laugh,” Carole wrote via the company’s Instagram page last month.
The Cambridge family, for their part, kicked off the holiday season by sharing their annual Christmas card via social media on Friday, December 10.
“Delighted to share a new image of the family, which features on this year’s Christmas card,” the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge captioned the snap.
In the photo, the family of five wore color-coordinated outfits with William, 39, Kate and George all in green while Charlotte and Louis chose blue ensembles.
In addition to their festive card reveal — and decorating a special tree with grandmother Carole — the royals are set to reunite with their extended family later this month after having a smaller Christmas celebration in 2020 amid COVID-19 restrictions.
“The Cambridges are spending Christmas with the Queen at Sandringham,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly on Friday. “It’s going to be a big family affair.”
The insider added that George, Charlotte and Louis are “absolutely delighted” to see their great grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, in person once again.
Last year, the family’s annual holiday plans were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The queen and her husband, Prince Philip, opted to celebrate Christmas “quietly” at Windsor Castle, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said in December 2020.
This holiday, however, the royals will return to their normal celebrations — but it will be the first without the Duke of Edinburgh, who passed away in April at the age of 99.
Despite many ups and downs over the past year, William and Kate are “looking forward to starting fresh in the New Year,” the insider explained, noting that the couple will start “seeing a transition of responsibility” as they up their charity work and attend more events in the name of the crown.