I have no idea when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridges’ children start school again, but my guess is that this year, we won’t see some kind of photo-call outside of the school. Mostly for pandemic reasons, although I would also guess that Kate will likely snap some photos of George and Charlotte as they start another year at Thomas’s Battersea, and Louis is still in nursery school. Kate and William are still due to put in an appearance at Balmoral, and I guess the kids will start school soon after. Which leaves some unanswered questions about where William and Kate have been this summer and what the hell they’ve been up to. Anyway, The Sun did a very cutesy story about what William and Kate are like as parents and basically, Kate is the keenest PTA mom ever or something. Some highlights:
Kate is getting ready for her kids to start back at school: The Duchess of Cambridge, 39, is said to have a “hands on” approach when it comes to looking after George, eight, Charlotte, six, and Louis, three – and has begun the preparations. A royal source said: “Because of who they are, William and Kate have had to be highly organised parents. But as parents, Wills and Kate have developed this brilliant knack of letting as much as they can seem spontaneous and that’s how the children see it.”
The kids are popular: The source added that “all the children are popular at school and have lots of friends, in London and also near Anmer. There’s never a shortage of friends around for tea. Kate and William insist on no special treatment for any of them. George might be a future king but for now he’s just another little boy. They are always at great pains to make sure the three of them have as normal a childhood as possible.”
Kate in particular is “very hot on manners.” “Table manners, thank you letters, little courtesies are being drilled into the children so they become automatic.If George has been naughty, and he has been on occasion, Kate and William are good at explaining to him the rights and wrongs of what’s happened”.
Keen PTA mom: Kate is said to be “keen on supportive networks” and wants to maintain a good relationship with other school mums and teaching staff. The source added: “She comes from a supportive family so she’s very keen on family networks and networks of friends and organisations. As parents they are also very good at rolling up their sleeves and helping out with school events; sports days, fundraisers and that sort of thing. They try to be just like normal parents with normal parenting challenges. No-one ever jumps the queue for anything. They just try to fit in. Kate and William are also very, very supportive of the staff.”
The children cook: According to the insider: “New skills are constantly being learnt, lots of cooking being done by all the three children, followed by lots of mess and much laughter.”
Carole Middleton was the hyper-organized, super-involved parent in her children’s lives. She still organizes Kate’s life and is very involved with Kate and William’s marriage and how they raise George, Charlotte and Louis. My guess is that Kate tries to be like her mom when it comes to “being an involved parent,” but Kate probably falls short. Like, Kate probably wishes Carole would just totally organize her grandkids’ lives and school stuff too. I kind of doubt that William and Kate are regularly pitching in at school fundraisers and school events as well – we would have heard about it before now, and William’s probably only interested in checking out yummy mummies. Remember when Katie Nicholl said that William likes to do the school drop-off because he enjoys chatting up the mums and then he “works out at the Harbour Club” with those mums?
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.
Yeah, whatever. Who does this appeal to? William and Kate are just boring people.
Am I the only one getting cavities from reading that super, sugary PR puff piece? 😁
I had to borrow my dad’s glucose reader, prick my finger and take a measurement to make sure my blood sugar didn’t soar through the roof after reading this.
This is SUCH blatant bullshit lol. If ANY of this was happening, we’d see pics. LOTS of pics. The few things they DO do have been with a photog in tow.
Right, Kate teaching manners to children. As if. She needs lessons first.
I howled at that bit. How can she teach them manners after that horrific church performance?
Full of sugar and gender stereotypes. Kate likes hanging with “school mums,” are there no fathers for these children?
There was a story a few years ago about William hanging with the school mums, apparently he went to the same gym as a few of them. The article mentioned one was an attractive model.
I’m a decently involved mom and I always feel kind of pukey hearing about how super PTA moms are so involved. Moms are EXPECTED to be involved. I wonder how much other people get annoyed when they read gushing praise for the same shit they do anonymously and thanklessly day in and day out. Kate is such a perfect mum? I’d rather hear about imperfections tbh
I agree with you completely. There’s so much pressure to be a perfect parent and everyone is always comparing, but in reality none of us are perfect parents and we are all just trying our best. That life of trying to look perfect can really take it’s toll.
As a single parent of a disabled two disabled children, I particularly struggled with everyone talking about how amazing their children and lives in general were. I refused to lie about my situation because even though I suspected I was the source of playground gossip, I thought at least in their hard moments, they’d think back to my apparently shocking stories and feel less bad about their own. I ended up with true friends too, rather than those who just wanted to present that perfect image. Surprisingly a couple of these were PTA mums and teachers.
Women are putting so much pressure on other women, and themselves by just not being honest. And it is mostly women. I only knew a couple of dads who would regularly do the school runs and attend events.
@graceb thank you for sharing this. Part of why I hate these perfection stories is because we are all just one accident away from a very different and much harder life. To me, it’s just evil eye to go swanning about pretending to be perfect. Also, excuse me but what is wrong with imperfection? There are a lot of us out here with complicated and difficult situations that would burn miss priss Kate out in two seconds. Imperfect is pretty damn good for most of us.
Grace B and GRUEY thank you for this. I agree and feel the same. As a mother of a child (now adult) with a disability, I remember listening through gritted teeth at the hundredth story of the overall shiny perfect perfection of other mothers’ children. And I was thrilled when my son could do his own shoelaces by thirteen… I used to wonder at the strain of maintaining that glistening facade. I was so isolated in many ways, but I too made real friends. Those who saw through the BS and truly supported each other. Hugs to you.
That’s the only thing I can believe about these two that they are actually hands on parents. The involvement in school activities is obviously hyped and they have more help than what they’re saying.
How hands on can you be with at nanny for each kid plus Nanny Maria, a cook, cleaner etc? I don’t they are as “hands on” as us regular folk who can’t afford live in help. It’s not like Kate has a 9 to 5 job (or really any kind of regular work) that requires so many nannies. And the kids go to school.
“hands on”, “normal” (how many times can they say normal in one story?), “involved,” “future king”….yeah the Cambridge PR is rolling out again, right on schedule. Maybe this is to hold off any cries of “what the hell have they been doing for the past *checks notes* 47 days?*
And I’m still convinced that the Harbor Club story was about William having an affair with someone there.
*that’s right, this is your reminder that its been 47 days since we’ve seen the cambridges.
Those paragraphs said basically nothing.
I agree that the Harbour Club story was one of those subtle hints about another affair that the British media likes to sprinkle in when they can.
Last year there was nothing about the return to school and it is likely that they were doing virtual schooling for most of the year.
Nic919, very valid point. And considering the younger children are at risk with COVID, I seriously doubt the would expose the FFFK to COVID – or any of the kids. Which, if I were in their shoes, I would do the same; BUT don’t insult our intelligence with asinine sugar pieces.
Do spill the tea, as I seem to have missed the Harbor Club story…
@EatingPopcorn Kaiser linked it in the post above (its from Katie Nicholl I think) but the general idea was that William was so normal, such a hands on dad, that he does the school run and hangs around talking to the moms and then goes to the Harbor Club and works out with some of them. It was a weird detail to include and seemed oddly specific – like if anyone wanted to know anything scandalous about william, ask the moms at the Harbor Club. And in the same article she referenced the Cambridges legal letter about “rumors that were printed in the US” (i.e. Rose Hanbury.) Looking back it was a pretty interesting article from KN. Makes me wonder if she was getting annoyed at them for something so wrote that.
Normal can be achieved by giving up the palaces, jewels, fill time help from the driver right down to the gardener.getting a real job and paying your own bills. That is normal. Anything else is just a lifetime movie
And? Let me preface this by saying I woke up grumpy this morning. We are in a pandemic. People are dying. I don’t care that your kids have friends and bake cookies. FFS!
In the last year a lot of those visits would have been contrary to pandemic gathering rules anyway but then we know they didn’t care about proper hygiene with their sporadic use of masks.
These pieces, I think, are less about they being relatable, and more about letting the taxpayers know their ” investment” will surely give them great returns.
The constant reminder that George is a future King, the reassurance that he is naught, but does write thank you notes, the ” source” calling William ” Wills”…this might be the first joint Kate and William PR move of the year.
Many people (not here, I’m sure!) will read about Kate being keen and hands-on and super involved and think, “oh, that’s lovely”. We teachers read it and think, “God, what a pain in the ass she must be”. Don’t get me wrong, we appreciate genuinely helpful parents, but I promise you, Kate is the type who only gets involved for the sake of appearances or to have something to hold over the heads of other parents, expects a standing ovation when she brings store-bought Rice Krispies treats to the bake sale, and is just generally in the way.
haha that sounds like how she is with her royal work so that’s spot on.
Hee. My mom was a teacher (now retired) and she would completely agree with you. 🤣
That little Louis is an adorable child. Perfect last baby. Mommy’s boy, I think.
The same support she gave to new mum Meghan?
Exactly.
Apparently Kate doesn’t believe “charity begins at home.” She and Meghan could have been great supports for each other, especially when Meghan was pregnant with Archie. Instead, she tried to pretend Meghan didn’t exist.
But…but…Archie wasn’t a “respectable” baby, y’know. Just like his mom was not a “proper” mum. 🙄🙄
This is starting to borderline on intrusive at this point at least as far as these kids are concerned. I mean if you know the tabloids are going to give you free reign why not talk up whatever you ( i.e the staff) have been-working on. Matter fact why not throw out that old “we have been quietly working behind the scenes this whole time” story. Do we really need to know “ that George has been naughty sometimes”? If a whole damn cartoon has been made depicting my kids in addition to being beyond angry, I would maybe tell p.r.( i.e. our palace idiots) to maybe cool it on the intimate family stories for a while!
I don’t know why I’m laughing so hard at the “When George is naughty – and he has been on occasion” bit.
The person who wrote this has never met a kid in their lives, lol.
This is like my grandmother talking about my cousins’ two boys. They can be utter little ratbags as every small boy is but that’s not the language you’ll ever hear from her about them (or any of her grandchildren/great grandchildren TBH). But she’s never claimed to be a journalist!
It made me laugh too. he’s misbehaved at times, but only “on occasion.” I wonder if its deliberate, so there aren’t stories about George being a brat or whatever (even if he’s just behaving like a normal 5/6/7/8 year old, however old he was when these naughty incidents occurred) that will circulate when he’s older, like the Billy the Basher stories?
That’s a very good theory. It was well known when William was a small kid that he had a bratty streak with a nasty temper. It explains a lot of what we see in adult William. I often wonder if William really hates the fact that the narrative goes back a long way that he was the basher and Harry was known for being sweeter.
Well Billy the Basher stories continue because he really hasn’t changed much since then. He still tries to bash his enemies except with the british media instead.
So these kids don’t have involved fathers? I guess considering the clientele of this school, probably not, but still…I’m not impressed with any of it.
Don’t forget William and Kate are trying to be a model 1950’s family so of course mothers run the show for their kids.
Now that I know what to look for, the Middleton stories all have the same beats. A reference to Kate’s “stable, supportive upbringing” and how she’s trying to instill “normalcy” to her family through “hands on” parenting. Of course, the truly “normal” families probably wouldn’t feel the need to specify this – I’m just imagining disclosing to another parent from school that “Oh, I’m very hands on – I even live in the same house as my offspring and mostly remember their names”! Occasionally we even speak! Meanwhile, most parents I know are struggling with juggling the impossible demands of their jobs with the needs of their children. It’s untenable. I’d love to hear about Kate being keen to actually support other parents, rather than just hearing about how amazing she is. Talk about tone deaf.
I would say that the most normal thing on display here is that it sounds exactly like any upper middle class grandmother bragging about her grandchildren – they are SO popular and well- mannered, lots of friends, good at sports etc.
Yeah, and the irony is that they are at school with the 1% kids of west London – none of them will have upbringings anyone would describe as normal. It’s like they’re playing at being normal using all these clichéd ideas they think people will relate and warm to.
If they really want to be ‘normal’ in the classic British sense, they should be put in wraparound care before and after school 7.30am-6pm, eat mostly beige food for tea because it’s all their mums and dads can afford and feel a bit tired and disillusioned with a world beset with climate change and covid restrictions. That’s a more accurate protrayal of ‘normal’ and Kate should know that too- given that she now supposedly runs a centre for early years.
Notice that these stories never have quote or specific example from another parent or pta member.
This story is so sickeningly sweet I need to visit my dentist..
Oh please, they don’t fundraise for their own patronages – they fundraise for the kid’s schools? Next we’ll be told Kate makes cupcakes for the school bake sales, probably while FaceTiming H&M.
Kate does NOT support other women. They’re competition, in her eyes (which is probably enhanced by the fact that her husband can stand to look anywhere but at her).
Kate can’t afford to support or have women friends unless she’s ok with Wills trying to sleep with them.
It’s starting to seem like William really *fetishizes* being “normal”… Like not the reality but the play-acting of it, a sort of stylized, filtered, scratching-a-psychological-itch version of it. Fetishizing normal the way some people fetishize feet or furries or rubber underpants or whatever.
Ma Middleton and her daughter seem to have recognized this and quickly seized the opportunity to satisfy it with cheese toasts and drinks at the pub and a whole “normal” family presented on a platter for William to indulge in.
Diana wanted both her sons to understand how normal people lived, outside the royal bubble.
But Baldy is having it both ways, the privileged bubble and the fetishized normal.
Only Harry seems to have understood the assignment – take yourself truly outside the bubble, live humbly as a normal – which incl discomfort and problems and all the things the bubble wards off – in order to see what authentic connection feels like. He did it in the military, bonding with the soldiers he bunked with, and was ready for Meghan to show him more.
IDK… These people are all so weird.
Such an interesting observation – both brothers craving normal, but finding different paths to achieve it. I can see why Harry expressed sympathy for Will – as the FFK, Will can only pretend. Of course, “normal” is relative – Harry’s life in the US, while out of the bubble, is still the life of the 1%, but I get your point.
Harry does not live normally, but definitely will be living like a high net worth individual outside the royal bubble, who has to pay his own bills.
It seems that they are falling back on the “ kinder,küche, kirche” role for Kate. The busy, involved mum. It works for her and is her safe zone, especially after her being so desperate about the Diana unveiling.
Well after the multiple disasters Kate had, small wonder the royal boot-lickers are coming up with these barf-inducing puff pieces. It was one fail after another for a while — the round table with Dr. Biden, the kerfuffle over the Diana statue unveiling, Prince Philip’s funeral, she simply can’t put a foot straight.
So who is teaching Kate wnd william manners? . And of those children do indeed cook, you can bet your last dime it’s not with their parents. Katie keen isn’t helping out with any pta stuff. She sends the nanny. That’s her contribution. I bet most of the children at that school nannies do the helping out
They have to be highly organized because of who they are? I thought they were overly privileged adults with large staff able to pick up all the slack….
I am curious why no paparazzi or some place like TMZ or DeuxMoi know where they have been for the summer.
It’s because no one cares. These two are like watching paint dry.
Yellow school bus for the Cambridges
I think this is in response to commentary on this site and others that Kate could not pull off a campaign like Megan’s 40×40 because she doesn’t have any female friends or support network outside of her immediate family. 🤔
To this day, I do not understand why Kate doesn’t have her makeup professionally done. It is baffling to me that her makeup looks so awful.
They can’t even fundraise for their own foundation effectively. Kate especially can’t be bothered to fundraise for her patronages that are about to close. There’s no way she’s fundraising at whatever school the kids are in.
I do picture her being “supportive” of staff. “Oh you’re doing such a good job whatever your name is, Nanny number 2. Off to a blow out now!”
This is such a non story to report about.
KN: Kate is really keen about woman.
Normal people:Where is the proof?
KN:….
NEXT WEEK
KN: kate is really concern about the environment and i have proof.
Normal people: show us the proof this time?
KN: aha…she breathe.