Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian are mostly based in Florida. Serena and Venus have lived in or around Miami and West Palm Beach for much of their adult lives, usually in the same house or right down the road from one another. That changed a bit when Serena married Alexis – they have at least one home in California and I think they have multiple homes in Florida too? I’m honestly not sure. But my main point is that Serena doesn’t spend a ton of time in California these days, but whenever she does head to CA, I think she stops by Montecito to see the Sussex family. Over the weekend, Serena and the Duchess of Sussex both posted photos and videos from inside Casa de Sussex. Serena was playing Candyland with little Lilibet.
Oh my word … this is too cute!😍 Princess Lilibet hanging out with aunty Serena.🥳
#SussexSquad
— Zandi Sussex (@zandisussex.bsky.social) March 2, 2025 at 12:11 AM
This is so sweet. Meghan posted a photo from the meet-up with the message “3 days until the party begins. All are invited” and she tagged Netflix. So this was absolutely about promoting With Love, Meghan. I think it’s cool/fine that Meghan has been showing her kids a little bit more on her social media too, even though the British media is in a snit about it. Because… how dare Meghan post photos and videos of the king’s grandchildren, I think? And the Royalist at the Daily Beast was especially offended that Meghan referred to Serena as an “aunty,” because… something about Meghan cutting off her toxic family? Whatever.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Meghan’s IG.
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- Conference de Serena Williams au salon Viva Technology a Paris,Image: 876188244, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Jonathan Rebboah/Panoramic/Avalon
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- Conference de Serena Williams au salon Viva Technology a Paris,Image: 876198134, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Jonathan Rebboah/Panoramic/Avalon
Meghan looks like she give THE best hugs. I’d like a hug from her and I am really not a hugger.
The aunty thing, listen, my treasured godparents are my father’s best friend and his wife. No blood relation. I love them more than I like some of my blood family, especially the toxic ones. They have no place in my life, but Uncle Brian (RIP) and Aunt Chris are front row.
I don’t know where you’re from but certainly in America very close friends of your parents are often given Aunty and Uncle monickers because they are closer than friends and deserve family status. And as in your case sometimes closer than family. This is a very normal occurrence here.
Complaining about calling someone Aunty that is not blood relative just seems ignorant of American culture. Unless of course they do that in the UK too and in that case they are just b!tchy whiners. I guess 2 things can be true lol
I’m from Greece and we use Aunt and Uncle as honorific to signal a family bond with people who are unrelated.
Not just America, PLENTY of cultures around the world designate older friends, neighbors, etc as auntie and uncle as a sign of respect. It doesn’t shock me though that ” Royalist ” would be ignorant of that because their biggest issue is the fundamental belief that everyone should emulate their culture, not respect anyone else’s.
Also it pisses them off that their narrative of ” Poor Lili and Archie, no cousins to hang out with they are so isolated in America” is nonsense. They clearly spend time with their parents close friends and those friends ‘ kids and aren’t lacking for close relationships. They are just 5 seconds from flat out saying those relationships don’t matter the only ones that matter are those connected by blood. Even though Meghan has known Serena longer than she’s known Kate.
I’ve never done the Auntie / Uncle thing in America. But when I was growing up in England, we always called our friend’s parents Auntie and Uncle. It’s a very British thing. The Royal Rota should know that.
We did the Aunty and Uncle with our parents friends, in the 50/60s it seems to have gone out of fashion now and I feel uncomfortable when a child calls me by my first name without the Aunty in front. I suppose it was the way I was brought up.
Yes, very American. My husband’s Best Friend, who was our Best Man, both his boys both call us Aunt and Uncle. My son calls him Uncle back…. Even as adults. It makes my heart so happy.
I literally saw that hug with her and Serena and was like – I need a hug like that. Sometimes you just need that close close kind of friendship hug. Esp now.
I’m Auntie to my late BFF’s daughter, I love her like she’s my own. I’ve known her since she was a bump in her mama’s belly and is now in her early 40’s, she’s my angel.
I live in CA, and as much as we love and get along well with our extended families, they all live on the east coast, so IRL visits are only ~1x/year.
My child has grown up calling all of my local besties “Aunt” or “Tia” [Insert name], and the kids all consider each other honorary cousins (and those of us with only children, the kids have dubbed themselves “honorary siblings”).
I love that my kiddo gets to grow up surrounded by a bunch of loving adults they can trust and turn to in need, and as I grew up with about 25 first cousins, I’m glad she gets some cousin relationships too (and of course she loves visiting her 1st and 2nd cousins when we go back east too).
But having grown up in a big family, I’m so glad my kiddo gets this, even when geography makes having it with blood relatives rare.
And I guess that is EXACTLY what the BM and DB are salty about – that H&M and their kids get to have their (freedom) cake and eat it to (surrounded by loving, functional relationships).
This is cute and everything, but all I want to know is how she manages to have a pristine white couch with two children?! The Meghan magic is real!!
Slipcovers that can be bleached!
Not to mention dogs as well!
I have always had white or off white furniture my kids were very good about keeping it clean even at a young age. It just happened, it wasn’t like we did much but they did follow our example with food and messy art supplies were used in a separate room or the kitchen. Even my grandson who is two has been perfectly fine with my off white and cream colored furniture. Don’t be afraid to purchase light color furniture because of kids.
I actually know a lot of moms with multiple dogs who opted for white couches. They have multiple slip covers. 2-3. And they bleach like a dream.
Like you can throw a whole glass of red wine on it. It beads up and doesn’t soak in. Blot and chuck in the wash.
Slip cover hacks are all over the place now too. Using tension rods etc.
Meghan might have a couple of machine washable slipcovers or some very strict house rules (like Emily has 👇)
https://jonesdesigncompany.com/our-house/living-kids-light-couch/
Sweet child. Petite like Mom?
I’m very much done having kids. But little kid feet and hands make me long for the relatively recent days of tiny little ones.
Lili’s little feet next to Meghan’s and Serena’s are so adorable.
Chosen family>>>>>> that so called royal blood. Mom and dad’s old friends usually become aunts and uncles. Archie and Lili aunty is the GOAT tennis.
This was really cute, and I love how Lili was stepping on Serena’s toes as she was waiting for her turn. My niece used to do the same thing, just keeping in contact with me. And her little toddler belly!! So adorable.
Also I don’t understand the obsession with seeing the Lili and Archie, or the issue with how much H&M let you see if them by the BM. It’s not even that odd of a thing for celebrities. There are tons of celebrities where you have never seen their kids, you don’t even know when some of their kids were born, and you don’t know their names. It’s bizarre to have an obsession like this over controlling access to someone else’s child.
It’s even more bizarre to me that so called royalists are the ones having an issue with not seeing Archie and Lilibet’s faces or having access to them, when we have never seen Beatrice’s daughter’s face, hands, feet, hair or anything else. Never have any of the royalists obsessed over deserving to see her daughter when they don’t fund any of those children or their parents.
Written like a true British white man. To be offended that Meghan calls Serena one of Lili’s aunties tells me he’s doesn’t know anything about black culture and he’s pissed off that Harry and Meghan have separated themselves from toxic family members.
Exactly!!!! I’m a white woman with a very VERY close knit circle of 8 friends. Most are black. I would never claim the title of auntie. It’s deeply cultural and not my place. But to be given it?
One of the highest honors.
They are auntie to my kids. And I’m lucky enough to be an auntie to theirs.
White people’s kids can and do call close family friends “aunt x” or “uncle z” – but for us it’s only if the kids are comfortable and we have known these people dang near our whole lives.
And in a ton of cultures it’s simply about respect. Off the top of my head – uncle is used in Korea as a sign of respect, gratitude and appreciation. Like from a younger adult to a much older adult.
Just a casual day in the life .. love the sweetness of this. And … the Sussex family has friends, Aunties even.
Not living on the brink as the Brits would have us believe. Lololol
I love everything about this: Meghan’s and Serena’s very close friendship, the personalized Candyland, Lili being in pink, Lili emulating Meghan’s star power by selling out the little leggings, Lili showing us how comfortable and trusting she is around Auntie Rena.
And seeing the toy piano in the adjacent room at the back.
@NANEA, “Lili emulating Meghan’s star power by selling out the little leggings”. The “Lilibeth Diana effect” is very real. 🤗🤗
That toy piano is actually a real piano, just in smaller size :). It seems to be the one which Archie was playing in the Netflix series.
But yeah, the Sussexes just keep living their lives with their fabulous friends, disproving the haters’ every lie without even trying.
Personalized candyland (and other games) are on sale right now at Things Remembered, in case anyone else wants one of these…
Oh how sweet and I like that song Lovely Day. Just Meg and her friend Serena playing games with the kids. I’m so happy that Harry and Meg escaped so they can live this life as they please. Lili is so cute!
Bill Withers was a wonderful singer/composer. He came up the hard way, and his work is always terrific. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Withers
The lovely scene aside, but actually, my eyes were drawn to Archie’s little black piano and stool at the back (and the many books all over the plays in the family room). Thank God M&H kept that piano for Lili to practise her skills too.
It took me a few minutes to realize what that was, I thought it was a step-stool at first then realized that it is Uncle Elton’s present!!
Aunties are from the heart, you have to give love to be an Auntie that automatically eliminates any of the leftovers even if they are biologically related. As for Meghan posting her children, they are hers she knows the security concerns and like any parent has the absolute right to post or not post her children. People truly need to just stop the constant commentary about every decision this couple makes for their own family and their lives are not up to the public to decide. We all know the BRF and their rota are just angry the photos don’t go through them anymore and that they never get a full face photo(except a few that slipped through on sm). It was an adorable video, I bet candy land sales go through the roof now. FYI Lilibet is absolutely angelic Meghan and Harry made two gorgeous children.
I mean …. All you can see is a small toddler-is body and her dark red hair color. Right? Maybe I was too focused on her cute feet – love baby and toddler feet and hands, it’s one of the only things that ever tugs at me to do all of that again even though it’s a firm firm no – but I didn’t see anything that could identify her from a line up of other toddles. Besides the hair maybe? But hair changes rapidly in childhood so who even knows
The British white racist establishment only want the Sussex kids in England so they can be publically snubbed by the Wales kids. That’s what they really want, for Harry’s kids to be “put in their place.” The Sussexes are correct to ignore these toxic vultures.
You are completely correct, which is disgusting and disheartening.
Preach, lanne.
And this makes it all the sweeter to see the Sussex kids with a circle of people who genuinely love them.
To be put in their place and to serve as scapegoats for the wales and their kids. Even more than Louis may used eventually be used if history repeats itself. I feel for all the kids really.
Our neighbors have just bestowed “auntie” and “uncle” titles on my husband and I for their 3 month old daughter! I’m very honored!!
@HARLA, 🥳🥳.
I mean the blood uncle and his wife do not seem to have shown any kindness to Archie and Lili so why would the sussexes have their sweet children around people who don’t love them. Seems like a no brainer but Sykes is deliberately not mentioning the fact that Charles and the Wales couple are not even caring about the Sussex children. Charles took their U.K. home away. Kate wouldn’t even let Louis play with baby Archie at a polo match. William wanted Harry to leave their mom to the point that he physically attacked their dad. Like come on. Aunty Serena is the real deal as far as love and support goes.
Louis wanting to play with his baby cousin, Meghan holding Archie lookng so sad and lonely (though she was surrounded by her husband’s friends and relatives). So glad that petit Lili has an aunty like THE GOAT Serena Williams to look up to.
It is a travesty that the Sussexes are blamed by bots for their children “missing out” on being with “cousins”. The ones who are “missing out are the elders like Charles and william and Kate who made it clear by their own actions that they don’t care about those children. Kate visibly snubbed baby Louis. They caused the rift. And the derangers in media want Harry to return without his wife and children.
As I recall, William’s formal statement to the media about his only brother’s firstborn child was, “I already have a nephew.” William was referring to his unrelated sister-in-law’s child at the time. So, anyone who is pretending to be offended on behalf of the royal family is being inauthentic and unconvincing, to say the least.
I’m so happy for Meghan she can be active on IG in whatever way works for her. The British tabloids are going to do their thing because they need the income and outrage sells. The more distance between then and now the more bizarre the tabloids seem. I’m truly surprised their readers aren’t sick of it by now
Little know trivia re: Candyland – it was invented in 1948 by a teacher recovering from polio in a California hospital to help entertain the children on the ward with her. The woman who created it donated all her proceeds to charities serving children in need.
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/candy-land/
My only remaining aunts are my mother’s childhood best friend, and her best friend from college. My blood relatives were fine, but their siblings on both sides were so much older than my parents, that these adopted aunts (who also lived much closer) were always an important part of our lives.
The Wails and Windsors and the snarky tabloids can go pound sand. The Sussexes have such a real love for each other, their kids and their close friends — nothing Wilbur and Kittie fake can match it.
Harry and Meghan made the right decision for themselves and their children. Their children can now live in a world where they are surrounded by people who love them and want to protect them. That is the role of parents but also aunts and uncles, whether by blood or not. As someone said above, their blood relatives (besides Harry, Meghan and Archie) have all shown through their actions that loving and protecting them has never happened and never will.
I’m happy that Meghan is able to share small moments of her life with us. I believe that if it weren’t for the abuse that she has endured since day one and continues to experience from the royals, trolls and UK media, she would have shared glimpses of their lives all along with far more of their faces and personalities. The royals and UK media did this to themselves, when they could have benefited from a larger following of people, but their racism and jealousy got in the way.
There is no point in analyzing British media, there is never any point in it, only purpose – humiliation and deprecation of everything HM does.
As for the content, the strangers, as aunts and uncles, came from the fact that otherwise the children would have to address them as sir and madam. It is different with random guests, but if someone is with us often, we are close, then the children address me as aunt. It is not a problem for me for the children of friends (regardless of age) to address me by my first name, but not all parents agree to it, older children are ashamed, or I just want to have such a cool aunt :)))
Lili is cute.
The table is great.
Meghan has family and friends in her life where the love and trust is reciprocal. Her children are precious and deserve love and protection from those who would exploit them for tabloid cash or PR. Thomas Markle exchanged his daughter to make tabloid coin so he can’t be surprised that she felt so betrayed that she couldn’t trust him anymore. KC never accepted her or the children and took Frogmore Cottage off them. He doesn’t want to be reconciled with them and neither does Will or Kate. It really is simple if you can’t accept the person that your close relative has married and had children with, then that results in estrangement. Choices have consequences. Harry and Meghan know who they can love and trust and who they can’t.
@LadyDigby: “If you can’t accept the person that your close relative has married and had children with, then that results in estrangement. Choices have consequences.”
This is so so true. The Windsors didnt have to like her. But they should have accepted her and not fed her and Harry to the Wolves. if they can protect the nonce in their family by driving him to church etc, they sure as hell could have left harry and meghan alone. They desperately wanted Meghan vanished from Harry’s life so that Harry could be their punching bag for life. Because thats the role of the spare. They’re blaming Meghan or whoever harry would’ve married instead of addressing the issues and toxic patterns in their dysfunctional family.
In many African and Black cultures, close family friends are called “auntie” and “uncle.” It’s a tradition Meghan’s a part of. The British media’s freakout is predictable, but still wild. Anyway, seeing little Lili with her auntie Serena was very sweet!
Although I’m white, I’ve always had lots of family friends in my life who I refer to as aunts because that just makes the most sense. I don’t call them “auntie” because that’s not part of my culture. I just call everyone by their first name. But I’m all about elevating the role of chosen family, who are just as much family (often more so).
It looks like they’re all in their pajamas/loungewear. They had a girls sleepover! So sweet.
Every bit of joy, love and happiness that Meghan , Harry , Archie and Lily receive, Is a good day for me . If chuck and company wanted to be considered auntie and uncle and grandfather, then they should have acted as such and treat Harry and his family with love , respect and protection, instead they showed and continue to show the world their racist asses. They deserve nothing. I hope Auntie Serena and lily continue to play candyland until they both tired them selves out . Love wins .
Such a sweet moment. And yes to Auntie Serena and no to the child abuser and the toxic mean girl. Tom Sucks can go pound sand.
Adorable! Princess Lili deserves family who love her, unlike the horrible, racist klan in England. Dogsh*t Charlie told the world that these grandchildren with Black heritage mean nothing to him when he took their British home from them. Peg and KKKhate despise her mother, so how could staying in touch with those vipers be a positive thing? Clearly the BM wants the Sussex children on Salt Island to chip away at their joy.
So glad those grey-suited palace fu*kers lied about the broken printer and H&M left that musty life behind.
Many cultures give close family friends the honour titles of “Uncle” and “Auntie.” I think Serena said in their documentary that “friends can be family too.” BTW, didn’t Harry and Serena both speak at an investment conference last week? Looks like Serena was in town on business. I think I saw a picture of her at some Oscar event as well. It seems if Harry and Meghan can help, the BM is never going to make money off Lili and Archie because they can control when they are seen. And aren’t there laws in California about papping people’s children?
Yes, California Senate Bill 606 was signed by then-governor Jerry Brown in 2013. It makes it illegal to pap, intimidate, or harass the children of celebrities and public figures.
Sykes’ pendulum swung too far in the other direction last week so he was due some cheap criticisms of Meghan.
Yaaay the post was on Blue Skye so we can actually click it!
I love this. All the blind items had suggested that Serena didn’t like Megan and considered her a five stage clinger. Guess those haters were wrong!
Absolutely every single thing about this reunion – 2 mothers and Lilibet getting to bond with her auntie – feels so flawlessly right. I am crying writing this.
I’ve been in awe of Serena Williams’ mental strength and resilience since the day she won Rolland Garros against all odds, playing with a high fever. And I am in awe of how bravely and gracefully Meghan Markle copes with being the most unfairly media-bullied human on the planet.
By the way, this examplifies how early years must be handled: creating a sheltering village of kindness around every child.
@Pinocchio Princess, I love this! “this examplifies how early years must be handled: creating a sheltering village of kindness around every child.”
Disappointed she has started merching the kids. Harry has always said this was completely off limits yet here we are.