WHY KATE HAS TO WAIT
WHY THE DUCHESS WON’T BE HAVING A THIRD CHILD JUST YET
The duchess holds off on expanding her brood
The rumours began last summer – Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William were trying for a third baby. By the end of the year, US gossip magazines were reporting that she was well into her pregnancy and predicting a birth any week now.
“But you only have to see recent pictures of Kate looking radiant to see how wrong they were,” says a Middleton family friend.
“I think people look at the closeness between Catherine and William, and how much they adore George and Charlotte, then give in to a bout of wishful thinking. A third baby is definitely on the cards at some point but now is not the moment.”
The evidence is there in every appearance by the duchess. The woman who suffered from severe morning sickness while pregnant with Prince George (3) and Princess Charlotte (1) could not possibly have undertaken engagements such as the Buckingham Palace celebration of the UK-India Year of Culture 2017, where she wowed in a sparkly dress and heels – and melted hearts by placing a loving hand on William’s back.
“Her diary is too important to be disrupted at the moment,” adds the family friend. “There are engagements she simply cannot cancel.”
The key date is, of course, the marriage of her sister Pippa (33) to billionaire hedge fund manager James Matthews (41), which takes place in May.
“Kate is all too aware of the risk of taking attention away from Pippa,” says one of her old friends from university.
“If she were pregnant and it was known, all eyes would be on her. If she were pregnant and it hadn’t been announced but she was being sick and feeling grey and exhausted, it would be a giveaway.
“She wants to be a proper part of the event, just as Pippa was for her. They’re really close and Kate isn’t going to do anything to mess that up if she can possibly help it.”
Certainly, the chances are that Kate would be quite unwell during a third pregnancy, as gynaecologist and obstetrician Mahantesh Karoshi explains.
“In women who have suffered recurrent bouts of severe morning sickness, studies suggest a markedly higher recurrence risk – up to 80% higher – of severe nausea and vomiting in subsequent pregnancies,” he explains.
Dr Karoshi also points out that because Kate is now older, at 35, we might all notice a few differences if she becomes pregnant again.
“Her belly might appear much farther along than she looked in her previous pregnancies at the same gestational periods because of repeated stretching of abdominal muscles,” he says.
But Pippa’s nuptials aren’t the only important event in Kate’s calendar. The Cambridge family are preparing to move their main base from Anmer Hall in Norfolk to Kensington Palace in London.
“Imagine a move on that scale!” says her friend. “Her mother’s been absorbed in Pippa’s wedding, so much of the organisation has fallen on Kate as William (34) won’t be finished with his job as an air ambulance pilot for a while.
“William has always admired the Middleton family’s knack for making a house into the kind of place where you can kick your shoes off and put your feet up. It’s down to Kate to ensure that Kensington is a real home, not a palace.”
As if her sister’s wedding and a major move weren’t enough, Kate is also looking forward to the milestone of Prince George starting school in September.
“It’s a big deal for a small boy and he’ll need his mum to focus on him,” says one of the Cambridge staff.
Charlotte, meanwhile, likes to hang out with her mother. “You’re always finding her in the kitchen with her mummy, who is very much her role model,” adds the staff member.
And then there’s Harry’s
‘A third baby is definitely on the cards at some point but now is simply not the moment’
romance with Meghan Markle. “He really respects Kate’s opinions and they’re very close,” says one of his circle. “He’s relying on her help to integrate Meghan into his world.”
Of course, William and Kate have been open about their wish for a large family. The prince has told friends, “I think Granny [the Queen] got it right with four children. The more the merrier!”
A courtier tells, “William’s much more like his grandmother than his father in the way that his family is at the heart of his life. She has counselled him not to rush anything and to cherish what he has.”
And for now, that’s just what he and Kate are doing.