PRINCE HARRY & MEGHAN MARKLE
THE ARRIVAL OF SON ARCHIE HAS HIS PARENTS ‘OVER THE MOON’ WITH LOVE AND EXCITEMENT
A look inside the royal couple’s first days at home with their adorable baby boy, Archie.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle couldn’t contain their emotions as they introduced their gorgeous 2-day-old son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, to the world. “He has the sweetest temperament,” the new mom raved on May 8 as a clearly besotted Harry gently rocked the newborn at St. George’s Hall at Windsor Castle. “I have the two best guys in the world,” Meghan added, “so I’m really happy.”
To say that it had been an eventful few days would be an understatement — and as any parent knows, it was just a taste of things to come for Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37. After Archie’s first public appearance they brought him to meet his great-grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, accompanied by Meghan’s American mother, Doria Ragland, who attended Archie’s birth two days earlier, reportedly at The Portland Hospital in London. Her Majesty cooed over her eighth great-grandchild, seventh in line for the throne, and wished Harry and Meghan every happiness. “It’s a fairy tale come true,” says a royal insider. “They are telling their friends that the baby is the best thing that’s ever happened to them.”
While the couple look forward to privately delighting in their baby at Frogmore Cot
tage, their family home on the Windsor Castle grounds, Archie had many visitors during his first week. “Kate [Middleton] and Prince William were scheduled to visit,” says the insider. “Their children George and Charlotte couldn’t wait to see
him in person. Char- lotte adores babies.” A visit from Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles was also expected after their May 10 return from Germany, where they have been on official business. “They were planning to head straight to Frogmore,” confides the insider. Of course, Harry had already sent them adorable photos of their newest grandson and, said Charles, “We couldn’t be more delighted.”
A BRAND-NEW LIFE
The past year has been a time of great change for Harry, the son the late Princess Diana called her “naughty one.” But since his marriage to Meghan, a former actress, he’s become a loving, protective husband and, now, a doting father. “He burst into tears of joy when the baby was born,” the insider reveals.
As parents, Harry and Meghan hope to follow Diana’s example and raise compassionate, down-to-earth children. “Harry is determined to give Archie a ‘normal’ upbringing,” notes the insider, adding that Meghan wants to be a “hands-on” mom. “She plans to take six months off for maternity leave, which is considered a long time in the royal world. She wants to develop a strong bond with Archie.”
Life for the couple, who will celebrate their first wedding anniversary on May 19, couldn’t be better. “Parenting is amazing,” gushed Harry. “We’re just so thrilled to have our own bundle of joy.” — Louise A. Barile,
with reporting by Natalie Posner