Kate Middleton at Wimbledon 2024
Kate Middleton’s inspiring approach to balancing royal life with family time, and why it matters.
While expanding her family with Prince William, Kate Middleton established a set of “life rules”, ensuring that her duties as a royal would not overshadow her responsibilities at home.
According to royal author and journalist Robert Jobson, these guidelines were carefully communicated to Queen Elizabeth II and then-Prince Charles III in 2015 while Kate was pregnant with her second child, Princess Charlotte.
Jobson explains in his book ‘Catherine, the Princess of Wales’ how Kate laid out her “terms” for balancing her royal duties with her family life. Although these “life rules” weren’t documented formally, Prince William conveyed Kate’s wishes “to grow into her role and said she needed more time to adapt to the peculiarities of royal life.”
“She was clear from the outset that she would not be pigeonholed into carrying out particular duties and insisted on having her full quota of maternity leave, away from the glare of the media and public. Her priority, she emphasized, would always be her family,” Jobson writes.
This was evident throughout Kate’s time in the royal spotlight, as she consistently showed her commitment to her royal duties and her children—Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
Kate Middleton balances cancer treatment with family time
Kate’s dedication to her family has been particularly poignant this summer, as she battles cancer while continuing to prioritize her children. After publicly announcing her diagnosis in March, following planned abdominal surgery in January, Kate has taken a step back from her royal duties to focus on her health and her family. However, Kate attended the Trooping the Colour in June and made an appearance at Wimbledon in July.
Christopher Andersen, author of The King, explained to Fox News Digital that the couple has always valued the summer months as a time to provide their children with as much normalcy as possible, away from the constant scrutiny of the press. “Kate and William have always made the most of their summers with the children,” Andersen said.
“The side effects of chemo are bound to make that level of participation more daunting for Kate, but she’s not about to let that spoil the children’s summer.”
He also added, “Kate doesn’t want them to worry about her—she’s always believed it’s her job to worry about them—and that means keeping George, Charlotte, and Louis busy with the sort of things—horseback riding, swimming, having sleepovers with cousins and schoolmates—that they always do during their vacation break.”
