Can You Spot the Reason Why the Royal Family's Christmas Card Is Perfectly Imperfect?

The royals have gifted us with their latest family portrait, and it's of course as squeal-worthy as ever, but if you take a closer look at their idyllic Christmas card, you'll notice something every parent, or rather, anyone who has every spent more than five minutes with an infant, can relate to.

We were too distracted by Kate's perfect hair, Prince George's floppy curls, and Charlotte's pinchable cheeks to notice what was awry at first, but after staring for awhile (because how could you not!) we realized that the little princess had kicked off her shoe. 

Everyone knows it's hard to get a seven-month-old to sit still, and, as the photographer, Chris Jelf said, he had to "be sharp" because "you don't have long when there are two young children involved!" so we can only assume that after several failed attempts, Jelf was all, well, that'll do! And because Kate appears to be chillest mom ever, with noteable quad strength (who knows how long she had to balance Charlotte on her knee), she probably thought, perfection is overrated, this is the real us. 

Also, note the little red toy truck pictured near Charlotte. Our guess is that the toy was used to persuade two-year-old George, who looks like he's about to go for a sprint, to hop into the frame. Plus, judging by the intensity in Prince William's eyes, you can tell he's totally thinking, bloody hell, Georgie boy, please just stand still for one more second, then you can bugger off. 

This is all further evidence that while the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are by far fancier than any of us well ever be, as far as royals go, they're pretty darned down to earth. So much so that instead of spending mounds of pounds on Christmas presents for each other, their tradition is to compete to see who can buy the cheapest, silliest gift. Though Kate was spotted shopping for a $3,000 bag recently, so maybe she's making a special exception for her mother, or her sister / future sister-in-law if Pippa is indeed dating Prince Harry. 

The family will be spending Charlotte's first Christmas in their country home on the Queen's Sandringham Estate. Word on the high street is that it's going to be low-key, much like the holidays Kate had growing up. Prince William says, "If I get any sleep on Christmas Eve it'll be good! George will be bouncing around like a rabbit. So that will be two children, one who suddenly appreciates Christmas, which could be quite challenging. But I'm looking forward to it." 

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