In advance of her fifth birthday on May 2 (Saturday), Kensington Palace shared the absolute most adorable photo of Princess Charlotte, and I cannot stop shouting out my apartment window, "Look how cute she is!" The royal family wrote in the caption: "The images were taken by The Duchess as the family helped to pack up and deliver food packages for isolated pensioners in the local area."
Charlotte was all smiles in her photograph of her volunteering. Of course, her mother, Kate Middleton, captured the picture. I mean, after Prince Louis adorable second birthday photo (I'm still not over that smile!), she's practically the royal photographer.
Also, this detail:
As for big plans for her special day, the Queen is reportedly planning a surprise for the birthday girl. According to a report from The Sun, the Queen has plans to make Charlotte's day extra special via everyone's favorite friend in quarantine: video chat. Since everyone in the royal family has been practicing social distancing, the Cambridge kids have been sending the Queen "chatty videos" to keep up with each other. Uh, how cute is that!
Usually, every year, the Queen and her grandchildren celebrate in-person together as most families do. Even though I bet the parties are a lot grander than what went down for me at Chuck E. Cheese (sorry, mom!). After all, Kate's mom, Carole Middleton, runs a party planning company, Party Pieces.
"I imagine Carole Middleton because she can't see the children, has got all these things sorted," royal expert Angela Mollard explained during an interview on the ROYALS podcast. "Of course, they still have plenty of staff to make birthday cakes and help construct party poppers, Mollard added. "I don't think the poor Cambridge children will be doing without."
So, I guess: will it be possible to send a miniature pony over video chat? The one gift every child wants at 5 years old (or at least me)? Time will tell!
For more stories like this, including celebrity news, beauty and fashion advice, savvy political commentary, and fascinating features, sign up for the Marie Claire newsletter.
![](https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images/gettyimages-1235557306.jpg?crop=0.856xw:0.300xh;0.0507xw,0.0985xh&resize=480:* ""No Time To Die" World Premiere - Red Carpet Arrivals")
