Princess Charlotte Looks *So* Grown Up in Her 6th Birthday Portrait

• On Saturday, Kensington Palace thrilled royal fans by releasing a brand new picture of Princess Charlotte ahead of her sixth birthday.
• The photo was taken by Charlotte's mother, Kate Middleton, in Norfolk, suggesting that the Cambridge family is spending the weekend together at their Sandringham residence, Anmer Hall.
• Charlotte will officially turn six on Sunday, May 2.

Princess Charlotte (opens in new tab) is growing up so incredibly fast. Proof: the new birthday portrait Kensington Palace released in honor of Charlotte's sixth birthday.

Charlotte's birthday (opens in new tab) isn't technically until tomorrow (May 2), but the Palace released her new birthday picture on Saturday afternoon, like an early gift to royal fans everywhere for the occasion.

In the photo, Charlotte is wearing a beautiful blue, floral dress and wearing her long, blonde hair down in a stylish side part. Charlotte's mother, Kate Middleton, took the photo herself, which is typical when it comes to portraits of the Cambridge kids (opens in new tab). According to Daily Mail royal correspondent Rebecca English (opens in new tab), the picture was snapped this weekend in Norfolk, suggesting that the Cambridge family is spending Charlotte's birthday weekend together at the Sandringham residence, Anmer Hall.

"Princess Charlotte is turning 6 - and looking so grown-up! To mark the occasion @KensingtonRoyal have released a new photograph of her taken in Norfolk this weekend by her mother, the Duchess of Cambridge," English wrote on Twitter, along with the gorgeous new portrait.

Charlotte's sixth birthday celebration will likely be a low-key, family-only affair, but that's probably just fine with her. Earlier this year, royal author Katie Nicholl (opens in new tab) offered some insights about how Kate and the Cambridge kids have been handling homeschooling (opens in new tab) amid the pandemic, and low-key, outdoor family time is clearly high on Charlotte's list of favorite activities.

"Kate has been interested in how outdoor learning can benefit children. She got to meet children who had lessons outside and ask how they enjoyed it. She saw the benefit first-hand. Kate is aware of screen time and tries to limit the children being exposed to too much. When the children have a break, she takes them outside, come rain or shine," Nicholl explained. "She wants them to get fresh air and be in nature. She loves to pick vegetables with them in the gardens. If they are learning about rivers or the sea, she and William try to incorporate that into their walks. Charlotte is a massive fan of spiders and loves looking at them and learning about them, so they go on spider hunts so that she can see them up close and then let them go."