The One Place Princess Kate Can “Let Her Guard Down” and “Be Herself”

Kate Middleton close up shot — (Image credit: Getty)

We all have that spot where we love to go to and escape, where we can let our hair down and be the best versions of ourselves. And for the Princess of Wales, that place is the countryside—specifically Anmer Hall, the country home she shares with husband Prince William and their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

OK reports that Kate often works 16-hour days—she has been swamped with engagements recently, as Marie Claire’s royals content reflects—but “humble” and “down to earthy” Kate, busy juggling royal engagements and mom life, is ready for a quick getaway.

Kate Middleton in a checkered blouse speaking

“Her royal schedule is currently free, and, after the past couple of months, she needs it,” a source said. “Her daily life is already so hectic, and she’s always got to be ‘on’ when she’s serving.” The insider also adds that Kate knows how to play the past of the put-together royal the public expects her to be, and “you definitely only see the side of her that she wants you to see,” they said.

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With a break on the horizon, “she’s looking forward to some private time in the country where she can let her guard down and really be herself with her family,” the source says.

And, though Kate is only ever seen looking pretty close to perfect, the insider says that she really is “surprisingly normal”: “She prefers that people don’t fuss over her during her day-to-day life,” the insider says, and clarifies that she and William are mostly on their own with their three kids and employ minimal staff.

“With her royal duties, she obviously needs a little help, but at home, she likes to do things herself,” the source says. “She does her own shopping, arranges playdates, helps the kids with homework, and has dinner on the table at about 6 every night.”

The kids are expected to clean their dishes every night after a meal, and “in the summer, she makes an amazing watermelon salad that everyone adores.” (And that we need the recipe for—stat!)

“They definitely have chores,” the insider says of the kids. “Kate has created a fun chart, and the children get gold stars for every task they complete, from making their beds in the morning to filling their dog Orla’s water bowl. They’ve learned that money doesn’t grow on trees.”

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.