The royals returned to their festive tradition of spending Christmas at Sandringham in Norfolk this year following Covid changes in 2020 and 2021. And they were out in force, as were the crowds, as they enjoyed their walk to St Mary Magdalene church on Christmas morning.
It was the first time that King Charles led the family to the service following the Queen's death in September. Joining him were the Prince and Princess of Wales, their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, alongside other members of the family, reports The Mirror.
Body language expert Judi James said that the way Kate and William behaved gives an insight into how their children are growing up. Kate held hands with four-year-old Louis as they walked, but her other children were given more independence, said Judi. Judi told The Mirror how the couple made several 'intentional gestures' to show how they are now becoming more 'hands-off' parents with their eldest children.
She said: "William and Kate showed off their children with the usual signals of pride and it was clear they are now becoming 'hands-off' parents as their children grow in confidence. Charlotte was pulling ahead as they walked towards the church and George has gone from being the rather shy-looking boy holding his father's hand to the older brother keeping an eye on and showing nurturing and directional signals towards the four-year-old Louis."
The expert said Prince George appeared to be "mirroring" his father and keeping an eye on his younger brother, like a "protector" for him.
"One of the sweetest and most poignant body language signals was the sight of George using touch, chat and bending rituals to signal he is now in the role of protector and 'keeping-an-eye-on' monitor for his younger brother Louis," Judi explained.
"As the family reached the church William put a hand out to touch George's back and leaned towards his elder son but George was already using those same rituals towards his small and rather playful brother. The gesture looked spontaneous, as though this is a role he is taking on a lot and, after the footage of a young William and Harry growing up together that was shown in Harry’s Netflix show, it looked like a poignant mirror-image of how their sibling relationship shaped up before they grew up and fell apart.
"William was shown in caring mode for Harry back then, just as George is now with Louis. The links can't have been lost on William, who seems to have proved himself as a man who learns from mistakes from the past and battles to reshape his future accordingly."
