Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s 2021 holiday card with Archie and Lilibet.Photo: Alexi Lubomirski
Meghan MarkleandPrince Harryare ringing in their first Christmas as a new family of four since welcoming daughterLiliin June.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been “gearing up for the holidays,” a friend tells PEOPLE. “They are loving life in California.”
The couple shared thefirst photo of Lili on their new holiday card, which was released on Thursday. The photo, which was taken over the summer at their home in Santa Barbara, also stars Lili’s big brother, 2-year-old Archie.
“This year, 2021, we welcomed our daughter, Lilibet, to the world. Archie made us a ‘Mama’ and a ‘Papa’, and Lili made us a family. As we look forward to 2022, we have made donations on your behalf to several organizations that honor and protect families – from those being relocated from Afghanistan, to American families in need of paid parental leave.”
After a whirlwind fall, which saw Meghan and Harry make two back-to-back trips to N.Y.C., the couple was looking forward to getting back totheir home in Montecitoand start celebrating the festive season with their children.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.Dia Dipasupil/Getty
“They love it in N.Y.C., but they were ready to go home and get back to the kids. Meghan was starting to feel homesick,” the friend adds.
After spending 2017 and 2018 withQueen Elizabethand the rest of the royal family at Sandringham, Meghan and Prince Harry spent their first Christmas with Archie in 2019 with some family time in Canada. They marked their first Christmas in California last year.
“It’s Harry’s second Christmas away from England, and Meghan wants to make sure it’s special for everyone,” an insider told PEOPLE at the time. “They are creating their own traditions at their new home.”
Meghan Markle reading to Archie.The Duke of Sussex/@SaveChildrenUK
Now they are sharing those new traditions with Lili. The proud parents have said that their daughter “completes” their family alongside Archie.
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And Archie is loving his role as big brother already.
He’s “is very happy to have a little sister,” a spokesperson for the couple told PEOPLE.
source: people.com
