The Princess of Wales tenderly cradled a newborn baby during a surprise visit to a hospital's maternity unit today where she met mothers and their infants.
Kate made the unannounced trip to the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford to visit the unit, where she met with new mum Szilvia Novak and her baby daughter Bianca, who was born six weeks premature. And sweet images show the princess chatting to Ms Novak while holding tiny Bianca in her arms. It came after the new mum, originally from Budapest in Hungary, asked the princess if she would like to hold the baby while the pair were talking in the hospital’s Special Baby Care Unit.
Kate replied: "Am I allowed to?" before a member of staff helped Ms Novak pass the baby to Kate.
As she cradled Bianca in her arms, Kate said: "She's very sweet."
She then returned the baby to Ms Novak before continuing her tour of the hospital.
Afterwards, Ms Novak said: "I asked her if she wanted to hold her and she opted for it. I can't blame her. (Bianca) is cute.
"(The princess) was lovely to speak to. I was really impressed. You don't feel like you have classes between you. It's really nice."
Kate's visit overran by at least half an hour after she stopped to speak to hundreds of members of staff and the public, reminisced about her own three babies, their scrunched up newborn days and tiny fingernails.
She joked that she still considered Prince Louis her baby, until she saw a real infant and remembered he is without doubt a "big boy now".
"It just feels like yesterday," she said.
She also spent time on a postnatal ward with four babies who had been born in the last 24 hours, asking parents how they were coping.
Hearing about some of the "eventful" births, she empathised: "No matter how much everyone tells you what you expect, it's a shock to the system isn't it?
"You have this idea of what will happen but every single birth is different."
Complimenting mothers on how well they were coping, she added: "As nurturing as I know the hospital is, there's nothing like being in your own home. And I bet your families are desperate to see you all."
Meeting baby Giles Talbot-Erasus, she joked: "I keep thinking Louis is a baby but he's a big boy now. I just feels like yesterday."
Admiring his mittens, which covered long fingernails, she added of the newborn's scrunched up pose: "George was so huddled up too, he spent quite a few days like that."
Speaking to second-time parents Hannah and Luke Culverwell who had a two-day-old baby boy and his older brother at nursery, she heard how the toddler currently had a little bump on the head just in time for the family photographs.
"They all get them," she reassured them, smiling. "They just seem to pick up these cuts and bumps, it's part of parcel of it."
Watching the newborns sleeping, the Princess said: "They do a lot of sleeping [at this stage] don't they? But I expect your ears are tuned for any little noise. They snuffle so much - or mine did."
Kate also met with staff from the Jasmine team, which helps women affected by mental health illnesses during pregnancy and the initial postnatal period.
She spent time talking to Chiara Hale, a teenage mother to Maeve who was born in June, and Ria Clarke-Rice who used the mental health services at the hospital.
The Princess asked staff a series of questions about how and when they offered mental health support to pregnant women and mothers, how receptive people were to it, and how a perceived stigma is changing.
"So many women don't reach out for help because they don't realise what they're going through until much further down the line," she said.
"That's why this wraparound support is so important, not just from a medical team but also family and friends.
"Being able to open the conversation up for mothers to prioritise and take care of themselves.
"So often you think 'I don't have time' or 'my children come first' but actually if you can be the best person in yourself, you are supporting your child."
The mum-of-three wore a £175 belted pleated Karen Millen dress in ochre and a medical face mask as she walked through the corridors to the maternity unit.
The visit was Kate’s first major solo engagement since being made the Princess of Wales by King Charles, the day after the death of the late Queen.
Early years care will continue to be a major focus in her role as the Princess of Wales, and the visit is part of a series by Kate and her husband Prince William this week to showcase their continuing key interests.
Today, William has been visiting St George's Park, the national football centre for England, in his role as president of the FA.
Kate's surprise outing today comes a week after she and husband William visited Wales for the first time since being granted their new titles from King Charles.
The royal couple's titles were publicly confirmed during Charles' first televised speech to the nation.
They had promised to visit at the earliest opportunity following the death of the Queen, and return hoping to begin “deepening the trust and respect” they have with the people of Wales.
While there they visited a church in Swansea meet volunteers who work in the church’s food bank and the Swansea Baby Basics initiative, which distributes essential items such as toiletries and clothing to vulnerable mothers.
