This photo showing up in your FB feed would send Wills and Kate straight to Grand Rapids
Whether sipping champagne at an equestrian event or attempting to look serious while wearing an oversize hat adorned with plumage, Kate Middleton will face many challenges as a newly minted royal. With that in mind, she has quit her day job to get ready for life in “the firm.”
Officials at Buckingham Palace confirmed on Friday that the future Mrs. William Windsor has left her job at her parents’ events business Party Pieces to “concentrate full-time on preparing to become a member of the royal family.” Her spokesman didn’t outline a specific plan of action, but NewsFeed suspects that Middleton is busy mastering sundry skills like hunting foxes, defusing tense situations created by loose-lipped Prince Charles and identifying undercover reporters who may offer her bribes.
(More on TIME.com: See pictures of Kate Middleton’s wedding venue, Westminster Abbey.)
“She is really throwing herself into it with gusto and energy,” a friend of Middleton’s, who worked with her as a clothing buyer at Jigsaw in 2007, told Hello! magazine. “It is a steep learning curve and at the same time she is learning a lot about the royal family and what the future holds.” Given that Middleton and Prince William won’t have servants when they begin their married life together, she’s probably learning how to dust too.
But with less than 100 days until she walks down the aisle, the fiancée formally known as Waity Katie is focused on planning her blockbuster wedding — replete with the royal pomp and circumstance that’s been around as long as the Windsors have. “They know exactly what they want,” an insider said. “In the end, it will be a traditional Anglican wedding. Don’t, for example, expect a rock band to be performing inside the Abbey.”
(More on TIME.com: See a photo album of royal weddings.)
That’s reassuring. At Party Pieces, Middleton attended trade fairs and handled marketing. But she also arranged photo shoots for less-than-regal products that might make Queen Elizabeth nauseous if they appear within 100 feet of her grandson’s wedding. Items listed under the “What’s Hot” section of the Party Pieces website include a “Toy Story 3 Essential Party Kit” and a “Peppa Pig” party bag (both can be yours for less than $16).
It’s unclear if Middleton will take up a job after she ties the knot. If she does, she will likely work remotely. She currently lives between her parents’ home in Berkshire and Prince William’s cottage on the island of Anglesey in North Wales, where he works as a search-and-rescue pilot with the Royal Air Force. According to the Daily Mail, the Queen wants the newlyweds to keep a low profile during their first two years of marriage — perhaps giving them the privacy and time to produce an heir. Whether she reproduces or not, Middleton will use some of the time to nurture her burgeoning charitable work, which will reportedly play a role at her wedding. (via the Daily Mail)
(More on TIME.com: Royal Pain: When Your Wedding Coincides with Prince William’s.)