Prince Louis’ New Birthday Photo Shows Just How Grown Up He Is

Prince Louis is turning three! 

The youngest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton will celebrate his third birthday on Friday.

On the eve of his big day, Kensington Palace released a photo of Louis taken by the Duchess of Cambridge at the palace on Wednesday. 

The picture shows the little royal perched on a red bike, dressed in his school uniform right before his first day at Willcocks Nursery School in London. He’s sporting a big grin and wearing a backpack, along with a pair of navy and lime green velcro sneakers.

The pictures released last year for Louis’ second birthday were a sweet bright spot during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic.

Those photos, which were also taken by Kate at the Cambridges’ Anmer Hall estate, showed the little prince playing with some rainbow paint. 

Which turned into a bit of a colorful mess:

Louis’ siblings, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are 7 and 5, respectively. 

Louis shares his birthday week with his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, who celebrated her birthday without her husband for the first time in decades. Prince Philip, whom she was married to for over 70 years, died earlier this month.

She marked her 95th birthday on Wednesday by thanking well-wishers for their kind tributes to the Duke of Edinburgh.

“While as a family we are in a period of great sadness, it has been a comfort to us all to see and to hear the tributes paid to my husband, from those within the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and around the world,” the queen said in a statement. 

“My family and I would like to thank you for all the support and kindness shown to us in recent days,” she added. “We have been deeply touched, and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life.”

The queen is currently still observing a mourning period at Windsor Castle.