You guessed it: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and Doria Ragland are living together. We’re pretty sure Baby Archie is overjoyed to have his maternal grandmother around—and apparently, Doria, 63, is already enjoying taking care of the adorable 1-year-old. But when, exactly, did Meghan’s mom officially move in?
Followers of Meghan, 38, and Harry, 35, might remember that when the pair moved to California following their decision to step back from their roles as working senior members of the royal family in January, they didn’t move in with Meghan’s mom straight away. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex started living in Los Angeles right as the city began enforcing social distancing measures. Having just traveled from the U.K. where they carried out their final royal duties, it wasn’t an option to put Meghan’s mom, Doria, at risk until the couple had time to quarantine in their own space. For weeks, the Duke and Duchess stayed put at their new home, which is rumored to be owned by director Tyler Perry.
Meghan was reportedly “heartbroken” upon first making it Los Angeles because she couldn’t see her mother in person. According to a source with The Sun at the time, Meghan was “absolutely heartbroken” given that “one of the main reasons she decided to live in LA was to be near her mum.” But the source also highlighted the precautions that this family—like millions of others around the world—needed to take. “Because of her age, Doria obviously has to be careful and Meghan and Harry are sticking rigidly to all formal guidelines […],” the source said. “They’ve been WhatsApping and FaceTiming almost daily but obviously it’s not the same.”
Now, the coast is clear. After several weeks of isolating, the family has expanded their social distancing pod to include Doria. According to Us Weekly, Doria “continues to live with Meghan, Harry, and Archie,” at present. While it’s unclear how long she’s been living with the Duke and Duchess, one thing’s for sure: “This has been the most time she has spent with her grandson since he was born,” says Us Weekly‘s source. While we’re sure Queen Elizabeth misses Archie plenty, we’re glad that Doria is getting her time to bond with the royal baby now, too!
According to the source, Doria also likes to “get up in the morning and read to him.” The happy grandmother reportedly enjoys helping Archie’s mom with all of his daily care, too. The pair have made it a habit to make Archie’s “all-organic” food together, adds the source. Yum!
It’s all a modest shift for the Duke and Duchess, who announced their decision to step back from their roles as senior members of the royal family in January. “We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages,” they said in a joint statement at the time. “This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter.” Sounds like they’re already making the best of it.