Prince Louis Is All Grown Up In His 5th Birthday Portraits

Prince Louis is all grown up! In honor of his fifth birthday on April 23, the Prince and Princess of Wales shared two adorable new photos of their rambunctious youngest child showing off his big smile and baby pearly whites.

“Someone’s turning 5 tomorrow… A very happy birthday to Prince Louis,” Kate Middleton and Prince William captioned their birthday post on social media. In one photo, Prince Louis is sitting on a pile of grass in a wheelbarrow with Middleton smiling and holding the handles. The other is a close-up of the young royal, looking as happy as can be. In both photos, Prince Louis, who is fourth in line to the throne, is wearing a bright blue fair isle sweater with a collared shirt underneath and navy shorts.

As many royal aficionados noticed, Prince Louis’ fifth birthday portraits broke a years-long tradition. For most of her children’s birthday photos in recent years, Middleton has been the photographer and captured the candid images of 9-year-old Prince George, 7-year-old Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis for their special days. But this year, photographer Millie Pilkington was behind the camera.

“Excited to share with you a couple of portraits of Prince Louis, to celebrate his 5th birthday today,” worte on Instagram. “Thanking @princeandprincessofwales for entrusting me with this shoot. #trulyhonoured. And wishing Prince Louis the very happiest of birthdays.”

While we didn’t see any photos from Prince Louis’ festivities, it sounds like Middleton and Prince William went all out for their littlest guy’s fifth birthday. A source told Us Weekly that Middleton “organized a fun adventure-themed birthday party with all his school friends” with cake, sandwiches, balloons, and even an entertainer. “They always make birthdays special for their children and go the extra mile!” the source told the magazine.

Partygoers most likely enjoyed a birthday cake baked by Middleton herself. In 2019, per The Mirror, she shared during A Berry Royal Christmas with English food writer, chef, baker, and TV presenter Mary Berry that she will stay up late to whip up a big cake for her kids. “I love making the cake,” the Princess of Wales told Berry. “It’s become a bit of a tradition that I stay up ‘til midnight with ridiculous amounts of cake mix and icing and I make far too much. But I love it.”

With Princess Charlotte’s 8th birthday around the corner on May 2 and Prince George’s this summer, on July 22, Middleton may need to stock up on all her cake fixings now — and some sleep while we’re at it.