Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, with their newborn son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Photo / AP
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, with their newborn son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Photo / AP
Vegan food bowls, celebrity nannies and definitely no Fair Isle baby knits — motherhood Meghan-style looks certain to be a thoroughly modern affair.
Of course, Meghan, 37, is still adjusting to her new role as a mother. However, if she takes her cue from her friends who have already had children — and who have asked for her help and support in raising them as a godmother — then an interesting picture emerges of what kind of a mum she might be, reports Daily Mail.
There will also be the considerable influence of her own childhood — with divorced parents who both worked, and who shared custody, and that very strong relationship with her own mother. From what her pal Serena Williams has let slip, she has already been dreaming about what sort of a 'mom' she will be — and what sort of a child Baby Sussex will turn out to be.
The tennis champion said: "My friend is pregnant, and she was like: 'My kid's gonna do this,' [and] I just looked at her like: 'No, you're not.' She was like: 'I need to talk to you about tips,' because, yes, I had all of those high expectations with Alexis."
She added of Meghan: "She'll be the best mom, for sure."
No photos on the hospital steps, instead this is the first royal Instagram baby, with the couple sharing news of the birth on their online account hours before it was announced by Buckingham Palace.
However, despite their affinity with social media, Harry and Meghan are said to be determined that Baby Sussex has a private childhood. In this they would again be following the lead of George and Amal Clooney who've never permitted the publication of pictures of their children.
Will this be a struggle for Meghan? She had high ambitions for her blog The Tig before giving it up to join the Royal Family.
She did say last year that she found it "freeing" being off social media.
However, they have now agreed that Instagram is the best way to get their message across, unmediated, and set up their @sussexroyal account last month.
It may well be that the pictures they share of the baby do not show his face — many Insta-influencers only picture the back of their children's heads in order to preserve their privacy.
The whole issue is rather a hot button for Harry, who remains tormented by memories of his mother's difficult relationship with the "intrusive" media.
In a recent speech he claimed: "Social media is more addictive than drugs and alcohol and it's more dangerous."
HIGH FASHION FOR THE BABY
We all know that Meghan loves to shop. If her £360,000 (NZ$709,500) maternity wardrobe was not proof enough, there was a large and well-tended shopping section in her lifestyle website The Tig.
So what will Baby Sussex wear? Her sister-in-law Kate has popularised a very particular vintage style when it comes to her three children, putting them in clothes by Rachel Riley and Cath Kidston. If Meghan follows the example of stylist Jessica Mulroney, then Baby Sussex will go in a very different direction.
The Mulroney kids wear a lot of adorably scaled-down versions of adult clothes, with bright colours and quirky touches. No smocking, no Fair Isle knits.
LIMITED SCREEN TIME A PRIORITY
Meghan's closest friend from college, Lindsay Roth, is living in London and recently had a baby. She posted a picture "caught reading on World Book Day" on Instagram. The baby was actually looking at a copy of her mother's own chick-lit book — What Pretty Girls Are Made Of.
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, with their newborn son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Photo / AP
Meghan's other close friend Jessica Mulroney has been through her own battles with twins Brian and John, eight, and daughter Ivy, five. She remarked on her Instagram account that the family iPad had been taken away and that the children were having a "digital detox".
Posting a picture of the boys reading in April last year, she wrote: "This is a digital detox. Three months ago we decided to take away all electronics from the kids. It wasn't easy and it's not for ever but the outcome is incredible. So proud of these little readers."
Limiting screen time looks certain to be a priority for both Meghan and Harry. He raged over the video game Fortnite recently, saying: "Where is the benefit of having it in your household? It's created to addict, an addiction to keep you in front of the computer for as long as possible. It's so irresponsible."
When she lived in Toronto, Meghan would often spend weekends with the Mulroneys. Here she will have observed some 'gender neutral parenting' where both parents take on their share.
As Jessica Mulroney shared, alongside a picture of her news anchor husband Ben wearing a tiara: "He's our King or in Ivy's mind, he's Princess Daddy. Despite an extremely challenging schedule, he never misses a birthday, a soccer game or a concert. He makes us so proud. Happy Father's Day @benmulroney. Love you today and every day."
