Preparations Begin at Kate Middleton's Hospital Ahead of Second Child's Birth
Kate Middleton is expected to give birth sometime this month, and preparations are ongoing in London in anticipation of the Duchess giving birth to her second child.
Parking restriction notices have been put in place outside the hospital where the Duchess of Cambridge is due to give birth.
The yellow signs cite "Special Event" as the reason for suspension in front of the Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London and have been enforced from April 15 to 30, meaning the Duchess is expected to have her child by this date.
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The palace is reportedly ensuring that there are no pictures of the Duchess heading into the hospital while in labor and are hoping for less of a media circus this time around after photographers and journalists spent days on what was dubbed the "Great Kate Wait" when the Cambridge's first born son, Prince George, was born. This time, it has been decided that the media will not be permitted to set up camp outside the hospital until after the Duchess is admitted.
In a statement from a royal aide to the Daily Mail, the palace is appealing to "all media to respect the family nature of this moment and provide the appropriate amount of privacy they should be able to expect."
The Duchess is also expected to take a longer maternity leave so she can care for both of her children, but many are speculating that she might put in an appearance at Trooping the Color on June 13. It can be recalled that when Prince George was born, the Duchess didn't make a single public appearance until after five weeks after the birth for a farewell engagement at Anglesey.
As for the birth announcement, it has been reported that if the baby arrives after 10 p.m., no public announcement will be made until 8am the following morning. The Prince and the Duchess have also decided not to make public their child's arrival until they have informed both of their families.
The birth will reportedly be announced via a press release, followed a few moments later by an announcement on the Kensington Royal official Twitter account, and afterwards the traditional bulletin will be posted on an easel outside Buckingham Palace.
