Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal version of retirement has officially kicked off — and it sounds so idyllic. While Meghan left for Canada in the midst of the fallout of her and Harry's bombshell announcement that they were stepping back as senior royals, after a series of conversations and negotiations the Prince was spotted arriving in Vancouver Island to reunite with his wife as well as their 8-month-old son, Archie.
With Harry finally in Canada, he can join Meghan in her already bustling post-royal life. She reportedly inked a voiceover deal with Disney, and was later seen visiting the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre in Vancouver. Most recently, she was papped over the weekend taking a stroll with her two dogs, Oz and Guy, with baby Archie strapped to her chest. In a photo posted on the front page of The Sun, she's beaming a in the the afterglow of no-more-royal-duties.
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Technically, the official agreement goes into effect in the spring, so they have a few more months to complete any outstanding obligations. However, even though they are stepping back, Harry made it clear in a speech that they're not abandoning their adoring public.
"The decision that I have made for my wife and I to step back, is not one I made lightly. It was so many months of talks after so many years of challenges. And I know I haven't always gotten it right, but as far as this goes, there really was no other option," he said on Sunday at a private dinner in London for his charity Sentebale. "What I want to make clear is we're not walking away, and we certainly aren't walking away from you. Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the commonwealth, and my military associations, but without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible."
The Queen herself, who initially released a somewhat prickly statement in response to the news, later clarified that everyone is on board with the pair's decision.
"Harry, Meghan, and Archie will always be much loved members of my family," a statement read, later adding, "I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth, and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family."
And if they ever do need to step up into royal duties in the future, I nominate Meghan's dogs to take their place.
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