The Duchess could be back for duty! Pregnant Kate Middleton will finally return to the spotlight after announcing that she was expecting her second child with Prince William last month.
A rep for Kensington Palace tells Us Weekly that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are expected to greet the President of Singapore and his wife during a royal engagement on Oct. 21. They will meet with their visitors on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, at the Royal Garden Hotel in London.
This will mark Kate Middleton's first official royal engagement since the Palace announced that the Duchess was pregnant with her second child. As was the case with her first pregnancy, she has been experiencing a severe form of morning sickness (hyperemesis gravidarum) in her first trimester.
The Duchess' health condition has forced her to cancel multiple royal engagements, including her planned first solo tour to Malta at the end of last month, as well as her brother-in-law Prince Harry's launch of the Invictus Games. Prince George's mother last pulled out of an event scheduled for this upcoming Monday, Oct. 13, when she had planned to visit Portsmouth, England.
Last Wednesday, Oct. 1, the Duchess was forced to cancel the launch of The Art Room's ninth center in the U.K. due to her illness. In her absence, Middleton wrote an apology letter to the center, which read: "I am truly sorry that I cannot be with you all today as you celebrate this milestone. As patron of The Art Room, I feel great pride to see the work that the charity is doing. Vulnerable children flourish in the safe havens that The Art Room provides; this highlights just how important it is to support children at a time when they most need help and support."
A Kensington Palace source tells Us that the intensity of the Duchess' sickness "has taken everyone by surprise. Fortunately, the baby is well, and she's doing her best to stay healthy." For more details on Duchess Kate's rocky pregnancy, pick up the new issue of Us Weekly.
