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Prince William and Kate Middleton share sweet new family Christmas card photo

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Britain's Prince William and wife Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, released Wednesday a new family photo from their Christmas card this year — and their kids took center stage in the sweet shot.

The cute snap, released on the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's official social media accounts, shows the family sitting on a hay bale in front of piles of firewood. Prince George, 7, Princess Charlotte, 5, and Prince Louis, 2, are all seen lounging on their parents while smiling wide for the camera. Little Prince Louis even appears to have been caught mid-laugh in the shot. 

The family wore casual sweater looks this year for their highly-anticipated holiday card photo. 

"The Duke and Duchess are delighted to share a new image of their family, which features on their Christmas card this year," the post reads.

The image was snapped in the fall at the family's Anmer Hall home by royal photographer Matt Porteous, Entertainment Tonight reports. He also has taken birthday photos of Prince George in the past.

The card was given out to the country's National Health Service (NHS) staff and frontline workers as a thank you for their tireless efforts battling the coronavirus this year, according to the outlet. 

This year's Christmas card photo has a more festive feel from last year's image. Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty posted the card to Twitter last holiday season, ET reports. The image showed the family of five in warm weather clothes posing with a motorbike and sidecar. 

Christmas for the royal family — usually an elaborate spectacle — will likely be a much quieter affair this year. Queen Elizabeth II canceled the traditional Christmas festivities at her estate in Sandringham this holiday. She will instead spend the time with her husband Prince Philip in Windsor, where they have been isolating amid the pandemic. 

Last year, Prince George and Princess Charlotte notably attended their very first Christmas church service with the queen during the family's annual celebrations. 

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