Princess Beatrice Attends Royal Christmas in Last-Minute Move amid Medical Advice During Pregnancy

Princess Beatrice is celebrating Christmas with the royal family after changing her plans mid-pregnancy.

On December 25, Princess Beatrice joined King Charles and other members of the royal family for the family’s traditional walk to St Mary Magdalene Church on Sandringham Estate. A source confirmed to PEOPLE earlier this week that Princess Beatrice will be there after changing her plans in light of her pregnancy, and she took part in the walk to the church with her husband Edoardo Mappelli Mozzi and his son Christopher Woolf, 8.

Beatrice, 36, canceled a trip to Italy to spend a holiday with her husband’s family, making the switch on medical advice. The couple is expecting their second child together, and the palace previously said that Beatrice is due “early in the new year”. Beatrice and Edo are parents to daughter Sienna (3), and their family will expand with the baby on the way.

Christopher Woolf, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Beatrice walk to church in Sandringham on December 25, 2024.

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Princess Beatrice wore a belted coat over her growing baby bump and placed a warm hand on Christopher Woolf’s back as they all walked. When she and Edo, 41, married in 2020, a source told PEOPLE that Beatrice was a “wonderful and very hands-on stepmother” to Christopher Woolf, who is affectionately nicknamed Wolfie.

PEOPLE knows that Princess Beatrice originally accepted an invitation to celebrate Christmas with her in-laws and was the only member of the York family to join the royal Christmas festivities. Her father Prince Andrew and mother Sarah Ferguson are keeping a low profile and staying away from Sandringham amid Andrew’s association with an alleged Chinese “spy”, Beatrice’s younger sister Princess Eugenie is celebrating the holiday with her in-laws.

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, Christopher Woolf and Princess Beatrice walk to church in Sandringham on December 25, 2024.

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Princess Beatrice and Edo, 41, were also recently spotted driving to King Charles’ pre-Christmas lunch for the extended royal family, which was held at Buckingham Palace on December 19.

Beatrice and Eugenie, 34, appeared in good spirits as they drove to a palace lunch with their husbands, despite the fallout over their father’s alleged links to a suspected Chinese “spy”. In keeping with their decision not to join the royal family at Christmas, the Duke and Duchess of York have similarly skipped the festive feast amid backlash over the scandal.

Royal biographer Ingrid Seward tells PEOPLE that Andrew would discuss the decision with his daughters, who are protective and loyal to him.

“Nevertheless [the Duchess’] missteps in the past, she knows how things will turn out in society. She would tell him it was best to stay away. And Beatrice would support her in that,” Seward tells PEOPLE of Andrew ditching the holiday lunch.

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Beatrice drive to King Charles’ pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on December 19, 2024.

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Prince Andrew and Ferguson, who is popularly known as Fergie, divorced in 1996 after a decade of marriage, but are known to remain close today and live together at the Royal Lodge in Windsor.

It is believed that the Duke and Duchess of York will spend Christmas quietly at home, out of the public eye. Meanwhile, Princess Eugenie is spending the holidays with a family member of her husband Jack Brooksbank, as originally planned.

Princess Eugenie and Jack have sons Ernest, 1, on August 3, and this Christmas is the first since the couple married in 2018 that they haven’t joined the royal family on the walk to church on Christmas Day at Sandringham.

Princess Beatrice, Prince Andrew and Princess Eugenie walk to church on Christmas Day in Sandringham on December 25, 2015.

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While the event was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID pandemic, King Charles brought the beloved tradition back with a bang in 2022 after taking over the throne following the death of Queen Elizabeth. The royal family has been out in full force every year since then, and this year was no different.

After attending church at Sandringham Estate, the royals meet for lunch (with turkey, glazed ham, roast potatoes, parsnips and Christmas pudding on the extensive menu!) and watch the King’s Christmas Show as it airs on television.

Step into the royal family’s holiday tradition with a special edition of PEOPLE’s: Christmas at the Palace: A Royal Family Album.

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Source: HIS Education