Parents might be forgiven at rolling their eyes at Prince William's recent comment that "one is enough." Anyone who has had a 9 month old in the house will recognise that this stage can be the most challenging!
Gone are the gentle babymoon days when the new arrival could be carried everywhere with Mum or Dad, wouldn't move from any spot where you lay them, and whose every need could be met with a combination of quiet routine and regular feeding.
Sorry William and Kate. You have now entered true parenthood. Until George is old enough to go to school, every moment that he is in your care you will need superhuman skills that include eyes in the back of your head, Mr Tickle-length arms to grab the falling objects as they fly off the tables, shelves or down the stairs, and DIY skills to match Bob the Builder's. You'll need a warehouse full of those ugly white oversized laundry clips that keep cupboard doors safe and locked, socket covers in every room and a stairgate on every landing. This is when trouble and your (nearly) toddler are never far apart.
What's pleasing is that the world's most famous baby is hitting his milestones: crawling, eating, getting into everything (surely that's a milestone in its own right?). William and Kate can watch his progress and make sure that he is developing his hand-eye co-ordination, along with his visual, auditory and speech skills. Seasoned parents know that this stage is both very challenging and vital to the child's development. Before they know it, William and Kate - along with their new supernanny, Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo - will see George and his similarly aged playmates using all of their newly acquired skills in gross and fine motor movement (crawling, picking things up), verbal (babbling becomes real words), and auditory (communicating in "conversation," listening to fun music and nursery rhymes).
As each milestone is passed, George's nanny will be encouraged to keep a record. This is helpful not just for the family album, but for making sure that a record is kept for GP checks and other developmental checkpoints. The milestones will also impact on childcare arrangements. As faithful Jessie Webb, William's nanny and for a short period George's nanny, takes a back seat - so might Carole Middleton. All grandparents and older carers know that a racing toddler full of beans is hard to catch, and exhausting. This is when families need to check in with their carers to make sure that they are happy to step up to the new challenges of a more physically demanding child.
With the milestones, why not celebrate with the village that surrounds George? "Post and boast" on social media platforms is out for the Royals, so printed and framed photographs of the nation's favourite grandchild for extended family can keep everyone involved in marking these occasions.
And William - don't be so sure that one is enough for now. You might find that Kate develops that broodiness a lot of mothers will recognise at this stage - the cute sleepy little tot living in babygros has gone. Ask her what she's thinking and you might get a very different answer. Time to plan the next addition to the family?