“I wanted to come and see you,” the Princess of Wales told 3-year-old Lily-Rose on Jan. 30
While out at engagements in South Wales, Kate Middleton made a young girl’s day after the royal jumped out of her car to talk specifically to her.
The Princess of Wales, 43, pulled over her convoy in “a highly unusual move,” stopping her car and jumping out to have a chat with 3-year-old Lily-Rose, who had been calling out “Hello princess!” as Kate left Corgi, a knitwear and sock factory, on Jan. 30. The BBC reported that Princess Kate “jogged over to shake Lily-Rose’s hand” and said, “I heard you say ‘Hello’ from all the way back there, and I wanted to come and see you.”
Lily-Rose handed Kate a toy banana, and as the future queen handed it back to her, Lily-Rose threw it on the ground “and the princess had to bend down to retrieve it,” according to the BBC.
Lily-Rose’s mother Stacey Chorley later said, “It was so exciting. We had no idea that was going to happen.”
It’s rare that a moment like this does occur, with the BBC calling Kate’s actions “remarkable, because royal convoys rarely stop after they have left an engagement.”
“I hope this is one of the things Lily-Rose will remember,” Chorley said. “Kate was so lovely. She’s very natural and down-to-earth.”
Kate’s visit to the textile factory was her second stop of the day, following a visit to children’s hospice Tŷ Hafan, where she was named patron of the organization that means “Haven House” in Welsh.
“As our patron, Her Royal Highness will be an inspiration for children with life-shortening conditions and their families, our dedicated staff and volunteers and everyone who so generously supports us,” said Irfon Rees, the chief executive of Tŷ Hafan.
While at the charity, the Princess of Wales was at ease with children during the visit, including taking part in making a handprint with 4-year-old Maggie, whose 12-year-old brother Felix was at the hospice with his parents and two sisters.
“It was really warming and easy,” Felix’s mother Alex Forbes tells PEOPLE of the experience of interacting with Kate. “You can tell she is a mom.”
“She was lovely,” Alex continues.
Her husband Dan adds, “It feels like you are speaking to a mom, first and foremost. She will bring awareness to what this place does. We would be ignorant to what it was if we didn’t use it. It has been a massive support for us.”
Kate is, of course, mom to Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6, whom she shares with her husband, Prince William.
At Tŷ Hafan, Kate “stayed much longer than we expected,” Tracy Jones, director of family wellbeing services, tells PEOPLE.
“She immediately gravitated to the children and families — she spent quality time talking to every child and their parents,” Jones says, adding, “It’s been the most inspiring visit. She’s so natural and has such an aura of engagement about her.”
Later in the day at Corgi, Kate was given the opportunity to finish making a sock, after which she joked, “I’m sorry I was so terrible,” per The Mirror. Huw Jones, the former owner of Corgi, said the royal passed the sock-making test and “can start on Monday.”
Jones’ children Chris and Lisa now own the business, and Chris told The Mirror, “The visit has been fabulous. The princess said she wants to shine a light on manufacturing in the U.K., so it’s really nice to get their support.”
“And it’s lovely for the staff, the skills they have got, they don’t always get the recognition, so it’s really nice,” he continued. “We spoke about the industry, the challenges, but really she wanted to know how we made the products and the skills involved.”
