Kate Middleton shares her thoughts on breastfeeding and gets 'broody' about baby number 4

From bleeding nipples to very public leaks, breastfeeding isn't a walk in the park—and though she's never stated exactly how she feeds her children, Kate Middleton seems to know it.

After all, it was just weeks after giving birth to Prince Louis last April that the new mom was in front of global flashbulbs while wrangling Prince George and Princess Charlotte at their uncle's royal wedding. And we're guessing that the piece de resistance of her cream ensemble was a pair of nursing pads!

Prince William and Kate surprised fans this week when they popped up in Northern Ireland for a two-day tour that was filled with fun kid moments, though they left their own littles back home. The Cambridges played soccer and Kate took a stab at braiding a woman's hair (she's definitely a pro!), but she also got candid with mothers at the St Joseph’s SureStart facility in Ballymena. One of the women shared how Kate acknowledged what a struggle breastfeeding can be.

"They were really encouraging about breastfeeding," said Rebecca White, according to Hello!. "They said we were all doing a good job, that it was really hard, it was a struggle and well done for keeping going."

This isn't the first time the royal mom has talked about the challenges of motherhood, including feelings of ignorance and lack of confidence. In 2017, she gave a speech at the Best Beginnings charity, saying that she's not immune to these struggles despite all of the help she has. “Nothing can really prepare you for you the sheer overwhelming experience of what it means to become a mother. It is full of complex emotions of joy, exhaustion, love, and worry, all mixed together,” she said. “Your fundamental identity changes overnight. You go from thinking of yourself as primarily an individual, to suddenly being a mother, first and foremost.”

But could the duchess be down to go through it all a fourth time? When she met a sweet five-month-old baby in the crowds in Ireland, Kate's ovaries were definitely tingling. "He's gorgeous," she told baby James's dad, Alan. "It makes me feel broody." He asked if this could mean baby number four is in their future, but she was quick to laugh it off. "I think William might be slightly worried."

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