Kate Middleton shares never-before-seen photo she took of Princess Charlotte

Over the weekend, Kate Middleton opened up about parenthood as she was interviewed for the Happy Mum Happy Baby podcast hosted by Giovanna Fletcher.

During the rare discussion, the Duchess of Cambridge described herself as a "hands-on mum" and spoke about how important it is for children to be outside, referencing a particular photo of Princess Charlotte smelling a bluebell that she treasures.

And now, the precious shot has been released by the royal mum-of-three.

The photo - which was posted to Kate and William's official Instagram account - was taken by the Duchess at their home in Norfolk in spring last year.

In the snap, the four-year-old Princess can be seen bent over a bluebell, smelling the flower, wearing a grey sweater and plaid skirt, with her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

Speaking about the picture, she said: "I've got this one photo of Charlotte smelling a bluebell, and really for me, it's moments like that mean so much to me as a parent.

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"And I try every day to put moments like that in, even if they're small or even if I don't have time – but that in an ideal world is what I would like to do."

Kate went on to say that she feels "really passionate" about children spending time outside.

She added: "As children, we spent an awful lot of time outside and it's something I'm really passionate about.

"It's so great for physical well-being and also mental well-being and actually really laying those foundations.

"It's also a really great environment to spend time building those quality relationships without the distractions."

We couldn't agree more!