Meghan Markle Shares a Final Taste of Montecito Summer Days After Returning to Britain With Prince Harry and Their Children

Just days after Meghan Markle and Prince Harry arrived back in Britain with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, a new image from the Duchess of Sussex’s lifestyle brand has offered a striking reminder of the California life they have temporarily left behind.

Posted by As ever over the weekend, the photograph shows Meghan in a sunlit garden, wearing a white T-shirt, flowing skirt and oversized hat while carrying a large basket and appearing to gather produce. The accompanying message — “Soaking in the last of summer in the garden” — would ordinarily be a simple seasonal update.

The timing, however, gives the photograph a different resonance.

Harry and Meghan arrived in the U.K. on August 26 to begin an extended stay after six years primarily based in California. Their children, Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, are set to attend school in Britain, although details of both the school and the Sussexes’ new British residence are being kept private.

And despite speculation that the garden photograph could represent a farewell to Montecito, the Sussexes are not abandoning California altogether. They intend to retain their home there while establishing a private, non-royal base in Britain.

Meghan Returns to the Garden at the Heart of Her California Brand

The new As ever photograph appears closely aligned with the California lifestyle Meghan has built into the identity of her business.

Dressed casually and carrying a woven basket, the Duchess is shown among greenery, seemingly gathering produce from the garden. A basket containing multicolored eggs is positioned nearby.

The photograph was published only days after the family arrived in Britain, making the image particularly notable as Meghan begins adapting to a life divided more visibly between two countries.

Her Montecito garden has repeatedly featured in the domestic world surrounding her lifestyle ventures, while the family’s chickens have also appeared publicly over the years.

Those chickens will remain in California while Harry and Meghan are in Britain, according to PEOPLE. The Sussexes’ two dogs, black Labrador Pula and rescue beagle Mia, have instead accompanied the family to the U.K.

That arrangement underlines an important distinction surrounding the move: the Sussexes are establishing themselves in Britain again, but they are not completely dismantling the life they created in California.

Their Final California Weekend Was Not a Permanent Goodbye

Before flying to Britain, Harry and Meghan reportedly spent their final California weekend seeing people closest to them.

According to PEOPLE, the couple made time for friends and family, including Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, while Archie and Lilibet were also able to spend time with their friends before leaving.

A source familiar with the family’s plans stressed that the gatherings were not intended to mark a permanent goodbye.

The move had reportedly been under consideration for some time, and although the couple believes returning to Britain is currently the right decision for their family, leaving Montecito was still emotional — particularly for Meghan, who remains deeply attached to the home and lifestyle they built there.

Their plan instead appears to involve maintaining meaningful connections on both sides of the Atlantic.

For Archie and Lilibet, that could ultimately mean growing up with greater exposure to both their American and British backgrounds.

Six Years After Their Royal Exit, the Sussexes Are Back

The significance of Harry and Meghan’s return is difficult to separate from the circumstances in which they originally left.

In 2020, the couple stepped away as senior working members of the Royal Family and eventually established themselves in Montecito.

California became the center of their post-royal lives. They developed media projects, expanded charitable initiatives and raised their children largely outside the British royal environment.

Six years later, however, Britain has again become part of their everyday family life.

Harry and Meghan are not returning as working royals, and there has been no change to the arrangement established after their departure from official duties. Their new U.K. chapter is intended to be private and independent of the monarchy.

Their children are expected to begin school in Britain in September, giving the move a level of permanence beyond a conventional royal visit.

The exact location of the family’s new home has not been publicly confirmed.

While reports have repeatedly linked the Sussexes with the Cotswolds, PEOPLE has said details surrounding their residence are being deliberately kept private.

Montecito Will Remain Part of Their Lives

Perhaps the most important detail surrounding the Sussexes’ move is that it does not amount to a complete reversal of their American life.

They intend to keep their Montecito property.

Sources have characterized the transition as an attempt to create a new balance rather than abandon one country for another. Meghan remains attached to California, while Harry has reportedly continued to feel a strong connection to Britain throughout the years they lived in the United States.

That helps place Meghan’s garden photograph in context.

Rather than necessarily being a permanent farewell to Montecito, it may simply capture the closing days of one chapter before the family begins spending significantly more time elsewhere.

The California house remains theirs. The chickens remain there. Meghan’s As ever business continues to operate from the world she created after leaving royal life.

But the family itself is now in Britain.

Meghan’s Professional Life Is Also Entering a New Phase

The transatlantic move comes as Meghan’s professional future is attracting renewed attention.

She has been discussing a potential return to acting and is in talks for a role in the third season of Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series The Gentlemen, according to PEOPLE. No final casting announcement has been confirmed.

Such a move would represent a significant development for Meghan, who stepped away from acting before marrying Harry in 2018.

She has nevertheless remained closely involved with entertainment through Archewell Productions and her Netflix lifestyle series With Love, Meghan.

As ever is continuing as well.

Only days before the family’s U.K. move, Meghan announced another product for the lifestyle brand — Spiced Apple Butter — as part of its expanding food and entertaining range.

Taken together, the developments suggest Meghan is not returning to Britain to recreate the life she had before 2020.

Her businesses, entertainment work and American connections remain central to the new arrangement.

Harry’s Return Reopens the Security Question

The family’s arrival also inevitably revived one of the most contentious issues surrounding Harry’s relationship with Britain: security.

Since stepping away from royal duties, Harry has repeatedly expressed concerns about bringing Meghan and their children to the U.K. without the level of police protection he previously received as a working royal.

Those concerns became particularly significant because Harry had previously said he struggled to imagine bringing his family back under the existing arrangements.

Yet on August 26, all four Sussexes arrived together.

The family’s return does not itself mean that Harry’s long-running security dispute has been resolved, and the specific protection arrangements surrounding them have not been publicly detailed.

That distinction is important as speculation continues around what their extended presence in Britain could mean.

A New Life Between Britain and California

For now, the clearest picture is one of a family attempting to maintain two worlds rather than choosing completely between them.

Harry has returned to the country he reportedly never entirely stopped missing. Meghan retains the California home and professional life she values. Archie and Lilibet are preparing to experience British schooling while maintaining their American connections.

Their dogs have crossed the Atlantic with them.

Their chickens remain behind.

And their Montecito home is not being given up.

Against that backdrop, Meghan’s latest garden photograph becomes more than a conventional end-of-summer post.

It captures the familiar California setting that has defined the Sussexes’ lives since leaving royal duties — published at precisely the moment their family is beginning something very different thousands of miles away.

For Meghan, Harry, Archie and Lilibet, Montecito has not disappeared from the story.

But for the first time in six years, it is no longer the only place they call home.