These cute photos are exactly the Monday pick-me-up we needed!

Princess Charlotte recently hit her 6-month milestone and to celebrate, Kensington Palace has released two adorable photos of the young royal taken by her mother (who is shaping up to be quite the photographer!)

Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, shot the portraits at their family home in Norfolk in early November. The images show the Princess wearing a pretty pink cardigan over a floral smocked dress playing with a stuffed dog.

This is the second set of images released by the Duchess – you’ll remember she also photographed the first official photo of six-week-old Princess Charlotte with older brother Prince George back in June.

The Duke and Duchess have made it very clear they want their children to be free of the paparazzi frenzy they themselves both encounter and are regularly sharing official portraits of their children in a bid to counteract any such disruption.

In a statement issued by Kensington Palace in August, William and Kate pleaded for the paparazzi to leave Prince George alone, saying that “a line has been crossed” and that they “want both children to be free to play in public and semi-public spaces with other children without being photographed.”