How exciting! Meghan Markle is one step closer to becoming a fully-fledged royal after scoring a coveted invite to spend Christmas with the royal family. According ET, Kensington Palace has confirmed that Prince Harry and his American fiancée will ring in the holidays with Queen Elizabeth at Sandringham and be hosted by Prince William and Kate Middleton at their nearby Anmer Hall home. “You can expect to see the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, and Ms. Markle at Sandringham on Christmas Day,” said a spokesman for the family.

She will be invited to every part of the holiday, with the spokesman explaining that “The Queen and members of the Royal Family will attend the Morning Service on Christmas Day at Sandringham Church.” So exciting!

Harry allegedly asked his grandmother to make an exception for his wife-to-be as there is an unwritten rule of no unmarried partners or fianceés coming to Christmas. When Kate became engaged to now-husband William in 2010, she spent that Christmas with her parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, in Berkshire, England. “Now that they are engaged, it was unthinkable they would be apart for Christmas. The royal family have fully welcomed Meghan into the fold,” a friend of Harry’s told The Express. According to royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams, Christmas at Sandringham will serve as the ultimate training for Meghan as she prepares to become a full-time royal.

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“Now they are engaged and she will shortly be a senior member of the royal family, it is pivotal that she feels an integral part of it as soon as possible,” he revealed. “Kate and the younger members will help her through the strict protocol of the royal festive celebrations which take place over three days and which can be daunting.”

An insider also recently revealed that Kate has stepped up to help her future sister-in-law and show her the ropes. “Kate was a bag of nerves the first time she did Christmas with the royals, so she knows exactly how daunting it must be for Meghan,” the source said. Christmas with the royals is a serious production and every item on the agenda runs to a perfectly-timed schedule.

The newly-engaged couple are set for a jam-packed calendar of festive celebrations kicking things off with a black-tie dinner on Christmas Eve with key royal family members including Prince Charles, Duchess Camilla, The Queen, Prince Philip, Prince William, and Kate. Cheap and cheerful presents are swapped on Christmas Eve — with a focus on humorous gifts instead of material. If Meghan is racking her brain as to what to get The Queen, Kate has previously revealed she made her chutney!

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Christmas morning starts with a full English breakfast before heading to church for a morning service at St. Mary Magdalene, followed by a 50-minute lunch, before gathering around the TV to watch The Queen’s Christmas message at 3 p.m., and a round of pheasant shooting on Boxing Day — it’s certainly worlds away from eating leftover ham and watching the cricket like most in England do on the 26th!

But even the royals indulge in the silly season and they reportedly enjoy popping open bespoke Christmas crackers (everyone rocks the colorful hats except for Her Majesty), party games, and charades. It’s believed Meghan and Harry will head to America after Christmas in the UK to spend time with Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland. Perhaps they’ll also squeeze in a visit to Meghan’s father Thomas Markle, who has only spoken to Harry on the phone.

As wedding preparations get underway, Meghan’s uncle has confirmed to The Sun that Meghan’s reclusive father Thomas will walk his daughter down the aisle at St. George’s chapel at Windsor Castle next May. “I know Thomas feels happy and excited about the engagement. He and Meghan have a good relationship, and they talk weekly so she keeps him up to date,” Thomas’ brother Michael from Palm Bay Florida told the publication.

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Part of this post was written by Bella Brennan. It originally appeared on our sister site, Now to Love.