By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-06-15 12:17:19 | Updated at 2026-06-15 15:45:33
3 hours ago
The Duchess of Sussex enjoyed a game of mahjong over the weekend and added a new member to her 'Maj Squad' – Kelly McKee Zajfen.
Meghan Markle, 44, who lives in Montecito, California, has long enjoyed playing the popular strategy mind-sport, thought to have originated from 19th-century China, with a group of close friends.
In the first series of her lifestyle show, With Love, Meghan, the mother-of-two welcomed fashion designer Tracy Robbins, cosmetics entrepreneur Victoria Jackson and literary agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh to play while enjoying tacos and cocktails.
Her latest game welcomed a new member, the Alliance of Moms co-founder – a non-profit that provides support to pregnant and parenting youth in LA's foster care system – and fellow Californian mother, who has been friends with the duchess for 20 years.
Taking to Instagram, Kelly, a former model, shared a picture of herself playing the game outdoors with cocktails, before thanking 'M & T' in the caption, a reference to Meghan and Tracy Robbins.
She captioned the picture: 'Ugh, oh. Another one has been taken by the Maj bug. That being me.
'A perfect day spent with my ladies and having some much needed mama time. Thanks M & T. Now back to the babes and obsessing over my next game.'
Tracy then shared the picture to her Stories, writing: 'You are a natural. Love you. Miss you already.'
The Duchess of Sussex's 'Maj Squad' appears to have recruited a new member, Kelly McKee Zajfen (pictured together in March)
Last year, the duchess's close friend Vicky Tsai, the founder of Tatcha skincare, shed light on Meghan and Harry's hobbies, revealing both enjoy playing mahjong and have taken up pickleball – an increasingly popular paddle sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton and ping-pong.
Speaking to People magazine, she said: 'She's really creative and curious. She enjoys things that you wouldn't expect – like mahjong.
'She's constantly trying to pull me into her weekly mahjong group. And she and Harry are pretty passionate about pickleball. They are trying to convince me to join the group!'
It comes after Meghan shared an image of herself visiting Kelly and her newborn baby, Jack Oliver Zajfen, hours before the Royal Family headed to Trooping the Colour.
Posting on social media ahead of the King's official birthday on Saturday, Meghan shared an image of herself holding Jack to her Stories.
Unlike Kelly, Meghan typically hides her children, Archie, seven, and five-year-old Lilibet's faces when posting about them on social media.
However, following her friend's approach, she posted newborn Jack's features in the photo, in which she's pictured embracing the baby and giving him a peck on his head.
'We know I love a redhead,' the Duchess wrote alongside the image, before joking: 'And let me stop you before they start, no it's not his baby.'
Kelly, a former model who has been friends with Meghan for 20 years, said she had a 'perfect' day playing mahjong with 'M & T' (aka, Meghan and Tracy Robbins)
Kelly announced she was expecting Jack in November last year, after tragically losing her nine-year-old son George in July 2022, after he contracted a viral illness.
Meghan added a second picture of her fellow California mother smiling alongside Jack, saying: 'Love you @heartmom'.
Kelly has long praised the support she received from Meghan during her bereavement, and has previously opened up about her loss, describing it in a personal essay as 'traumatic, painful and very vivid'.
Writing about the death last year, Kelly told People magazine: 'It happened very quickly.
'We had no idea when we took him into the hospital that, 12 hours later, he would not make it. My nine-year-old son George died. Died of Covid and viral meningitis.
'A healthy and vibrant boy could not fight it. We lost him. I kissed him.
'But it was to say goodbye. It is impossible to know how to survive this type of grief. Even more impossible is the ability to find all the right tools that will help you manage each day. I definitely do not have all the answers.'
At the time of George's death, Meghan and Harry showed their support by donating $5,000 to a GoFundMe set up in George's honour, attributing the donation to their two children, Lilibet and Archie.
After the event, Kelly thanked the couple for their generosity, writing on Instagram: 'Harry and Meghan, you have been such a guiding light for our family, not just in the way you have shown up in friendship but how you have shown up through the incredible work The Archewell Foundation does every day. I'm in awe of your commitment to community and to friendship.'
In the years since George's tragic death, Meghan and Harry have attended several of Kelly's charity events and initiatives in memory of the nine-year-old.
These included a charity tennis tournament last year in honour of George, which also took place around Prince Harry's 40th birthday.
