Janette Manrara gives birth! Strictly star welcomes her first child with husband Aljaz Skorjanec and reveals their daughter’s adorable name
Janette Manrara has announced that she has welcomed her first child with her husband Aljaz Skorjanec.
The former Strictly Come Dancing professional, 39, took to Instagram on Saturday to confirm that she had given birth to a baby girl the day before.
She shared a sweet black-and-white photograph of herself lying in hospital and cradling her newborn daughter while Aljaz, 33, stood over her and smiled.
In an accompanying caption, Janette confirmed her daughter’s adorable name as she celebrated her new arrival.
She simply penned: ‘Lyra Rose Skorjanec. July 28, 2023,’ along with an emoji of a red rose.
Congratulations! Janette Manrara has announced that she has welcomed her first child with her husband Aljaz Skorjanec
Her celebrity friends were quick to take to the comments section to gush over Janette and Aljaz’s jovial baby news.
Ashley Roberts wrote: ‘Lyra Rose is here!!!’ before adding in another post: ‘So beautiful!!! Love you!!!’
While former Strictly dancer James Jordan added: ‘So happy for you both. Sending love from the Jordans.’
Gemma Atkinson said: ‘Just wonderful’, with Gorka Marquez adding: ‘So gorgeous.’
Sophie Ellis-Bextor commented: ‘Yay! Welcome to the world Lyra. Congratulations! xx’ while Jake Wood said: ‘Welcome to the world Lyra1!!! You have chosen amazing parents.’
Janette announced that she and fellow Strictly pro Aljaz were expecting their first child together in February, after struggling to conceive for more than two years.
The couple, who have been together for 13 years, announced the news in an Instagram post in conjunction with a magazine cover shoot for HELLO! Magazine.
Captioning an official photo from the spread, Janette, 39, wrote: ‘We’re so happy to share our special news!’
Detailing her pregnancy in an accompanying interview, the Cuban-American choreographer admitted she had struggled to conceive for more than two years, prompting fears that it might never happen.
Gushing: Her celebrity friends were quick to take to the comments section to gush over Janette and Aljaz’s jovial baby news
‘For the past couple of years we hadn’t been using protection but nothing was happening, so we thought IVF was the next best thing for us to do,’ she explained.
‘I turn 40 later this year and the NHS offers really good services to women under 40. The doctor said that as soon as I got my period we would start injections, but my period never came.’
‘I know that IVF can be really strenuous on a woman’s body and there is no guarantee it will work, so to know that this little miracle just came from a wonderful night we had together is amazing. I think the baby decided to make Mum and Dad panic a bit before saying, ‘ok, fine, I’m coming up now.”
Janette explained how she told Aljaz she was pregnant by handing him the positive pregnancy test and that they ‘cried and hugged,’ adding ‘it was quite a moment’.
Aljaz admitted he was ‘beside myself’ and hoped the baby would look more like Janette than him.
Janette has kept fans up to date with her pregnancy and was sweetly surprised with a Winnie-the-Pooh-themed baby shower earlier this month.
Not revealing their child’s gender before the birth, Janette took to Instagram to give an insight into the occasion, telling how her loved ones surprised her with the party.
She shared a whole host of snaps from the gorgeous affair, which came complete with Winnie-the-Pooh decorations and coordinated gold and yellow balloons.
Janette was joined by her close pals Ashley Roberts and Katya Jones and was also surprised by her mother Maritza, who flew over from Miami especially for the party.
Janette told how her sister Lesly Marie had arranged for her mother to attend as a surprise, while Aljaz’s family also came over from Slovenia.
The lavish party featured a sweet sign on the door reading ‘Janette’s baby shower’ before a tour of the stunning interior was given.
The Winnie-the-Pooh themed party also featured huge posters with quotes and illustrations from A A Milne’s books and a whole host of yellow and gold balloons.
Pregnancy: Janette (pictured in June) announced that she and Aljaz were expecting their first child together in February, after struggling to conceive for more than two years
Adorable: Janette then kept fans up to date with her pregnancy and was sweetly surprised with a Winnie-the-Pooh-themed baby shower earlier this month
Baby shower: Janette was joined by her close pals Ashley Roberts and Katya Jones for the sweet baby shower
The snacks on offer included delicious scones and jam, an array of desserts and cakes, and popcorn presented in honey pots.
There was also a Winnie-the-Pooh cake, made by Eric Lanlard, decorated with figurines of the book characters and paper bees.
An adorable moment also showed the moment Janette looked completely stunned as she walked into the surprise event, before rushing to hug her family.
Another clip then showed Janette bursting into floods of tears as her mother walked into the room and shocked her even more, after secretly flying over for the party.
It came after Janette gushed over her husband Aljaz and claimed would ‘breastfeed the baby if he could’ as she prepares to give birth for the first time.
Janette told Closer: ‘He’s wanted to be a dad since day one and he’s so obsessed, he would breastfeed the baby if he could!
‘He wants to be a co-parent 100 percent and we’ll be a real team.’
The dancer also revealed how her husband sends her memes of baby tips and advice he’s found online, adding: ‘As a working mum, having someone like that on your side is such a breath of fresh air!’
She previously said of Aljaz: ‘The most surprising thing for me, from Aljaž is just the level of support he’s shown throughout this whole pregnancy.’
‘I knew he always wanted to be a Father; I felt in my heart that I knew he was always going to be an amazing Dad, but to see it come to life with his excitement and his curiosity and his ability to really just take care of me is amazing.’
She added: ‘He doesn’t let me lift a feather! He is just the most incredible husband and it’s so nice to see how involved he wants to be and he wants to know about everything happening to me and my body.
‘I think as a woman it’s so comforting to know that I have a real partner in this whole process, and that he’s with me all the way. I love that.’
She continued: ‘It’s just the excitement of being a family, finally. We’ve known for a long time that we’ve been wanting to be parents, and now we have this little miracle coming, our lives are going to completely change forever once it arrives.
Adorable: Janette was also surprised by her mother Maritza, who flew over from Miami especially for the baby shower
Romance: Janette and Aljaz first met back in 2010 in London through their careers as professional dancers and went on to tie the knot in 2017
‘To know that, again, we have each other and we’re doing it as a team, and hopefully we create a wonderful human being, that will be beautiful for our planet.
‘Just the excitement of being in a new home as a new family… all of it really! I’m just super happy that this is even happening.’
Janette and Aljaz first met back in 2010 in London through their careers as professional dancers and Aljaz joked that he was ready to propose after five hours.
Janette previously credited Strictly for helping them to stay together, as it meant they both lived in London rather than having to do long-distance between Slovenia and Los Angeles.
The loved-up pair finally exchanged vows seven years later in 2017 in three separate ceremonies in London, Slovenia and Miami.
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