We've got no family nearby to help us parent Lyra... we have to plan every inch of our lives

STRICTLY Come Dancing favourite Janette Manrara is having to develop a new skill as a mum - juggling.

- SARAH MORTON and EVE MACDONALD

Janette, 40, has spent years wowing fans with her fabulous footwork and, since 2021, her silky presenting skills on Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two.

But now, as a mother to 13-month-old Lyra, she is facing fresh challenges.

These will be made even tougher as her husband and fellow dancer Aljaz Skorjanec prepares to return to Strictly after a two-year break and the couple have no family nearby to help with childcare.

Janette's nearest and dearest are based in Miami, while 34-year-old Aljaz's are in Slovenia.

Janette, who first appeared on Strictly in 2013, says: "It's very difficult. We have no one to help so it's all about future planning as much as possible. It's a massive juggle.

COMPLICATED

"Right now, Aljaz and I are trying to figure out how we're going to make it work with him being back on Strictly full-time.

"His schedule is basically seven days a week and the hours are here, there and everywhere.

"Lyra goes to nursery a couple of days a week, but planning childcare when Aljaz and I are both working and she is not in nursery can be very complicated, especially with no family around to help.

"I know how hard it is doing Strictly, let alone doing it when you're a parent, so I'm planning every inch of our lives for the next few months.

"The most important thing is that Lyra's comfortable and happy. I don't want her to miss Mummy or Daddy too much amidst the madness."

Janette has written a self-help manual called Tiny Dancer, Big World, which has tips to help people find fulfilment in life.

In it, she details her own experiences and talks about having IVF and becoming a mother after years of trying to get pregnant.