Strictly Come Dancing couple Janette Manrara and Alijaz Skorjanec cuddled up to five-month-old daughter Lyra for a slew of sweet snaps on Thursday.
It Takes Two host Janette, 40, took to Instagram as she posted a glimpse of the family’s festive outing, which saw the tot dressed in a cute cardigan and matching hat with animal ears.
Gushing over the images eagle-eyed followers couldn’t help but notice the similarities between Lyra and father Alijaz, 33, branding them ‘twins’.
One wrote: ‘Aww baby girls first Christmas, she’s a mini Alijaz have the most amazing time’.
While a second branded the little one: ‘Daddy’s double!’.
Another quipped: ‘Aww… no mistaking that DNA in the last picture’.
And a fourth said: ‘So gorgeous!!! so like her daddy in that photo’.
With a fifth adding: ‘Lyra is so like her Daddy, beautiful baby’.
Someone else noted: ‘Beautiful little doll! Image of her Daddy! Janette, Motherhood suits you, you’re looking amazing!’.
Last week Janette said becoming pregnant at 39 was ‘more complicated’ than she thought it would be.
Appearing on Loose Women she discussed the journey to welcoming Lyra into the world, admitting she was ‘so glad’ she didn’t have to go through IVF.
She said: ‘I was 39 and it is more complicated than you think. Don’t assume it’s going to happen as soon as you get off birth control.
‘We are so grateful we didn’t have to go through IVF. We have a book sazarina and I didn’t know how I was going to feel so I medicated in the morning and we danced and it was like a proper birthday and she was born to the song we wanted.’
Janette had planned on going through IVF but ended up getting pregnant naturally just before she was due to begin.
She explained: ‘We decided like 2 years ago now and then 2 years later we hadn’t got pregnant so went to the doctors and started IVF.
‘There was nothing wrong and we should have got pregnant naturally and then one day my period never came and I got moody before I had the injections and we got pregnant naturally.’
Alijaz left Strictly Come Dancing in 2022 after nine years and is now a stay at home dad to Lyra.
He said: ‘I’ve been convincing Janette for years I’ve always wanted to be a dad but it had to be right for both of us.
‘We can be away for months at a time and its perfect now because I can take a step back and be a stay at home dad. I have a new respect for who ever stays how it is a full time thing.’
Janette was then about to speak about the backlash she received for returning to work soon after Lyra’s birth but was awkwardly cut off as the hosts told her they were out of time.
Host Kaye Adams said: ‘Listen we are out of time but I think that’s a beautiful place to end because you enjoy your daughter the way you want.’
James Parker is a UK-based entertainment aficionado who delves into the glitz and glamour of the entertainment industry. From Hollywood to the West End, he offers readers an insider’s perspective on the world of movies, music, and pop culture.
