'I get mum-shamed for raising my child in the circus, nurseries have blocked me'
Keyla Remache couldn't have been prouder when her little girl Arwen took her first steps inside a striped circus tent whilst they were travelling the UK on tour.
The professional hula hooper brought her daughter up in the circus, and says the tot was dressed in diamantes and leotard costumes from as early as two months old.
While Keyla is hugely proud of Arwen's fun and sociable upbringing, other mums are far more judgemental of her parenting choices and often shame her online.
The 29-year-old is no stranger to receiving hate from trolls and has even been turned down from nurseries after staff discovered she was a performer.
Baby girl Arwen has been wearing diamante leotards since she was two months old (Kennedy News/@keylaremachee)
Cruel online trolls have slammed Keyla for travelling the UK with her daughter (Kennedy News/@keylaremachee)"I was born and raised in the circus so that's all I know. From as early as six years old, I was putting glitter on my face and a pretty costume on and I did a lot of training, travelling and performing," Keyla said. "The circus is like one big family and the circus is my life where for others it could just be their job. I loved it. It was like living in a playground." Keyla's positive experience growing up was one of the reasons she was so keen to bring Arwen up in the circus.
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But after sharing her parenting choices on TikTok, Keyla was overwhelmed with abuse and felt forced to defend her way of life. "To all of you mum shaming and judging without even knowing us. She will have education. She is healthy and happy and she is our world," Keyla said. "Circus performer does not mean being less than anyone else or less educated. Stop spreading hate."
Keyla has been in the circus since she was a child and loved growing up on tour (Kennedy News/@keylaremachee)
But she's found it difficult trying to get Arwen into nurseries while they're on the road (Liverpool Echo)Keyla has been performing in the circus since around the age of 10 and is well known for her hula hooping act. Whilst growing up in the circus, she was taught on-site by a teacher who would travel with them, but says this option is no longer available for her daughter. Instead, the mum-of-one has to pre-book nursery spaces for Arwen at the start of each circus season to ensure childcare is available in each place they perform.
"There were lots of kids travelling with the circus when I was growing up so for schooling the government gave you a teacher that travelled with you and we had a huge trailer which was the circus school," she explained. "It was just like a school but on wheels. We went to school from 9am to 2pm and then we would take the teacher to the circus and teach her stuff. But, because there are not many kids in the circus anymore, we have had to put Arwen into a nursery."
Kelya was turned down by a nursery after she told them she was a performer (Liverpool Echo)
The mum-of-one wants haters to stop judging her lifestyle because Arwen is happy (Kennedy News/@keylaremachee)Without a fixed-term address, finding childcare spaces can be difficult for Keyla. "We have had some problems finding nurseries for her as they change every week," she said. "There was one time when I tried to put Arwen into a nursery and they asked me for my address and it was hard to answer. When I said I was in the circus, she stopped looking at her computer screen and instantly told me that the nursery was now full. It made me feel like the smallest thing on earth and I went back to the circus and just cried my eyes out."
Keyla and her husband Liam Millichap, 33, have recently decided to settle down and are buying a home in Devon, to give their daughter the "best of both worlds". The couple will continue to perform in the circus part-time and on weekends, and are not putting any pressure on Arwen to take part. "I want my daughter to be happy. I was extremely happy in the circus and if that is what she finds happiness in then I will be there for her. But I'm going to show her both worlds and then she can choose," she said.
Were you raised in a circus? Get in touch. Email [email protected].
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