When Jillian Michaels set out to adopt a child, she knew she was in for a long journey that would be painful at times. But witnessing her partner Heidi Rhoades deliver their son, Phoenix, earlier this month was unbearable.

“The whole thing about Phoenix being born was hard,” says Michaels, 38, who opens up about her new family in the latest issue of PEOPLE.

Initially, Rhoades had planned on natural childbirth. But after 27 hours of labor, doctors informed the petite mom-to-be that they would have to deliver the baby via cesarean section. A helpless Michaels could only stand by and offer support.

“Watching her was awful,” Michaels says. “You can’t relieve the person. You can’t do it for them. You just have to stand there and watch.”

But soon after the 9 lb., 22-inch baby boy was delivered in the wee hours of May 3, Michaels sprang into action.

“Because I had the c-section, she had to jump in and do everything with Phoenix,” Rhoades, 31, tells PEOPLE. “She’s an amazing mom.”

Four days after Phoenix’s arrival, Michaels left on a flight to Haiti to bring home her daughter Lukensia.

“We were both sobbing hysterically,” says Michaels, who will legally adopt Phoenix, while Rhoades will legally adopt Lu. “Our son was only four days old, but our daughter needed to come home.”

For details on Michaels’s new life as a mom and to see more images from our exclusive family photo shoot, pick up the June 4 issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.

– Monica Rizzo

Jillian Michaels knows what it takes to get results in the gym. But she had no idea what was in store for her when she began the arduous task of trying to adopt a child two years ago.

The former Biggest Loser trainer — who brought 2-year-old daughter Lukensia home from Haiti just days after partner Heidi Rhoades delivered son Phoenix on May 3 — says despite feeling “despondent” at times throughout the process, she had hope that things would work out.

Michaels initially applied for adoption in 2010 through the Democratic Republic of the Congo. After waiting more than a year for a referral, the trainer learned that some of her paperwork was about to expire. If Michaels wanted to continue with the process, she would have to reapply.

It was then that she learned Haiti had children up for adoption.

“Adoption is a calling,” Michaels, 38, tells PEOPLE. “There is something in you that can’t be denied. You just know in the deepest part of your being that you are meant to find this little soul and guide them through life.”

As a teenager Michaels was diagnosed with endometriosis, a medical condition where tissue that normally grows inside the uterine walls instead grows outside the uterus. It often affects fertility but, she says, “at that time in my life, I didn’t even think I would want kids as an adult.”

It wasn’t until she was in her mid-30s that she “felt the calling to adopt. The adoption process was not a simple or easy one,” she explains. “There were moments where I was starting to think it was not going to work out.”

But Michaels says the wait was all worth it.

“That moment of getting Lu out of Haiti and the wheels of the plane touching down in New York … she was an American citizen after two years,” Michaels recalls, tears welling in her eyes. “It was a heavy moment.”

For details on Michaels’s new life as a mom and to see more images from our exclusive family photo shoot, pick up the June 4 issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.

– Monica Rizzo

It was love at first sight, says Charlize Theron, for her four-legged best friends and her son Jackson, whom she adopted in March.

“It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever witnessed,” the Oscar winner, 36, tells Ellen DeGeneres on Thursday’s show. “From the moment this baby came into our home, those two dogs have never been more in love.”

Theron happily considers her brood to be her family – no matter what others may think. She calls her dogs “her boys.”

They are, she says, “Berkley, a terrier mutt, and he’s actually the pacifier thief … He’ll just lay there with the [baby's] pacifier in his mouth,” and a pit bull named Blue, who help keeps the actress running on schedule.

“People keep saying, ‘Oh you’re a single mom,’ and I’m like, ‘Actually, I’m not. I got two boys helping me out.’ It’s incredible.”

Blue serves as her alarm clock. He “woke up with me for every feed, for every change, and whenever the baby would cry the pit would start crying,” says Theron. “He’ll do anything for that baby.” It’s no wonder Theron calls Blue her Prince Charming.

As for Theron’s adopting Jackson, DeGeneres says to the actress, “Everyone thinks since you’re from South Africa, that he’s from South Africa, but he’s not.”

“He’s American,” says his mom, who also says she brought him home when he was nine days old.

“What’s that like to, all the sudden, have a nine-day-old baby in your life?” asks the TV host.

“You know, it took me a while [to finalize the adoption],” says Theron. “The process … took around two years. My mom said the most beautiful thing.” Recalling the sentiment, Theron said, “I’m going to cry.”

Quoting her mother, Theron said, “It took me nine months to fall in love with you [while you] were growing in my stomach,” then added: “She’s like, it took you two years to fall in love with this little baby. It really took two years of just waiting and then one day it’s finally there. It just feels exactly how it’s supposed to feel. I don’t know how to describe it. It just feels right.”

– Stephen M. Silverman

Amidst all the breastfeeding controversy, Alanis Morissette has added her voice to the conversation as a pro attachment parent.

In a new interview, the singer reveals she is still nursing 16-month-old Ever Imre — and, as of yet, has no plans to stop.

“I breastfeed and I’ll be breastfeeding until my son is finished and he weans,” Morissette, 37, tells Access Hollywood.

Her decision, she adds, will provide her son with the stability he needs in his future. “I think it affords the child, when he grows up, to have a lot less therapy to go to,” the first-time mom explains.

“For me, I protect his safety and his well-being and his attachment. That stage of development is a very important stage.”

The family of three — which includes husband Mario “Souleye” Treadway — stays “skin-on-skin connected” as much as possible and is practicing co-sleeping. However, despite sharing their bed with a toddler, Morissette reveals it doesn’t put a damper on the couple’s relationship.

“He’s a very robust, virile man,” she says with a laugh. “You gotta take care of your husband.”

– Anya Leon

It’s a day of dress up!

After being named one of the top 100 most creative people in business in 2012 by Fast Company, Jessica Alba poses with her daughters — Honor Marie, 3½, and Haven Garner, 9 months — for an ultra chic photo shoot.

While the adorable sisters donned girlie pink and white dresses, Alba looked stylish in a melon-colored blazer, white top, super short cobalt bottoms, thigh high socks, and black patent heels.

Later, the mom-of-two swapped out her sexy get up for a glamorous black and white printed dress while her baby girl looked oh-so sweet in her ruffled bloomers.

The actress was recognized for co-founding The Honest Company, a line of eco-friendly baby and household products.

“You spend more time changing your kid’s bum every single day than anything else,” Alba says of the colorful yet chemical-free diaper collection. “Why not have it be more pleasant?”

And while Alba admits the family market was already full of products claiming to be equally as eco-conscious as her proposed plan, she was one of the few to follow through on her promise.

“I was sick of people saying, ‘This is our green line, it costs a dollar more,’ but it’s the same stuff that’s in everything else,” she explains. “They deleted one fragrance, but it still has tons of carcinogens. Like, really?”

Courtesy FastCompany

– Anya Leon

“The carousel is one of Kate’s favorite weekend activities, and she wanted to share the fun with her friends,” The Insider co-host tells PEOPLE. “Kate’s buddies from preschool, church, our neighborhood, and play dates, were all there to help her celebrate!”

Jim, Kate and Brooke — Charlotte Lee Photography

Guests enjoyed a cake from Hansen‘s, along with a special visit from Princess Belle. “She was a huge hit at the party, reading stories, singing, and face painting,” Anderson, 34, says. “I had not told Kate that Belle would be there, so she was beyond surprised and has been talking about how ‘Belle came to my party’ ever since.”

Princess Belle reads a story — Charlotte Lee Photography

Mother and daughter worked together on the goodie baskets each guest took home from the party, which included Mabel’s Labels, Itzy Ritzy snack bags, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, toy animals, balls, stickers, play dough, and bracelets and nail polish for the girls.

Goodie bags — Charlotte Lee Photography

“I made [them] an arts and crafts project, so Kate and I enjoyed shopping for toys and then assembling them together,” the CNN and HLN anchor and reporter explains. “We painted each child’s name on the front of a bucket, filled with surprises, wrapped it in cellophane and tied with ribbon.”

The cake — Charlotte Lee Photography

“Being a full-time working mother is a delicate balance, and there are no easy answers,” Anderson, who is married to Jim Walker, continues. “I take it one day at a time and try to remain positive and do the best I can. I feel blessed to have had such amazing opportunities professionally and to have a healthy, sweet little girl who is now three years old!”

Kate — Charlotte Lee Photography

– Sarah Michaud

Melissa Joan Hart‘s baby on the way already has her beat.

“[I'm] really exhausted. I don’t know if it’s [from taking care of] the two older ones, I don’t know if it’s because I’m older … but I feel so tired all the time,” the actress, 36, told PEOPLE at the Monday premiere of What to Expect When You’re Expecting in Hollywood, Calif.

“I’ve been in bed at 8:30 every night. I tell my kids, ‘Go put yourselves in bed. I gotta go to sleep.’”

But while she recognizes age may play a factor in her third pregnancy, Hart — who is mom to sons Mason Walter, 6, and Braydon Hart, 4 — did her part to prepare for the challenge.

“I was in really good shape before I got pregnant with this one,” she says. “I tried to set myself up. For about a year I made sure I took the right vitamins and didn’t take artificial sweeteners. I did take some precautions.”

Now in her second trimester, Hart has begun to feel the baby move inside her belly. And while she’s loving the “gentle” flutters for now, the Melissa & Joey star fears for her future.

“I feel like it’s going to be a strong baby,” she explains, “[but] if the kicks get stronger, I don’t know if I can handle it.”

But her little one’s moves don’t look like they’ll be slowing down anytime soon; Big brother Brady is already intent on teaching his boxing skills to the baby.

“The other day he was explaining to my belly how to do boxing. He was like, ‘Listen, here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to go right, left, uppercut. Right, left,’” the mom-to-be says with a laugh.

After two strikingly different approaches to motherhood — she and husband Mark Wilkerson gave their eldest “so much attention” as a baby, which proved hard to repeat with their second — Hart is hopeful she will savor each second with the upcoming addition.

“Things like, ‘What’s this letter? What’s this color? What does a duck say?’ With Brady we kind of blurred over that because we had Mason, too,” she explains. “I hope with this one that we’ll be able to go back to really focusing on the little things.”

– Anya Leon with reporting by Scott Huver

Christine Taylor and her husband Ben Stiller have teamed up again for a new project: creating a healthier family. However, their daughter Ella, 10, and son Quinlin, 6, have proven to be a tough audience to win over.

“Ben and I make these green drinks in the morning and they look at us like it’s from another planet,” the actress, 40, tells PEOPLE Wednesday at the N.Y.C. launch party for the organic body care line Nourish, for which she is the spokesperson.

“I joke, ‘Just join the party! Don’t complain so much, just join us.’”

Taylor and Stiller have recently embraced a plant-based diet that still includes “the things that aren’t so good for you in moderation instead of the other way around.”

“It really has changed our energy level,” she notes. “Sometimes you don’t realize it until someone says it to you, like, ‘Your skin looks amazing.’”

Her only hiccup is that she wishes had gotten her family in on the veggie kick sooner.

“We have friends that are vegan and their kids came out vegan,” she explains. “I’m so jealous that they had the information and they started the kids early because now to go back, it’s a little harder.”

Instead, Taylor’s dealing with picky palates. ”My daughter loves veggies but doesn’t love fruit. My son loves fruit and doesn’t love veggies.”

The same is true for the natural products she’s introduced the family to, like organic body wash from Nourish’s under-$10 line, which comes in five different scents that she’s had to strategically place around the house.

“My daughter vetoed the lavender mint but Ben likes the lavender mint. She loves the almond vanilla. I love the fig. My son is unscented because … he’s like, “That’s gross,” she laughs about the family-friendly product sold online and at Whole Food Markets nationwide.

Right now, Taylor accepts that making a healthy shift at home is an ongoing process and is confident Ella and Quinlin will one day get in on Mom and Dad’s green drinking ways.

“It’s that thing where your parents aren’t cool for a while and then suddenly they are. We just kind of plant the seeds.”

– Christie LaRusso

Age may just be a number, but for Jennifer Connelly it’s been the secret to her family’s success.

“I’ve got a massive family now. It’s really unbelievable. They are all such extraordinary kids and they’re great together,” the actress, 41, tells Anderson in an interview airing Tuesday.

“They never fight, they look after each other. They are loving.”

Connelly, who is mom to sons Kai, 14, and Stellan, 8, and daughter Agnes Lark, 11 months, attributes the brood’s bliss to her and husband Paul Bettany‘s ability to spread the love.

“I am just blessed they are such great, really wonderful kids,” she raves. “Maybe it has something to do with the huge age gap between them, there is no competition and they all have so much attention and focus.”

However, despite the synchronization among the siblings, Connelly admits she won’t be expanding their family any further.

“I think we should call it quits,” she says. “It’s like trying to move an army getting out of the house and we go everywhere together, so it’s a lot of bodies to move.”

– Anya Leon

Her latest show may have been canceled, but Amanda Peet is still Bent out of shape over the vaccination debate.

After her daughter Molly June contracted whooping cough in 2010, the severity of the epidemic hit home — literally — and now the actress is determined to spread the word to save other children from a similar fate.

“It was pretty scary,” Peet, 40, tells PEOPLE. “It took a long time to figure out what was wrong. No one would think it’s whooping cough.”

After being treated with antibiotics, her now 2-year-old fully recovered, yet the experience had a huge impact on Peet, who is also mom to daughter Frankie, 5, with her husband, Game of Thrones producer and screenwriter David Benioff.

“The [Centers of Disease Control] called me and we had to report it,” says the actress who lives in California, which has had the largest outbreak of whooping cough, or pertussis, in decades. Though Peet’s daughter had received two pertussis vaccinations, she was too young to receive all recommended doses.

Rattled by the experience, Peet became a spokesman for Every Child by Two, an organization that encourages vaccinations. She also became a global advocate for the UN Foundation’s Shot@Life program which promotes vaccines for measles, pneumonia, diarrhea and polio in developing countries.

“I feel so passionately about this topic,” Peet told PEOPLE as Shot@Life unveiled a new public service announcement at Times Square. “The thing that moves me is that we have a cure for these diseases. We have the medicine — we just have to get it to the children.”

She continues, “If moms in the U.S. banded together, we could be on the right side of history. Let’s get it done. It’s not just about your kids, but about your neighbor’s kids, everyone’s kids.”

– Joanne Fowler