Each month, iParenting.com spotlights a mother who inspires and moves us, who embodies the qualities that we all admire in a person, a woman and a mother. Above all, the Mom of the Month is dedicated to her children. Rich or poor, famous or not, she shines as an example of what mothering is all about.

Meet August’s Mom of the Month, actress, spokeswoman and busy mom Holly Robinson Peete, who balances marriage, motherhood and a successful career. Robinson Peete shares her thoughts on pregnancy and the joys of mothering 4-year-old twins.

Actress and philanthropic spokeswoman Holly Robinson Peete is looking forward to giving birth to a little boy this month, and for the first time in a long time, she plans to relax and savor every moment of having a new baby. Already mom to 4-year-old twins, a boy and a girl, she predicts this time around will be a “piece of cake.”

“After having twins, the prospect of taking care of just one newborn seems relatively easy,” she admits.

And she’s thrilled to be having a boy. “I love my precious daughter more than life, but she’s about as much girl as I can handle,” she says. “She’s definitely high drama.”

The Actress
Which would make sense, because in addition to being a mom, Robinson Peete herself is an actor, currently starring in and producing the family drama, For Your Love on the WB network. Other television appearances include leading roles on the show 21 Jumpstreet, Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, a guest appearance on Touched by an Angel and, believe it or not, a botched cameo on Sesame Street when she was a little girl.

Born into show business, her father was the original “Gordon” on Sesame Street in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. “There was my dad on TV with his pork chop sideburns,” she recalls. And though her father was vehemently opposed to her being in front of the camera (he himself went on to be a producer on The Cosby Show), Robinson Peete begged him to let her go on Sesame Street just once. “I had one line, and that was ‘Hi Gordon,’ but I couldn’t get it right. All I could manage was ‘Hi, Dad!’ and that was the end of that.”

The Philanthropist
Her father now suffers from Parkinson’s disease, which prompted her, along with her husband, NFL quarterback Rodney Peete, to create a foundation to help address patient issues that accompany this debilitating disease. The Hollyrod Foundation provides assistance to underprivileged individuals who suffer from Parkinson’s. “We are soliciting help from pharmaceutical companies and large corporations, such as Mercedes-Benz, to donate drugs and provide financial support," she says.

“When my father got sick, our whole world fell apart,” explains Robinson Peete. “And though we all are looking toward a cure for Parkinson’s, there are many people suffering right now who need help, especially on the financial end, since treating Parkinson’s is prohibitively expensive.”

Through her contacts in the entertainment industry and her husband’s sports connections, she has been able to garner support and funding for her foundation. “We have the contacts, and I think it’s important to use them not for personal gain, but to help give back,” she explains.

The Spokesperson
And she continues to give. For the second year running, Robinson Peete is also the spokesperson for RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) awareness. At the time of this interview she had just completed a series of public service announcements (which she’s doing with her husband) on the subject. “When I was approached by PreemieCare to help promote RSV awareness, I had never even heard of it,” she admits. “This is amazing to me, being the mother of twins who were born quite small.”

Now, she is an expert on the subject and can’t believe that at the time her twins were born, she was unaware that they were at risk for this dangerous virus. RSV is the most common cause of lower respiratory infection in infants, accounting for as many as 125,000 hospitalizations of children younger than age 1. “Doing these public service announcements can make the difference between asking your doctor the right questions and keeping your baby alive,” she says.

The Mom
Now, as she embarks upon motherhood for the second time, Robinson Peete admits that she’s got a lot on her plate, and it’s time to slow down. Having returned to work immediately after the birth of the twins, she has decided to spend as much time as she can with her new baby. “If I’ve learned anything from motherhood, it’s that I need to keep my eyes open and be present for every moment,” she says. “Now, I am going to make an effort to stop and smell the roses and not get so caught up in other things.”

Want to see more?

• Meet previous Moms of the Month
• Battling the Wintertime Bug: RSV
• Two at Once: Becoming a Parent of Twins
• Talk about it!