By now we all know a little bit about how star mamas look so fabulous mere moments after giving birth.

They have those little extras, like personal chefs, personal trainers and the resources to devote solely to looking amazing. Don't even get me started on their best secret: Expert tailors.

Yeah, yeah. But what tips do they have that everyone else can actually follow? Christina Aguilera says her post-baby body bounce-back was all about the breastfeeding. For Halle Berry, it was yoga and swimming. Then there's sensible Salma Hayek.

"It was so hard because I gained a lot of weight and had gestational diabetes," Hayek told Oprah in 2008. "As soon as the baby was out, like many other new moms, I thought 'I'll just lose the weight. I'll breastfeed and it will fall off.'" As if.

The only approach is to take your time. "There are shortcuts, but it's not good for the baby," she continued. "But I'm still losing even if it's slow, and I've been working out...and the rest is going to go when it's time to go."

With miles of walking-it-off and some helpful family genes (thanks, Mom!), I lost most of my baby weight within a year. This was a nice thing. But for seriously helpful tips for taking off post-baby weight, check out the celebrity mom weight-loss secrets over at Celebrity Diet & Fitness.

Sabrina Weill is editor-in-chief of PrincessLovesPink.com.

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In the depth of every February, America gets a little dose of glamor to get us through the winter doldrums. A sparkling Charlize Theron or Halle Berry floats to the Oscar podium for a shiny gold statue to later display on her bookshelf (or in her bathroom or closet, if we believe the self-deprecating interviews).

American parents love to take a little of that glamor home with them -- in the form of newly-minted, Oscar-approved baby names.

Checking out the popular-name charts, it's clear that the names Charlize and Halle benefited from big Oscar bumps after their famous namesakes took home award night gold. Charlize came out of nowhere to leapfrog old favorites like Colleen and Deborah. Halle sailed for years after Berry's emotional 2002 acceptance speech for "Monster's Ball." And it's not just the girls having Oscar night fun. "Gladiator," the testosterone-fueled best picture winner of 2000, sent the impossibly macho name Maximus soaring. The golden glow of a winner rubs off.

This year, though, parents aren't likely to have as much to "thank the Academy" for. A bumper crop of '70s biopics yields slim pickings for name hunters: Harvey (Milk)? Dick (Nixon)? Most parents will pass. Even a best actress win for the beautiful Kate Winslet won't do much for her name, already an established classic.

But there may be one Oscar winning film with a real shot at influencing America's naming trends. It's the Cinderella story of the year, "Slumdog Millionaire." A story of the slums of Mumbai may seem an unlikely source of naming inspiration, but the Indian film industry has surprising power over names, even in the U.S. Bollywood superhero flick from 2006, "Krrish," made the name Krish one of the fastest rising names in America.

Some of the "Slumdog" names like Jamal and Salim are already familiar to American ears. Even more likely to rise is the name of the female lead, Latika. It's not tough to picture little Latikas fitting in with all the Lilys and Annikas running around U.S. playgrounds. The fact that Latika is is played by the stunning Indian actress Freida Pinto will only sweeten the deal. For boys, I'd look toward lead actor Dev Patel. Dev is the kind of short and snappy boy's name that parents are always after.

Ask The Name Lady is a new feature from the creators of BabyNameWizard.com. The Name Lady will be weighing in every week on all things names, and answering your questions! If you have a question to Ask The Name Lady, drop her a line.

I think being famous would be fun - to a point. For me, that point would be reached the moment I gave birth. Being photographed and hounded by fans might be kind of cool for a footloose and fancy-free girl, but I imagine it is a totally different story once children are involved.

It is definitely a problem for Halle Berry, who gave birth to her first child last March. Being followed by the paparazzi while out in public may be part of the celebrity job description, but being spied on while hanging out in your own back yard is most definitely not. But that is exactly how some recent photos of Berry and 4-month-old Nahla Ariela Aubry were obtained.

"The paparazzi have gone too far. [Gabriel] and I have always remained that we would never sell baby photos or otherwise exploit her in any way," Berry said in a statement.

The photos in question were distributed by Fame Pictures and published in several magazines as well as posted online. Justin Smith, a rep for Fame Pictures, doesn't deny that the photos were taken improperly and acknowledges that Berry has a right to protect her child. However, his half-hearted apology falls short with this statement: "Every Britney Spears backyard shot goes out, everyone publishes it and nothing happens," Smith said.

In other words, we got away with it with Britney, so why stop now? Apology notwithstanding, Berry's lawyer has filed a criminal complaint against Fame Pictures.

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Halle Berry and her boyfriend Gabriel Aubry aren't being shy about releasing the name of their newborn daughter. The daughter of the Oscar winner is............. Nahla Ariela Aubry.

The couple didn't explain the meaning or reasons why they chose the unique name, but it sounds a little like a mashup of The Lion King and The Little Mermaid. Internet sleuthing turned up Nahla as a moshav in Israel and might be the Arabic word for "honey bee" or "a drink of water". Ariela is a derivative of Ariel and means "lion of God."

Even though unusual names can cause people to blanch and say "Oh! That's a ......new one." in a disapproving tone, Nahla is unlikely to have to go by "Nahla A." because there are seven other Nahlas in her grade, something 50% of my children wish I had considered before naming them. Sorry guys!

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As we all know by now, Halle Berry gave birth to what I am sure will be one of the most beautiful children to ever grace the earth, let alone a magazine cover. The Oscar-winning actress and boyfriend Gabriel Aubry welcomed an as-yet-unnamed (to the public anyway) bouncing baby girl yesterday.

But, was Halle ready? I guess she was. I don't know if any of us are truly ever ready to be parents--we plan and we imagine and we prep, but we really don't know what lies ahead. So it was with Halle, who claims a role in a recent film helped prepare her for motherhood and made her realize how much she wanted to be a mom.

Halle recently starred in "Things We Lost in the Fire" along the hotness that is David Duchovney (sorry, I had to slip that in there) as a mom who loses her husband. She might lose other things too but I didn't see the film, despite Duchovney being in it (I prefer him on the small screen, thank you).

Says Berry. "I think it validated that I was meant to be a mother because every day I dealt with the character as a mother and thinking as a mother...it let me know I was meant to be a mother." Halle commented that she'd always known she wanted kids--I think that feeling does exist within many of us--but I guess she just wasn't sure when or how.

I know that feeling well. Even when I was little I knew I wanted children, but, to be honest, for a long time I was afraid. I feared giving up a certain lifestyle, feared the unknown, and didn't ever feel "ready." Then I ran a half-marathon, which was a real feat of strength and power for me. After that I thought, heck, if I can do this--I can do anything! And then I was ready.

When were you ready to have a kid? Was it when you found out you were pregnant? Was it when you were very young? Was it doing something strange or silly or funny or life-changing? Do tell!

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It looks like Halle Berry didn't get her wish. Earlier this year, she told InStyle magazine that she wanted "to stay pregnant forever." Alas, that ain't happening. Earlier today, the oscar-winning star gave birth to a baby girl, her rep told People Magazine. She is apparently doing great (except for the whole not being pregnant anymore part.)

Berry and her beau, Gabriel Aubry, didn't know the gender beforehand, although she had a hunch, given that Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" kept coming up on her iPod. No further details have been released -- like the name -- but I'm sure we'll be hearing more in the next few days. In the meantime, many congratulations to the happy family.

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Some women enjoy being pregnant more than others. A friend of mine is due in March and while she looks great , she feels pretty crappy most days. She's tired, her back hurts, she has random pains in her side and her unborn daughter is most energetically kicking her around from the inside. I think she will be relieved when she finally gives birth.

Actress Halle Berry, on the other hand, wishes she could stay pregnant forever. She tells InStyle, "Right now I just have so much joy and energy that I feel like I've already done 12 things today," she says. "I can just go and go and go." She credits this "fantastic" feeling to eating right and getting plenty of exercise.

I also felt really great throughout my pregnancy. I never had morning sickness and other than the kicking, didn't feel all that uncomfortable. I think I was just lucky. What about you? Did you sail through your pregnancy feeling better than ever? Or were you counting the days until that child came OUT?

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Just in case the average gestating woman wasn't intimidated enough by the gorgeous women on magazine covers, Maxim magazine has helpfully provided a list of the hottest pregnant women, ever and there's not a stretch mark, double chin, or swollen ankle to be seen.

According to the magazine, the hottest during pregnancy are:

1. Halle Berry

2. Christina Aguilera

3. Heidi Klum

4. Brooke Burke

5. Gwen Stefani

6. Angelina Jolie

7. Naomi Watts

8. Jaime Pressley

9. Monica Bellucci

Maxim missed a few women, though. I did a little research and found some pretty babelicious bellies right here among ParentDish staff, as well as some good sports who could laugh at how horrific pregnancy was on their appearance. (Umm, that would be me.)

So enjoy the following gallery of REAL pregnant women and know that swollen, makeup-less pregnant unfamous women can be hot in their own way, that's why we turn the heat way down when with child.

(Cue Pussycat Dolls "Don't Cha" before clicking on the gallery for added hilarity!)

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Actress and soon-to-be-mom Halle Berry has opened up for the first time about her childhood trauma with an abusive father. She tells James Lipton on The Actor's Studio that while her father Jerome physically abused her mother and sister, he never touched her.

"The hard part for me was he never abused me. I was dealing with a lot of guilt because I saw my sister go through terrible beatings. I felt helpless and like a coward because I didn't do anything and couldn't do anything.
I spent many of the early years of my life trying to make sense of all that and recover and find my self-esteem."

Halle Berry is a beautiful and talented woman who has always seemed a bit unlucky in love. That damaged self esteem at the hands of a rotten father may have something to do with that. Berry is now paired with Gabriel Aubry and expecting her first child. I hope that this time, she really has found happiness.

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Halle Berry hasn't had the best of luck with marriage. So much so, that she doesn't want to tie the knot ever again. However, this doesn't mean she won't have children.

The actress recently told InStyle, "I will never, never get married again." Not that she won't fall in love, or find a partner to share her life with, but that she thinks "two people can share their lives without the ring, without the piece of paper."

But despite her rejection of matrimony, the star also says, "I definitely want children. Very much." Because for Berry, romance -- even fathers -- simply aren't essential parts of the equation. She told Oprah in 2006 that if she hadn't found a partner when she was ready for kids that'd she'd ask "whoever she was dating at the time, 'Hey, would you like to have a baby?'" Or, she notes, "I could just head for the sperm bank."

Berry is currently dating model Gabriel Aubry. No word yet on any pregnancy, but with talk like that, it sounds like it could be any day now.

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