To successfully pull off the dance of motherhood, participants are required to execute certain steps flawlessly, like the spin of sleepless nights, the dip of worry and the swirl of optimism. Learning the dance takes lots of practice, and causes stumbles along the way. As a result, it helps to have a few genetic tricks up one's sleeve. Perhaps that's why actress Marissa Jaret Winokur is once again hitting the dance floor with ease.

Jaret Winokur, a Tony Award-winning actress for her role in Hairspray, is no stranger to the dance floor. She twirled into the hearts of millions during Season 6 of Dancing with the Stars. On July, 22, 2008, she began a new role when her son, Zev, who entered the world with the help of a surrogate. Ever since, Jaret Winokur has been drawing on a generous dose of positive personality traits to help her master this new dance and rise to a whole new level of success.

Jaret Winokur's personal and professional successes are probably no surprise to those closest to her. In fact, her family seems to have a hand in creating her charmed life. "I have great parents," she says. "I think that they are why I am who I am." All four of her siblings are "strong and confident," according to Jaret Winokur, and it seems a very deliberate directive from two loving parents. "I think my parents really raised us to do what we want to do and to believe in ourselves," she says.

Now a parent herself, Jaret Winokur has a rich history of family togetherness to draw from. "We ate dinner together, and it was about family," she says. "You got to speak at the table ... even if I wasn't saying what they wanted to hear. We were encouraged to speak our minds and say our piece." And maybe even most impressive, Jaret Winokur reveals what may be a key to her professional achievement: "We weren't told what we were going to be; we became what we wanted to be."

A Life Filled with Optimism

Even the most solid upbringing can be challenged when life goes awry, as Jaret Winokur's did in 2000. After a routine gynecological exam yielded abnormal results, a diagnosis of cervical cancer threatened to derail her dreams. Rather than allow the diagnosis to determine her success story, Jaret Winokur forged ahead with treatment – silently – while she clinched the part of Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray and increased Broadway's wattage with her award-winning performances.

There was another dream Jaret Winokur wouldn't let cancer determine. Despite the fact that she required a hysterectomy to rid her body of cancer, motherhood wasn't something this woman wanted to miss. "I had cancer seven years ago, and I didn't even know if there would be options," she says.

Though she and her husband, Judah Miller, were aware of adoption as a possibility, surrogacy became the frontrunner due to Jaret Winokur retaining her ovaries after the hysterectomy. A great deal of worry accompanied the couple on the journey, and there were some physical downsides. "It was hard taking the medicine and doing the shots," Jaret Winokur says. She talks about the hormonal upheaval and how she "felt like a pregnant woman the entire time." She also acknowledges that the entire surrogacy process is a bit strange. "It definitely is hard to wrap your mind around, like that's your child," she says. "Your heart is like, 'Oh there's my baby in there,' but your mind is, 'Oh it's my best friend's baby, and she's having the child.'"

It is a taxing and sometimes confusing journey, and yet Jaret Winokur handles it with grace and optimism. "For me, I was very lucky," she says. "We have a fabulous surrogate. We are very close ... [My surrogacy story is] like a fairy tale." And so is her future.

At the time of this interview, baby Zev, 7 weeks old, has a firm hold on his mama's attention. Jaret Winokur shares that the joy of having him outweighs any of the worry and stress that went into getting him, a sentiment that so many mothers can identify with. And this new role of motherhood may be her most challenging yet, throwing her curves and presenting a depth in character that forces even the best actress to dig deeper. "It's definitely a slow process because it's so unworldly," she says. "It doesn't seem like it makes any sense that there is now a baby in the house."

You might think that a few sleepless nights would affirm Zev's presence, but wait ... once again the fairy-tale quality appears. "I have to say I am actually very, very, very lucky, and to other mothers I apologize to say this out loud, but my son takes a bottle at 9 o'clock at night and he sleeps until 6 a.m.," Jaret Winokur says with her trademark laugh.

Before you turn green, imagining a well-rested woman curled up next to her husband with a glass of wine and peaceful romantic evenings after 9 p.m., here's the truth: This normally high-octane woman is an exhausted new mom when she falls into bed at night – despite the sleeping baby. And while she is definitely impressed and thankful for the father her husband turned out to be, there isn't much time for quiet moments alone. "I definitely do feel like our relationship is changing," she says. "Right now it's all about the baby. We have to find time to just be together."

As with any new family, it's a learning process, and Jaret Winokur is catching on fast. When asked about motherhood's biggest surprise, she answers: "I think I expected to be a lot more scared ... I think that I caught on quicker than expected." Quick enough to return to work full speed ahead? Not quite. "I do apologize to my managers and agents a lot 'cause I'm like, 'You guys, I just can't,'" she says. "It's just so different. You don't get it. If you don't have a baby, you just can't understand that you just don't want to leave ... It's hard to be a new mom, you know what I mean? I didn't want to go out. I was like, 'Oh, I don't want any pictures taken yet. I just want to keep my happy baby bubble.'"

Somehow, it's hard to imagine Jaret Winokur having a problem keeping that happy bubble – it seems to follow her, wherever she goes.