It is easy to forget that our favorite celebrities are in fact people, as well. They are portrayed in the media like gods and goddesses who live in another realm. They drive expensive cars and go to lavish parties, and their friends are rich and famous, too!

But celebs are real human beings and it is important to remember that. Take Mayim Bialik who is currently on the hit show The Big Bang Theory—she is vivacious, strong, and hilarious. Her character, Amy, is a lovable nerd who has fallen for one of the most impossible yet charming men on this green earth; Sheldon Cooper.

When we look at Mayim we see her character, we see an actress. But she is so much more! She is a mother to two small sons, Frederick and Miles. She is a feminist, an activist, and a real life nerd. She has led a crazy and unpredictable life from the time she was a child actor on the set of Blossom.

Peruse these pictures of Mayim and see for yourself—she has led an amazing and incredible journey outside of motherhood.

These photos will make us all forget that she is just a mom.

15 Her Childhood Was Anything But Normal

Clearly, child actors have a different sort of childhood than the rest of us. Most of the time they don’t attend regular school and they are consumed by work instead of playing on the playground.

But despite the fact that Mayim’s adolescent years were spent on the set of Blossom, she does not look back with anything fondness at her time spent there—a rarity among many people who started the business so young.

In an interview with ABC News she said, "It was a safe environment to grow up in. We were each other's social group. We were each other's junior high and high school. It was very positive experience and I’m grateful for a clean set where we didn’t see drugs and alcohol and grew up as normally as we could."

14 Hangin' With Jennifer Aniston

Before Mayim made it big with Blossom and Jennifer Anniston made it big with Friends, they were two struggling young actresses.

Mayim shared this photo via Twitter and Instagram, captioning it, "Yes this is me and Jennifer Aniston in my childhood bedroom. We did a show together before I did ‘Blossom.’ #tbt !!!”

We are used to seeing Jennifer and Mayim in full makeup, after years of being the spotlight. It is fun to see a throwback picture that reminds us all that even the most beautiful and popular celebrities were awkward once—it is a part of growing up.

It is also fantastic to have so much of the 80’s encapsulated in one photo—the bangs! The turtle neck! The dress that is cut like a sailor’s uniform! I LOVE IT ALL.

13 She Was A Trend-Setter

Mayim’s role as Blossom literally set trends for the decade. How many of us that can say about ourselves? Or our mothers? Moms have a bad rap for wearing ugly jeans and stuffing our muffin tops into weird shorts. But we are more than that. We have all had lives before our children. (Though, arguably, some of us have had cooler, more exotic experiences than others.)

Mayim has two sons, so maybe they won’t care how much her fashion sense affected the young girls of the early 1990’s. But for those of us who remember how iconic her style was, we will bow to her forever more.

(I wore a floppy hat for basically all of second grade. It wasn’t the best look for me but I rocked that thing!)

12 And Has A Great Sense Of Humor

One of Mayim’s other famous roles was in the hit movie Beaches, which starred the ravenous Bette Midler. One of Mayim’s most famous scenes was alongside another child actress, Marcie Leeds. The two (now adult) actresses reunited for a recreation of the iconic opening scene from the movie.

Mayim’s kids were in tow, acting as the film’s “crew” and the end result was hysterical. Dressed in their costumes from the movie, the two acted out the scene and posted it online for the world to see. The actresses portrayed themselves in a sort of parody that will make the view laugh out loud if you have any frame of reference for the scene.

I think it’s great that no matter how much she has going on, Mayim still finds the time for laughter.

11 Her Inner Rebel

Mayim was a rebel but maybe not the in the traditional sense. She was a rebel in the fact that she was not your average child-star. She had wealth, she had fame and yet she was always reaching out for new things. She never seemed to be burdened by her celebrity status, and in fact she went on to do many things that normal people do. She had friends, she graduated from college, she married and had children.

Mayim was a rebel of the Hollywood-child-elite. She did not get heavily invested into drugs. She was not caught partying in the wee hours of the morning. She was not mean to people and did not talk down to the crew. Somehow, even at a young age, this lady was a pro.

10 Her Teenage Friends Were Famous, Too

Long before Mayim joined the cast of The Big Bang Theory, she was everyone’s favorite 80’s tween; Blossom. She trademarked the floppy hat and overalls, and hung out with her cast mates who were as equally famous as she.

Remember Joey Lawrence? Before he was Joe Longo on Melissa & Joey or Aaron Wright on Hawaii Five-0, he was Joey Russo on Blossom.

Could there be a reboot in the making?

In an interview with Us magazine, Lawrence teased, “Mayim and I talk frequently. Mayim is interested in doing some type of reunion with the show and so am I, if we can find the right piece and the right way in for a reboot/reunion, we’re both open to it. There’s a lot of talk around it, so we’ll see!"

9 She's Still Got It

I don’t want to be one of those people that is sole consumed by judging another person, especially another woman, on their looks. But thus far we have covered all the amazing other things that Mayim has accomplished, so let’s take just a moment to acknowledge that she is also still gorgeous.

Being a mom is tough. Pregnancy can do atrociously bad things to your body but Mayim had gracefully bounced back like it ain’t nothing. She is a mother, but she is also a talented actress and has an array of activities that keep her busy.

Getting older in Hollywood leads people to be (even more) un-kind about women’s looks. But haters can stay away from Mayim because she is only getting better looking the older that she gets.

8 She Has A Ph.D. In Science

Mayim plays a neurobiologist on The Big Bang Theory but did you know that she has a Ph.D. in real life? The actress attended UCLA and earned degrees in neuroscience, Jewish studies and Hebrew. She then went on to graduate with Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA, as well.

Mayim has said that her degree has helped her be an even better mother. She is quoted as saying, "Not that you need a neuroscience degree to be a good parent... but my reflections on parenting are absolutely informed by my understanding of the hormones of attachment, which were the subject of my thesis.”

Girl, way to put the rest of us to shame. I felt proud when I unloaded my dishes today and here you are graduating with a Ph.D. while working full time…

7 And Gave A Commencement Speech

In 2011, Dr. Mayim Bialik gave an incredible commencement speech. (If you haven’t seen it, go check out the video. She is amazing.) In it she discusses four main points: ego, character, autonomy, and self-actualization. She may be a mother, but she is also so much more—so much deeper than just that title.

“Show business and academia are two very different worlds. But both can, and will, challenge one’s ego. Both can and will place significant pressure on one’s character and both can and will introduce situations and decisions that necessitate truth and honesty for you to achieve self-actualization as an authentic member of society—successful however you choose to define success. Both worlds I speak of (show business and academia) can bring out and the best and the worst in you.”

6 #BathroomSelfies

We all know Mayim had style from her days as Blossom, but she has proven in recent years that she can maintain that fashion sense all on her own. Mayim has been photographed at a ton of public events sporting flouncing, trendy dresses. Her hair has got that beach wave that many of us work so hard to obtain, and her tan is pure SoCal.

Look at her outfit in this picture—it is on point. The dual-layer heels paired with a knee-length blue dress—BOOM. The girl probably has a team of stylists who are giving her options, but in the end she is the one who is choosing which outfit to go with.

It is easy to forget but remember this activist, actress, and fashionista has two little boys at home!

5 The Awkward Stages

Like many of us, Mayim went through an awkward phase. I have not met a woman yet who cannot recall horror stories from puberty about their ever-changing body. Acne breaks out, all of a sudden you have tata’s where there used to be none, and hormones rage through your body like an angry sea. It can be a very unpleasant and unfortunate time for many young girls.

But the beauty of aging on the set of a show that embraced her awkwardness was that Mayim never really felt out sorts about it. Perhaps this helped build her into the confident, independent, and highly educated woman that she is today. Maybe having fans that adored her during the years most of us feel out of place and weird was actually helpful.

4 Blossom Feat. Will Smith

Mayim’s show Blossom and Will Smith’s show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air were two huge shows of the 90’s. So it probably shouldn’t surprise you that they had a cross-over episode. In it, Blossom runs in to Will in an elevator. She recognizes him from his show and wants his autograph but doesn’t have a pen (so classic 90’s am I right?).

Yes, in retrospect the scene is a little awkward. Yes, Will Smith calls her “babe” multiple times, which is a little unsettling. But come on—two of the most famous stars of the era were in an elevator together!

Imagine being Mayim’s kids and hearing that their mom got to hang out with Will Smith. Or maybe more accurately, they would be impressed she hung out with Willow and Jayden’s dad.

3 Don't Forget Uncle Jesse

For those of us who grew up watching Full House, we all had slightly inappropriate crushes on the character of Uncle Jesse, who was played by John Stamos. (It wasn’t just me, right? I am not the only who thought that the dude who was 25 years older than myself was smoking hot? Please tell me I’m not alone in this.)

But remember how we have been talking about how Mayim has led a really interesting life? Well she and steamy Stamos didn’t mean on set as you would expect, but instead at a rally for the homeless in 1988 in Washington DC. Mayim was 13 at the time and was already aware that there were issues bigger than herself at work. This was a foreshadowing into the work she would do in the future…

2 Award Show Ready

The Big Bang Theory is one of my favorite shows on TV right now. Clearly, most Americans agree with me because it is one of the top watched shows. (It has even surpassed Modern Family as TV’s “highest rated comedy”.) But somehow, even though I watch religiously, I had no idea that Mayim has been nominated four times for an Emmy Award for her role as Amy Farrah Fowler! Mayim has won a Critic’s Choice Television Award, as well.

The Big Bang Theory has such a talented cast of actors that it sometimes all of their nominations go un-noticed. Take Jim Parsons who plays the role of Sheldon—according to Wikipedia he has been nominated 54 times for awards—and won 15! Kaley Cuoco has been nominated for 20, Mayim for 15.

1 One Beautiful Mama

Just when you think you know everything there is to know about Mayim Bialik, she surprises you yet again! The actress took a break from on-screen roles and dabbled in voice acting for close to ten years. From 1995-2005, Mayim was featured in a ton of prominent cartoon roles. She was in The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, Disney's Recess and Kim Possible, Cartoon Network's Johnny Bravo, and Nickelodeon's Hey Arnold.

It is easy to get pigeon-holed in Hollywood, especially when your career begins in childhood. People often feel like they are trapped by a role, or burdened by a character that they played as a child. Somehow Mayim has managed to stray away from all of that. She has had a wildly successful career AND she has two children. Does she have it all?

References: therichest.com , anfrancisco.cbslocal.com, rank.ezvid.com