She went face to face with a talk-show host notorious for making celebrities cry, but Mariah Carey had never seemed happier. The singer and new mom sat down with Barbara Walters on 20/20 this past Friday and opened up about her attempts at getting pregnant, being in love with Nick Cannon and the joys of motherhood. She also gave Walters a peak at her beautiful twin babies, Moroccan and Monroe.

Carey describes her marriage to Cannon, which she admits was impulsive, as very different from her first marriage to record executive Tommy Mottola, an experience she says made her “afraid of the concept of marriage.”

“But this is a different situation and…I’m a different person,” she said. “It’s a different time in my life. And nobody will ever be able to steal my spirit again. So I’m just happy to be in love and to be here. ”

As for her twins and their extremely talented gene pool, Carey admits they could follow in their parents' footsteps. “They’re incredible,” Carey said. “But I will say that they really respond to music.”

Nick, on the other hand, put the brakes on launching their careers too soon. “I want to make sure we get education first,” he said. But the proud papa couldn't help but gush, claiming the twins are “our little geniuses,” and that  ”they can do it all.”

“You can help them with their homework because I know I’m not going to know anything about it,” Carey joked. “No. I’ll make sure I get the tutor that knows, though.”

What a difference a few years have made for Mimi. The star went through bouts of depression and erratic behavior before settling down in New York with Cannon (turns out her whirlwind wedding after only weeks of dating was among the last of her erratic decisions), but now appears as light and happy has a pile of feathers. Let's hope she enjoys every minute of it until the twins hit their terrible twos.