Candace Parker Says It's 'Amazing' to Be a Mother to a Baby Over a Decade After Welcoming First Child

Candace Parker/Instagram, Tiffany Rose/Getty

Candace Parker is loving motherhood now with her newborn baby just as much as she did when she first became a mom over a decade ago.

While chatting with PEOPLE about her partnership with Muscle Milk for the company's new Lifting Project initiative, the WNBA star, 36, also opens up about being a mother to her daughter Lailaa Nicole, as well as her infant son Airr Larry.

Describing how being the parent of a newborn once more is "great," Parker tells PEOPLE exclusively, "I value all time and just how amazing and precious children are."

"It's been amazing to go through this again, and then obviously with my beautiful wife and my daughter [by my side]," the athlete adds. "Being able to see her as a sister, it's been amazing."

Parker and her wife Anna Petrakova welcomed their first baby together earlier this year in February. Parker is also mom to her 12-year-old daughter from a previous relationship.

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April Belle Photos; @petrarulove; @candaceparker

RELATED: WNBA Star Candace Parker Welcomes Baby with Wife Anna Petrakova: 'We Are in Absolute Love'

Continuing to speak with PEOPLE, Parker explains that "everything is different" having a child this time around, but notes, "I think it's really important to get to know [your baby]."

"I think that's what everybody's doing for the first 18 years, right?" she continues. "But really it's getting to know him at the beginning and falling into the routine. I feel like he fits right in, and it's been an amazing experience."

So far, Parker admits that her little guy is "very particular," noting, however, that he is still "a good kid."

"[He] has a lot of similarities to my daughter, and I think all newborns for the first eight weeks — they just eat, sleep and poop," she adds with a laugh. "That's what it was, but now he's starting to do less of that and more smiles and obviously communicating and things like that."

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April Belle Photos; @petrarulove; @candaceparker

Parker says that Lailaa couldn't be more thrilled to have her own sibling. She explains that her older child is taking on her new role with pride.

"[Lailaa] is legit the best big sister, and it's amazing," Parker states. "It melts my heart to see them together."

Describing their relationship as "an eye-opening experience," the Chicago Sky star continues, "I didn't realize how amazing it is, just sitting and eating dinner and watching them interact."

She adds: "I feel bad for him because I think that she is going to think it's her baby for the rest of her life. She's very protective of him, and it's very sweet."

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Alongside being a professional athlete, wife and mother to her two children, Parker is also currently partnering with Muscle Milk in honor of the drink beverage brand's Lifting Project initiative.

The company will be awarding one individual the chance to become a future certified strength trainer, and will award them a one-time payment to provide free strength training classes within their community.

Giving back to areas in need by providing them with information about fitness and their health, Parker says, is something she believes "every community should have," adding: "We're doing a disservice to other communities by not providing that."

Strength trainers interested in applying for the initiative can do so by visiting MuscleMilkLiftingProject.com. There, they will be asked to submit a video explaining why they do what they do and why their community deserves the top prize.

Parker herself will work alongside Muscle Milk to select the winner by the end of June. That individual will then be followed by Muscle Milk on their journey, and the brand will share updates on their social media feeds along the way.