The Perfect Mother Quotes
"You have a tendency to ruminate on things, but, interestingly, never the positive aspects of your life. Let's think about those."
"I've been blamed for what happened that Fourth of July night. But not a day goes by that I don't remind myself of the truth. It's not my fault. It's theirs."
"I didn’t have anyone else, and so yes, in the beginning I went to their meetings, hoping to find something in common with them; something in our shared experience of motherhood that might help lift the darkness of those first few months."
"What’s important? Making sure nobody hacked into their secure files? Keeping away the shadowy Russian operatives intent on gaining access to painfully dull interviews?"
"The US is the only country besides Papua New Guinea that doesn’t mandate paid leave. The United States. The country of family values."
"I don’t know how you’re going to do it. Go back to work next week."
"I assured the editor and the mayor that the baby isn’t going to interfere with meeting the deadline in four weeks. Wanna know the truth? I’m at least a month behind."
"I went to Whole Foods yesterday. The cashier told me she was given just four weeks off after having her baby. Unpaid, of course."
"In Canada, they have to hold a woman’s job for a year. In fact, the US is the only country besides Papua New Guinea that doesn’t mandate paid leave."
"She’s a single mom, away from her baby for the first time. Let the woman have some fun."
"Having what I’m sure is a wholly terrible idea."
"Everything okay? Did you get my last few messages?"
"They’ll find him, Winnie. They will. We’ll all have Midas back. I promise."
"How many times have you heard this advice: sleep when the baby sleeps."
"Obsess about the babies. Look adoringly upon the babies. Obsess more about the babies."
"Don’t be silly. These May Mothers try very hard to make it look easy, but don’t let them fool you."
"I hadn’t watched it. More into math than TV at that age, to be honest."
"Please, don’t hurt my baby. Please, whoever you are, please give him back to me."
"Why does nobody want to talk about what we have to lose?"
"Deep breathing initiates the parasympathetic nervous system, the rest-and-relax state."
"The only thing worse for a woman than making herself dependent on a man—is to have a child dependent on her."
"How can I, when I remember so little—when the details of that night come and go, like a rapid blur of static events."
"I tried so hard to be a good mother. I did my best, really I did."
"I don’t deserve this, not after everything I did for him."
"Think your partner’s smile is heart-melting? Just wait. A baby’s first smile arrives at about the same time in all cultures, so if it hasn’t happened yet, prepare to be rewarded for all your loving care with a beaming, toothless, just-for-you smile."
"One impulsive decision can destroy an entire life."
"First of all, stop reading those. They assume all babies are going to develop at exactly the same rate. That’s not how this works."
"Some want it to happen. Some wish it would happen. Some make it happen."
"I can’t lie. I’m nervous. I’m having trouble trusting any of my decisions, and this one is no different."
"I wasn’t sure I’d be able to leave, but I simply packed the car in the middle of the night and headed out before the sun rose, not a word to anyone."
"This morning, Elliott Falk wrote in the New York Post that Officer James Cabrera, who I recognized as the guy who told us to leave Winnie’s house, has been put on paid leave, blamed for leaving the door unlocked, for allowing people to enter Winnie’s home before evidence could be collected."
"It’s not going to be easy. I think we both know that. We’ll stay here for as long as we can, until we figure out where to go next."
"What if the thing I want to hide is my neck?"
"The idea is ludicrous. She steps around two boys on a scooter and a young mom buying a pig-tailed toddler a paper cup of rainbow sherbet from an ice cream cart. She would have remembered that; her mind is playing tricks."
"Because somebody is going to pay for what happened, and I’m going to make goddamned sure it’s not me."
"Happy birthday, baby! Your little one is eight weeks old today. You did it!"
"These kids were all found within twenty-four hours."
"The real interest is in determining his role in the abduction of Baby Midas."
"This is the so-called kidnapper and his six-week-old son. Did he have a drink and a smoke one night? Yeah, but come on. He’s a new dad. Cut the guy some slack."
"Because I know there’s nothing worse than a mother losing a child."
"I don’t need a baby to feed on top of everything else."
"It was exactly what the nurse at the clinic had warned her about—that her decision would be something she’d come to regret."
"I have to laugh about it. Otherwise I might just go and kill someone."
"Who cares what people think? We didn’t do anything wrong."
"Parenting can be truly overwhelming. Certainly when they’re babies."
"Despite what the media has suggested, the police are not that dumb."
"Countering Terrorism through Information Sharing. LGBTQ Outreach. If you see something, say something."
"The best thing I can do right now is figure out where we’re going next, and hurry up and leave. We obviously can’t stay here any longer."
"Your baby: Day 58. Still swaddling your little one? It might be time to stop."
"Child Neglect is a CRIME—and then the photograph."
"Don’t let these people get in your head. You didn’t do anything wrong."
"The task of loving someone like this, and how easy it is to fuck this up, the way we’re sure our mothers did."
"I’ve convinced myself not to look, to just put it back the next time I see Teb."
"I need you to find my son. He’s crying right now. He wants me."
"It’s something she’s been a natural at since her first computer science class—an instinct, one professor later said, or, as she likes to think of it, her superpower."
"We’re somewhat new to New York and I can’t wait to meet all the other mommies!"
"Every instinct told her to stay with her baby, let Poppy sleep in her arms all night if that’s what she needed."
"I don’t need a pill," Francie said. "I need them to find Midas. I need to help that baby get back with his mother."
"My buddies said they’d give me twenty bucks if I hit on one of them. You know, as a joke. Like, who could get with a MILF? I took the bet."
"Chances are, you still have a few extra pounds to lose. Don’t let that remaining baby weight get you down. Instead, get up! Grab your stroller (and maybe a few members of your mommy group) and take a brisk walk around the park."
"Knowing how ludicrous it is, the number of hours she spends staring at photos of her baby’s feet while paying strangers to care for her."
"I will not, I promised, be one of those mothers. I won’t read all of the books. Stress out about phthalates in my shampoo, pesticides in my creamer. BPA in my takeout Chinese container."
"It was like an escalator materialized under me, lifting me against my will, carrying me to this place where—poof!—everything was something to fear."
"This isn’t working, this thing between us. I fear that no matter what I do, Joshua will never be happy with me."
"I’m not clever at all. I am, in fact, a moron."
"The ideal Brooklyn family. So good at making perfect look easy."
"In the city you can feel it, the rhythm of children."
"I’ve been trying to see his side of the story."
"It’s about time I had the guts to get this all out."
"We’re going to do whatever it takes to find Midas. We’re not giving up on him. Not until we have to."
"It was her name I’d forgotten, the way I could forget but keep on living."
"I stood at the corner, no cars in sight, and I waited for the walk light."
"Screw them. This destroyed me once. Not this time. Not with Beatrice around to see it."
"I mean you didn’t write this book, Teb. I did."
"The issue is that this doesn’t sound like something I wrote."
"I love you more than anything. Poppy. Please let her know—"
"Getting help for yourself can sometimes be the best thing you can do for your baby."
"Mothers and babies. You’re everywhere. I hope you appreciate everything you have."
"Nothing’s going to undermine your confidence more than listening to every shred of advice."
"No, it’s not. We didn’t even realize Winnie was depressed. Plus, she’s one of those women. She always knows what to do. I’m telling you. We need to talk to her."
"If Francie says she won’t make an appointment, we’ll call Lowell. He needs to understand there’s something larger going on here."
"God, she even writes down every time she hears a burp."
"I do, yes. But only for Sebastian’s burps. I have an entire storage unit of these things."
"If we’re not back in three days, call the police."
"No phone calls during our meetings, ladies. It’s rude."
"I’m choosing to adhere to my own parenting philosophy. It’s called Mothers: Fuck All of You."
"It’s normal for your toddler to begin to sense danger in his world, and it’s now your job to help him navigate these fears, letting him know he’s safe, and that even if you’re out of sight, Mommy will always be there to protect him, no matter what."