From Gwyneth Paltrow’s college-aged teen advice to Serena Williams’ toddler wisdom, celebrities truly “get it” when it comes to the ups and downs of parenthood.
“It’ll be interesting to see how the morning routine changes with no kids in the house,” Paltrow, 52, whose daughter Apple, 20, is a student at Vanderbilt University and son Moses, 18, attends Brown University, told The Sunday Times in March, adding that she was feeling, “incredible sadness. A deep sense of impending grief.”
Still, the actress, who shares her kids with ex-husband Chris Martin, noted, “This is exactly what should be happening. Your kids are supposed to be, you know, young adults who can achieve and cope and make connections and be resilient. That’s exactly what you want. And that means they leave the house.”
Below, read more quotes from celebrities about parenthood:
Angelina Jolie on What Matters
During a press tour for her film Maria, Jolie, 49, remained adamant that her six children — Maddox, 23, Pax, 21, Zahara, 19, Shiloh, 18, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 16 — were the most important part of her life — always.
“It’s my happiness,” Jolie told Good Morning America in November of parenting her kids with ex-husband Brad Pitt. “You can take everything else away from me. Nothing else matters.”
“I don’t feel that [loneliness] because I have family,” Jolie added in a Sunday Times interview. “Maria [Callas] didn’t have a family, so her work was everything. My work is not everything. Being a parent is everything.”
Samira Wiley on Discipline
Wiley, 37, told BuzzFeed in March that she doesn’t believe in punishing her daughter, George, 3, whom she shares with wife Lauren Morelli.
“I don’t hit my kids for discipline. I feel like I came up in an era where children, especially growing up at the church, you’re kind of seen and not heard. I don’t think I necessarily felt like a full person until later… after childhood. It’s important for me to see George as her own person. She’s a being that I want to respect in this world. I want to listen to her when she’s crying, I want to be able to encourage her to speak up for herself, and all of those things.”
Jennifer Garner on Saying ‘No’
“My mom always says when they’re being the worst, that’s when they need the biggest hug,” Garner, 52, who shares three kids — Violet, 19, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12 — with ex-husband Ben Affleck, explained on an episode of “Kelly Corrigan Wonders” podcast in May.
“She has a lot of things she says, but one of them is, ‘Anytime you can say yes, say yes, be very liberal with your yeses and save your nos. And that closing your mouth is worth a million nos.’”
Lindsay Lohan on Getting Outside
Lohan, 38, who welcomed her son, Luai, last year with husband Bader Shammas, revealed that most of her time is spent with her toddler.
“For me, playing with my son and spending time with him,” she told People when asked about her daily routine. “Right now he just loves being outside and taking walks, so I just try to get him outside as much as I can because he loves looking around.”
Sophie Turner on Mom Guilt
Speaking about her divorce from Joe Jonas, the Game of Thrones actress, 28, shared how the “bad mother” narrative impacted her.
“It hurt because I really do completely torture myself over every move I make as a mother – mum guilt is so real! I just kept having to say to myself, ‘None of this is true. You are a good mum and you’ve never been a partier,’” Turner told British Vogue of parenting daughters Willa, 4, and Delphine, 2
Ryan Reynolds on Embracing the Chaos
Reynolds, 48, who shares four kids — James, 9, Inez, 8, Betty, 5, and Olin, 1 — with Blake Lively, told the podcast “Not Skinny But Not Fat” to “embrace the chaos … like, OK, nothing’s going to be tidy ever again.” But “it will, though, when they all leave the house.”
He shared a bit of sage parenting advice from Lively, who “always says, ‘They’re all under our roof right now. The whole family’s under our roof right now. We have them all.’ And that is a fleeting thing. Not an infinite resource, you know?”
Reynolds revealed that nighttime is a struggle because some of their kids “can’t even go to sleep unless they’re in our bed.”
While he’d “love to spread out and fall asleep normally again,” the Deadpool and Wolverine star keeps his wife’s perspective top of mind. “Just say, ‘Think about what you would give in 40 years or 30 years to come back and enjoy this one moment.’”
Serena Williams on Becoming a Mom-of-Two
In an April interview on Today with Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager, Williams, 43, said she keeps a piece of advice close as she parents daughters Olympia, 6, and Adira, 1, with husband Alexis Ohanian.
“Someone gave me the best advice, they said, ‘Spend more time with the oldest cause they’ll remember,’ ” Williams explained. “Isn’t that the best advice? But I do. Because the little one won’t remember. So whenever Olympia’s home, I’m with her. And then Adira, I’m just like, ‘Okay…’ I pretend like I don’t know her as much.”
“You want to make Olympia feel like she’s not replaced,” Bush Hager, 43, offered.
“Exactly, exactly. That’s hard,” Williams responded.
Kelly Clarkson on Social Media
Earlier this year, the singer, 42, told People that her kids with ex Brandon Blackstock — River, 10, and Remy, 8 — are forbidden from joining social media until they’re 18.
“I have informed them they’re not allowed to, under my roof, ever have [it]… My daughter was like, ‘Well, what if Dad lets me?’ I’m like, ‘Well, you’re there four days a month. Enjoy that.’ And right now, he’s not letting them do it either. I’ll listen when they’re older, but until they have a solid argument, it’s a no.”
Jeff Goldblum on Keeping It Light
The Wicked actor, 72, said he and his wife, former Olympian rhythmic gymnast Emilie Livingston, hold on to a piece of advice given to them when she was pregnant.
“Somebody said — and I forget who I had this conversation with, sometimes that happens — but they said, ‘Hey, here’s the most important thing about parenting: Don’t forget that your kids are hilarious,’” Goldblum, who shares sons Charlie, 9, and River, 7, with Livingston, 41, told People. “The kids can drive you nuts from one moment to another, or you can have all sorts of drama, but if you can keep finding the humor in it, that’s not a bad rule.”
Gwyneth Paltrow on Having College-Aged Kids
Paltrow admitted she’s grieving a part of motherhood now that her kids are away at college to The Sunday Times.
“I’ve been so defined and so fulfilled by motherhood. It’s been kind of the central … it’s been like the central kind of … I don’t know even how to articulate it! It’s like the guiding force. It’s what I return to,” she explained. “I observe a lot of my friends who’ve had kids who’ve gone off to college. Your kid … it changes. And, you know, they come home a lot and all that stuff, but it’s not quite the same as living under the same roof all the days of the year. So I’m just trying to be open to what that means.”
Matt Damon on Being a Girl Dad
The actor, 54, who shares four daughters — Alexia, 25, Isabella, 18, Gia, 16, and Stella, 14 — with wife Luciana Damon said he doesn’t like to offer too much advice to fellow parents.
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t deign to give anybody advice other than I just try to listen and be helpful,” Damon told Andy Cohen in August. “I mean, ultimately, it’s about building self-esteem.”
“You know, 99% of the decisions they make, you’re not gonna be there, right?” added Damon.
Kate Middleton on Being Grateful for the Little Things
The Princess of Wales, 42, shared that her cancer diagnosis was “tough for us as a family.”
“The cancer journey is complex, scary and unpredictable for everyone, especially those closest to you,” she shared in a September statement on Instagram of her three children with Prince William — Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6. “With humility, it also brings you face to face with your own vulnerabilities in a way you have never considered before, and with that, a new perspective on everything.”
She continued, “This time has above all reminded William and me to reflect and be grateful for the simple yet important things in life, which so many of us often take for granted. Of simply loving and being loved.”
Kourtney Kardashian on Bonding With Babies
On an episode of The Kardashians in June, Kourtney, 45, said she was staying home with her and Travis Barker’s newborn son Rocky for an extended period of time.
“In many different cultures, women don’t leave the house after having a baby for 40 days, to let your body have that time to heal and beyond that,” she said on the series. “I’m really into attachment parenting. I really don’t separate from him. I love being at home right now, like my time is dedicated to taking care of my baby and bonding with him.”
Her sister Khloé Kardashian, who’s a mom of two, joked: “Welcome to my daily life. I haven’t had a baby and I’m still doing the 40 days.”
Kate Hudson on Handling Big Feelings
In an interview with theSkimm in May, Hudson, 45, said she doesn’t negotiate with her three kids, Ryder, 20, Bingham, 13, and Rani, 6.
“I stay really calm and say, ‘I can’t wait to hear everything you’re feeling and to get into all of this, but first you’re going to have to take some deep breaths.’ That’s how I always approach things, especially with the younger kids when they get worked up. I think it’s good to just let them process their own feelings before I delve into it all with them,” she explained.
“I also don’t believe in negotiating with children,” Hudson added. “That’s one thing that I’ve always been strict about. There are rules and privileges and you have to earn those privileges. There’s no negotiating. Sticking to that is very hard, but that’s something that I really strive to do — stick to things that are non-negotiable.”
