Italian culture is so deeply soaked in an appreciation of the good things in life.
— Mariska Hargitay
I think one of the mistakes actors make is we're so focused on what we're going to say.
Surviving and thriving in the wake of my mother's loss, I learned to believe in God. He has a plan, if you pay attention to the signs. I am inspired by the absolute proof of miracles.
I definitely have my days where I look like I got dressed in the dark.
Every day is deeper and richer and more soulful.
I realize that you have to show up for your life.
It's very difficult leaving the house anytime with my baby at home.
I get very excited about my double stroller. Every time I look at it, I get a shot of adrenaline and joy because I think, This is real!
My weekends are extremely precious.
When I was pregnant, I was so huge and people on the bus would get up for me. That made me feel so precious and valued and valuable. I try to treat everyone like they're pregnant.
I was lucky enough to have a father who said, 'Don't quit.' So I just kept going.
Of course everyone says they hate baby talk, but mine was not annoying.
I am proud to be a role model for my viewers. I am finding out that helping victims is as or more rewarding the all the awards I win.
You make sacrifices to become a mother, but you really find yourself and your soul.
When I read the script sometimes, it's like 'Christ! Enough!' I can't sleep at night sometimes. There's the occasional script that just hammers you, that you can't shower off.
If I eat clean, I look 10 years younger.
You know how you wake up in the morning and sometimes you look gorgeous and other times you look like you got hit by a mack truck? I realized that my mack truck is food. If I have no sugar, yeast or wine, I have no undereye bags and my skin is perfect.
The experience of being cared for is profound, and it nourishes the soul as much as the food does the body.
Meisner technique was different than anything I'd ever experienced. It's a really great way to be accountable to your craft and to yourself, but also it takes that kind of focus and dedication to learn anything.
I look at all the things life has allowed me to do, and I feel like the luckiest person in the world.
I have a more developed sense of my priorities. Life has so much more meaning now.
I think because I became a mom later in life, everything in life means more.
I am grateful that I didn't let fear get the best of me. It only holds you back from possibilities and greatness.
It's a new skill to have two children that want you at the same time.
My heart just keeps getting bigger and bigger.
When we're on the street and someone drops something, I pick it up.
Having a child changes everything. All of a sudden you have so much to lose, so much to live for.
Becoming a parent erased many of my negative childhood feelings and filled them in with something new.
Everything has combined to make my life in New York an amazing experience. I told my manager a few years ago that I wanted to move here and try acting in the theater.
Yes. I did more research than I ever wanted to and saw some things I wish I didn't. I went on ride-alongs, spent time with Homicide, Cold Case, and SVU detectives, hung out in subways learning how to spot pervs and pick-pockets, viewed an autopsy, went to a police firing range, and witnessed court cases and I read, read, read.
I'm an L.A. girl who became a tough New York cop.
I think people were expecting me to be that kind of glamorous sexpot. So they were always, Wow you're not what I expected.
When my body is strong, I feel stronger inside. I feel more capable of handling emotional situations. Usually I'm more of a inside-out person, but this was a great case of me from the outside in.
When you see a girl like me bustin' perps, there ain't no time to be pretty.
Chocolate is the first luxury. It has so many things wrapped up in it: deliciousness in the moment, childhood memories, and that grin-inducing feeling of getting a reward for being good.
Just smiling at someone walking down the street can make the person's day. It's all about paying it forward.
I'm a ready-shoot-aim kind of gal.
Life begins at 40, and I'm living proof.
I have a nest egg, and I don't buy above my means.
You've got to kick fear to the side, because the payoff is huge.
I have everything I need. Our house is very joyful.
I say to everybody, 'Adoption is not for the faint of heart.'
If you stop for one second and do something, everyone is happy. You pay it forward and it comes back to you twelve-fold.
Sometimes things in life happen that allow us to understand our priorities very clearly. Ultimately you can see those as gifts.
Golf made me feel like a loser. So I dismissed it.
There's the occasional script that just hammers you, that you can't shower off.
I have so much love that I didn't even know about.
As an actress, there were so many months, years even, when I didn't get work, when I wanted to quit.
When I was in my early 20s, I had my hair permed. Bad idea! It turned into total frizz. My advice to women is, if you have nice hair already, don't get a perm, leave your hair alone!
I want to be a fun mom. Not a gasping for air mom.
