Quote 1
"All mothers think their children are beautiful. Rosalie was an exceptional child, they said, but she was the lovingest person that ever was."
"My mother doesn't think I'm beautiful."
"Of course she does." (11.6-8)
This is the contrast between what a mother should be and what a mother is; it's also a profound question about the nature of beauty, and what that can really be. Flora thinks it's a requirement of motherhood to believe that your child is beautiful, and she sees beauty through the lens of parental love. When Turtle says that her mother doesn't think she's beautiful, the reader knows from other moments in the text that her statement is, sadly, all too true.
Quote 2
On reading Mrs. Wexler's note in the elevator, Flora Baumbach had insisted, "You must do what your mother says." When Turtle replied, "Like showing her our clues?" Flora Baumbach's answer was "Perhaps so. After all, she is your mother." (9.13)
Is Flora right to say that we should all do what our mothers say? She seems to mean that we should obey first, consider later. But should a child obey a parent when the parent's asking them to do something that's unfair or wrong? Turtle shouldn't have to share her clues; that's not on the same level as brushing your teeth twice a day or not getting into strangers' cars. Where are we supposed to draw the line?