Obama Family Reads Where the Wild Things Are at Egg Roll 2011

Obama Family Lights the National Christmas Tree 2010 Video

Watch Michelle Obama read "Twas the Night Before Christmas.
Obama, "grandmother in chief," Michelle, Malia and Sasha light the tree.

Michelle Obama Makes Mother's Day Remarks May 7

Michelle Obama honors her mother, Marian Robinson, and others.

And raising our girls in the White House with my mom -- oh, not going to do this -- is a beautiful experience. And the opportunity to have three generations living in the White House, it’s beautiful. And I’m pretty sure the President is happy about it, too.

It's also military spouses appreciation day. Rosalyn Carter, Jill Biden and Tricia Nixon Cox are among the women in attendance. Transcript.


Today, Michelle Obama will speak on Mother's Day at 3 pm eastern. You can watch her remarks here.

Michelle Obama Reads at the Easter Egg Roll Video

See Obama read Green Eggs and Ham here. He really gets into it.

Michelle's mother, Marian Robinson, reads Stretch:

Obama Family Photos

All of these photos were taken by White House photog Pete Souza.

Obama family eats dinner in Russia


Obama and Rahm in a snowball fight
This photo is so sweet


Playing with Bo in the snow

The official family portrait

The Obamas Attend Oregon State Game Video

The Obamas attended the Oregon State-George Washington University basketball game Saturday. Michelle's brother, Craig Robinson, is the Oregon State coach. Oregon beat Washington 64-57.

Obama Family Distributes Goodies at Martha's Table Nov. 25

See more photos here

The Obama family, including grandma Marian Robinson, distribute food at Martha's Table in DC:

The Obama family is passing out turkeys, stuffing and other Thanksgiving favorites to people at a food pantry organization.

President Barack Obama tucked pumpkin pies into people's bags at Martha's Table in downtown Washington on Wednesday evening and wished them a happy holiday. AP

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano helps at Reagan airport:

Duncan, Gingrich and Sharpton on Education Tour

Revamping education is what I'm most excited about because that's what we need more than anything. Earlier today, Gingrich praised Arne Duncan. From the White House:

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and civil rights leader Al Sharpton will join Education Secretary Arne Duncan on a tour of four cities to highlight the Obama administration's efforts to reform public education, spur innovation and discuss challenges facing America's school systems.

The tour, an outgrowth of their meeting with President Obama last spring, will include school visits, stakeholder meetings and media briefings. The goal of the tour is to stimulate discussion and community engagement around issues of education reform.

Secretary Duncan described Gingrich and Sharpton as, "Two of the most candid people I have ever known. They are willing to challenge conventional thinking and I can absolutely promise some provocative conversations on education reform."

The tour will take them to Philadelphia on Sept. 29, New Orleans on Nov. 3, and Baltimore on Nov. 13. Duncan said that the cities were chosen both for logistical reasons and for what they can show about school reform. More stops, including a rural site, will be added as the tour progresses.

"55-years after the historic Brown v. Board of Education decision we still find that education is unequal in our nation. I agree with President Obama that we must use new methods to close the achievement gap so we do not continue to fail our children," said Sharpton.

"President Obama has shown real courage on the issue of charter schools. I strongly believe that when you can find common ground, we should be able to put other differences aside to achieve a common goal," said Gingrich.

Al Sharpton is a Baptist minister, civil rights leader and a radio talk show host who advocates for economic and educational equity through two organizations he founded, the National Action Network and the Education Equality Project. Newt Gingrich is a former speaker of the House of Representatives, author, history professor, political analyst and the founder of American Solutions, a tri-partisan grassroots action organization. Dept of Ed.

The first grandmother Marian Robinson and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan read to children:

What's Arne Duncan reading this summer? Watch Book TV

First Grandma Marian Robinson Speaks on White House Life

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Obamas Tour France and Eat at a Family Restaurant

Crowds await the Obamas
Tomorrow is Sasha Obama's birthday (though there is conflicting information about that. Sasha's birthday may be June 10) and today, apparently, is Jill Biden's birthday. It wasn't exactly date night because a few people went along for din din at the family restaurant: 

Saturday night, the US First Family chose a traditional French restaurant complete with red-chequered table-cloths and red-and-white awnings for a quiet dinner, but with only one of the girls.
Police blocked off the quiet narrow street and avenues nearby as the party drove up for a two-hour-and-some dinner at the old-style "La Fontaine de Mars", a moderately-priced establishment dating back to 1908 that prides itself on its "family atmosphere" and south-eastern French food.
A waiter told AFP "the atmosphere was very relaxed, there were five of them ... they said they had a wonderful meal and the president was extremely nice to the staff".
Obama chose roast lamb, while his wife, one of the girls and two guests -- "a US writer and a fifth person" -- went for beef fillets.
Earlier, applause and whistles erupted as Obama's 20-vehicle motorcade pulled in to the large square in front of Notre Dame cathedral, cleared of visitors and closed earlier than usual specially for the visit.
"It all went very well, it was a private visit by a family on holiday," said a spokesperson for the cathedral. "It was very agreeable."

With Paris abuzz, the presidential party spent more than an hour touring the 12th century cathedral, considered one of the finest examples of French gothic architecture.
The crowd, kept some 200 metres (yards) back behind barricades, erupted jubilantly when Obama daughters Malia and Sasha, on their first trip with dad since he became president, waved from a balcony high on the iconic building.
There was no disappointment from sightseers hoping to get inside the cathedral, simply excitement that an even bigger attraction was in town. Read the whole thing at AFP

Marian Robinson Enjoying Life at the White House

But after three months in the Executive Mansion, Mrs. Robinson is unexpectedly and decidedly savoring her new life.

She entertains visitors from Chicago. She attends White House dinners and concerts hosted by her daughter, the first lady, Michelle Obama. She dines at local restaurants and delights in events at the Kennedy Center, where she often sits in the president’s box and chats with performers.

In fact, Mrs. Robinson, 71, is so busy these days that the Obamas hired a baby sitter to watch their two daughters one evening because the nation’s first grandmother had plans.

“She has a very full social life, so much so that sometimes we have to plan our schedule around her schedule,” Mrs. Obama said jokingly last week during a lunch she hosted for Congressional spouses.

Mrs. Robinson still spends much of her time tending to the Obama girls, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7. She shuttles them to and from school most days and accompanies them to some play dates, the first lady said. She attends class presentations, helps with homework and baby-sits when the president and first lady need extra help.....
For the first time in her adult life, she no longer has to cook or clean, unless she wants to. She participates in White House events; she sat alongside Malia and Sasha at a Black History Month performance of the a capella group Sweet Honey in the Rock, and joined Mrs. Obama in reading a story to schoolchildren at the Easter egg roll.

She has also become a familiar figure at the Kennedy Center, where she has watched performances by the Alvin Ailey dance troupe, the choreographer Debbie Allen and the jazz singer Kurt Elling, among others. (Mrs. Obama likes to joke that her mother has been to the theater more than she has.)

And she joined her daughter for lunch in March at the home of Teresa Heinz Kerry, the wife of Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts. Read more at NYT

Flashback: Michelle Obama on Larry King in 2008:

Michelle Obama and Her Mom in Essence

In their first interview together, First Lady Michelle Obama and her mother, Marian Robinson, sit down in the White House to speak exclusively to Essence Editor-in-Chief Angela Burt-Murray about retaining their family values, what it takes to raise good kids, and being role models for the Black community. Read on for excerpts from the interview.

Mrs. Michelle Obama on what being First Lady means to her:
"It's an honor and a privilege when you walk into the White House-at least I automatically felt a level of obligation. This is a big responsibility, a wonderful platform and I just want to make sure I take every advantage to serve as a role model, to provide good messages, to be a supportive mate to the President and to make sure that my girls are solid."

Mrs. Marian Robinson on seeing her daughter step into this historic role:
"Well, to me, it's overwhelming. I never doubted that she could do this. She is doing it with such grace and dignity. So I am just proud. I just hope she does what she wants to do. [Chuckles] Because the things that she wants to do are very important. They mean a lot to her."

Mrs. Michelle Obama on finding balance:
"Unlike most women, I have a lot of resources: I have my mother living with me. The White House has a staff of people who are there to make my life easy. I don't have a full-time job, although I work very hard in the role of First Lady. But I have a lot of resources. So I have been able to achieve the balance because I have the support I need."

Mrs. Robinson on what her late husband, Fraser Robinson III, would say about this moment:
"You would not be able to shut him up! He would not be able to stand this. He would be beaming until you would just want him to stop talking. He bragged about Michelle and her brother, Craig, before they had even done anything. He always encouraged them, and when he talked about Craig and Michelle, you could just see a smile on his face whether it was there or not. He just enjoyed these two people."

Mrs. Obama on her parent's support:
"I always felt that my father and my mother were unconditionally rooting for me. And kids need that. Looking back that played such a huge role in building confidence in me and my brother very early. Whether we succeeded or failed, we had two people who lifted us up and supported us. There was never anything that I could imagine that I would need that they wouldn't bend over backward to make sure that we had. There is just a sense of security that allows you to take risks. People think that it comes from wealth or generations of access and success, but it doesn't. The security of your parents' love really gives you the foundation to think that you can fly. And then you do." Read more here.

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Michelle Obama Hosts 180 Kids at the White House

See a slide show here. I'm not one for fashion and I don't want to join the Michelle O fashion watch, but I really like her outfit. It's cheerful and striking.

WaPo: First lady Michelle Obama invited about 180 students from D.C. schools to the East Room of the White House today for a celebration of African American History Month and to hear a performance by the famous a cappella ensemble, "Sweet Honey in the Rock."

The pool was invited into the East Room about 4 p.m. (Also included in the audience were children of White House staff.)

The program began about 4:10 p.m. with an introduction by Chief Usher of the White House, Admiral Rochon.

Rochon, who the White House says always works behind the scenes, was invited by Mrs. Obama to share his personal story with the students. Rochon welcomed the students to the White House and gave a "special welcome to the first daughters, Malia and Sasha, and their wonderful grandmother," Marian Robinson, who sat in the front row. (Sasha wore red and had a silver head band. Malia was in yellow.)

Rochon told the students: "How exciting it is for me to come into the White House and greet the president and the first lady every day." He told the students a bit about the history of the White House -- that "the house was built by African-American slaves and freed men. I am the first African American to lead the staff." Read more

Read more about the outing here at the Swamp.
Michelle's good with kids:

The First Extended Family

WaPo: A bus filled with about 50 of President Obama's friends and in-laws arrived at the White House just after midnight, as Inauguration Day came to a close, for what they called a "housewarming party." The group had celebrated more than a dozen moves together over the years, usually with casual dinners in bungalows on the South Side of Chicago. This time, they wore rented tuxedos and gowns as a small army of presidential staffers ushered them past Secret Service agents and into the East Room.

Marian Robinson, Michelle Obama's mother and the family matriarch, came downstairs from her new bedroom, and the family reunited on an oak parquet floor underneath crystal chandeliers. Celebrities and political power brokers greeted them. Jazz legend Wynton Marsalis played trumpet while caterers handed out hors d'oeuvres and flutes of champagne.

About an hour into the reception, Obama returned from his whirlwind tour of 10 inaugural balls. His wife, Michelle, and their daughters, Malia and Sasha, went to bed, exhausted. But the new president called over a photographer and explained that he wanted one final memento from the historic day. He gathered his in-laws -- teachers, secretaries and retirees from a self-described middle-class black family in Chicago -- and posed with them beneath a 1797 portrait of George Washington in his velvet suit.

"I was just trying to soak it all in, and then this realization hit me," said Steve Shields, 57, Michelle Obama's uncle. "It was like, 'Okay. This is different. All of the sudden, we are the family that's, like, at the center of the universe.' "

To help him adjust to Washington, President Obama has lifted an entire network of unassuming friends and in-laws from the South Side into the capital's stratosphere. None of them has been more suddenly transported than Robinson, 71, who has moved from the walk-up home where she spent 40 years to the historic mansion at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. She has a room on the third floor, one level up from the Obamas, with a four-poster bed, a walk-in closet, a television set and a small sitting area for guests. She can walk down the hall to visit Malia and Sasha in their playroom, where the girls will spend as much time with their Nintendo Wii as Grandma allows. Or she can step over to the solarium to read on a plush couch or gaze out the bay windows, with their sweeping views of the Washington Monument and the city beyond. Read the rest.

Mom Moving to the White House Temporarily

I have a feeling that temporary will turn into permanent.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Get ready for the in-law in chief. President-elect Barack Obama's mother-in-law, Marian Robinson, is moving into the White House at least temporarily to join Michelle Obama and the two children, transition officials said Friday. That's good news not just for late-night comics, but for 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha. During the campaign, Robinson retired from her job as a bank executive secretary to help care for her granddaughters.

"Mrs. Robinson will be coming with the family to help the girls get acclimated, and she will determine in the coming months whether or not she wants to stay in D.C. permanently," said Katie McCormick Lelyveld, spokeswoman for Michelle Obama.

Michelle Obama's Mom Heading to Washington

I read today in the NYT that Marian Robinson will move to Washington but won't live in the White House.
Arianna Huffington's editorial on the first granny in the White House