Since stepping into the public eye as FLOTUS in 2009, Michelle Obama has kept her family life relatively private. Her and Barack Obama's daughters, Malia, 26, and Sasha, 23, have become young women, and in a recent interview, Michelle shared her concerns about raising them during her time in the White House.
In an interview with Oprah Daily, Michelle shared details about her new book, Overcoming: A Workbook, and reflected on motherhood, like the challenges she faced when she felt like she wasn’t "doing a good job as a mom.” She described the feeling of trying to balance her public responsibilities with her private life, "I'm a planner and always have been. And that served me well as First Lady when I felt like I had an endless list of things to do," she said.
During their years in the White House, Michelle’s daughters went from children to teenagers, and she had to juggle the demands of the presidency with being a mother. Despite her busy schedule, she always kept her family as her top priority. “But I knew from the beginning that being a mother was the most important thing for me. That's a useful basis to start from: it's essential to have a clear idea of what you want," she said. "I knew I wanted to be at home as often as possible, have dinner together, go to as many of the girls' activities and conferences, and give them as normal a life as possible."
Balancing family and work
With her priorities clear, she tried to structure her time around family activities. "I made sure the rest of my schedule revolved around those priorities. It wasn't always perfect. I didn't attend all the school events and I constantly worried that I wasn't doing enough as a mother or in my other activities, but after a while, I learned to give myself a little grace," Michelle admitted.
Looking back, she encouraged other women to be kind to themselves as well. “ "I hope everyone can do the same. We are all doing the best we can," she shared.