Balancing Work and Parenting—When You're the First Lady

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 23:00:00 GMT

It’s hard to think of a more challenging place to balance work and parenting than the White House. But in an interview with Newsweek, Michelle Obama explains how she plans to continuing to being a “mom first.”

Fortunately, according to Michelle, Barack “loves hard work” and she loves “timetables and timelines and all that good stuff,” so they’re maintaining their cool in the face of a massive transition.

She hopes to continue keeping family life separate from work life, which she says she and Barack have mostly managed to do for the last year-and-a-half. She acknowledges that it will doubtless become more challenging once they’re in the White House, but says that “staying connected to friends and family who know you” helps. To the end, she’s hoping that her mother will move to D.C. with them, so she can continue to be actively involved in her granddaughters' lives.

Michelle has been adamant about finding the right schools for Sasha and Malia, attending parent-teacher conferences and all of their events, and getting them involved in activities they’re excited about—in other words, she and Barack will remain devoted, hands-on parents “no matter what their father’s job is.”

Michelle believes this level of commitment is important not only for Sasha and Malia, but as a model for other families: if even the president of the United States helps his kids with his homework, we can all find time to help our kids with their homework. “[Kids] have to be center in this society and this nation. We have to put their education, their needs, their well-being first and foremost. As adults, we can balance the other stuff. We're the grown-ups,” Michelle said, laughing.

As for the criticism she faced on the campaign trail, Michelle said, “Regardless of how they feel about Barack or the candidates, people are decent and they're kind. They are willing to give you a chance to prove yourself to them.” Now there is a lesson to pass on to our kids.

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Balancing Work and Parenting—When You're the First Lady