While some parents struggle to come to terms with their children leaving home to attend college, former First Lady Michelle Obama was thriving. During an episode of her podcast, the “Becoming” author confessed that she was fine with her daughters leaving for school and eventually moving out as adults. Her husband, meanwhile, reacted differently. But according to Michelle, Barack Obama‘s reaction made sense, adding that he may have missed some crucial moments because he was busy running the country.
On a recent episode of “IMO” with Jon Stewart, Michelle responded to his question about how she dealt with sending her daughters off to school. “I don’t miss ’em,” she said. “I don’t. I love them. I’m going to see them tonight for dinner.”
Michelle and Barack share two daughters, Malia and Sasha. Malia attended Harvard University, while her younger sister attended the University of Michigan and the University of Southern California.
Barack Obama Was Emotional When His Daughters Left For College
Although Michelle was fine with the change, former President of the United States Barack Obama shed a few tears when he sent his daughters off to school.
But according to Michelle, Barack’s reaction was understandable and one she thinks some fathers can relate to because of their busy schedules.
“I think fathers can be that way because you weren’t there from 6:00 to 9:00 at night, you missed a lot of it,” she said. “I mean, I’ve had so much quality time with my children. So much; I know them inside and out.”
“They were probably 7 and 3 at the time, and Barack was traveling, so I was at home trying to get the girls to bed,” she added. “They were great kids, but this was one night that they were just being rambunctious.”
Michelle Obama Is Living Her Best Life
As Michelle continued, she said she’s loved having adult children, adding that it’s allowed her to accomplish goals and explore new passions.
“I’m good, look at all this meaning I have,” she said, referring to her podcast, which she co-hosts with her brother, Craig Robinson. “I have a wonderful pattern. I love my schedule; I have a great schedule, and it’s all mine.”
Raising Daughters In The Public Eye Was Hard For Michelle Obama
This isn’t the first time Michelle has spoken about her relationship with her daughters. According to The Blast, she previously described how challenging it was to help them live a private life as the children of public figures.
“That was a lot of work,” she said before noting that things only got harder as they got older. “They had to drive, and they had to go to prom, and they were on teams, and they traveled to other schools, and they had to do college searches, and they went to parties, and they had drinks, and they tried out smoking, and they did all the things,” she said.
The fact that people didn’t know about their teenage adventures is another story, Michelle said, noting that keeping their business private took “a lot of intentionality.”
“When your kids are under the security of the Secret Service, you almost have to work twice as hard to make their life normal,” she said. “Imagine setting up the first play date or the first time the kids get invited to a play date. The process of having my children at your house meant that an advanced team had to come and question and search your house and ask if you had drugs and guns.”
Barack Previously Joked About His Daughters’ Relationship With Secret Service
Barack has also spoken in the past about his daughters and how raising them in the White House was more difficult than he imagined.
“First of all, them as teenagers having Secret Service guys follow them when they were going out on dates, I think probably has shut down their interest in public service,” he joked. “They still have PTSD from guys talking into their wrist microphones and glasses as they’re trying to go to a music concert.”
