The First Lady:
How are you guys doing? Children:
Good! The First Lady:
Wow, sounds like you've had
a busy morning already, right? Children:
Yes! The First Lady:
Tell me about some of
the stuff you've done. Just shout out. All right, one at a time. Stand up. Whoever stands up -- Child:
Pastry chef! The First Lady:
Pastry chef. Child:
(inaudible) when we got to
check how much breath we had. The First Lady:
You tested your breath? (laughter) Wow, we've never done that. What did you do? Child:
-- park rangers. The First Lady:
Park rangers. That's very cool. I like that. What else? Yes. Child:
We got to see a police car -- The First Lady:
Oh, nice. What's in there? I've never seen the inside. Child:
Little shield things. The First Lady:
Shield things. Child:
(inaudible) The First Lady:
Yes, very cool. Very cool. What did you see? Child:
We learned how important
policemen are here around the White House. The First Lady:
Absolutely. We could not do what we do if it
weren't for the Secret Service and the police officers. We love them dearly, and
they do a great job, right? All right, well, before we begin
we're going to ask questions. I just want to welcome you
guys to the White House. This is one of my favorite
days because, I don't know, I love spending time with kids. And you kids are very special
because your parents are very special, or your grandparents. I know we may have
parents and grandparents. But they do wonderful work
here at the White House. And we know that sometimes they
work so hard that sometimes they come home late, or maybe they
miss some of your activities because they're working so hard. And that can be tough, right? It can be a little
annoying, too. So one of the things we want
you to know is that we know that it's not easy to have
parents who are doing busy, important work. But because of the
work that they do, the country runs
and things get done, and millions of people get help. And because you guys handle your
business -- you're doing well in school, and you're
staying out of trouble, and you're listening and you're
helping out at home when things are busy -- you're helping
your parents serve, too, and your grandparents. So you guys are helping this
country in very important ways. And I don't want you to
ever take that for granted. So we are grateful to
you all for what you do to support your parents. And that's why I like to
take the time and create this wonderful day so you get
a better sense of what they're doing when they're not with you. We're taking care of them -- at
least we're trying to -- so that you understand what's going on. So we really
appreciate you guys. And we're happy
to have you here, and we hope you've
had a good day. So now I'm going to just take
some questions, all right? So, all right, here's what we're
going to do: We've got mics, and when you stand up I'm going
to go from section to section. So I'm going to take one person
from here, one person from here, one person from here,
and then I'm going to go back around, okay? And tell me your name
and how old you are. Okay, we'll start over here. Okay, I see a bright
green hand right here. Young lady, yes. Child:
My name is Madeleine
[phonetic] and I'm 12. Do I state where my mom works? The First Lady:
If you know. Child:
My mom works at Office of
National Drug Control Policy. The First Lady:
Nice. Child:
And my question is, will
you ever run for President? The First Lady:
Absolutely not. (laughter) No. Being President is a really hard
job and it's an important job. And when my husband is
running for President, we're right in there;
we're serving, too. And I think that once
his terms are over, we'll go on to do other
important things -- because there are so many ways that you
can help this country and the world, even if you're not
President of the United States. And I think one of the things
you learn about yourself as you get older are what
are your strengths and what are your interests. And for me it's other stuff
that is not being the President. So I probably won't run. But that's a great question. All right, we're going
to move to this section. And I see a red jacket. Young man, right there. Child:
How do you like -- The First Lady:
Tell me your name. Child:
Joseph. The First Lady:
Stand up. Child:
Joseph. The First Lady:
What was that? Child:
Joseph. The First Lady:
Yes? How old are you? Child:
Eight. The First Lady:
It's good to have
you here, Joseph. What is your question? Child:
How do you like
being the First Lady? The First Lady:
I love it! I really do. And that's the other thing
-- I've been First Lady. This is the better job. (laughter) Because -- Child:
Is it a hard job? The First Lady:
It's very busy. I have a lot to do, but
I couldn't call it hard, because I'm doing the
things that I really love. I get to spend this time
with you all, number one. And as much as I can I try to
spend time with young people, and I love doing that. And I'm working on helping kids
eat healthy and be more active and working with military kids. And I got to be on iCarly. And so it would be hard for
me to call this job hard. I love what I do, and I
love serving this country. So it's been fun. Although, sometimes it gets
tiring because you get really busy, and sometimes you just
want to goof off and watch a little TV and not
do anything, right? Yes, I tell my kids
that all the time. They say -- they wake up,
they're like, I'm tired, Mom. I'm like, I'm tired, too. Go to school. (laughter) Get over it, right? All right. Okay, let's see, let's see. Oh, gosh, there are so many. All right, this little
one in the back. You. Yes, you, young lady. Child:
My name -- The First Lady:
What's -- oh, go ahead. Child:
My name is Danielle [phonetic],
and today is my birthday and I'm turning eight. The First Lady:
I heard about that. Happy Birthday. Child:
And my dad works at
the military office. And my question is, what do you
like to do on your birthday? Audience:
Aww -- The First Lady:
Aww. What do I like to do? That's a very sweet question. Does anybody else have
a birthday here today? All right, Danielle [phonetic]
-- okay, when we get finished we're going to sing. When we're done, before I
leave, we're going to sing happy birthday, okay? So we'll do that last. We'll end with that, okay? But happy birthday. What do I like to
do on my birthday? I like to sleep late. (laughter) That's the first thing. So I try to make sure no one
wakes me up until I'm ready to wake up. And then I like to have a day
where I can do exactly what I want to do, eat
what I want to eat. So I get to pick my meals. And then my husband usually
takes me out for dinner, and the girls -- or -- and
we have a family dinner. So I like to spend time with my
family and just kind of relax and do a lot of nothing. I know that's hard for
kids to understand, but when you get old
like us old people, doing nothing is a really
big gift -- right, parents? (laughter) Nothing is -- happy birthday! (laughter) Well, happy birthday, sweetie. All right, here. Okay, young man in the
black and blue stripes. Child:
When did you -- oh, wait, sorry. My name is William Metcalf
[phonetic] and I'm 10 years old. And my question is,
when did you get Bo? The First Lady:
We got Bo -- it was probably
-- press, media, you guys know better than me. (laughter) It was -- he's three years old,
and we got him in March of -- like, two years ago. He was eight months
old when he came to us, so we've had him for
close to three -- he'll be three in October. That's when his birthday is. October birthday? Yeah, yeah. October! A lot of October. So we've -- you've got
an October birthday, too? Great. But we've had -- he'll
be three in October, so he's lived with us since
he was eight months old. And he's awesome. He's an awesome dog,
and I love him dearly. Any of you have pets? How many pet kids do we have? Do you love your pets, too? Audience:
Yes. The First Lady:
Yes, we love our pets. All right -- you just
remembered your pet? Yeah, all right. (laughter) All right, we've got hands here. All right, young lady --
next to you -- I know, I'm going to get to -- yes. You, in the red. Child:
Okay. My name is Madison Lewis
[phonetic]; my dad works for you. And if you could change -- The First Lady:
What does he do? Child:
Joining Forces. The First Lady:
Oh, I know who your dad is. (laughter) Child:
If you could change anything
about the First Lady job, what would you do or
what would you change? The First Lady:
I don't know that I'd
change anything about it. Sometimes, when the First -- and
it's not just the First Lady but the President -- but sometimes
we can't sneak out often on our own without security
and motorcades and people with us, right? It's hard to sneak around
and do what you want. I've done it a couple of times. But you know, one fantasy I
have -- and the Secret Service, they keep looking at me because
they think I might actually do it -- is to walk right
out the front door and just keep walking. (laughter) Just go right over there
and go into some shops, and stop and have some ice
cream and -- yeah, go shopping. But I can't do that. I can't just up and decide, I
think I'm going to go for a walk and I am going to go for a --
I'm going to walk to Georgetown. So if I could change something,
I'd be able to sneak around a little bit more. But it causes people a lot
of stress when I do that so I try not to. All right, we've got
this section here. Oh gosh, this is so hard. All right, young lady, right in
the front with the red ribbons. Yes. Child:
My name is Alison
[phonetic] and I'm 10. What is your favorite
part of being First Lady? The First Lady:
My favorite part of
being First Lady is spending time with kids. You guys are funny,
let me tell you. I've had some of
the best questions; some of the funniest
questions come from kids. And kids are just, they're real
-- you guys are real honest. So you either -- if they don't
like you, you know right away. It's real clear. It's like, keep away from me. But you guys are open and you're
curious and you're still trying to figure things out. So it's a lot of
fun to spend time. And that's when I
do all my playing. You see me jumping rope, and
I'm going to play with some kids when I leave here. We're going to do
some hula-hooping. So you guys are fun. All right, here, here, here. All right, okay, I'm going
to go in the back -- I'm going to go in the back. Young man with the cast
-- I see a cast on an arm. We have an injured one here. You have to tell me your
name, age and what happened to your arm. Child:
I'm Jacques Nissim [phonetic]
and I'm 10 years old. And I was playing soccer
and I was at practice, and this kid on my team
kicked the ball really hard when I was goalie. And I stuck out my hand and
the ball bent my arm back. The First Lady:
Youch. Child:
And my question was -- and
my dad works for the United States Trade Representatives and
he tells me a lot about his job and he really likes it. The First Lady:
Good. Child:
Are you as big of a White
Sox fan as your husband? And did you congratulate Philip
Humber after he threw the perfect game against the team. The First Lady:
Oh, gosh. (laughter) Okay, the -- no, I'm not as
big a fan because I grew up a Cubs fan. We're a mixed marriage. And people always wonder,
well, why are you a Cubs fan, because we live
on the South Side. But I tell them, my dad
was a Cubs fan from the time I was little. And that's one thing that he and
I did -- when I would come home from school, the Cubs
would be playing; they'd usually be just in the
third inning by the time I got home from school at 3:30 p.m.,
and José Cardenal would be third man up to bat, and we'd sit
and we'd watch the game. So there's sort of a sentimental
connection that I have with the Cubs because of my dad. So I'm kind of
always a Cubs fan. Although as a Chicagoan,
I love all of our teams. We're on record there. (laughter) And no, I didn't call the
guy who pitched the game. No, I didn't. I saw that on SportsCenter
but I usually stay out of the sports stuff. I leave that to my husband. All right, we've got a young
lady in a pink shirt, hand up. Yes. Is that pink? Child:
Yes. My name is Maya [phonetic]
and I'll be 11 in eight days. The First Lady:
Congratulations. Child:
Thank you. And my question is, what
is the newest project you're working on? The First Lady:
Ooh, the newest project
that I'm working on. We just finished a tour for
the first-year anniversary of Joining Forces, which
your dad helps with. And Joining Forces is the
initiative we're working on to help military families. We want to make sure that
other Americans who don't have families in the military
understand how much these families sacrifice so that
their loved ones can serve. So we're really trying to rally
the whole country around making sure that we're aware of other
military kids that may be in your lives, and understand how
hard it must be for them to have a parent who has to be
away -- not just away, but fighting in a war. Can you imagine how tough
that would be and how scared they might be? And a lot of times, military
kids, they have to move often, because soldiers
move -- our troops, they move every couple of
years, and their families have to move, too. So the average military kid
goes to seven or eight or nine schools over the course
of their lifetime. Do we have any
military kids here? You guys know the drill, right? It's not always easy. But a lot of people don't know
what you go through because they're -- they don't have
families in the military, right? So I want to make sure that
other kids -- all you kids who aren't in the military
and don't understand it, that you're a little
bit more sympathetic; that you reach out to new kids
in your communities and you find out -- if there's a new
kid sitting in your class, help them. Reach over, make a friend. See how they're doing. Make sure that they feel like
they're a part of the school, a part of the community --
asking them about themselves. If they're not somebody
that you normally invite, invite them for a play
date or for a party; kind of go out of your
way to help them out. So those are the kind of
things that we're working on. And it makes me very happy
to work on those issues. So that's the latest thing. But thank you for asking. All right, we're going
to go back over here. All right. Young man right in the
front row, in the blue. You -- yes, you. Child:
Would you ever want to
move back to your old life? The First Lady:
My old life? I don't know if that's possible. (laughter) We still have our house in
Chicago, and it's there, and we go back and visit. But who knows what -- I don't
know what the future holds. So one of the things I've
learned growing up and being a grown-up is that you always look
forward -- you look to where you're going to go, as
opposed to looking back. So we're going to see how --
what the future has for us. Okay? Does that
make sense to you? So I think more about what am
I going to do in the future. And who knows. I've got two kids. They're going to
be going to school. They're going to be
going to college one day. There's a lot that's
going to be going on. So I'm not sure. I'm not sure whether the
old life will be there. But that's a very
profound question. Thank you for that. Okay, we're right here. All right, young man in the
khaki jacket in the back. Oh, yes. (laughter) Child:
My name is Reggie [phonetic],
I'm 11 years old. Actually, I have two questions. The First Lady:
All right. Child:
Aw, man. Let's go
to the second one. How many fruits and vegetables
do you have in your garden? The First Lady:
Ooh, how many? Ooh, I don't know
the exact number. But we have -- it's
a vegetable garden, so everything in
there is a vegetable. So we have lots of lettuce --
different kinds of lettuce. We just planted a few
varieties of potato. So we have lots of herbs
that you use for cooking. We have string beans. We have snow peas. We've got broccoli. We have cauliflower. We've got yams. I mean, it's stuff like that. So it is a vegetable garden. And the fruits that we have --
we're still trying to work on getting our fruit bushes. But we have some berry bushes. We have a fig tree that's
starting to produce some figs. We have some -- what else? We're thinking about
planting some fruit trees, but we're going to see
whether that will work. So that's what we
have over there. We have some mushroom logs. Have you all ever
seen a mushroom log? You know, where mushrooms
-- they're like fungus; they grow out of like
damp, dark places. We have a couple of logs
that produce mushrooms. And we've got bees. We've got a beehive over
by the -- So you said you had two questions. Do you remember the second one? All right. Child:
How much do you
love gardening? (laughter) The First Lady:
I really enjoy gardening. I wasn't a gardener
before I got here. And I technically -- I wouldn't
call myself a gardener because I have a lot of
people who help me. It's very different when you
have a garden and you've got 12 people who can help you weed,
and volunteers who come over all the time. And I feel like
it's not my garden, it's the White House's garden. But I've learned to -- I've
learned that I love it more than I thought. When I was little, I used
to help one of my aunts. We lived with one of my aunts,
and she loved to garden. And I would help her
weed and plant flowers. We never had a vegetable garden,
but everyone had to help out. And I used to like being out in
the sun with the water hose and the sprinklers. But then I started getting
allergies and I started sneezing a lot. And my mom would send me in the
house because she was tired of seeing me sneeze. I don't sneeze as much anymore. But I enjoy it. I do. It's fun being out, playing
in the dirt and in the sun and watching stuff grow. It's really cool. All right, we're over here. Ms. Jarvis:
Ma'am, we have time
for one more question. The First Lady:
Oh, Kristen. All right, we've got time
for one more question. This is -- we're going to
do more than one, though. All right, green jacket,
right in the front. I know, I always -- Child:
My name is Diego
[phonetic] and I'm eight. How big is the White House? The First Lady:
Oh, gosh. It's really big. Jeremy, where are you? You have the square footage? It's huge. Have you guys taken a tour? Children:
Yes. The First Lady:
So what did you see? Did you see everything
on this floor? Children:
Yes. The First Lady:
So this is the -- did you
go to the West Wing, too? And have you been
to the East Wing? Children:
Yes. The First Lady:
All right, so you've been
pretty much everywhere on the main floors. So you've seen how big that is. But this is what's
called the State Floor. And then above us, two
floors up, is where we live. That's our house. That's like our --
the Private Residence. It's where Malia and
Sasha have their rooms, where we eat dinner, where we
-- so there are two more floors that are the same width as the
State Floor that go up, okay? And we have a gym, and there are
guest rooms if we have visitors. And grandma lives on the third
floor and she has a couple of rooms where she lives. And there are places
where the kids watch TV. So all that is upstairs. So that's like our house. So this is more
the official place. We don't hang out
here during the day, but when we have important
guests and we have dinners and we have big parties and there
are press conferences and things like that, that
happens down here. So you've pretty much seen all
of the White House except for the residence. And did you guys
-- when you cooked, did you cook -- did you go
downstairs in the kitchen? Children:
No. The First Lady:
All right, so there's
lower levels, too, and there's a kitchen
here where the chefs cook. It's a bigger kitchen but it's
not as big as you would think. There's a bowling alley -- yeah. You've been to
the bowling alley? So there's a bowling
alley down there. There's a place where the
florist -- there's a florist shop here. And then there's a bunch of
stuff that's electronic stuff, engineering stuff
that's way down there. There's a dentist office
here, did you know that? A dentist office. So it's got a
little dental chair. Stuff like -- there's
a doctor's office here. Did you guys see the
doctor's office here? Children:
No. The First Lady:
But it's all in this space. So the White House is as big as
the space that you walked except there are some more floors down
and a couple of more floors up. Does that help you? All right, okay. All right, all right,
all right, all right. We have a pretty headband,
redhead -- yes, you. Child:
Hi, my name is Brianna
[phonetic] and I'm eight years old. And my question is, how hard was
it to be a lawyer when you were a little girl? The First Lady:
Oh, how hard was
it to be a lawyer? Well, I didn't know I
wanted to be a lawyer until I went to college. So you know the path -- the
educational path: You go to grammar school. How many people are
in grammar school? Kindergarten, elementary school
-- I don't know what you guys call it -- before eighth grade. Then you go to high school. Then after high school, college. And how many years do you
go to college usually? Four years. Excellent. Child:
(inaudible) The First Lady:
What is that? Child:
(inaudible) The First Lady:
Four or five; if you're
on the five year plan it could be five. (laughter) Parents would probably rather
have you did it in four, but there's no -- it depends
on what you're studying. And then after college, then
you go to graduate school. So if you want to study
something special. So you can go to med school. You can go to law school. You can go to business school. You can go on to get a PhD
and become a professor. All that happens after college. So when I was in college, that's
when I had to decide whether I wanted to go on to
graduate school, and I decided I
would be a lawyer. But before then, when
I was a little girl, I thought I wanted
to be a pediatrician. And I just picked that like
kids pick -- like right now, when people tell you what
you want to be, you have an answer, right? Sometimes you do. But I had an answer. But it really wasn't an answer
because I was too young to know what I wanted to do. So going to law school
is a lot of work. It takes a lot of work and
you've got to read and you've got to study all the time. So it takes a lot of work
if you want to be a lawyer. All right, I'm going to
do two more questions. Okay. All right, all right, all right. Yellow sweater, in the middle. And then we'll have
the last one here. Child:
Hi, my name is Lily
Lazarus [phonetic] and I'm 12 years old. My question is, my mom was
diagnosed with diabetes when I was five, and what are you going
to do to help childhood obesity and diabetes? The First Lady:
Well, that's -- thank
you for that question. That's why I talk so much about
health and making sure that kids are healthy because there
are some types of diabetes that are preventable. Some are hereditary -- that
means you're born with it and there's not much
you can do about it. But there's something called
Type II Diabetes that's directly linked to what kind
of food you eat. And if you're eating
healthy foods, you're less likely to deal
with those kind of issues. And being a diabetic
is a tough thing. I mean, for kids, it's sometimes
kind of hard to think about what does that mean if
you've never had it. But you have to take insulin
shots and you have to really watch what you eat,
and it can be -- it's a pretty serious disease. And to know that it's a disease
that you can prevent just by eating more fruits and
vegetables and getting exercise, wouldn't you guys -- don't you
guys think it would be easier to eat right and run around than to
be sick and have to worry about your health? And the reason why it's
important for kids to learn those habits -- because
those are habits, right? If you get used to eating
vegetables and you get used to incorporating fruit
into your diet as a kid, you're more likely to do
that when you're an adult. So the habits that we're hoping
you develop now at your age will be ones that you carry
on into adulthood, and they'll be ones that
you can teach your kids. So that you know, having
dessert and cake and fast food, that's fun; everybody
enjoys that, but you just can't
do it every day. You've got to balance it out. And the more -- when
you learn that earlier, it just becomes easier to do. So that's one of the reasons
why we have Let's Move. And that's why that initiative
for me is so important, because we're going to change
the health not just for kids now but for generations to come. And hopefully you guys can
all help be my ambassadors to good health. And starting at home in your own
houses -- don't turn your nose up when the vegetables
are on the plate. Just eat them. Just eat them. You promise? Hello? Children:
Yes. The First Lady:
Eat your vegetables. Eat your fruit. And exercise. Move your bodies; don't sit in
front of the TV all the time. Do you hear me? Get up. Stand up and move. Will you do that? Like that -- just like that. (laughter) All right, the last question. All right, purple shirt. I know. Last question. Child:
Hi, my name is CJ. The First Lady:
Whoa, deep voice. (laughter) Child:
Thank you. The First Lady:
What's going on? How have you been? Child:
My dad is a --
works as a butler. The First Lady:
I know. You've gotten taller. Child:
Thank you. (laughter) And my question to you is, how
do you feel about working here? Like, is it good? The First Lady:
What does it feel like? Child:
Yeah. The First Lady:
It's great. And it's great
because of people like your dad. I mean, your dad, I see him
every day as well as many of the staff people here
who help the house run. And everybody is so nice. They're funny. They're nice to hang out with. I love them all,
everybody who works here. And that makes our lives easy,
which is why we love you guys. Because I know your dad
is here sometimes late, sometimes unexpectedly late
because stuff goes on and he's calling in and he's saying,
I've got to stay late, I've got to go in on the
weekends, something changed. And he's doing it because
that -- is that you, too? And he's helping us. And you all are helping us. So it is one of the
best experiences. And I didn't expect it. I didn't know what to
expect when we moved into the White House. I thought, we're moving
into an old house, and people have lived
here, and what's it like? Is it going to feel like home? It is going to feel like
-- but everybody here feels like family. And they treat us with
the same respect and love. And I feel like these kids,
they -- that you kids are a part of that. So we are grateful. All right? Yes. Child:
What kind of
charities do you support? The First Lady:
What kind of -- in this
position it's difficult to support just
one or two charities. But we do tons of work
with charities -- millions. Like things -- organizations
like the Fisher House, who provide wonderful places for
military families to live while their loved one is recuperating
at a military hospital. If they have to go
through surgeries, Fisher House is a really
beautiful place where families can stay. That's one organization. The Red Cross has done -- we've
done great stuff with them, with the USO. I mean, I could go on and on. I mean, we work with many,
many non-profit organizations. So I couldn't say that there is
one single one that I work with. We work with tons of them. But that's a great question. So now we have a birthday treat. Come on up, sweetie. It's a birthday. Can I have a hug? Happy birthday. Are you ready for a
"Happy Birthday" song? All right, one, two,
three, everybody. Children Singing:
♪♪ (Happy Birthday!) ♪♪ (applause) The First Lady:
All right, you guys,
I've got to go. Thank you. You guys were awesome. Awesome! Awesome! (applause)
