"Say what you will about books--people do judge a magazine by its cover, which is why it's important to me to keep the cover of this one looking fresh," says Oprah. "And right now nothing—and I mean nothing-- is fresher than the family that moved into the White House in January, sparking a national spirit of renewal the likes of which I've never seen."
According to a press release, Oprah and Obama met at the White House on February 17. Oprah got a personal tour from the First Lady, who considers the White House the peoples' house.
Some highlights, from a pres release supplied by "O" Magazine:
Michelle Obama Interview Highlights:
On her first weekend in the White House after the inauguration:
"Well, we still had family here, so it was almost like a wedding. A huge, very complicated wedding. The last visitors didn't leave until Sunday. And then the first Monday was kind of weird. You know: Now we live here, and Barack is getting up and going to work, and it's just us. This is our home now."
On her decorating philosophy:
"It will reflect our family. I want comfortable sofas, I want art that reflects contemporary and traditional, I want to bring in new American artisans," she adds, "and you've got to be able to make a fort with the sofa pillows! Everything must be fort-worthy."
On her vision for the White House:
"It's a beautiful home. When you go out and come back, especially at night, with all the white lights on--it's just beautiful. We feel privileged, and we feel a responsibility to make it feel like the people's house. We have the good fortune of being able to sleep here, but this house belongs to America"
On What She Knows For Sure:
"I know that all I can do is be the best me that I can. And live life with some gusto. Giving back is a big part of that. How am I going to share this experience with the American people? I'm always thinking about that."
On keeping up with friends:
That's the thing about being the First Lady: You try to catch your friends up on what's happening in your life, and they're like, 'We know – we read it in the paper."
How Malia and Sasha now know dad's home:
"Once someone on my staff e-mailed to tell me that the president was on his way. But you could already hear the helicopter, so it was like, well, no kidding."
"The girls don't move. I'm like, 'You want to see Daddy landing in the helicopter?' 'No, that's okay. We already saw it.'"
The April issue of O, The Oprah Magazine hits newsstands on March 17th.
