Celebrating the holidays in the White House over these past eight years has been a true privilege. We've been able to welcome over half a million guests... our outstanding pastry chefs have baked 200,000 holiday cookies... and Barack [Obama] has treated the American people to countless dad jokes.

There's so much going on in the healthcare system that makes it difficult for women to really have a strong economic hold if insurance is always an issue.

In fact, in the last job I had before coming to the White House - I remember this clearly - I was on maternity leave with Sasha, still trying to figure out what to do with my life, and I got a call for an interview for this position, a senior position at the hospitals. And I thought, okay, here we go. So I had to scramble to look for babysitting, and couldn't find one.

I've seen firsthand that being president doesn't change who you are. It reveals who you are.

Women should have the freedom to do whatever they need to do to feel good about themselves.

My goal is to be a great-looking 70-year-old! I won't mind being 70, but I want people to say, "You're 70?"

My husband and I make physical activity a priority in our lives, and our daughters love being active as well. And while we each have sports and activities we enjoy, we try to go for hikes or bike rides together whenever we get the chance. We've found that the best way to help our girls be active is to find activities they truly enjoy.