I joke that I stick with the job because it covers my insurance, but the reality is that my career has always been very important to me.

The arts and humanities define who we are as a people. That is their power -- to remind us of what we each have to offer, and what we all have in common. To help us understand our history and imagine our future. To give us hope in the moments of struggle and to bring us together when nothing else will.

I always want to be on the cusp of being in the best shape that I can be.

We're [President Barack Obama and I] clear on the fact that we have to stay humble and prayerful. We have to dig down deep to our roots. When things come together, we know some of it is Barack, some of it is us-but a lot of it has nothing to do with either of us.

One of the things that attracted me to Barack [Obama] was his emotional honesty. Right off the bat he said what he felt. There are no games with him - he is who he appears to be.

I've always tried to make sure that what I do really connects with the broader agenda of what my husband Barack Obama is trying to do.... But I also find that I have to be very passionate myself about the issue to be able to represent it well. One of the big issues that I've talked a lot about...is childhood health, nutrition and obesity.

We all need to start making some changes to how our families eat. Now, everyone loves a good Sunday dinner. Me included. And there's nothing wrong with that. The problem is when we eat Sunday dinner Monday through Saturday.