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Sasha Obama, Malia Obama home,© GettyImages

Sasha and Malia Obama are home from college – here’s how they’re keeping busy

Michelle Obama shared how her family is coping in self-isolation


UPDATED MARCH 25, 2020 9:57 AM EDT

Empty nest no more! Michelle and Barak Obama’s celebrations as parents without kids in the house have wrapped as their daughters Sasha, 18, and Malia, 21, are home from school due to the recent Coronavirus pandemic. “I shouldn’t have boasted about that,” she told her friend Ellen DeGeneres during a phone call. “The Gods were getting me back. They’re back. Everybody’s home. The girls are back because colleges are now online. They’re off in their respective rooms doing their online classes and ignoring us.”

Michelle and Barack Obama daughters© GettyImages
Michelle and Barack Obama’s daughters Sasha and Malia have returned

As for the former POTUS, “I don’t know here he is.” Now with a full house, the Becoming author shared that her family is structuring their days at home and maintaining a routine. The family also has some “Netflix and chilling going on.” For Michelle, 56, and Barack, 58, they are using the time to get closer to their girls. Instead of overloading on television and Internet, the Obamas have been getting creative.

“The positive side, for us, it has forced us to continue to sit down with each other and have real conversations,” she shared. “Really ask questions and figure out how to keep ourselves occupied without TV’s or computers. It’s a good exercise in reminding us that we just don’t need half of the stuff that we have, when times are tough, having each other having your health, we can do with a lot less.”

She continued: “I think that’s an important lesson that I want my kids to understand. We they get out in the world, be grateful with what you have and be ready to share it when the time comes. Now we’re just happy that we’re together and that everybody is healthy and safe, who cares about the other stuff.”

Michelle and Barack Obama empty nest© GettyImages
The former first family is taking the time to bond

For Michelle, making sure that everyone is okay when everything is over is a top priority for her family. “I feel for all the folks who are going to suffer because of the economy,” she noted. “We have to be mindful about what we’re going to do to support those folks when this quarantine is over and people are looking at what’s left of their businesses and their lives.”