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As Michelle Obama Turns 50, 5 Five Things You Didn't Know About The First Lady
Friday marks a significant milestone in the life of our First Lady: Michelle Obama turns 50 today. And in the five years since she was inaugurated into becoming one of America's most iconic women, Michelle (or Mobama, if you will) has definitely made her mark.
She champions healthy living and good nutrition through her Let's Move! initiative, and has been the most fashion-forward first lady since, well, first ladies began. She's an advocate for poverty awareness, and has long campaigned for LGBT and women's rights. Here's five things you didn't know about the woman the president calls his "rock..."
Like You, She Didn't Have Much Money in Her 20s
During the 2012 Democratic National Convention, potential First Ladies Michelle Obama and Ann Romney both spoke before their husbands. Both painted vivid portraits of their lives before politics, and while those days are a far cry from their realities now — Mitt Romney is worth an estimated $230 million — Michelle had something quite adorable to say.
“Even though back then Barack was a Senator and a presidential candidate… To me, he was still the guy who’d picked me up for our dates in a car that was so rusted out, I could actually see the pavement going by through a hole in the passenger side door… He was the guy whose proudest possession was a coffee table he’d found in a Dumpster, and whose only pair of decent shoes was half a size too small.
“And believe it or not, when we were first married, our combined monthly student loan bills were actually higher than our mortgage. We were so young, so in love, and so in debt.”
Image: Pinterest/Michelle Obama
Michelle Turned Barack Down on Multiple Occasions
The president and the first lady met at a Chicago law firm Sidley Austin, where Michelle believed their co-workers were trying to set them up.
When Michelle looked up Barack in the company directory, she decided that he had a “big nose,” and rebuffed his advances. Eventually, they found themselves on a first date, where they famously watched Spike Lee’s movie Do The Right Thing.
Image: Getty Images
Her Father Died When She Was In Her 20s
Michelle grew up in the South Side of Chicago with her brother, Craig, and her parents, Fraser and Marian, in a one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment and attended public schools throughout her childhood.
Fraser worked in the boiler room at the Chicago water purification plant. When she was in her late 20s, her father passed away from complications from multiple sclerosis.
Image: Pinterest/Michelle Obama
America's First Couple Share The Chores
The presidential couple, seen here in jack o’lantern form, share the chores around the White House. Because gender equality!
So if Michelle cooks, then Barack has to do those dishes. His favorite food? Seafood linguini. The first lady’s choice of breakfast is fruit, eggs and bacon — and her commitment to bacon is yet another reason why she captures our hearts.
Image: Getty Images
She's One of the Only First Ladies To Earn Her Master's
As well as being an all-around boss, Michelle stands alongside Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush as one of only three first ladies to earn her master’s degree.
As an undergraduate at Princeton she studied sociology and African-American studies, and she got her law degree from Harvard. We are not worthy.
Image: Getty Images
