A Preteen Friendly White House

Source: Tween Parent Staff

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If history is any indication, Sasha and Malia are going to have lots of fun while living at the White House. Quentin Roosevelt, one of the more mischievous White House children, used to toss snowballs at unsuspecting pedestrians from the White House roof. Tad Lincoln enjoyed dressing up as a Union soldier and pretending to bomb the door outside the Cabinet Room; often interrupting President Lincoln and his advisors. Amy Carter roller-skated down hallways.

As well as having the opportunity to be reprimanded by important people, First Children enjoy many presidential perks. Meeting world leaders and famous people in entertainment and sports becomes the norm. Playdates can include swimming, bowling, tennis, basketball, golfing on the putting green and watching movies in your private theater. White House kids have their choice of rooms, including the Lincoln Bedroom, for slumber parties or can follow Amy Carter's example and spend the night in a custom built tree house. Of course, Susan Ford, famously, held her senior prom at the White House.

Susan Ford Bales remembers, "The staff is the most wonderful thing you could ever have, especially for a teenager. You drop a wet towel... you come back five minutes later, and it's gone". Former White House Social Secretary to the Clintons, Capricia Marshall says the girls can expect to be pampered. "When a day hasn't gone right, the butlers will make sure you have your favorite dessert." The White House staff of 80, including world renown pastry chefs, not only means that mom doesn't have to cook, but helps the First Family plan birthday parties and is available to bake cookies with the First Kids.

Life is not always easy for White House kids. Media attention sometime means little or no privacy. Amy Carter suffered through awkward adolescent years being mocked for her views on nuclear disarmament, chastised for reading at a state dinner, and having comedians make caustic remarks about her hair and oversized glasses. Susan Ford got a huge amount of press for ditching her guards during her late teenage years and the Bush twins were nailed for under aged drinking. Doug Wead, presidential historian and author of All The Presidents Children, said, "For all their accomplishments, they [White House kids] are forever defined by something they said or did there".

Mom-in-Chief, Michelle Obama plans to make life as normal as possible for Sasha and Malia. Like the Clintons, the President-Elect and Mrs. Obama are sure to insist that the press adopt a hands-off policy towards their children. Sasha and Malia will be expected to continue making their own beds, setting their alarms, clearing their plates after dinner and cleaning up after the new First Dog. And, in her new world of normal that is not normal, Malia plans to do her history homework on Lincoln's desk. Michelle Obama said in an interview with 60 Minutes, "We want to make sure that we're upholding what that house stands for. But I couldn't help but envisioning the girls running into their rooms and running down the hall and -- with a dog. Our hope is that the White House will feel open and fun and full of life and energy."

On their first visit to the White House, Sasha and Malia got some inspiration from Jenna and Barbara Bush. Laura Bush described what happened in an interview with ABC's Good Morning America. "It was fun for the girls to get to show them not only [their rooms], but the way the big cross hall can be an obstacle course for little kids to run up and down, and the solarium ramp that you can slide down on your bottom."

The twins also showed the Obama girls how to make a running jump onto a tall bed. "We usually put a step out for people to step into when they stay in that room. But instead, the little girls did the running jump, and Barbara and Jenna, of course, aided and abetted that jumping," Mrs. Bush said.

The Obamas plan to do their share in keeping life routine for their kids. Sasha and Malia will continue their gymnastics and tap lessons, soccer games, and sleepovers. Their parents will attend as many school events as possible. President-Elect Obama summed it up when he told ABC, "I think a lot of it just has to do with making sure that they understand that they're special to us because we're their parents. But, they're not special, you know, in terms of having to do their homework or having to do chores."

At TweenParent.com, we have no doubt the Obamas will succeed in raising well-adjusted kids. Even though they don't seem to need it, Susan Ford Bales offers some great advice that, in truth, applies to all parents. She recommends, "Keep being a parent. Keep loving your children and keep being available to them".

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