Bo'Bama!

Everyone, say hello to Bo'Bama!

Bo, a Portuguese water dog, moved into the White House this past weekend, but he will officially be presented to the First Family today. The Obamas will get their picture taken with Bo, as well.

Oh, if Bo pees on someone during this welcome ceremony, he gets an automatic WIN FOR LIFE award.

And he wears a lei!

Barack Obama Writes to His Daughters

In the midst of the chaotic preparations for Inauguration Day, President-elect Barack Obama has written a letter to his daughters that will be published this Sunday in Parade magazine.

He apologizes to his girls for not being able to spend as much time with them during the campaign as he would have liked, saying, "I know that you've both had a lot of fun these last two year on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn't have let you have. But I also know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't make up for all the time we've been apart."

He thanks them for their support and then goes on to tell them, "I know how much I've missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey."

In his explanation, he elucidates, "I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours... In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation."

After much more explanation, he end his letter with praise for the girls. "I am so proud of both of you," he says, "I love you more than you can ever know. And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House."

Malia and Sasha Obama: Normal Kids

Something tells me we won't have to worry about these two girls being involved in a "teen pregnancy scandal" in eight years...

The Times reports that Barack Obama has promised that he will help his daughters to “keep it real” after they move to the White House, making them clean their own rooms, make their beds and even “scoop the poop” left on the grass by their new puppy.

The strict regime outlined by the Obamas is a huge departure from that followed by the previous first daughters, Barbara and Jenna Bush - once described by White House staffers as “all noblesse and no oblige."

Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10, have been making their own beds since they were 4, the President-elect told the ABC television presenter Barbara Walters. The White House’s domestic staff have been told not to carry out chores that the Obamas want their girls to do. “That was the first thing I said to some of the staff when I did my visit,” Michelle Obama said. “I said, ‘You know, we’re going to have to set up some boundaries’.”

Obama said that the girls would bear responsibility for looking after the new puppy that he promised them as a reward for their patience during his election campaign. It would be the girls’ duty to “scoop the poop” left in the grounds. “We don’t want litter on the White House lawns,” Obama said. “They are going to have to do their job.”

The girls have already been assigned their bedrooms, the same ones that the Bush twins first occupied eight years ago. Obama added that his elder daughter had her eye on a special place to do her homework.

Back from a familiarization visit with her mother and sister, Malia told her father that she planned to work at the desk in the fabled Lincoln bedroom because “I’m thinking that will inspire big thoughts”.