First Lady's First Month in the White House

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2009— -- Events honoring Black History Month at the White House have often seemed like Hallmark holidays. But not this year, thanks to the host: first lady Michelle Obama. Never before has there been a first lady who was descended from African slaves.

Obama welcomed 200 sixth- and seventh-graders from the Washington area into the White House Wednesday for an afternoon of conversation and music celebrating African-American history.

In the near month since she moved into the presidential mansion, Michelle Obama has brought a dose of glamour to this frumpy, buttoned-down town. In March, she will become the second first lady to grace the cover of Vogue magazine, opening up about her personal story and style.

Whether she's making the rounds at government agencies or making speeches, as first ladies do, the first lady shares in many mothers' struggles to balance work and family.

"There isn't a day that goes by, particularly after having kids, that I don't wonder or worry about whether I'm doing the right thing -- for myself, for my family, for my girls," she said at a Howard University panel discussion on women and the workplace. "Just remember, there is no one right answer. It took me a long time to figure that out. There is no one right way to do any of this."

The first lady's empathy for working and military mothers was a theme throughout the President Obama's campaign.

"I think Mrs. Obama wants to make it clear that she puts her children first and that she understands the plight of other mothers who are trying to do the balancing act," said ABC News contributor Cokie Roberts.

The juggling act of private and public responsibilities has made Obama identifiable for women everywhere.

"Michelle Obama can really be a kind of a role model for a woman who's been able to bring balance in her life and live her life in a series of phases and pauses," said Tina Brown, author and founder of the DailyBeast.com.