'Frustrated' Michelle Obama Reveals Why She Told 'Rambunctious' Daughters Malia and Sasha She Was 'Done Parenting' When They Were Young Kids
Michelle Obama opened up about her parenting during an episode on her podcast.
Dec. 24 2025, Published 6:00 p.m. ET
Michelle Obama once became so enraged with her daughters she told them she was "done parenting" them, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The former first lady and wife of Barack opened up about the ordeal on the IMO podcast.
Michelle Obama Was Pushed to Her Limit
Michelle Obama said she has 'usually great kids.'
Michelle, 61, recalled her daughters being around 7 and 3 at the time, and she was trying to get them to bed.
While she noted they were "usually great kids," on that particular night, she shared they were "rambunctious."
When "no one was listening," Michelle said she declared, "Well, that's it… I'm done parenting. You seem like you guys have this all figured out, and you can do this on your own. So have at it."
Malia, her oldest daughter, quickly did an about-face and apologized, acknowledging she doesn't know what she'd "do without" her mom.
Michelle Obama's Younger Daughter's Reaction Was Different
Michelle Obama's oldest daughter, Malia, apologized to her.
Sasha, her younger daughter, had a different reaction.
"She took her blankie, and she turned around and went back upstairs to watch TV," Michelle recalled. "As if to say, like, 'Thank God. At last. This is what I wanted from you, lady. I am 3. I can handle this. I’m going back upstairs.'"
Michelle stated Sasha "got five steps up" when she told her daughter, "If you don't turn around and get back here."
"Well, it worked for one. Didn’t work for the other," she admitted.
Sasha and Malia's Different Personalities
'Sasha is like a cat,' Michelle Obama said of her youngest daughter.
Michelle copped to this being reflective of their personalities.
"My younger daughter, she wants to learn her way," the author of The Light We Carry continued sharing. "She doesn’t want to be told that this is how you do it. We tell her, but she’s got to learn on her own."
Due to this, Michelle noted her youngest was harder to raise, as Malia was more of a people "pleaser" than Sasha.
"Sasha is like a cat," Michelle previously stated in August. "She’s like, 'Don't touch me, don't pet me. I'm not pleasing you. You come to me.'"
Michelle Obama Was Supposed to See Rob and Michele Reiner the Night They Died
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Michelle Obama was supposed to see Rob and Michele Reiner the night they were murdered.
Aside from discussing her children, Michelle recently revealed she and Barack were supposed to see Rob and Michele Reiner the night of their deaths.
"We've known them for many, many years, and we were supposed to be seeing them that night, last night, and we got the news," she shared on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
While there, Michelle also went after Donald Trump for his brutal remarks about the late director after he passed.
"Let me just say this, unlike some people, Rob and Michele Reiner are some of the most decent, courageous people you ever want to know. They're not deranged or crazed.
"What they have always been are passionate people in a time when there's not a lot of courage going on. They're the kind of people who were ready to put their actions behind what they cared about.
"And they cared about their family, and they cared about this country, and they cared about fairness and equity — and that is the truth."
"I do know them," Michelle added.
