Michelle Obama shares her family’s quarantine routine

The Obamas, much like the rest of the world, are figuring out ways to keep busy and cohabitate during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Michelle Obama, 56, opened up in a phone call to Ellen DeGeneres on Monday about how she and former President Barack Obama, 58, and daughters Malia, 21, and Sasha, 18, are spending their time together at home. 

The key is sticking to their routine. 

“We’re just trying to structure our days,” the former first lady said. “Everyone’s here – the girls are back since colleges are online, so they’re off in their respective rooms doing their online classes. I think Barack is – I don’t know where he is. He was on the phone on a conference call; I just got finished with a conference call… We’re just trying to keep a routine going, but we’ve also got a little Netflix and chilling happening.” 

DeGeneres jokingly expressed her “condolences” to Obama, who had recently talked about enjoying being an empty-nester with Malia at Harvard and Sasha at the University of Michigan.

“But on the positive side, I know for us, it’s forced us to continue to sit down with each other, have real conversations, really ask questions and figure out how to keep ourselves occupied without just TV or computers,” she said. “It’s a good exercise in reminding us that we just don’t need a lot of the stuff that we have.”