First Lady Michelle Obama walks out with her dogs Bo and Sunny, to welcome the Official White House Christmas Tree. This year’s White House Christmas tree, which will be on display in the Blue Room, was presented by Jay Bustard, left, and his brother Glenn Bustard, center, from Bustard’s Christmas Trees in Lansdale, PA
First Lady Michelle Obama follows her daughters Malia Obama and Sasha Obama, as they arrive to welcome the Official White House Christmas Tree to the White House
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First Lady Michelle Obama watches as daughter Malia Obama, adjusts the collar for her sister Sasha Obama, as they walk out to welcome the Official White House Christmas Tree to the White House. This year’s White House Christmas Tree, which will be on display in the Blue Room, is an 18.5-foot Douglas Fir grown by Chris Botek, a second generation Christmas Tree Farmer from Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Lehighton, Penn. Dogs Bo Obama, left, and Sunny Obama also participated
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What we missed
Marian Robinson (FLOTUS’s mother), First Lady Michelle Obama, Kathleen Biden (Hunter Biden’s wife), Maisy Biden, Sasha Obama, and a friend attend a women’s college basketball game between the Princeton Tigers and the American University Eagles at Bender Arena on November 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. The First Lady’s niece, Leslie Robinson, was playing for Princeton.
It all started with an email invitation. My reaction after opening this message swung from excitement and serious tingling, to disbelief and suspicion. I could not imagine what I had done that was wonderful enough to earn an invitation to the White House for a party. Our team had an event every week, I faithfully listened to briefing calls from our state and national leaders, we had been involved in some innovative projects – but a holiday party at the White house was over the top.
I had fantasized about meeting the President, when he was in the SF area, shaking his hand, mumbling something coherent and trying not to pass out. Going to Washington DC, being able to attend an event at the White House with the President and Mrs. Obama was way beyond anything I had ever imagined.
Then that dark voice that lives in my head began to emerge. I kept looking at the part of the invitation that asked for my social security number and date of birth. Was this just a clever scheme to steal my identity? Drats… I called the number on the invitation but it was an answering machine. I wrote to my Regional Field Organizer asking her if she knew anything about it – Nope. I wrote to another volunteer asking if she had received an invitation, Nada…
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama address military personnel during a Christmas day visit to Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe, Hawaii
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Obama “decided to take individual pictures with all of the roughly 580 service members and their families,” per pool, he’s about an hour in.
— Meredith Shiner (@meredithshiner) December 26, 2025