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Mother's Day And Butterflies: The First Lady Is Busy With Both

Mother's Day. It's almost here.  Whether you're planning to take your mom out to eat or stay at home and cook, the topic will remain, 'What will the Mother's Day menu be this year?

America's First Lady, Michelle Obama shares how she'll celebrate Mothers' Day 2010, and gives insight on what the menu might be.

“It could be fried chicken ... fried chicken and french fries or greens or macaroni and cheese,” responded America’s first lady Michelle Obama to the question on how her family will celebrate Mother’s Day.

After that meal, the First Lady will really need to take a lesson from her Let's Move initiative to fight off those calories.

Mrs. Obama is featured in the May 2010 issue of Good Housekeeping, where she talks about overcoming her fears, keeping her marriage close, and raising kids.

On Thursday, the First Lady helped students of Marie Reed Learning Center paint a butterfly mural and plant a butterfly garden to help make the Center’s space visually more engaging and vibrant for the children and members of the community who make use of the Center’s programs and facilities.

"We have a relationship, but creating a mural and organizing a group of well-intentioned but not necessarily artistic people to entrust us with your walls, is a huge risk to take", said the First Lady. "And we’re honored to be a part of it."

First Lady Michelle Obama paints a beautiful butterfly mural at Marie Reed Learning Center.  Who knew she was both artistic and beautiful? Photo/CD Brown.

Modesty aside, the First Lady completed a wonderful butterfly painting on the school's rear wall, across from the butterfuly garden where students planted milkweed to attract Monarch butterflies.

"Monarch butterflies are endangered", said the school's principal Dayo Akinsheye.  As the environment changes, the monarch butterflies have become less visible. We wanted to have the butterfly garden to bring them into an enviroment where they can thrive."
The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities helped design the project in collaboration with two winners of the Committee’s 2009 Coming Up Taller Award – the Sitar Arts Center, a brillian after-school visual and performing arts center in Adams Morgan providing a range of arts training to children and youth by professional artists, and Higher Achievement, an after-school tutoring program in the humanities that helps low income children in Washington, DC gain admission to prep schools. Sitar is having registration for upcoming summer camp.   Check their site for info.

The Marie Reed Learning Center has been credited with helping students meet and exceed their talents. Many students have increased GPAs as a result of attending the center.

First Lady helps students complete butterfly mural.  Photo/ CD Brown

"It’s important, so important, not just to me but to the community to have us out here; for our kids to see that we not only care about them, which we do -- we are so proud of you all and we want the world to see you all and understand your potential, to see grade point averages go from 2.0 to 3-point-who-knows-what. We are so proud and we want to keep lifting you up and showing other kids that these opportunities are available", the First Lady said.

Congressionals spouses of Mark Udall, John Mica (D- FL), and others, also participated in the event, helping students create smaller butterfly murals that will soon adorn the school's windows.

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