First Lady Denies Pregnancy Rumors

(March 31) - When they're not looking enviously at her toned upper arms, many Americans are sneaking peaks at Michelle Obama's stomach, looking for signs that the first lady may be expecting.

Don't get your hopes up. Michelle Obama puts the rumors to rest in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.

"Here's the scoop: Not pregnant. And not planning on it," she said in the interview, appearing in April's issue of O, The Oprah Magazine.

The first lady accompanied her husband to Europe on Tuesday. During the eight-day trip, President Barack Obama will attend a G-20 meeting of the world's major economic powers in London, where he will meet with the leaders of Britain, Russia and China, among others. He will also attend a NATO summit marking the 60 anniversary of the Western alliance was founded.

His wife's schedule includes an audience with Britain's Queen Elizabeth II.

In the O interview, the first lady talks about a number of issues, from raising children in the White House to how she's adjusting to her new role.

"I have one of the best jobs in the world. Because I don't have to fix the economy, thank goodness. Yet I get to go say hello to the people who make this government work, who hold us up and who will still be here after we're gone," she said.

The Princeton- and Harvard-educated lawyer told Winfrey she has changed since her husband first announced he was running for president in 2007.

"I'm more optimistic. More hopeful. It comes from traveling all over America and connecting with so many different people," she said.

She said she talked with the White House staff when the family first moved in and explained that daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, would be expected to do chores. "I want the kids to be treated like children, not little princesses. I told everyone that they should make their beds, they should clean their plates, they should act respectfully -- and if anyone on the staff sees differently, they should come to me."

Although she's been busy in the White House, Michelle Obama said she still makes time to work out regularly with weights. She also jumps rope and does kickboxing. "After I had Malia, I began to prioritize exercise because I realized that my happiness is tied to how I feel about myself. I want my girls to see a mother who takes care of herself, even if that means I have to get up at 4:30 so I can do a workout."

As for the pregnancy rumors, the first lady laughed them off when Winfrey questioned her about "rumors that you've got a baby bump. "

"I know -- I was like, 'Baby bump? As hard as I work on my abs!'"

But Michelle Obama must be used to the rumor mill. Her husband has been the subject of a lot of unfounded speculation, ranging from rumors that he is a Muslim (he is a Christian) to claims that he wasn't really born in the United States, and thus isn't eligible to be president. (Obama was born in Hawaii, the 50th state.)