Michelle Obama provides peek into Obama White House

The Obama family is really enjoying life in the White House.

In an interview with People magazine, First Lady Michelle Obama said the president and their two kids have dinner together "every night", that her marriage is "not perfect" and that they're close to buying a family dog.

Michelle Obamau00a0said she and the president wake up at about 5.30 am and exercise in the White House gym.

She said their daughters, Malia (10) and Sasha (7) join them for a "mean waffles and grits" breakfast prepared for them by White House chefs.

Michelle Obama said having dinner together each night is also a very important part of the day. "We have dinner as a family together every night, and Barack, when he's not travelling, tucks the girls in," she told the magazine, which hits newsstands today.

"We haven't had that time together for [years], so that explains a lot why we all feel so good in this space."

While she and the commander-in-chief respect one other, she said their marriage is "strong", but "not perfect". "I don't want anybody to think it's that easy," she said. "It works because we really work at it."

Michelle Obamau00a0also said the girls have the same chores in the White House as they did in their Chicago home.

"People [at the White House] want to make your life easy, and when you have small kids -- I've explained this to the staff -- they don't need their lives to be easy," she said.

First Dog

In the meantime, the girls are excited about the upcoming arrival of the First Dog. Michelle Obama said she favours Portuguese Water Dogs, although getting a Labradoodle is still considered a possibility.

She said the dog -- which President Obama promised his daughters -- could arrive at the White House by April.

The Obamas have been going back and forth on possible names. Among the two Michelle Obama mentioned and nixed were Frank and Moose.