Michelle and Barack Obama Celebrate Daughter Malia's Birthday with Sweet Throwback Photos: 'Still Willing to Hold Your Dad’s Hand'

Esme Mazzeo

4 July 2024 at 1:45 pm·2-min read

"You deserve the world and more," Michelle wrote to her daughter on Instagram

<p>Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg</p> From left: Malia, Michelle, and Barack Obama in 2017 — Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg
From left: Malia, Michelle, and Barack Obama in 2017

Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are celebrating their eldest daughter, who turned 26 on the Fourth of July.

Barack, 62, posted a throwback photo of a young Malia Obama holding his hand as they walked down a street to his Instagram account on Thursday, July 4.

"Happy birthday, Malia. One of the greatest joys of my life is watching you grow into the extraordinary woman you’ve become today – and the fact that you’re still willing to hold your dad’s hand in public!" the former president captioned the photo, in which Malia matched with her dad in a blue outfit and gazed up at him adoringly.

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A post shared by Michelle Obama (@michelleobama)

Michelle, 60, went even further back into the family archives for her Instagram tribute, posting a photo of Malia beaming as a toddler while holding a stuffed bunny.

"Happy birthday, Malia! No matter how old you get, you’ll always be my little pea and I’ll always be proud of you," Michelle captioned the photo. "You deserve the world and more. ❤️."

Malia is a filmmaker and TV writer living with her younger sister Sasha Obama in California. While at a fundraiser for Joe Biden in Los Angeles on June 15, Barack said that neither woman will ever get into politics, per Michelle's advice.

<p>Pete Souza/The White House via Getty</p> President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and daughters Malia (L) and Sasha (R) pose for a family portrait with their pets Bo and Sunny in 2015 — Pete Souza/The White House via Getty
President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and daughters Malia (L) and Sasha (R) pose for a family portrait with their pets Bo and Sunny in 2015

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"That is a question I do not need to answer, because Michelle drilled into them so early that you would be crazy to go into politics," Barack answered a question posed by Jimmy Kimmel about which one of his daughters would make a better U.S. president.

"It'll never happen," he added.

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