Ex-First Lady Barbara Bush had open-heart surgury today. Best wishes to her and her family on a speedy recovery.
Also, the Obamas installed a swing set for Sasha and Malia today (appears to be due south of the Oval Office). What, they couldn’t just use Amy Carter’s treehouse?
The Elliptical Saloon 
What bad place to put the swing set… it makes the West Wing look like a playground.
I totally can’t wait to see the girls playing on the swings in the background while Obama gives an Oval Office address.
(Okay, that would require a daytime address…)
I like the swing set. It once again shows the dual purpose of the White House….official seat of Presidential power, and a home. I like the symmetry.
Love seeing something specific for the kids. Reminds us that this is also a HOME.
Now what Barack needs to do is put one of those inflatable domes over the tennis court, take the net down, and put some temporary hoops in (and a few bleachers would be nice).
In the video of his tour of the press area, Obama says they put basketball backboards on the tennis court so they could play full court but that so far it was too cold to play.
Incidentally, I was disappointed to find in that video that it was clear that he and his staff were unaware of the WHM site. He mentioned how he didn’t know this and that about the White House; things that would have been pretty obvious if he had looked over the site. [sigh]
It’s exactly where the Kennedy’s put the swingset for the kids. It’s screened by the Jefferson Mounds so the kids can have some privacy from the tourists down at the south end of the grounds. But I would have thought hidden in the shrubs nest to the tennis courts where Jackie had the tampoline installed would have been a less obvious spot.