Barack and Michelle Obama have very busy schedules, of this there is no doubt. It’s a good thing they have some help, not just from staffers, but also from family: Michelle Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson. Before her arrival, the last presidential grandmother to occupy the White House was Elvira Doud, Dwight Eisenhower’s mother-in-law.
Fewer American families live like this today than in 1953. But according to a new report from the Pew Research Center, multigenerational households are becoming more common. In 1980, some 12 percent of families had two or more adult generations living under the same roof. Now, 18 percent do, and the total number of Americans with this living arrangement has doubled, to 56.8 million. Almost half (48 percent) are in households that working parents share with luckless “boomerangs” sheltering in their old childhood bedrooms. But nearly as many are living with three generations or more. In fact, 20 percent of Americans age 65 or older live in multigenerational households, compared to 16 percent in 1990.
