Story highlights Inside Vogue, Michelle Obama describes a wistfulness at leaving White House life behind

In photos by Annie Leibovitz, the first lady poses in Versace and Carolina Herrera

Washington (CNN) First Lady Michelle Obama is making her third appearance on the cover of Vogue as her days in the White House draw to a close.

The cover shows the first lady reclining on the grass in the South Lawn garden, her hair loose and her elbows propped up on a flower bed.

Inside the magazine, Obama describes a wistfulness at leaving White House life behind.

"You know, there are little ... moments," she said. "Looking out on the South Lawn and the Washington Monument and it had just rained and the grass was really green and everything popped a little bit more. It's (so) beautiful. And for that moment I thought, I'm going to miss waking up to this, having access to this anytime I want."

.@FLOTUS Michelle Obama is the cover star of our December issue! Read the full story: https://t.co/ihGSr9Obhl pic.twitter.com/OONghTYMP8 — Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) November 11, 2016

The first lady appeared on Vogue's cover shortly after her husband took office in 2009, and again in 2012.

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