Samantha K Schmidt

I truly believe that I was predestined to be a mother. I've had a longing in my heart since I was a young girl. My mother often called me the child-whisperer because I frequently caught eyes with babies in restaurants and grocery stores. My role as teacher gave me the opportunity to be part-time mom to dozens of kids who I like to believe I helped grow into better people, but nothing prepared me for the transition into actual motherhood. Over the past month I've realized that motherhood is a balancing act that years of child development training and personal research could never truly prepare me for. The Balance between Research and Instinct I had spent 9 months researching breastfeeding tips, sleep schedules, and parenting techniques. After compiling article after article, I even put together a daily schedule for my newborn who hadn't even entered the world yet. It is a trademark of my personality. I thrive off of routine. Everyone laughed when I told them I already...

On November 14, 2015 my amazing boyfriend asked me to be his wife and almost immediately gave me the deadline of 5 months to plan and prepare a wedding and merge our two homes. I had known since the beginning of our relationship that he wasn't fond of long engagements and admittedly the sooner I could marry him the happier I would have been; however, I believe he underestimated just how much there is to do in preparation for a wedding. As the wedding day got closer and closer I found my capacity for other processing almost entirely disabled. A normally organized and alert individual, I began to lose track of dates, tasks, and even people's names. The other day I found myself pondering over the name of a coworker for nearly 3 minutes before it finally made its way out of long term memory. I began using the term wedding brain when I realized that like a pregnant woman I was so focused on this monumental change in my life that I seemed to be forgetting little details....

Hello Luxers, I hope this post finds you well. I wanted to take some time today to get personal. My goal when creating this blog was to add a personal touch without making it about myself, but I feel the need to explain my absence. As many of you know I am a full-time teacher and school started back for me 3 weeks ago. This year has been a huge change for me professionally and emotionally. I went from a classroom of 11 to a classroom of 22 with 2 diagnosed ADHD students, 1 diagnosed ODD student, and immeasurable emotional, psychological, and behavioral problems. On top of all this I work for a small private school with minimal facilities for these kinds of students. But I have nothing to complain about, I'm blessed and these kids are where they belong in many ways. Anyone else would lose their patience and give up. Nonetheless, I have found it nearly impossible to keep Morning Lux fresh. This summer was such a fun time for me beginning this process. I have found such joy in writing...

Summer is almost over, but don't fret fall is right around the corner. To celebrate my friend and I decided to go ahead and break out the pumpkin. We decided to make pumpkin rice krispie treats. I forgot to take pictures of the process, but here is the original recipe from  Pinterest . I spent a lot of the weekend preparing to go back to work by expanding my dress collection. Here is a preview of the haul. Be on the lookout for a more detailed post. Saturdays are for sangria! I also couldn't resist trying these cappuccino flavored potato chips. I'm a sucker for good advertising and Lays does it every time with their wild flavors. I was pleasantly surprised by this flavor. The sweet flavor is best in moderation though. Hope you guys had a fabulous weekend. Monday's posts may start to look different now that I'm back at work, but I'm going to try to continue to post at least 3 times a week. If you are headed back to school this week good luck luxe...

Non-Profit Coffee Met up with a friend Friday afternoon for coffee at a place called Credo. Turns out this hip coffee house is actually a non-profit. You choose the price that is fair. I was surprised a place like this survived, but it seemed to have a serious following. Dinner with Sisaundra Lewis I've been seeing the woman with the golden lungs everywhere. I guess she's the only "celebrity" we have here in Orlando right now. Other than Carrot Top, I see him every now and then. Cupacake Break Stopped by B Cupcakes for these beauties. I'm a real snob when it comes to dessert, but this as close as it gets to gourmet in my hometown. I had the chocolate peanut butter and mom had the Elvis. They were both delicious, but so rich. All Play, No Work Tried to get some work done, but this guy wasn't having it.  See daily updates by following me on Instagram

Let's try to start a new series shall we. I do enjoy snapping pictures of my weekend adventures, and it would be a shame for them to just sit on my phone without being shared. So here is this weekend in review. Saturday Brunch at Keke' s: I have to admit the first time I ever went to Keke's I was disturbed by their unhealthy menu options and unnecessarily large portions. The majority of American's don't know how to eat properly and restaurants tend to perpetuate this problem. (Sorry, rant over.) On Saturday I gave Keke's another chance and tried to pick out some healthy options. So I went with the Eggs Florentine, nixed the potatoes, and added this delicious breakfast salad with yogurt, granola, honey, and fruit. Healthy and delicious. Shopping : Then my mom and I headed over to the mall. The goal was to find her a dress for an event later that evening, but we ended up at Bath and Body Works for their semi-annual sale. I've been supe...

There comes a point in your adulthood that having summers off is no longer full of late nights and parties with friends. At 25 of all of my friends have full time jobs, families, and kids, but as a teacher I do enjoy having a few months to recuperate. Still I know that I'm going to wear myself out on Netflix if I don't stick to some kind of schedule. Most of the summer schedules I found online were geared towards families, so I used inspiration from my Summer To-Do List  and I came up with a schedule that will help me knock a few things off this list. Daily 6:30 Wake Up 6:35 Take Dogs out and Feed Boys (my female dog has to be fed separately) 6:40 Drink a full glass of water and make coffee 6:45 Make bed 6: 50 Feed Marilyn & Medicine 7:00 Eat breakfast & Daily Devotional 7:30 Get Dressed 8:00 Writing & Blogging 10:00 Get out of the house (see my weekly get out plan below) 12:00 Lunch 12:30 Practice ASL 1:30 Chores (dishes, sweeping, etc.)...

After I graduated college I went through a really rough time. I couldn't find a job. I broke up with my boyfriend of 2 years, and all my friends seemed to have abandoned me. I was going through a serious bout of depression. After taking some photos for an audition one day, something hit me. It was like a smack in the face. Something I had been ignoring for the past 3 years. I had gained more than 30 pounds. My BMI teetering on the edge of overweight. After months of moping around, my eyes had finally opened. I knew that if I didn't get my life on track my genetics would kick in and I would be stuck with the plagues of my family: obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. So I decided to change my life entirely. I won't say I lost weight in a completely healthy way, but I can say that over the past few years I have found a middle ground between obsessive overeating and obsessive under eating. Today I have a pretty healthy lifestyle, and I thought I would sh...

I've been lacking inspiration a lot lately. When I started this blog I was full of great ideas. My first few weeks of posts were right on target. Since then I've had some hits and some misses. My biggest problem has been turning my ideas into posts. I have a list of ideas that I could be blogging about, but every time I try to type the words it comes out as a jumbled mess. I've never been one to talk about something I didn't feel educated about. So when it comes to blog posts I never feel like my opinion is good enough. Maybe I'm just going through an insecure stage, but I'm lacking a lot of the motivation I had early on. I can't seem to find the spark to get writing.  Fellow bloggers, what motivates you? Where do you find inspiration?

It's finally here! My room is officially finished. Well as finished as a room can be. There's always more to do and things to add. I filmed a little video to show you around. If you would like more details about the things in my room let me know. For now, enjoy! Here's a list showing where I bought each item Ikea: Dresser Desk Drawer Tower Hat Boxes Typewriter Picture Shelves Frames Lamps Purple Candles and Candleholders Duvet, Duvet Cover, Pillow Shams Marshalls: Accent pillow Dresser tray Curtains Lavender Candle Ring Holder Walmart: Side Tables

The weather has been extremely bi-polar here in Florida, so I didn't get to enjoy the usual Spring Break beachside. However, I thought I would share some of my cloudy day adventures with you.  Had a delicious Vegan dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. Their chocolate chip cookies are my favorite.  Went antiquing and saw this. Meow. Spent some time at Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival. I waited 10 minutes to get the monorail shot. This was the only chance I got to wear shorts. Sampled some Florida Beer.  Went to St. Augustine with my mom. Flagler College is one of my favorite historical buildings. It was first known as the Ponce de Leon Hotel built by Henry Flagler. Now students actually live in the unique rooms that he created.  I finally bought one of these journals. I have no artistic ability, but it's fun to be creative. Saw the cast of The Middle filming at Magic Kingdom. En...