Former First Lady Michelle Obama made no mention of the man who replaced her husband as president during her first post-White House speaking engagement Thursday in Orlando and appeared to rule out seeking office in the future. 
 
 “It’s all well and good until you start running, and then the knives come out,” she said. “Politics is tough, and it’s hard on a family … I wouldn’t ask my children to do this again because, when you run for higher office, it’s not just you, it’s your whole family.” 
 
 “Plus,” she added, “there’s just so much more we can do outside of the office, because we won’t have the burden of political baggage.” 
 
 Obama participated in a 45-minute Q&A during the American Institute of Architects’ annual conference at the Orange County Convention Center on Thursday. She spoke about adjusting to life after the White House and discussed her goals for the future and causes she hopes to support. 
 
 “One issue that I am excited about continuing to work on is … to help young girls get an education around the world,” she said, citing the Let Girls Learn initiative she launched as first lady. Obama also stressed the need to combat violence against women and improve their access to healthcare. 
 
 “The plight of women and girls is real,” she said. “The struggles are real.” 
 
 Her remarks came days after President Barack Obama’s first public appearance since leaving office. The ex-president spoke at a forum Monday for students at the University of Chicago, reflecting on his formative experiences in politics and doling out advice. 
 
 Like her husband days earlier, Michelle Obama never mentioned President Donald Trump during Thursday’s event, though she did get laughs for making reference to news media coverage of his first 100 days in office. 
 
 “So far, so good,” she said, asked about her adjustment to life as a private citizen. “It hasn’t been that long, really. It’s been less than 100 days. I think everybody’s counting 100 days. We’re counting, too.” 
 
 Later, she described holding back her emotions after saying goodbye to White House workers on the day of Trump’s inauguration. “I didn’t want to have tears in my eyes because people would swear I was crying because of the new president,” she said. 
 
 Obama said said she and her family were enjoying the freedoms of post-White House life, such as being able to open their windows at night, travel without a motorcade and answer their own front door. 
 
 “You can imagine our two dogs, Bo and Sunny, who had never heard a doorbell in their life,” she said. 
 
 Obama said she and her husband are hard at work on plans for the Barack Obama Presidential Center, which will be in Jackson Park on the south side of Chicago and hosted by the University of Chicago. 
 
 “We have spent a lot of time looking at structures and models and it’s been a phenomenal experience,” she said. “We’re also thinking about what’s going to happen in that building, the programming, what we can do not just for the city of Chicago, but for the country and the world, perhaps.” 
 
 Despite her hesitance to seek elected office in the future, Michelle Obama pledged that she and her husband will be active in social causes. 
 
 “Barack and I have been in public service our whole lives,” she said. “Public service will always be in our blood.” 
 
 The Obamas mostly have kept a low profile since Barack Obama’s farewell address in January, though details and photos of their post-presidential vacation have surfaced in recent weeks. Michelle Obama was last in Central Florida for the Invictus Games at Walt Disney World in May 2016. 
 
 jeweiner@orlandosentinel.com, 407-420-5171 or @JeffWeinerOS on Twitter 
 
 11 arrested in Orange during ICE sweep of Florida, Puerto Rico » ||||| Story highlights Obama has stayed clear from the spotlight since they left the White House 
 
 She says being in the White House was tough on their family 
 
 Washington (CNN) Former first lady Michelle Obama said she would never run for political office because she "wouldn't ask my children to do this again." 
 
 In her first speech since leaving the White House, she told an audience at the America Institute of Architecture convention in Orlando that being in the White House was tough on her family. 
 
 No cameras were permitted at the speech, where Obama told the audience she can help the country as a private citizen without being in the political spotlight, adding that the vitriol of politics meant that people "thought I was the devil." Obama said she will continue to work for young girls and women around the world who face challenges with education, medical care, economic inequality and violence. 
 
 "It's good to get out of the house," she said about being at the event. "(It's been) so far so good -- it hasn't been that long since we left ... it's good to not have the weight of the world upon your shoulders." 
 
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– If you were hoping that the US might someday have a President Michelle Obama, we have bad news for you. The former first lady says she won't run for political office, CNN reports. During her first speech since the Obamas left the White House, Michelle on Thursday told a crowd at the American Institute of Architecture convention in Florida that since exiting political life, it's been "good to not have the weight of the world upon your shoulders." She added that she plans to continue working on behalf of women and girls, but that she can make an impact without being an elected official. "It’s all well and good until you start running [for office], and then the knives come out. Politics is tough, and it’s hard on a family," she said, according to the Orlando Sentinel. "I wouldn’t ask my children to do this again because, when you run for higher office, it’s not just you, it’s your whole family." She added that as a private citizen, she can work for the causes that are important to her without "the burden of political baggage," but assured the audience that public service would always be a part of her and her husband's lives.