Handling time conversion with Carbon. #From: https://laracasts.com/forum/?p=764-saving-carbon-dates-from-user-input/0

BaseModel.php

//BaseModel.php
protected function dateStringToCarbon($date, $format = 'm/d/Y')
    {
        if(!$date instanceof Carbon) {
            $validDate = false;
            try {
                $date = Carbon::createFromFormat($format, $date);
                $validDate = true;
            } catch(Exception $e) { }

            if(!$validDate) {
                try {
                    $date = Carbon::parse($date);
                    $validDate = true;
                } catch(Exception $e) { }
            } 

            if(!$validDate) {
                $date = NULL;
            }
        }
        return $date;
    }