Boston's Brigade & Layla Strong

09/05/2026

Don't forget to vote for Layla! She needs your help to make it into the top 10. You can vote every day too

Layla Was Diagnosed With Cancer. She Won Her Fight, And Now Fights Hard To Get Back Into Dance, Soccer And Gymnastics.

09/03/2026

https://athleteoftheyear.org/2026/layla-9523

Someone was thoughtful enough to nominate Layla for athlete of the year! If everyone could do me a favor and go over and vote for her.

Layla Was Diagnosed With Cancer. She Won Her Fight, And Now Fights Hard To Get Back Into Dance, Soccer And Gymnastics.

08/31/2026

Forgot to post my senior Sunday on this page yesterday. Can't believe Graysen is a senior already, or that he was ever this tiny.

08/28/2026

What a long day. Left at 8:30 this morning to head to Cincinnati for Bostons cardiology check up. With his trauma disorder, doctor appointments are torture to him. Some teams are great about dealing with his rules and antics, and some are not as good. Unfortunately this time we got the not so good.. which was disappointing because last time we had the best of the best and he did so great and we had no nightmares after. Today he kept telling me he was scared, so I'm preparing for a night of little sleep.. but fingers crossed that's not the case.
But the great news is he got RAVING reviews from the cardiologist. He put on 4.5 pounds since last time (heart babes struggle to gain weight). His Glenn circuit (the path created during his first surgery) looked amazing. His stent had great flow on both sides. His function (squeeze of his heart) looked great.. which for Boston has not always been the case. But overall he has gained so much in his social skills. His talking is on par for his age, the way he plays has changed so much. What he comprehends is so much more. She said it's not often that they put the sentence push surgery back to 5 years old, and great idea in the same sentence... But she just kept telling me "I'm so glad things fell the way they did and we pushed back surgery a year. Because holy cow he is going to be in a much better place next year when he has his open heart surgery. What a blessing in disguise."
We left the hospital on such a high. We hit some traffic on the way home, so we decided to head straight to Auburn's soccer game instead of going home first. We got there shortly before half time, only for them to end up losing, which was a disappointment after their great game Tuesday.
We got home at 8:30 at night .. just a quick 12 hour trip 🫠. Finished homework for the older kids. Then some snuggles in my bed for the younger 2. Now just praying for a decent night sleep

08/26/2026

Monday the kids started back to school.
Graysen is a senior this year. I'm so not ready for it. For senior year the kids all pick character backpacks. Graysen wanted to match with Boston, and there was no surprise what Boston picked lol.
Auburn is starting 8th grade.
Layla is in 6th grade, and has moved down to the high school side.

Boston is supposed to start Thursday, but he has an appointment in Cincinnati, so he will have to wait until next week to start

08/06/2026

Today Layla had her bi-monthly appointment at Cincinnati. Of course she had to wear her moana dress that she got in Hawaii from JoJo, that she picked with Jess.
She brought down some bags from the charity as well.
They said everything looks great, and they all loved getting to see her trip pictures!

08/03/2026

08/03/2026

Luau time!!

08/03/2026

They brought Layla up with them to accept a donation to DAC from dance the magic.