Kayleigh’s Army: Kayleigh the Mighty Mito Warrior

07/05/2025

Kayleigh picked out her new glasses. They’re called Skittles. They SCREAM Kayleigh. Vibrant and flamboyant! The best part is she LOVES them!

07/05/2025

Kayleigh’s 1st 4th of July vs 4th of July 2025

07/02/2025

And this one belongs to the Reds! Thank you Casey Cares for sending me and my family to the Cincinnati Reds game.

07/02/2025

We will NEVER forget the love and generosity that was poured out onto us during Kayleigh’s service dog fundraising. 1 year later I’m still in amazement.
Around this time next year Kayleigh’s Service dog will Graduate. 🐾💚

06/26/2025

June has been very busy and very exciting for Kayleigh.
She enjoyed a week away at MDA Camp. This is her 3rd year and she ALWAYS has the absolute best time. She’s talking about next year as soon as we pick her up {after her 2 hour nap during the ride home that is}
She had the amazing opportunity to meet and even sign her own Topps Player Cards for TJ Friedl and many other Cincinnati Reds players thanks to Cincinnati Reds and Cincinnati Children's
Enjoyed a Cincinnati Reds game (which we won!!)
She had the opportunity to go watch the Thunderbirds and other very talented pilots at the Dayton Air show sneak preview/Practice thanks to A Special Wish Foundation - Dayton & Southwest Ohio Chapter
We’ve enjoyed 2 movies at one of our favorite Summer time hangouts- The Drive-in. We saw LILO and Stitch live action and Elio. Both Great movies.
Enjoyed some catching up with our Cincinnati Children’s Perlman Center family. Played on some really hot playground equipment.
We’ve hit up the ice cream shops a couple times since the temperatures at set at Hell degrees.
And when we’re not having fun at all the above we’re lounging in pool.

06/18/2025

06/17/2025

Kayleigh was given an amazing opportunity today thanks to Cincinnati Children’s, Cincinnati Reds and TJ Friedl.
She and several other Cincinnati Children’s Kids got the opportunity of a lifetime.
TJ and the Cincinnati Reds had Player Cards made for each Child which then was signed by the kids and given to the players. The kids got the opportunity to interact, have some amazing conversations and share fist bumps with their favorite players.
This is an experience these kids will NEVER forget.
Thank you to everyone that made this day so incredibly special!

06/17/2025

Exciting things are happening right now for Kayleigh.
Stay tuned for an update

06/15/2025

Kayleigh’s Home from Camp!
As always she had a blast!
She went swimming, made slime, made crafts and went fishing. But most importantly she grew, she made friends, and like always won the hearts of all the Leaders.
Kayleigh’s been attending the MDA (Muscular Dystrophy Association) Summer Camp for 3 years now and she ALWAYS has the absolute best time. For her it’s all about the fun. But for us as parents it’s all about the inclusion and personal growth.
MDA camp allows Kayleigh’s to grow in independence (yes, they have lots of support staff, nurses, volunteers and leaders that help with her medical needs) but it gives her a sense of independence with mom and dad not being an earshot away. She also gets the opportunity to be surrounded by peers that know and understand the struggles that she faces daily. Her and her friends have wheelchair races and make wheelchair trains. Nobody looks at her differently or treats her like she’s different because they’re all facing similar battles.
I am so incredibly thankful for everyone that makes this week possible. Not just the volunteers and staff but also the generous donors and anyone who’s ever donated in March to the MDA Shamrock Campaign (yes the donations/purchase of the paper shamrocks help make this possible). Thanks to donations and campaigns like these Kayleigh’s (and all the other campers) week at camp is 100% donor and volunteer supported {which is a huge blessing for the parents because special needs life is also a very expensive life}
You see when Kayleigh was diagnosed a representative with the MDA joined us in clinic and spoke to us about the diagnosis and how they could help. At this point we had never given summer camps a single thought because she was still too young. What we didn’t realize is that summer camp isn’t really a reality or possibility for many kids with special needs because of the level of care they require. MDA bridges this gap. Giving the kids the opportunity to go to camp like any other kid. And parents get to drop them off with the peace of mind that their child and their medical needs are being meet.
Pictures from camp hasnt been released yet, so until then enjoy the ones I took at drop off and pick up.

06/01/2025

Fun fact about Kayleigh:
Kayleigh is a HUGE STITCH fan.
So we’ve been super exited about this movie.
Stitch the Movie and The Drive-in is the best of both worlds.
We LOVE Drive in Movie nights during the summer.

05/28/2025

3rd grades a wrap
Watch out 4th grade Kayleigh’s on her way. She just has to enjoy summer first

04/09/2025

Cincinnati Children’s K9 Comfort has been such a blessing to Kayleigh and our hole Family.
Being medically complex there are a lot of very necessary and unavoidable tests and procedures that need done. Cincinnati. And Children’s has been amazing at trying to make things are comfortable and less scary as possible but unfortunately medical trauma is unavoidable.
This is where K9 comfort comes in. It allows these kids to do normal things like snuggling with a dog while they watch a movie, they sit with them and distract them from some really scary or uncomfortable tests and procedures.
Our experience with Marty was the reason we began the process of getting Kayleigh her own service dog.

Our paw-some friends at B-105 Cincinnati are supporting our Canine Comfort Facility Dog Program through April 18! These four-legged caregivers help kids and families find comfort and a sense of normalcy while in the hospital, and create smiles when they might be needed most. Learn more: https://b105.com/contests/caninecomfort2025-week2/