"Avery" - Missoula, MT  (Submitted by Jennifer Graf Groneberg - Avery's mom)

Avery Graf Groneberg, Polson, MT
Born 6/8/03

Avery is our second son, a fraternal twin, and was born with his brother seven weeks early. Each baby weighed just over four pounds and they spent a total of eight weeks in the NICU at Community Medical Center in Missoula. Five days after he was born, Avery was diagnosed with Down syndrome. These are the numbers of our story, but they don't give you the whole picture.

Like most parents, my husband Tom and I want the best for our children. When we heard Avery's diagnosis, we didn't know much about Down syndrome. To us, it seemed like a whole bunch of complications and new things to worry about. Now that Avery is almost three, what I know is this: he is the last of my kids to get sick; he is my best eater (especially if it's oatmeal); he loves animals, books and cuddling; like his brothers, he is the light of our lives.

His hair is the color of wheat; his eyes are blue like a river. At our house, people take their shoes off and leave them in a line by the door. When no one is looking, Avery tucks things into the empty shoes, like parting gifts—a toy car, a tiny horse, a pilfered spoon. Despite the stubbed toes, the lost spoons, the startled guests, it’s hard for me to be mad at him. He is the child that I wanted, that I did not know I wanted. He is my son.

We are a homeschooling family with three boys (Carter, 7, and Avery and Bennett, 2 1/2) and we live at the very end of a twisty gravel road on a peninsula that juts out into Flathead Lake. Avery has had "helpers" in his life since he was six months old, including a Family Support Specialist from the Child Development Center in Kalispell, a speech therapist, and a physical therapist. These wonderful women give their time and talents to us, and care for Avery as if they were part of the family. Having Avery has opened our eyes to many new ways of living, and of loving, and for that, I am extremely grateful. Most of all, I am thankful for Avery.

Come meet us at the Buddy Walk!