45

Is how old Aaron would now be if he were still here.  Last week was Aaron's 45th birthday.  We only got to celebrate 39 with him, and it still seems strange that I'm celebrating his birthday without him. 


To be honest his birthday is bigger now than when he was alive.  The 23rd of December is such a pain of a day to have a birthday.  It's when everyone is busy getting ready for Christmas, and a birthday is the last thing you want to think about.  But Aaron used to love having his birthday then, as he said everyone was happy and excited for Christmas.


When Aaron was alive we would always just have his favourite food for tea and have cake together, but I love our birthday tradition that we do now that he's not here. It makes the day a lot easier, and I actually look forward to it every year as it's a fun day we spend with friends.


This year we met up again with my friend Simone and her family and my cousin Tim and his wife Helene and their kids.   Jalen's girlfriend Erin also joined us this year, which was lovely.   We always meet at the Punchbowl Reserve and have a BBQ. The kids played a bit of cricket, while we sat around catching up.

This time last year Simone was pregnant with Emerson.  He was loving all the attention he was getting.




We then headed to the cemetery with balloons to release at Aaron's grave.

It was a really windy day, and quite cold by the time we got to the cemetery. Arden kept finding artificial flowers and tinsel all over the grass, which had blown off different graves, so he collected them and then brought them all over to Aaron's grave. 

We always have Pepsi at Aaron's grave as it was his favourite drink. 

Simone cracked us up as she wore her Coca-Cola t-shirt thinking Aaron would like it, but we told her it was like cheating on Pepsi, so she had to cover it up for a photo.

It was so nice to  have Erin with us. She has also lost her Dad so she knows what Jay has gone through, and they are an amazing support to each other.

 Harri being a weird photo bomber!

 
Ava was so cute and said 'I love this day Lisa'.  I do too Ava! It's definitely not the way I want to be spending Aaron's birthday, but I'm grateful for friends who help make it a special day.

I'm also grateful for beautiful people who sent me photos throughout the day, of them having a Pepsi for Aaron. It means a lot to know that others are thinking of him and us on a hard day. It makes it a lot easier, as we don't feel so alone.