Childhood Memories: 7 Things That Made An Irish Sunday

Ah, the good old days. Do you remember them? Much and all as we complain about the past, growing up in Ireland was something else. It was pure craic.

We all have fond memories of what it was like being a kid in Ireland. Remember the feeling of getting a pound and feeling like you were the richest person in Ireland? It’s a memory that can still give you chills all these years later.

We’ve teamed up with our friends at 7UP Free to get a bit nostalgic and relive the old days when the biggest worry we had was whether or not we’d be allowed to go to the Gaeltacht and get the shift...

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No matter what generation you were born in, every Irish person on the planet has strong memories of the things that made up an Irish Sunday.

We’re casting our minds back and thinking about the seven things that we loved about the seventh day while we were growing up.

The best thing about Sundays? Getting to eat ice cream

1. Getting ice cream after mass: If you said your prayers, didn’t complain and generally behaved yourself during mass you were usually rewarded with ice cream on the way home. It didn’t matter if you were having your dinner an hour later, ice cream was the payoff for getting up so early on a Sunday. Sound.

2. Trying to finish all your homework before Glenroe started: If you’re anything like us, chances are you left all your weekend homework until 6pm on a Sunday night. Queue the frantic race against the clock where you tried to get it finished before Glenroe started at half 8.

 

3. Sunday night television: On the odd occasion when you weren’t desperately trying to finish your homework, Sunday nights meant telly, telly and more telly. From The Simpsons to 7th Heaven to Jim Henson’s Dinosaurs there was nothing better than putting on your jammies and plonking yourself down in front of the box for the night.

Ah Vienetta, we have many happy memories of you

4. Having a dessert after dinner: Sundays were always special because it was the only day of the week when you got dessert. Oh the sheer excitement when your mammy produced a Wall’s Vienetta from the freezer. We remember it fondly.

5. Having a Sunday night bath: There was no way that your mammy would send you off to school on a Monday morning without giving you a good soak in the bath the night before. Bath time usually occurred before The Simpsons and as soon as you were clean, you were put into your jammies. If you refused to have a bath, you weren’t allowed to stay up and watch Glenroe.

For some reason, we always had to go for a ridiculously long drive on a Sunday

6. Going on a Sunday drive: After dinner the entire family was herded into the car and you set off on a drive that had no end destination in sight. These drives usually went  on for hours and ended with yourself and one of your siblings having a row in the back seat.

7. Putting on your “good”clothes: On Sundays you had to dress up. It didn’t matter if you weren’t doing anything or going anywhere. It was Sunday and you had to look your best. Whether it was a dress, a pair of fancy leggings or new shoes that cut your feet, Sundays were all about tidying yourself up for mass.

Check back here for another childhood memory over the coming weeks with 7UP FREE