With the presents bought, the 12 pubs visited and the work Christmas party survived, the lucky among us have arrived (or are making our way) home from the four corners of the earth to spend the festive season with our families.
Running on little or no energy after a string of nights out, the Christmas rush at work and a long flight/bus/train/car journey, we are welcomed home (squeezed to within an inch of our life) by our parents before collapsing in front of the fire.
Christmas is also the time of year when we catch up with our brothers and sisters. And it doesn’t matter whether we haven’t seen them for a week or the entire calendar year, when Irish siblings reunite under the same roof for Christmas, there are certain things that are guaranteed to happen. From fighting over the remote to checking out the shtyle at Mass, here are six moment you’re sure to go through with your siblings this festive season…
Throw on your snazziest coats…
And sit side by side to enjoy the fantastic show that is Christmas Eve Mass. Together you’ll take in all of those fancy outfits during the Communion catwalk, enjoy the local choir’s rendition of your favourite carols, do a sneaky check of the crib to see if the priest has remembered to put in baby Jesus and finally, freeze together outside of the church while your parents insist on talking to everyone they’re guaranteed to meet in the pub down the road in five minutes.
Wake up at noon…
Instead of 6am on Christmas Day. Gone are the days when we jumped on eachother’s beds at the crack of dawn with the excitement about Santy’s visit – we’re now far more interested in our sleep and reacquainting ourselves with our favourite bed. Chances are we probably stayed too late in the pub with the neighbours the night before or had a few too many tipples over a tin of roses at home. And we’re now far more likely to be dragging our brothers and sisters out of bed before trooping into the kitchen to help Mammy who’s up to her eyeballs in brandy butter and brussel sprouts.
Eat far too much…
And compare food babies after the epic Christmas feed. As you doze off together around the fire still wearing your Christmas cracker hats, you’ll shake your heads in wonder about how your Mammy has managed to out-do herself once again in the kitchen. In the days after Christmas you’ll sneak into the fridge at all hours of the day and night and tag team with your siblings to make the most amazing sandwiches known to man. Your brother will carve up the remainders of the ham, you take care of the stuffing and your sister does the job with the cranberry sauce. Ssh, your parents will never know.
Have an almighty row
About something ridiculous. Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a good ould argument between siblings. These tend to come out of nowhere and intensify to alarming levels before ending just as rapidly as they started with tears and laughter (hopefully).
Remote control war…
You didn’t agree about what to watch when you were little and things certainly haven’t changed as you got older. Why watch the darts when they’re showing Skyfall on RTE? Hello? It’s not a difficult choice! Our advice to avoid another row is to keep cool, step away from the situation and most importantly, bring home your laptop.
Head out on Stephen’s Night…
And spend the following day on the couch together comparing hangovers in a sea of half-eaten selection boxes and more turkey sandwiches. One of the best ways to bond with our siblings is a night out on the tiles together, and a Christmassy session is extra special. Everyone is home, in great form and delighted to see you which makes the suffering on the 27th totally worth it.
