Christmas is ......


This year I was delighted to make it home for Christmas even though I didn't feel it approaching. In my current line of work the nature of the work I do isn't any different at this time of year. To be fair I can't say I really missed the hustle and bustle of the festive season. I did visit my former work place on Christmas week and I can say I was only too happy to run out of there once I realised how crowded it was. I worked twelve hour shifts the two days before Christmas so my suitcase was well packed and in my car heading to work Christmas Eve. After a truly woeful nights sleep I was planning to get through the day on sugar and the promise of three days off and thankfully I got through it without any major incidents and was down at my parents house before 10 feeling ready for bed.
I thought it would feel strange when we were all gathered together in my parents new house, this would be our first Christmas not in Beechmount but it felt like we had been doing it for years only none of us knew our way around the kitchen. Within an hour of my arrival myself and Stephen were setting up a bed in the sun room and I have to say it's the first time that getting into bed felt like the most exciting part of Christmas Eve. I'm not sure if that was a sign that I'm finally a proper grown up or just a reflection of how tired I was. Our sofa bed was so comfortable I slept the whole night through which is a Christmas miracle in itself and then my niece didn't emerge until 9 to see what Santa had brought her. I found I was in no hurry to open presents but was happy to lounge around in pyjamas, taking my time over breakfast and just enjoying hanging out with my family and not having work the next day. Of course we did open presents later on and I got lots of lovely things ( skincare, make up, clothes and books ) but I did realise that it wasn't the best part of Christmas. My sister and her family came to visit as they always do and the kids all ran around the house fizzy with the excitement of the day as the adults gathered in the kitchen drinking tea and laughing. Its about the only time of year where we are together in the one place. Once my sister and her family headed home for their Christmas dinner, we sat down to ours with the adults looking forward to the food ,that somehow tastes that much nicer at Christmas, and my niece looking forward to pulling the Christmas crackers. We all talked and laughed , mostly at my dad's inability to pronounce prosecco and at the 'jokes' he had included in the crackers he customized and generally enjoyed being together as a family. After dinner and a just as delicious dessert we sat down to watch the Americans. My brother had bought the first season as a gift for my parents and none of us had seen it. I was mostly put off by the fact it starred Keri Russell who really annoyed me in Felicity but found myself pleasantly surprised and with a new tv series to download when we got home. After two episodes we were all wiped and headed to our respective beds for some much needed sleep.
Stephens day was a day of eating way too much food and not doing a whole lot else. Normally we do make an appearance at the family gathering in Waterford but this year I was more than happy to let the others go and stay home to vegetate. It was a most uneventful day where a whole lot of rubbish was eaten and the most taxing thing I did was cook rice for the the casserole and lie on the couch watching the big fat quiz of the year.
This morning we cleaned up and packed up and had said our goodbyes. I wasn't quite sure I wanted to leave the cosy house or my mums cooking but with work tomorrow and a million things to do,it was time to get back to reality. We left at 1 but somehow didn't get back to our apartment until 6 when the one or two things I needed to do in town took longer than I thought. On the plus side we now have food and I have a brand new shiny tablet and that's Christmas over for another year.

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