[Z]

Get up at an insane hour in the morning (this isn't because of Christmas day, the cat normally wants to tear at the wrapping paper for days beforehand and wakes me up at 3 in the morning by tearing my feet to shreds. What a delightful critter.) and feed the cat, and throw some tinsel at her. Then attempt to sleep for half an hour, before a sheepish younger sibling shuffles through and says "D'you think it's too early to wake mum and dad up?"

"Yes"

"Ohh.."

eventually, we hit half 5 in the morning, when the little brother is too excited to stay upstairs. He bounds through to parents room, wakes them up, and drags them downstairs. After initial clamour, he rips open all the presents (I let him open mine too, apart from anything I'm not going to risk my hands when the cat's ripping up wrapping paper) and spends about 5 minutes hugging each present, parent and family member in the vicinity.

This is followed by a period of nothingness, in which mother fusses with wrapping paper, tinsel, the cat, father's empty wallet and gives counselling to father because something's already broken.

Eventually we hit breakfast, though nobody bothers to eat it as we're too busy racing the other. Next we drag the hungover older sibling out from his flat to visit us, who then throws presents from his car and speeds off into the distance. Mother drags him back by the earlobe and makes him spend the day with us. The time passes as nobody other than mother really wants to be at the table, and eventually the three brothers decide enough is enough and leave the table. All three play the newest console's newest game for an hour, before eldest needs a cigarette/alcoholic drink.

Christmas dinner, muchos yays. Christmas eve we're all secretly pleased that there's been no arguing, but we pretend that we're just being civil because it's Christmas.

Ta-da, you've now seen the inner workings of Ziola's family. :P