Holiday Babies: The worst thing about being born on Christmas? Being told it sucks

Dylan sofa, who was born on Christmas, says he's more sick of people feeling sorry for him than he is of sharing his birthday with Jesus. Photo/ supplied

How does it feel to share your birthday with a holiday? Herald reporter Tess Nichol finds out in our Holiday Babies series.

For Dylan Sofa, the worst thing about sharing his birthday with Jesus isn't what you might expect.

Far from caring about the combined pressies and missed parties, the most annoying thing about having such a famous birthday is everyone else's assumption he's bothered by it.

"Almost universally the reaction was 'oh that must suck you get fewer presents'. I just sort of rolled with it because I got sick of giving the spiel like 'I don't really mind'.

Read the rest of the Holiday Babies series:

• Herald reporter Tess Nichol, born on Christmas Eve
• The Tolich triplets, born on Christmas Eve
• Jake O'Driscoll, born on New Year's Day

"I'm incredibly sick of hearing that."

Born at 2pm on Christmas Day in 1992 at Auckland's Middlemore Hospital, Sofa doesn't see what the big deal is about when he was born.

His birthday is New Zealand's least common, with fewer babies are born on December 25 than any other day, excluding February 29, which only happens every leap year.

Apart from a 21st, which was thrown as much to celebrate the end of uni as it was to celebrate his milestone coming of age, Sofa said he's never really had a party.

"Partially because of when the birthday fell you can't have friends over because they're always doing other things, and maybe for that reason as I grew older I grew much less attached to the birthday.

"I don't really celebrate it."

He's not at all sad about that though, saying growing up he always felt the attention he got from family on Christmas morning, the time of day dedicated to his celebration, was enough.

"I always get the comment about, 'aren't you sad you get fewer presents' but I've never found that to be an issue."

Plus, he said, people always remember his birthday.

Sofa's mum was more put out at the time he was born, having been in the middle of Christmas preparations when she went into labour.

"She was most upset because it was my sister's seventh Christmas and they had bought her a bunk set and a new trampoline and mum was supposed to be helping set all that up.

"My dad had to do it all on his own."