Hi there,
Just to tell you what I have learn from my experience (
http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=37644)
Processing of the application indeed takes long . They say 6 months (!) and probably they mean it.
However, they are supposed to return you the originals (passports etc) soon after submission (2-3 weeks). Together, they are supposed to send you a certificate of application with instructions to proceed to garga to register and get a temporal Stamp 4 for 3 months (with which you can stay and work in Ireland). Notice that this is NOT a decision! It is just an acknowledgement that you have applied for it.
In my case they returned (most of) the documents on time, but they "forgot" to send the certificate of application and our wedding certificate. I had to call DoJ to ask for them. They send them immediately afterwards.
Now we have got the temporal stamp 4 (with it my wife got a PPS no, she can now work etc) and we are now waiting for the decision.
To conclude don't hesitate to call them asking for things that seem wrong.
Hope these help...
Good luck