present embarrassment

During this glorious 2 weeks off work I have been visiting friends and rellies as you do this time of year (yes sorry Sunny we have not been able to hook up but will do soon, have my birthday country weekend booked )

This morning I called on a friend for coffee and cake (I have not started yogalates yet so I can still have cake!). We had seen each other on Christmas Eve and exchanged presents not to be opened until Christmas day. So this was the first time we had had chance to see each other since then.
We were chatting away about stuff (yes she is yogalating with me.. I am so persuasive!), we were talking about the whole festive events et al.
Then she said
'were your presents eaten?'

Blind panic. Trying to remember gift by gift what 'er & I had opened on the 25th.
Ok focus now Random!! Mine were 2 cats with ' the best antiques are old friends' around their necks and a 'grow your own Toy Boy' (we don't buy serious pressies, although I could do with a new a new Toy Boy hee hee ) & 'ers were definitely non edible gifts.

I 'Huh'ed?' as only a blonde can do!

Then she produced a huge box of Thorton's chocolates.

I 'Huh'ed' again

When I looked closely I could see the corner of the box was missing

It turns out that she had wrapped all the presents and put them in the loft in about October. (aren't some people so organised) Then dragged them down come Christmas and just given them out in the carrier bags they had been in. Not noticing anything.

The embarrassment was that some of presents had in fact been eaten. Yes that living nightmare ..............mice in the attic!

What amused me the most (apart from the complete embarrassment my friend must have felt when the presents were returned) was the fact that the mouse/mice had eaten some of the chocolates and replaced them with loft insulation in perfect little shapes.

Imagine that wee thing thinking 'if I stuff this insulation in they will never ever notice I was here' how ingenious!