Am I losing the plot?

I think you saw what you expected to see - the mother.

But maybe they were both so sleep-deprived that they can't remember!

How intriguing! I am another that will be watching this space

Me too bags!

thatb Most of us I should think I hate anything unsolvable! I must drive my OH nuts always trying to find the answer to something - these days it's mainly "now where did I put? . . ." !

I wonder how many of us will click "Watch This Thread"?

Knitting, dead heading the roses, anything Soutra, but the great Gransnet Mystery of the Year does need another instalment

I agree with when. You have got to do some more sleuthing!

This could develop into Gransnet Mystery of the Year.

Looking forward to next instalment.

They couldn't both have gone as they also have a 3 year old and I thought I saw "her" clearly as she turned out of her drive (which is screened by our hedge) on to the pavement which isn't! She (?) was sort of bending forward over the pram pushing it the way she does when she walks the older boy to pre-school and in response to the other question her husband is one of those young men with actually very little hair. I still think I was right so maybe they were out twice!
Oh if anybody finds any marbles, please return them to me

Reconstructive memory is notorious for filling in gaps with what you expect to see. Could he have had a scarf or blanket slung across his shoulders that might have passed for long hair? I think more sleuthing is required. Get your bag of knitting out and go round on some pretext. Report back at 12.00 hours

At that time of night, my husband wouldn't have let me go out with the baby, either he would have gone or both of us together.
Are you certain that the striding down the drive wasn't him, and you just assumed it was 'mum'?

I'm only going off my dreadful observational skills and the fact that I frequently see the wrong thing!

Soutra, this sounds like the beginning of a Miss Marple story. No doubt you'll be out dead heading the flowers in your garden today, so we can have the next chapter

Has he got long blonde hair also?

I think maybe your second suggestion might be it Harrigran. Not the wig though!! I even recognised the way she walks pushing the pram.

Perhaps neighbour wears a wig and husband donned it to make baby think it was mum or maybe there were several sorties last night and she was referring to a different one than the one you saw.
I feel for them. Someone told me that they resorted to putting the baby in the car and going for a drive. Made a rod for their own backs because for the next few years it was the only way he would go to sleep.

Have any of your neighbours got CCTV? I understand these cameras are becoming quite common!

Sounds like the beginning of a Whodunnit, Soutra

Columbo would be scratching his head as well.