My daughter was just like this, both asleep and awake!!! She hardly ever cried because I hardly ever put her down. OMG, I couldn't stand to hear her cry, I absolutely could not stand it. So I carried her around everywhere because the moment I put her down she would cry at the top of her lungs. Then the moment I picked her up she'd be all smiles again! It was kinda funny. One of my aunt's gave me a snugli and that helped so much for duing the day. For sleeping what I would do is hold her until she was good and asleep, meaning when her hands got lax. Then I'd lay her in her crib or on the bed but on both sides of her I'd put some rolled up blankets, so she would be snuggled in. This sometimes worked for a few hours. Mostly though she slept with me because then she'd sleep the whole night through, but I feel you, sometimes you want/need baby to sleep elsewhere.

Oooooh, #4, I can help you with too. I had my daughter when I was 17 and my oldest son when I was 22 so all my friends were childless teens and then at college childless young adults too. What really worked for me was that I treated my kids like regular people, I didn't make a big deal out of the fact that I had kids. If someone asked me to a party or to a club and I couldn't get a sitter, I would just say I couldn't go because I had something else to do, not that I couldn't get a sitter. See what I mean? I never gave the impression that my kids were a hindrance to me. If it was a place/event not specifically just for adults I would just bring my kids, like to an art museum or coffee shop or poetry reading or whatever. You would be surprised at how accepting your childless friends may be of/with babies and small children, so don't assume your current friends won't wanna hang. Plus I took them practically everywhere with me including to college so my school friends saw my kids all the time and got to see their awesomeness On the rare occassions I went somewhere without my kids, people would be all, Where's your kids!! LOL

Try the women's center at your school, they may be able to hook you up with other student moms. and don't discount the library, moms hang out in libraries all the time. but basically you're going to have to be willing to introduce yourself and put yourself out there, because if you don't you will feel just as lonely in a roomful of other people to talk to.

Mercury ~ Ultra Mama Zine

1. don't worry about the smile unless she has no activity those schedules of milestones are so so generic.
2. got mine early but don't remember exactly when.as long as everything was fine at your 6 week pp appoint. you should be fine.
3. have no clue
4. though i have bd i don't have any friends or family here so it does get lonely.you can still hang out with people who don't have kids, they are just a little less understanding then people who do!
5. we co=sleep but nessa is also able to fall alseep on her own by herself. she started in a crib for about 4 days then i moved her to the bed, then back in the crib for awhile but in our room, now she can sleep anywhere so maybe just keep trying and move her, even if she wakes up. i would put nessa in the crib and oput a chair right next to her and rub her back and all but wouldn't let her lay with me she wouldn;t cry because i was still right there.

Jessica
I'm a rock star baby.....Ja Rule

its such an exciting time! I can't beleive my wee baby will be 1 on tuesday! 8 weeks old seems so long ago! you will make it, and sounds like you are thinking lots.
The smile thing, I agree with the other person who thinks every smile is a real smile. I don't beleive in gas smiles. Make face to face eye contact with her, give her some loving vibes and she will smile.
Period, thats soon to get it back. But some of my friends got it earlier than others, everyone is different. For me a good orgasm works wonders on my cramps, especially if I can nap afterwards.
I don't know about plan B. Sorry you had to take it, but thats the way it goes. Kudos for the quick thinking.
I looove co-sleeping. Even tho she is huge now and sleeps sideways and kicks us and grunts and moans all night and wakes up almost every hour to drain a boob. She has woken up lots all along, and I also swaddled right up until about 8 months consistently, which helped ALOT. Definitely sleeping together seems to make them light sleepers. Hang in there and try to nap during the day if you are sleep deprived. I also hand it to your SO for working those long hours somewhat sleep deprived (mine does too).
SAHM, most of all appreciate the time you get to spend with your precious baby. This miraculous being that you and SO brought singlehandedly into this world, to be shaped and molded by you and your love. I spent alot of time just wondering on that and pondering what I wanted to do, be, say, feel, etc. Try to make a few friends that you can at least call and chat with when you are bored.
Good luck with all of that, I'm sure you are doing a wonderful job. Keep trying hard and everything will be fine.

we've got to let love rule
~l. kravitz

I go to www.askdrsears.com. It is a great site. His books are good, too.

8 weeks is kindof early for your period to return. I would guess it is from the hormones. You are lucky all the hormones in Plan B didn't mess up your milk supply. Not to be naggy, but did you pump & dump New Years? I'll have a drink or 2 while breastfeeding, but hammered? You need to make sure you always tell the dr you are breastfeeding.

As for being lonely, maybe a playgroup?

1. Every baby is different
2. I got my period at 8 weeks PP as well. It is normal. We just don't talk about it as much as the "I didn't get my period until I weaned junior at 2.5 years" mamas, because it sucks.
3. Plan B is safe during breastfeeding. It is a progestin pill only that mimics pregnancy and puts a halt to any further development. You can nurse a child when you are pregnant=you can nurse a child on plan B.
4. I am not a single mom, but I am a SAHM and most days it feels the same. Don't have enough money and I am alone all day most days. Get out of the house, find a moms group!
5. I am not going to give you advice on cosleeping. I can't condemn people that need to train their children to sleep away from them, but I can't apply it to my family.
Good luck!

There is a lot of good advice here. I defiantly think a moms group would be helpful to you right now. They helped me out when I had my first.

As far as the smile thing, don't sweat the milestones. That is one thing I have learned as a mother (My first didn't walk until he was 17 months and has a speech delay, my second didn't walk until he was 15 months and has a speech delay) The spectrum is SO broad, she is just fine and will smile when she is ready to.

find a new mama group in your area to join. i'm not a single mama, but i didn't have any other mama friends near me so i foudn the first six months to be terribly isolating and lonely. i went to new mama groups, which i found out about through my OB's office. i didn't really make any friends there, but just having somewhere to go with my babe that was all about having a newborn was a real comfort. mine was lead by a lactation consultant who used to be a L&D nurse, so she was a fabulous resouce for all the questions & concerns new mamas have. then around 6 months i found a mommy & me yoga class in my hood that was awesome. i went almost every week for the next six months and made some good mama friends in there.

Congrats on the baby and new mamahood!!

1. - Personally I believe that every smile is a real smile. This has been my theory for years because I know that when I have gas, I'm doing anything but smiling. Babies have their own personalities so maybe she is just waiting for that right moment to give you a full-on cheese grin. I think it's normal and it will happen, maybe before her appointment!

2. Periods suck: but they do come back, I breastfed but still got mine as scheduled, so this is normal for some of us, others are lucky and don't get it for the duration.

3. I don't know anything about plan b - sorry!

4. Right now I am a single mama and it is very, very lonely and isolating. It's usually isolating when you have a new baby in general, but with SO working, I am sure that it's even harder on you. Are there any libraries nearby? I know mine has a mom & baby singing group, and it's usually easy to meet some people when you go to a library with a newborn because everyone wants to see how cute the babe is (and ask tons of nosy questions.) It takes time to get back into the swing of things. Also I would check arond to see if there is a family center that you could go to. Maybe invite a single friend over for tea? (This is what Mercury recently suggested to me.) One thing that I know from experience is that you have to make yourself get out there and meet people/ do things or else you will be alone.

5. I loved sleeping with my kids and they woke up all the time too. I think this is just normal, I wish I had some great tips at getting them to stay asleep but I don't.

Congrats on breastfeeding too!! :) :)

I wouldn't worry about the smile yet, the expert books are not really expert.
I don't know about the plan b, but at this point it's already been through your system, so nothing you can do. I got my period really soon after birth too. such a rip off. I also got pregnant, 'cause my period was so funny...watch out!
For the sleeping maybe try swaddling her, she'll sleep longer and be easier to move. you really have to do it 'right'--check out 'the happiest baby on the block' book or dvd for clear instructions--it's something I wished I had done a lot sooner...and I'd just try to enjoy my time home alone! take a break, take care of that baby...but I know it can get lonely. Time to start meeting irl mama friends! look around at what parenting/kid resources are in your community; pack that baby up and go out, for a walk, to the library, mall, whatever. it's good for you.
thanks for sharing!