Happy birthday Sam!!!! AND happy mummy anniversary to you BW! I understand what you mean about the time: we were TTC 10years, pregnancy and her whole life so far is less than 1/3 of that time~!

also Happy birthday to your little girl Acacia! I've been very slack in recent times too. There are so many girls here in the newborn stage, or pregnant and that is a lifetime ago to me (Plus there are some "issues" for me) so I sometimes read but not often post. I do really miss the closeness I felt in this thread when it first started and we were all at the same stage. I hope all you new ladies are feeling that support now with so many of you!

LilyDust, I know EXACTLY what you mean about having your DD close. I was just the same. For us we had so many visitors in the first few weeks that I felt I only got to hold her because I was BF!!! She would have been almost 3months before I even left her with DH for 15mins to go to the shops. We had to use a babysitter around 6months for a few hours one evening and it was torture. I really didnt enjoy it. A friend kept insisting she babysit so we could have an evening to ourselves, except we really didnt want to: we wanted her to come with us! eventually she gave up asking.

To answer your question, I think you will eventually feel comfortable leaving her with certain people. It will come when she is bigger and physically needs less support, and you are more at ease with others understanding her needs more too. She will be able to let people know what she wants easier and not rely on your mothers intuition so much. I wasnt ready to put DD into any kind of daycare till she was 18months old and then only 2hours a fortnight at a family daycare lady we already knew socially. (she had only stayed with family for a few hours a couple of times till then but regularly with DH) I'm now back at work 2 to 3 shifts a week but even then, if she is home with DH I will usually phone to check how she is. I know some of my friends would think me clingy and neurotic but I dont care. It makes me feel better and it's certainly not hurting her. (Plus I dont tell them) Don't worry: your feelings are completely normal!

BTW, my mother always took my nephews and now my niece out of the room or outside and it drove my SIL mad. I think she just wanted to have time without SIL hovering over her like she does. For some reason she didnt do it with my DD and I was hovering just as much.