E.M.
Hi, Once you have the birth certificate (which by the way you can get by walking in to any court house in the county where the child was born), you should be able to walk into the Federal building and stand in line for your passport if you don't have time to send it in. I know you could do that post 9-11, but I'm not sure if they've changed that. Make sure all your documents are in order. No matter what, you must have a notarized letter from the dad expressing his consent and agreement that your child get a passport, and show proof of date of travel. Double check on the governments website for passports. Good Luck, I know how nerve wrecking it can be.