Kruger, I commend you for seeking professional development in the form of project management certification. You have posed some interesting hurdles and my fellow colleagues have provided some good feedback to your concerns. Let me reinforce what they have said.
Foremost, the first bit of advice I offer to all prospective candidates taking on the PMP journey is to maintain confidence in themselves. You will need to have sureness in yourself and a plan to pass. Your concerns are very much shared among numerous candidates and I encourage to remain positive. I have laid out a roadmap for taking the PMP journey at
www.michaelspmpsite.wordpress.com
and other information that you could find useful.
Second, You are thinking correctly about how the process works to simply even be qualified for taking the exam. You will need an updated application with references to verify your work if called upon, much like a reference for a job application. And you don't want to be stuck should one of those references not pan out because PMI might deny your application based on lack of evidence for project management experience.
Therefore, you may want to consider selecting an alternate manager or team leader. Share your vision with that person and go over your application information so that he or she would be able to speak about your work, if PMI performs an audit.
