False Alarm :)

I had nightmares about my water breaking at Wal-Mart while I was shopping for the few last minute things I needed and had forgotten about - nursing pads, maxi pads, life savers for labor... In my nightmares (had them several times this past week) I couldn't decide whether to finish shopping - book to the checkout with what I had or abandon everything... And probably because I was so worried about it, it almost happened - I thought it did happen.

Before last week I thought that if my water broke it would be a big pop and gush - like when it broke with Duncan - I could feel and hear the pop and then it was a big gush (of course I was already in labor, so there was no question about it). And Mike's mom had told me about when her water broke, she could hear it pop. So I was expecting that if my water broke it would be like that. But then last week mom told me that it happened that way with Ally, but with Josh it was more of a slow leak. She had been leaking urine when she coughed or sneezed (like I have been) and she felt a gush without having coughed or sneezed. And that was exactly what happened at Wal-Mart - of course I have also been leaking urine when I lift Duncan or bend over... but I felt a gush and had just been standing there looking at the eggs. Of course, as in the nightmare, I couldn't decide what to do - but in the nightmare my water breaking at Wal-Mart was the big pop and gush, so it was unmistakeably my water breaking... but this time I just wasn't sure, so I continued shopping - feeling little gushes all along... I just tried to get the rest of what I needed really quickly. I wasn't having contractions or anything, so I wasn't panicked, I figured I had enough time to finish shopping and maybe even get the groceries home. I started heading for home and then felt a small contraction (not painful at all) and decided that it would be really stupid to try to drive all the way home (30mins) and end up starting to have painful contractions or something... so I decided to be safe and stop and get Mike. I still wasn't sure whether my water broke or whether I was just leaking urine and I hated to make a big production out of it... when I got to Mike's work I called the Dr's office and they said to come in to the hospital right away. Not the most ideal situation - car full of kids and groceries ;) The funny thing was that I had called and talked to Mike's sister that day, making sure that she knew I was going to call her to come watch the kids when I went into labor - when she told me what she was doing this weekend, I just thought well, it surely won't be this weekend... then here I am a few hours later calling her to come meet us at the hospital.
Here I've been ready to be done for at least a couple of weeks now and when it came right down to it, I was not ready in the least. When they hooked me up to the monitor and I was having contractions consistently, 2 mins apart (again, not painful), I just thought OK, I'm really not ready for this - I haven't even packed my hospital bag yet! We don't have the camera... and the house is a complete mess! Then when the Dr came in and started explaining the tests they do to see if your water has broken, she also explained that the hospital is not licensed for a level 1 delivery - which is a delivery before 36 weeks. In one day I would have been 36 weeks, but that wouldn't have mattered, they still would have had to send me to Duluth to have the baby. That's when I decided that I really couldn't have the baby then! So I was so glad when the tests came back that my water had not broken! The Dr explained that since the baby has dropped it's putting a lot more pressure on my bladder. And the contractions were probably because I was a little dehydrated. They had me drink this whole big jug of water before I left...
Of course I felt a little like an ass, but then they said that's exactly what I should have done, and if I suspect at all that my water has broken, I need to come right in... so I really don't feel too bad. I'm glad I went in. But I'm also very glad that I wasn't really in labor! I did not want to have to go to Duluth - and I want to have my bags packed and ready! I'm going to pack my bag and just have it with me every time I go into Hayward. I'm thinking about avoiding Wal-Mart altogether ;) But really I will have to go again sometime this week... Need to get stocked up on easy foods for someone to make the kids... and make sure that I have enough diapers and stuff for Duncan.
All said and done, it was a nice dry run for when it really happens, and it kind of gave me a nice kick in the butt to get things really ready, because it could really be any day now. The Dr checked and said that I was 1cm dilated, 50% effaced and the baby's head is at -1 station. All that really doesn't mean a whole lot though - people have walked around 3cm dilated for 3 weeks... people who haven't started dilating have gone in a day after being checked... so all that is not really any predictor about when active labor will start, but it does mean that things are getting ready to start.