Early Labor

I think we may have made it to official early labor!  I've felt like I was in early labor for the last week and man, it has been a mental trip.  The constant feelings of "Oh!  I think it's going to start!" to realizing that there really isn't anything happening.  It's a battle of endurance that I honestly could compare to labor itself.  Luckily, I have an amazing group of friends that have kept me busy and distracted, especially with Penny being sick.  I finally broke down around 7:00 pm last night and called my mom crying about how I was just plain OVER it.  We talked through so much and, as moms do, she turned my whole night around.  So... onto the beginning!

My mom and I discussed a few ideas to help me de-stress and really focus on the baby and we came up with a swim in the pool to get myself outside and clear my head.  I squeezed into my bathing suit which now barely fits but added a little bit of support to my huge belly.  Man it is a gorgeous night!  It was still a tiny bit warm and my apartment complex heats the swimming pool to a perfect temp.  The full moon was absolutely mesmerizing.  I just lazed in the water, visualizing holding my new little one and talking to them.  All of a sudden the baby started moving and kicking like crazy!  It felt like the baby's head was banging into my pelvis while it's fingers poked at my cervix, plus kicking it's legs out.  My midwife had mentioned that the baby might be in a position that was not putting enough pressure on my cervix and that was why I wasn't going into labor.  Now, however, between the tightness of my swimsuit and the buoyancy of the water, I felt baby shift and change into a better position with every movement.  Whatever discomfort I felt was outweighed by the fact that I knew the little one had re-positioned itself.  After about an hour of the relaxing water, I dragged myself out of the warm pool into the chilly air and made a run for it back home.  I hopped in a warm shower and then went to work on my hair.  As I was ripping my brush through the tangles, I felt the first real contraction!  I nonchalantly mentioned it to Ken, trying really hard not to get excited.  After about 30 minutes, he asked me if we should start timing them and I thought that was probably a good idea.  We have been timing for two hours now and they are an average of 10 minutes apart, each lasting about a minute.  I called my mom to let her know to slowly start heading this direction (she is planning on watching Penny for us during the labor).  Now I am off to call Karen, our midwife and let her know all of the info!  I will try my best to keep all of you updated at least once an hour until it gets to be too much, then I may have someone else fill in the blanks!