at the time of writing this, i am 38 weeks pregnant!!! honestly, where has the time gone?!
at my 37 week appointment, i was dilated to about 3cm and baby’s head was very low. at this time with my first baby, i was barely even dilated at all and baby hadn’t dropped yet. my body has progressed faster this time around than the first time (which is totally common).
over the last day and a half, my body has started to show some early signs of labor, similar to the days leading up to my son’s arrival last year. so, today i am making sure we are all hospital ready and that my house is all ready for the arrival of a new baby, whenever it may be.
here’s what i’ve been feeling the last couple days. and these are all supposedly signs of early labor:
- loose stools/change in bowel movements. your body does this to clean out and make way for your uterus to contract.
- dull backache & period-like cramping. the day before i went into labor with my son, i felt like i had period cramps all day. little did i know this was an early sign of labor! today, mine aren’t super constant but i feel it in my pelvis, hips, and lower back. and they’re fairly strong when they are there.
- losing your mucus plug. you can lose it in chunks over the span of days or you can lose it all at once. mine is coming out in pieces every couple of hours. it’s like a thick mucus/jelly-like substance that comes out as your cervix is softening and dilating. if you don’t know what i’m talking about, google it. 😉
with all those things in mind, i know my body could go into labor at any time or it could still be a few weeks. but, i feel like it’ll be sooner rather than later. i just have a gut feeling. so today, i finished packing our hospital bags and did a house clean-up. when coming home from the hospital, i want to come home to laundry all caught up and a clean space. i’m also trying to rest as much as i’m able to because my body needs it. but as an enneagram one, that is challenging to force myself to do.
this past week, i’ve also been nesting big time- organizing and cleaning spaces that haven’t been recently touched, like our pantry/storage closet. i’m feeling ready and good to go to give birth. hopefully by the time you’re reading this, i’ve already had baby girl, but i guess we’ll see!
what signs did your body give you before you went into active labor?
tia marie
tia marie 