I slept until my bladder and contractions woke me up again at 3AM and spent some time in the bathroom hoping for some relief. Back in bed the contractions kept coming quite strong. At 4AM, I was hungry and decided it was time to eat something, so I got some soup, as my midwife had told me to do when I thought I was in labor. I finally was able to sleep again around 4:30 or 5AM and virtually conked out until around 7, though I think I woke up for nearly every contraction in the meantime...still 7 minutes apart.

At 8AM, my hunger dragged me out of bed, and I fixed breakfast for Joe, Holli, and little Andrew. While cooking, of course, the contractions stopped. They resumed with a vengeance when I sat down to eat some soup while they enjoyed their pancakes. So, it's looking like our visit to the Coca-Cola museum will have to be postponed, and we're going to see about getting a rental car for Holli this morning, since Joe will probably be spending the next couple nights with me at the hospital.

We haven't talked to the midwife yet, but will certainly page her as the contractions get stronger and closer together. We don't expect to go to the hospital until the contractions are about 3-4 minutes apart. I'll have my laptop at the hospital, and we hope to post about the birth of our little one in the next couple days. In the meantime, keep us in your prayers...that we would have a safe, uncomplicated delivery of a very healthy baby!

August 30 - The contractions got steadily closer last night. By 1AM this morning they were about 3 minutes apart. We called my midwife at 2AM, and though she didn't think I was really ready yet, she told me to go ahead and come in to the hospital if I wanted to. They hooked me up to the monitor for about 15 minutes, and she arrived to check me. Three weeks ago at my appointment I had been dilated a fingertip...at 3AM this morning I was 1 1/2 cm dilated and 70% effaced. I had the option of staying and walking for a couple hours to see what happened or going home and trying to rest up for when hard labor begins. Since I was really feeling pretty tired, the midwife strongly suggested I go home and try to rest...and I did, though I'm not sure exactly how I managed to do it.

She also emphasized that I need to drink tons and tons of fluids since labor contractions can take so much out of you. I had been trying to remain hydrated, but apparently I hadn't been trying hard enough, since she indicated I need to drink even more! The nurse at the hospital really convinced me when she told me that dehydration can cause very strong contractions that don't do as much for labor and take away a person's energy prematurely. I figured, ok, maybe that's why some of the contractions were as strong as they were.

We drove home, arriving back at about 4AM. I had some food, since Nyasha had suggested that I eat something solid with a lot of protein. And I drank 3 glasses of fluid immediately and took a huge cup of chamomile tea to bed with me. Somehow I managed to get around 2-3 hours of sleep and felt much better rested by 10AM when we got up for breakfast. We ate then went for a walk in the park, stopping every 3-7 minutes for contractions. Afterwards, I came home and used up all our hot water relaxing in the tub...my contractions started slowing down, so Joe suggested I get out, especially since the water was cooling down a bit anyway.

I laid down and they sat in the bathroom for awhile with contractions 4-5 minutes apart. Around 1PM we had lunch then went out to GNC to get some teas and Alfalfa tablets, since my supply was getting a bit low. Now, at 2:30PM, the contractions are still coming regular and strong but not as strong at Nyasha wants them to be before I come in to have the baby. She wanted to be sure I'm about 4-5 cm dilated before I arrive at the hospital.

The good thing about our middle-of-the-night hospital visit is that we were able to get all the paperwork done so that when I arrive in hard labor, we'll go straight to a room. Unfortunately, I never imagined my early labor would last this long. If I had, I certainly would have tried a lot harder to get some rest. The good thing right now is that I type pretty fast and can get a lot written between contractions! Now I'm about to drink some catnip tea and try to get some more rest.

The big question of the day... will this baby be born before my birthday (tomorrow)?

August 31 - I guess not. Instead, Rebekah Marie Pearson has become the best birthday present I ever received. She was born tonight at 9:09 PM. She weighed in at 7 lbs., 5 oz., and was 20 inches long at birth. She is certainly the most beautiful baby! She had a difficult birth following a long labor. She was born by c-section and had lots of meconium but is perfectly healthy! We are so excited to be the proud parents of this precious little princess.