Getting ready for labour and delivery

I am now 36 weeks pregnant and baby sites tell me that by the end of this week, my baby will be considered full-term. I am gettting increasingly uncomfortable at night, drawing anxious looks for Dear Hubby as I try in vain to find comfy spots on the couch or lounger to sit in. I wake up every morning now with mild cramps in both my legs, something that I've never had before. Even as I moan and groan, I recognise that I am lucky I've only got aches and pains in the last few weeks of my pregnancy, it's been quite trouble-free so far, and I accept that this is all part of the process.

Everyone keeps talking about contractions and what I should do when I feel them. But what on earth do they really feel like? Most women tell me it's like period pains and that's something I've experienced very little in my lifetime as well! Lately, I've felt my tummy go really hard. I've also felt like my baby suddenly uncurled himself in my tummy and stretched out in all directions. That's a little scary to watch actually because my tummy suddenly bulges out violently in random directions before settling down. And guess what? That's what you call pre-labour contractions. Why didn't anyone say anything before???

So now I know it's just my baby's getting ready to come out and say hello to us and to the world. When exactly... I'm not sure. Everyone assures me that I'll have time to get ready, it's not like an episode of ER where the woman just goes "It's NOW!!!", screams and staggers into the hospital and out pops the wee babe. My friend Shen gave a pretty good account of her experience here. I love her mummy blog, I read it daily and her writings really help me visualise what it's like to go through it all and what it's like to be a mummy. She's a great writer, her topics are well-researched and even if you're not a mum, you'll enjoy reading them.

At labour class yesterday, one mum-to-be raised her hand and said her due date was tomorrow and she felt nothing. She asked if there was anything she could do to rush things along. I didn't understand the nurse's answer in Indon slang which sounded like "pek eh". Cue giggles from everyone else in the class while I looked confused. I asked, "What? Sorry.. I don't understand?" and someone giggled, "She said have sex!" Nurse isn't kidding but read here for more information if you're looking for uh, natural induction.

Am I excited? Yes. I've waited so long to see our little boy. I can't wait to see what he looks like and I can't wait to hold him for real. Am I nervous? Bloody hell, yeah. This isn't something you can practise at and you don't get any training wheels with it. And that's just the labour bit, I haven't even thought about the parenting bit yet. Am I frightened? Yes. Everyone talks about how painful it is but I figured if generations of mothers survived the pain, so will I. I'm trying to keep myself relaxed and flexible regarding the whole birth process so that the Virgo in me doesn't get too hung up if some detail doesn't go according to plan.

I can't believe I'm almost nearing the end of my pregnancy. I can still remember the excitement and joy we both felt when I tested positive, being over the moon when we saw his first scans, heard his first heartbeat, how we'd wait impatiently for each doctor's appointment so that we could see him and now I'm coming close to actually seeing him for real and I'm going to be a mommy!