Weeks 35, 36, and 37 came and went. Lots of prodromal labor. I felt like with all those contractions that my body would go into true/active labor around 38-39 weeks... Surely not much beyond 40 weeks. Right?

My due date on June 4, 2015 came and went. Lots of contractions that week and several times they were so strong and consistent that I thought I MUST BE IN LABOR! Nope. Nothing. Every single time they seemed to be the real thing they would start to fizzle out after several hours. Usually in the middle of the night. I felt like the boy who cried wolf... Or in this case the girl who cried labor.

At my 40 week OB appointment I couldn't take it any more! I requested an induction date to be scheduled for just after 41 weeks. I was going crazy from all the false labor and the fact that they were keeping me up all night long for weeks on end. My induction was set for June 12th at 6am. Finally there was a light at the end of the never ending pregnancy tunnel! I hate an "end date" to this pregnancy. Thank goodness. I was hoping this would help me relax and focus on something other than my false labor. 

Easier said than done. 

There were many nights I would wake up crying because I was still pregnant. When would I be free from this mind game that is false labor?! 

On Monday, June 8th I went in for my first non stress test. Baby was looking great, but my fluid levels were on the lower end of normal. 

On Thursday, June11th I woke up to some contractions. Nothing new at all, but I was always getting my hopes up! I told Josh that he might be staying home. By the time he was ready to leave for work they had fizzled out yet again. I sent him on his way.

Those contractions were mostly gone by the time I had to take the kids to school at 9am. Nothing new. 

 That morning I had my regular OB appointment. For the first time this pregnancy I requested a cervical check. I usually decline them because they really don't tell you how close to labor you are. Things can change at any minute! However, with my induction the next day I wanted to see how favorable my cervix was. Turns out it wasn't favorable at all. I was barely 1cm. In order to be induced I would first require a drug like cervidil to soften my cervix and help it to dilate. I left my doctor's office in tears. I was going to be induced. 

Immediately after my OB appointment I headed over to the hospital for my non stress test. My mom met me there just in case they decided to keep me for some reason. Turns out the my fluid levels had gone down significantly. It went from 9 point something on Monday to 4 point something that day. They were really close to keeping me, but decided to let me go since Jaase was looking great and I already had an induction scheduled for the next morning. 

By the time I made it back home at 2pm I was feeling at peace with the whole situation. I was going to meet my baby soon and the prodromal labor would finally be over with! I had been dealing with it for 6 weeks now. Mentally I couldn't stand another day!

That afternoon when everyone was home we talked to the kids about how we weren't going to be there in the morning because we were going to go have baby Jase. They were all excited it was finally happening. 

That evening Josh asked me if I wanted to go out on one last date before Jase arrived. Of course I jumped at the offer! We had my mom come upstairs to watch the kids. It was about 7pm and close to the kids bedtime. I quickly put my last load of laundry into the dryer... and felt my first decent contraction of the evening. Yay. More prodromal labor, I thought. Right on time. 

We said our goodbyes to the kids knowing that they would be asleep before we got back and we would be leaving early in the morning before they would wake up. (The joys of living an hour from the hospital.) We let them know that Nana and Papa would be the ones to take care of them and be taking them to school in the morning. 

I really wanted some Italian food so we were going to stop in Alpine which is a 35 minute drive from home and the closest place. Before we even got to the freeway I felt another contraction. It was really strong and Josh took notice. I told him it was probably nothing, but it was stronger than my normal nightly ones. 

9 minutes later I felt another one. 9 minutes after that I felt another! Whoa! That one was really strong... I told him that it made me feel a bit panicky and that maybe we should eat closer to the hospital. Just in case. I was certain that it would just fizzle out like always, but that panicked feeling was telling me that I could be wrong. I decided to start timing them. I also messaged some friends about it. I just knew that if I said something and they were false labor that they would stop... Like so many times before. 

I don't think I've ever had that consistently timed contractions before! Even with Ashlyn the times were all over the place. These were exactly 9 min apart and feeling pretty intense. I started getting my hopes up. 

We decided to head over to Olive Garden at Grossmont Center since it's right across the street from the hospital. As we were pulling into the parking I had an even more intense contraction and I told Josh, "Maybe we should just grab some Panda Express to go. I'm not sure I can sit through ordering and eating at a restaurant." He asked me if I was sure... No, I wasn't sure. Ok, ok... I really wanted eggplant parmasean. Olive Garden it is!

The contractions were still coming while ordering, eating, and paying the check. Our poor waitress asked me if I was feeling ok while we were eating. Oh, you know... Just feeling like I'm in labor haha. 

Before we left I suddenly felt like I had to use the bathroom... Whoa there, body. What's going on here? I ended up being stuck in there for several minutes. Poor Josh waited outside for me the whole time. 

When I got out of the restaurant I asked Josh what he wanted to do. I wasn't sure we should head home just yet. He suggested we do some walking, so we headed across the parking lot to Target. The regular mall was closed since it was already 9pm by this time. 

While in Target I had a few more contractions 9 minutes (and closer) apart... and then they stopped! What?! Were all of those just more false labor?! Seriously? I REALLY thought that maybe this was it. Why is my body so stubborn? Why did it do this to me every night?

And then after 20ish minutes a contraction like no others made me stop dead in our tracks. I leaned on Josh and squeezed his hand while it passed... Okay... Maybe they didn't stop. Maybe this WAS it. I still had my doubts, but that one really got me thinking that it could be the real thing. 

We kept walking Target... Going downstairs now to look at bedding and kids clothes. (Found Ashlyn the cutest Despicable Me jammies... She's obsessed with that movie right now.)  While we were down there I suddenly felt the need to run to the bathroom. Shoot! Where are the bathrooms?! I practically dragged Josh back up stairs to the ones at the front of the store. 

While I was stuck in the bathroom Josh kept texting me and asking me to hurry up the store was announcing that they were closing in 10 more min. When I came out we paid for Ashlyn's jammies and started walking back to the truck. I told Josh that we should probably head over to the hospital so I could get checked out. It couldn't hurt. The worst they could say was that I wasn't in labor and they'd send me home. We'd just come back in the morning to have the induction started. I was still timing the contractions...

Josh parked the truck in the parking garage and we walked over to the Women's Center... Why was it so far away?! I just wanted to be in there where I felt safe. The contractions were still coming and getting more intense. I started panicking and walking faster. 

We walked in and gave the l&d desk my name... "Hey! You're our 6am induction, right? Decided to come in early? Haha" They sent Josh over to check me in and they took me straight back into a delivery room! Completely skipped triage. They decided that since we were there they'd just keep me even if I wasn't in active labor. It was 10:15pm by this time and they didn't see a need to send us all the way back to Campo only to have to come back in the morning. 

Whoa! This was happening. I got changed into a hospital gown and laid on the bed. I was hooked up to the monitors and then they checked me. 4cm! What?! I was really in labor?! Seriously?! 

I was in shock that this was actually happening. Did I really go into labor just hours before my induction was scheduled?! 

An hour after being there I was 6cm. The contractions were getting intense. 20 minutes later I was feeling a bit of pressure. They checked me again. 7cm. Whoa! This was happening so fast. ...and then the contractions were getting even more intense and closer together. For about an hour I was debating whether or not I wanted the epidural. It was after midnight and I was getting exhausted I was getting no rest in between them and I just wanted to rest! I was worried that I'd wear myself out at this rate and I wouldn't be able to push when the time came. I broke down and asked my nurse for an epidural. Sweet relief! I was out of pain and I slept! For two hours! I woke up because I was starting to feel the contractions again. Suddenly I felt a ton of pressure. Uh oh. Nurse! She came in and checked me... didn't say a word and ran out of the room. She came back letting me know that my doctor would be there in a minute. 

Oh oh! The pressure! I kept telling them that the pressure was getting intense! The room was set up for delivery, Josh and a nurse held my legs for me because I couldn't feel them and I pushed! Oh that felt good! I pushed through the pressure. 3 times during that contraction. Took a rest. Pushed again on the very next contraction... One push, two push... Head was out! One last push... Shoulders out and he was on my chest! 

I did it! I pushed him out! I had actually been in labor and had him just 2.5 hours before my induction would have been started! He was born at 3:52am on June 12, 2015. 

They left us alone to nurse and bond for 2 hours. They came back in weigh him and do the newborn testing. I really like that change in policy. I loved holding him and not letting go. I loved that everyone cleared out of the room as soon as the placenta was delivered. 

He was 7lbs, 12oz and 20.25" long. Exactly the same as Josiah and perfect in every way. 

We started the night out on a date and ended it with having a baby. It couldn't have been more perfect! 

Welcome to the world, baby Jase!

Knowing the end is so near, yet you never know exactly when the process will start. Could it happen in the next few hours? Or are there still days... weeks left? I know for sure it will be within the next 2.5 weeks, but WHEN?! Is this yet another false contraction I'm having? Or is this the beginning of active labor? Will I know or will I deny it for hours like I did with my other non induced labors? Are we going to make it to the hospital in time? Where will my kids be when I go into labor? Will I be alone with them? Will it be in the middle of the night or when my 2 oldest are in school? 

It's so easy to say keep distracted... Read a book... Keep your mind on something else... Play with your kids... Go clean something... 

It's HARD! 

It's always in the back of my mind. Nagging at me. I'm almost to my breaking point. 

Almost. 

When I reach that point and I feel like I just can't take another second will it start? Or will I be forced to go another week? 

It's easy to be on the outside looking in. It's easy to say, "Hey, your due date isn't even until next Thursday! Relax!" It's easy to sit on the outside while I go through hours of false labor contractions and wonder why I'm so anxious. I didn't think I would be this anxious about the end, but I am. I'm driving myself crazy. I just want the waiting game to stop. I just want the prodromal labor to stop torturing me day in and day out. 

I want a normal pregnancy where the start of labor is clear. I want there to be a pattern to my labor contractions unlike my previous ones which made me question things. 

I just want to have my baby in my arms already!!! 

Please? 

Crazy, right?

I'm the worst blogger on the planet... Oh well. So yeah, I found out I was pregnant with a happy surprise at the beginning of October when AF never showed up. I decided to take a test just for the heck of it thinking that there was no way it would be positive. After all, I had JUST given away the last of my baby gear and had sold off all of my baby carriers so that we could start buying toddler sized ones. 

Do you SEE how bright blue that line is?! It popped up within seconds of taking the test. There was no second guessing if there was a second line or not. I was shocked to say the least. 

It's taken me a long time to actually come to terms with being pregnant yet again. We weren't supposed to have any other babies! Ashlyn was it. Four kids was "our number". 

I'm still in shock about the whole thing, but we're all so excited for baby Jase to arrive! Yes! Another boy! (I'm pretty sure Ashlyn was a total fluke...)

And this brings me to today... 37 weeks and 5 days along. 

I can't believe that some time in the next few weeks our newest family member will arrive! I'm looking forward to writing out his birth story... It seems like that's the only thing I actually manage to blog about in a semi-timely manner. ;)

Speaking of washing my hair... 

People with dreads DO WASH THEIR HAIR! I've already had so many people ask me if I'm allowed to wash it. The big fat answer is a HUGE YES! I think I mentioned this in one of my first posts. Hair will not dread unless it's clean. Have you ever let your hair go a day or two between washing it and it's a greasy nasty oily mess? (I know I have... especially when my kids where newborns and I could barely get in a bite to eat, nevermind a full shower with a hair wash!) Oily hair is stringy looking, feels gross, and looks gross. 

In order for your hair to knot you need it to be squeaky clean with no conditioners. 

I think what people are mistaking for not washing your hair is the fact that most dreadheads will go longer between washes. I promise, there's a reason for this... and I also promise, our hair doesn't stink. ;) When you start your dreads you want to get your scalp to produce less oil than before. Before I started mine I was washing my hair every day and could barely go 24 hours between washes. If I went any longer then my hair was super oily. With all that frequent washing, brushing and running my fingers through my hair I was basically telling my scalp to produce more oil. By stretching out my washing little by little and switching to baking soda/acv to wash my hair I can go even longer before my hair starts to get oily. One of the other big reasons you want to space out your washing is because as your dreads mature they get 30-50% thicker. All those thick dreads take a LONG time to dry! You want your hair to fully dry before you have to wash it again... Could you imagine always having your hair wet? It would probably start to stink and smell like mildew. Ick.

So there you have it... I feel a bit weird admitting that I'm trying to space out my hair washing. I still shower every day (in case you were wondering lol), but I now use a shower cap on my non-wash days. I'm now up to washing my hair every 2-3 days. For example, I washed my hair on Tuesday and my next wash day will be on Friday morning. The week before I started my dreads I was going every other day. 

If you're planning to start dreads, know that it will take some time for your hair and scalp to adjust to a different routine. If I had to start over I wouldn't be so impatient and I'd let my hair adjust BEFORE I started them.

Sorry... I got a little crazy about washing... Anyway, no real changes as far as looks go from last week. I can see some little loopies starting to form in some dreads and my roots are so loose on some of them. Both are completely normal and I'm just letting my hair do it's own thing. I've decided not to do any crochet hooking or sewing in the frizz. If not done right that will only cause damage and it's really only a temporary fix. If you start doing it, you're going to have to keep on doing it. I don't have time for that! I'm a mom of 4 kids... I wanted dreads so that I could be lazy with my hair, not have to do more work! lol I'm only half kidding about that. ;)

Oh! I almost forgot... I think I'm getting some shrinkage!

THEY GET LOOSE AND MESSY LOOKING- My twist and rip dreads started off so thick and tight... after the first wash they started loosening up at the roots. Then they started loosening up through the whole section. Some worse than others. This is completely normal. If you get to this point try not to mess with them too much. You don't need a crochet hook or to do any sort of maintenance on them. That's only going to slow down your progress and take your dreads even longer to mature. They WILL loosen before they start to tighten up. Headbands will be your new best friend.

I'M NOW OBSESSED WITH HEAD WRAPS & HEADBANDS AND ALL THINGS DREAD RELATED! - I love window shopping for head gear! From wraps to headbands, to beads, to beanies. There's so many things you can do with dreads! You don't want to put decorations in your hair while your dreads are still young... As fun as they look, your dreads really need to be free to loc up. I've heard that you can put in embroidery thread in a criss cross pattern and be ok. I'm planning to put some in soon. I have a ton of it from my friendship bracelet making days!






YOUR WASH ROUTINE WILL CHANGE - If you weren't doing the "no poo" method of washing your hair before, I highly recommend starting it before you start your dreads. You need your hair extra clean and residue-free before you put in your dreads. I've learned that my hair absolutely LOVES being washed with baking soda. I've never had my hair feel so healthy and clean before. If you've never heard of this before here's some good info on how to wash with baking soda and vinegar. There's also lots of dread shampoo out there. Some are really good and others not so good. I really like this list on the Raging Roots Studio website. Besides the baking soda I also splurged and bought some foaming dread shampoo from a shop on Etsy called My Tangled Knots. It's on the approved list of shampoos on the Raging Roots site. :) You can find her Etsy shop here. I bought the Tea Tree one based on the fact that Tea Tree oil is supposed to be good for your scalp. If I like it I plan to go back and buy the Orange-Tangerine one. Sounds like it smells so yummy!

So there you have it, week one... I've been getting a lot of questions from friends about dreadlocks and I hope I've answered their questions either in this post or my last one. If you have any questions about my experience so far you can find me on Instagram under the name: @cambrayah. I'd be happy to help you! Or if you're friends with me on FB, you can always message me. :)

I plan to post again soon so check back!

Week 37 came and went... week 38... week 39... week 40... Ok, baby, any day now!

40 weeks along...

Nothing. Just more Prodromal Labor. 

At my 40 week appointment I told my doctor that I would not be scheduling an induction because I just knew that my body would do what it needed to do. That my baby would come when she was ready. 

On Wednesday, July 17th I was 40 weeks and 6 days. I was so anxious to meet my baby girl and I had talks with her on more than one occasion telling her that she can come any time now... I posted this picture on Instagram that afternoon. I asked everyone if they thought I had dropped:

Everyone said they thought I was looking a lot lower. Yay! Getting closer!

That night I went through more prodromal labor contractions... I was used to it by then and just ignored them. I put my boys to bed and laid down with my hubby. 

At around 1:30am on Thursday morning I woke up to a contraction. Great. More stupid prodromal labor... Just let me sleeeeepp! When I didn't feel another one come on I fell back asleep. At 3:02am I woke up to another one. This time it was a lot stronger. I woke my hubby with my moaning. He asked me if I was having a contraction... Umm... That would be a yes. I turned to him and said, "You might be calling in to work today..." He asked me why. "Because we might be having a baby today!!" I really didn't think this was the real deal just yet and I have no idea what made me say that. I told him to go back to sleep and I would let him know if I had any more. Well, another one came... And another. And another. I decided that I should start timing them. Or at least making notes. 

At around 6am I sent a text to my mom telling her that I had been having contractions since 1:30am. I told her that I still didn't think this was the real thing, but that I was going to be getting myself and the kids ready for the day just in case. I sent Josh off to work and I took a shower before the kids woke up. I told him that I really didn't think this was *it*, but that I would call him if things got worse. During my 20 minute shower I felt 2 more weak contractions... Ok, they're gonna slow down and go away like usual. I sent a text to my mom telling her what I thought. She said that I was in denial and that she was coming over "just in case". A minute later I got a text from Josh telling me that he was coming home and taking the day off. "Just in case". I told him to please not come home. That it would just be a waste of time. At this point I didn't have a single contraction for a whole hour. I got everyone's hopes up for nothing. I called my mom and told her that it was a false alarm and that josh was coming home so she didn't have to bother coming. 

I posted this on Instagram:

And then a contraction like no other hit. It took me down to my knees in my kitchen. I had to breath through it and I couldn't say anything to the boys. Okaaaay... Maybe this WAS it. 

I called Josh and told him what happened and that maybe he should come home after all. Just in case. I was still thinking that they would stop and it would be yet another false alarm. 

The contractions continued... I called my mom back and told her that Josh was coming home and that we were going to take the kids to her along with their overnight bags. Just in case. 

The car ride was awful! More contractions were coming and a few of them were really intense. It was pretty hard to sit in the car through them. 

After dropping off the kids and their stuff we headed into Josh's work to talk to the front office ladies who were all really excited for us. I told them that I still didn't think this was the real thing and that Josh would be back the next day. They told Josh to take me to an air conditioned mall, feed me lunch and walk with me. It was really hot out that day and some a/c sounded nice. 

I was still timing the contractions...

So we headed to the mall to walk the baby out... While we were there I noticed that Josh had left my hospital bag at my mom's house and we had the boys backpack in the car. Oops. We decided to get something to eat before we headed back over to trade the bags. 

Mmm... We stopped at the new restaraunt there - Five Guys.

It was so good, but there was no way I could finish the whole thing. No one even noticed that I was sitting there having labor contractions... They were getting closer together and more intense. 

After we took the bag back to my mom's house I wanted to head home to try to take a nap. We had been up since 3am and were exhausted. 

Back at home I tried laying down to rest, but I was too uncomfortable to sit still. I was also keeping Josh awake with my tossing and turning. 

I took this right before heading downstairs...

So I went downstairs and starting bouncing on my yoga ball while updating everyone on Facebook. My contractions started picking up all of sudden and the yoga ball just wasn't cutting it any more. I found relief by getting down on my hands and knees and rocking back and forth. With every new contraction I was having to breathe through them and concentrate. They were still about 30 minutes apart. I couldn't imagine how intense they would be when they got closer! These were already barely manageable. I went upstairs to try laying down again. Josh was asleep...but not for long.  

While laying down I had a the most intense contraction and couldn't move. I was moaning so loud that I woke Josh up from his nap. I told him that maybe we should head in to the hospital. Just in case. 

Right before we left, my contractions were suddenly coming 5 minutes apart! Ok, so maybe this WAS it! That last contraction at home was long and so intense. I started thinking about an epidural right then and how badly I wanted one!

Josh rushed me over to the hospital and walked me inside. By this time it was just after 4pm. I signed in and they took me to a triage room to get checked out. Josh left to go park the car in the parking garage and the nurse left me in the room to change into an ugly gown. 

As I was waiting my contractions were continuing to get closer together and so intense. I started panicking because no one was in the room with me. I laid down on the bed and just started moaning through the contractions that kept coming. Finally after what seemed like forever the nurse came back to tell me that a delivery room was being cleaned for me, but wouldn't be ready for a few more minutes. They hadn't even checked me for dilation yet, but I'm guessing that they could tell I was close by the guttural sounds I was making with each wave that came over me. 

As the nurse was asking me question after question Josh walked in and she turned her questions to him since I could no longer answer them. After the million questions, she checked me. 5cm. Yup, I was staying. I was so excited! This was REALLY it! 

Suddenly the contractions got so intense that I was begging for an epidural. I told the nurse that I had already done this naturally with baby #2 and that I wanted the epidural because I couldn't take any more! I was shaking... Apparently going through transition... But I didn't notice. All I knew was that I couldn't take it any more and I wanted relief. By this time it was just before 5pm. My room was finally ready. There was no way I could walk so they wheeled my bed into my delivery room. They asked me to sit up and transfer beds. Yeah right, I thought! After they helped me into the bed I begged them again for the epi... But then the nurse checked me again. 9cm. Holy crap! That was fast! They told me that my doctor was just 10 minutes away. They also informed me that it was too late for an epi and I was too far dilated for any drugs. (That was what I was begging for next.) Yup... It was too late. I started saying that I felt almost ready to push. It was then that my doctor walked in. She just barely made it! She asked the nurse if my water had broken yet. I told them that it hadn't, but they insisted that the triage bed was wet and that it had. Whatever. Don't listen to the pregnant lady. Then I told them that I had to pee! What the heck?! Who has to get up and pee at 10cm?! The doctor told me to just go... Soooo... I did. Josh was cracking up. There is no modesty in child birth. :P 

(Suddenly the lights went out. Seriously?! A blackout during my baby's birth?!)

After I was comfortable again I felt the need to push... As I was pushing my bag of waters popped. 

In my doctors face. 

So not only did I pee in her face, my amniotic fluid got all over her too. I warned them that it didn't break yet! They should have listened! She then got smart and had the nurse put a face shield on her lol. It was a little late though because with that push my baby's head came through. Another tiny push and her shoulders were out and then she slid right out. Omg relief! The ring of fire is no joke... I felt EVERYTHING. Once she was out I felt completely normal again. 

No one announced if my baby was a boy or a girl! I just knew this whole pregnancy that we would end up with boy #4 so I HAD to know! Is she really a girl?! That was the first thing out of my mouth... They held her up and sure enough... A perfect tiny little girl was born at 5:25pm. 

She started nursing within a few minutes of birth. She latched right on and was a perfectly alert nurser. I felt great and was thanking my lucky stars that I arrived too late for an epidural. I was able to get right up out of bed to clean myself off as soon as our first nursing session was done. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn't change a thing. It was the easiest labor and delivery I've had to date. 

I'm so happy that I got my little girl. We all love and adore her so much. I finally feel like my family is complete. :)