Who says you need to practice?
As much as I’m all about practicing (always get on my students case about it), this practice labor is a major PITB!! Especially since for me, the practice contractions feel remarkably similar to the real ones, just a little lower intensity. I spent most of yesterday having contractions that were pretty close together, not terribly painful, but present and fairly consistent. Well, I’m still preggo this morning, so clearly they weren’t actually advancing the process, just annoying the heck out of me! Ick!
I did give the midwife a call, just in case. Not because I actually thought it was the “real” thing, mostly because I had not idea. I’m just sure that this time around I’m not going to KNOW when I’m in labor, and then suddenly, “shoot, gotta push and it’s just me and the babes!” I suppose if #3 wasn’t super, ultra low (AKA – right at the exit point!), and if RNR’s birth had been anything other than precipitous, I wouldn’t worry too much. Such is not the case. So, being the realistic people that we are, we are prepping NOR for the possibility of having to deliver his sibling. Might seem a little crazy to be prepping a 3-yr old, but crazy times call for crazy measures! He’s actually got the process down. When we ask him what he should do if mommy starts having the baby and daddy isn’t home, he consistently gives a detailed and correct sequence of events. I found a really good vid for him to watch . . he wanted to see it over and over again. Then we watched maybe 3 or 4 other birth videos . . .he was so enthralled. RNR kept pointing and saying “baby coming! baby coming!”. So if the practice suddenly turns real, all should be well. Of course, we are all hoping that it will happen when daddy is home, but you never know. We don’t have much faith that I’ll know when to call the midwife so that she’ll be able to arrive in time, so we are preparing for another unassisted birth. Ah, such fun.
But I digressed from the original point . . . . prodromal labor sucks and is a PITB! I quit timing the contraction some time last night, and I fully intent to ignore them from here on out! All I can say is, my uterus better be SUPER toned by the time #3 is actually ready to pop out!
A Diva Moment 
good luck! I’m sure everything will go well.
Hope everything goes great!
I’ll be there in a couple of days, love u
My hat is off to you SUPER MOMMY! 3 babes in 3+ years is incredible – you’re definitely an old pro (more emphasis on the “pro” than the “old”). Many blessings to you and your family!