It's good to know that you're body is getting ready! As Anahata said above, though, none of that will tell you when your baby is coming. I went into labor with my first just about closed and tight, had a natural, 9 hour labor. My 2nd baby- I was 4cm and 80% effaced for WEEKS, and had a 32 hour labor. I don't know about babies 3 or 4, because after the experience with #2, I decided I didn't want to be checked in late pregnancy and get my hopes up for a birth that was coming soon, or a birth that would be fast. There's just no way to predict it!
This time, I'm okay with cervical checks, but that's really only because I've been contracting so much, it makes me feel better to know that the contractions aren't just annoying, but they are actually doing something. LOL Right now I'm only a fingertip dilated, but 70% effaced, and my cervix is so soft it's mushy. My cervix is also very low (which is different for me, it's usually like climbing the Alps to find my cervix until time to push), and the baby is low as well. All of these things tell me NOTHING about what labor will be like or when, they only tell me that the contractions I've been having are slowly preparing my body.
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