Contractions at 35 weeks

Okay, I am 35 weeks 1 day today. I have had contractions all day today, with a lot of cramping and some back pain as well. They are not really consistent but have been going on all day. They started out just annoying and uncomfortable and then got a little more uncomfortable, with some being painful. I timed them a few times during the day to see where they were at. They would be 3 or 4 minutes apart, then would stretch out to 9 or 10, then back to 3. It was hard to time them because the cramps never really went away, but I would get a pain every once in a while (I'm assuming the peak of the ctx).

Well, I didn't call the dr. because I don't think it was the real thing and I hate calling the dr., lol. He would have had me come in to get monitored to tell me that they were nothing and send me home. Just a waste of my time. I did talk to my doula and she told me to pay attention to cervical mucous changes (I had been leaking last week and didn't know if it was amniotic fluid or urine, lol. It since changed to mucousy discharge, but not colored). She told me if the ctx continued throughout the day after I rested to call her back. Well, I wasn't able to rest. I was at work, so that wasn't an option. And, I come home to care for a 2 1/2 year old by myself, so again not an option.

So, I guess my question is (sorry this has gotten so long), at what point do I call the dr. to get checked? I don't want to go in to the hospital before i have to. I would prefer to labor at home. I am also having a VBAC, so if I go in and I am dilating and he makes me stay, my chances of natural labor go down a ton because I will be pinned to a bed and not allowed to walk around. Okay, thanks so much if you actually made it this far! I can't believe I typed so much! lol