Had to put my neighbors on stand by last night...

Around 10pm last night, I started having regular intervals that began as cramps and ended with a hard belly.  My contractions haven't felt like this before, but I was starting to get worried when they were exactly 5 minutes apart for about an hour, and being that it was getting late, I had to put my neighbors that have volunteered to help with DD if I go into labor middle of the night, on stand-by.  After the first hour they started to become more erratic- anywhere from 9-20 minutes apart, but went on for a while before I could fall asleep.  I then woke up every so often with a contraction throughout the night.  This morning all is quiet.  Go figure! 

I wonder if it had anything to do with the internal check I had yesterday at the doctor's office.  It really hurt and I've been sore all yesterday and this morning from it.