37 weeks

Hello. I am 37 weeks pregnant, I have 21 days to go until baby Braylee will be here. My cervix is dilated to 1 cm and i’m having contractions once to twice a day. I have not yet lost my mucus plug. Is this something that needs to happen before the real contractions start? This is my second pregnancy but it’s been 7 years since my first; so I can’t quite remember everything from my first pregnancy. Also when will my doctor give me the option to have my baby sooner? Does my cervix have to be opened up to a certain centimeter or is this just something the doctor or decides to do?