Tidbits of Advice: Must Have #2 (A timer!)

So, sometimes li'l miss MVJ is a little bugger. Letting her "cry it out" is really tough for me, but JJ helps assure me that sometimes that's just what babies need to do. I do not recommend using that strategy with very new babies. I read somewhere that new babies are learning to trust, so you want to let them know that when they cry, you are doing something about it. But, when they get older, crying is a way they wind down. MVJ is *sort of* getting into a routine. She has a general morning nap, afternoon nap, evening nap and bedtime! Sometimes we are the culprits who throw off her schedule, and then we know when we've pushed it too far and she's gotten overtired. But, anyways, back to Must Have Item #2! Like I said, letting her cry it out is tough for me, so SIL LJ recommended a timer. She said one of her friends set a timer for 10 minutes to assure herself that it really hadn't been "forever". Especially at her afternoon nap, it seems that MVJ cries it out for a bit. I set the timer for 10 minutes, and usually she is asleep by 5. If not, I do go in and check to make sure everything's ok -- does she need a diapey change that I missed? Is she too hot or cold? Usually a small intervention is all she needs and she's back off to sleepyland.