Congrats on not having to bring him to bed with you!
Yay!
W2S has only worked a couple times for us, and I think it was a fluke. I think she was putting herself back to sleep anyway & didn't need us. It's just weird how sometimes they need us & sometimes they don't. I agree with you that it seems like it must be a special trick someone else knows. My LO will just wake & look at me, and then smile, and then start talking to me, and then there's no going back to sleep.