Calling All Mommies! Coincidence or Not?

So to all the mommies who have been here before me, is it coincidence? Olivia's pediatrician swears to us that a baby sleeping through the night is a developmental thing and has nothing to do with starting solids/purees. However, most of who we talk to say their kid started sleeping through the night when they started to eat solid food. So how can this be? Could it be coincidental that right around the time babies are supposed to begin eating more than just milk, their night sleeping develops alongside? Or in your experience, do the two coincide...and have a direct relation?

A little background. In the food department, I have just slightly been introducing purees. She doesn't have alot of interest, so I am just taking my time, trusting the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) and their following quotation that solids only complement breast milk at this stage: "Exclusive breastfeeding is ideal nutrition and sufficient to support optimal growth and development for approximately the first 6 months after birth... Gradual introduction of iron-enriched solid foods in the second half of the first year should complement the breast milk diet. It is recommended that breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months, and thereafter for as long as mutually desired.." I have no schedule or routine for introducing solids. But so far, I have introduced rice cereal, pears, applesauce, sweet potatoes, & butternut squash. In the sleep department, first let me say Olivia really is a good sleeper, for the most part. Her regular routine is this: I nurse her around 7pm and she is asleep and in her crib at 7:30pm. She will usually wake about 5 hours later; around 12:30am. At this time, I usually nurse her and she falls back asleep. Sometimes she will sleep until 6 or 7am. Other times, like last night, she wakes at 5am, crying and wanting to be nursed again. So she pretty much is sleeping through the night, even though I nurse her around midnight when we are both still in mid-sleep anyway. It's just the 5am time we struggle with from time to time. (Oh, also let me add, I try to put her back in her crib after I nurse her, but sometimes we both fall asleep and it's not until 3 or 4 & I wake up to realize she's still with me, that I put her back...maybe this is what she likes- sleeping with me and it isn't a hunger issue..?)

My dilemma? I hear from alot of people that (like I said) their kids started sleeping through the night once they began to have fuller tummies. The pediatrician says they have nothing to do with each other, and sleeping through the night is a developmental skill. Her doctor has told me, "Olivia isn't hungry in the middle of the night. She probably just wants to eat, but she really doesn't need to eat." Now, my dilemma is: do I cease feeding her in the middle of the night (the "habit" as her dr would refer to it as) and up the annie on the purees during the day in hopes that she begins to sleep through the night? If we go this route, we have decided to let her "cry-it-out", which would entail at least 3 pretty rough nights of sleep-training. Or, continue what we're doing and risk having to break an even bigger habit later on down the line?

By the way, Olivia turned 7 months today. And when I look at this way, I tend to think maybe it is just a habit and that she could go about 12 hours without food. I have realized just how different every baby is, so I'm not sure it's fair for the dr to say so matter-of-factly that she isn't hungry. At the same time, I know Livi and it very well could be just a habit. So what was your experience in this? Any advice for us? Thanks!